Valley County Economic Development Council, Inc., Minutes
Oct 22, 2014, 4:00—6:00 pm
Kelly’s Whitewater Park, Cascade, Idaho
Members present: David Papiez, Jonne Hower, Don Bailey, Scotty Davenport, Rob Terry, Sherry Maupin, Bill Willey
Members absent: Cami Hedges, Karla Miller, Nic Swanson
Non-members present: Michelle Groenevelt, City of McCall; Anne LaBelle, Midas Gold; Melissa Hamilton, Valley County Extension Service; Kathleen Wilson; Blake Watson, Idaho Power.
Presiding: David Papiez
David called the meeting to order at 4:05 pm and welcomed guests and members.
Secretary’s & Treasurer’s Reports
The minutes of the Sep 17, 2014 meeting were approved as written. There were no changes to the August Financial Report.
2015 Strategic Plan
- There was general discussion about the four Strategies and Objectives supporting each Strategy. Sherry moved the Council adopt the 2015 Strategic Plan with the addition of “electrical generation” to Objective 4.1. David seconded and the motion passed unanimously.
- Directors volunteered to work on subcommittees for each Strategy. It was felt that each subcommittee would work independently and report on actions taken during the monthly Council meetings. Subcommittees would identify specific projects and work toward obtaining funding for those projects. The subcommittees are:
- Strategy 1: Sector Development – David, Don, Sherry
- Strategy 2: Local Entrepreneurship – Jonne, David, Karla (tentative), Nic (tentative)
- Strategy 3: Asset Development – Sherry, Karla (tentative) Don, Scotty, Bill
- Strategy 4: Import Substitution – Scotty, Rob, Jonne
- It was noted that the Executive Committee (David, Rob, Jonne) would explore funding for administration for VCEDC, including funding for an Executive Officer.
- David asked representatives from the cities of McCall, Donnelly, and Cascade to seek support for the 2015 Strategic Plan from their respective cities. It was suggested the Resolution adopted by each city could be updated. This would provide VCEDC an opportunity to describe the accomplishments of 2013 and 2014 and highlight upcoming projects.
America’s Best Communities
- Sherry and Scotty described the America’s Best Communities contest sponsored by Frontier Communications. The Greater McCall Area Chamber of Commerce is working on compiling information to submit. They are representing all of Valley County and southern Adams County in this contest. The Chamber is planning on completing the application prior to the beginning of the December holiday season.
- Following discussion, the Council agreed to support the submission for this contest. Scotty and Sherry volunteered to draft a letter of support for David’s signature.
Round Table, Calendar & Public Input
- The next VCEDC meeting will be Nov 19, 2015, in Donnelly; location TBD.
- David reported that Midas Gold has offered to give Council member’s a tour of their site. Following discussion, the Council suggested a possible October 26, 2014 tour. David will confirm and distribute details prior to then.
- Rob announced that a team from Cascade had been awarded a grant to attend a Community Mobility Workshop sponsored by the Sonoran Institute.
- Blake Watson offered to provide an update on Idaho Power’s regional electric plan and economic development opportunities at a future VCEDC meeting.
- Melissa Hamilton, Valley County Extension, announced she is conducting an informal Needs Assessment in conjunction with an Open House at the Extension office, 108 W Pine St, Cascade, Oct 23, 4:30 pm-6:30 pm.
- There was no additional public input
The meeting concluded at 5:45 pm.