Valley should rally forces in bid for 'zone' funding

Forget about the third time being a charm, or the federal government owing a debt to the Mahoning Valley, or even the unfairness of Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati grabbing the lion's share of federal and state dollars. The bottom line, when it comes to a federal empowerment zone designation, is that the Valley controls its own destiny.
This is not to suggest that the region should forgo any lobbying of the Bush White House and the Republican-dominated Congress.
Indeed, President Bush is well aware that the two major cities, Youngstown and Warren, are in need of substantial help from Washington. A day after he won the Republican nomination for president last August, Bush visited Youngstown and met with Mayor George M. McKelvey and several community leaders. He heard their pitch for an empowerment zone designation.
Also last year, U.S. Sen. Mike DeWine, R-Ohio, promised to help the region secure such a designation if he got on the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee. DeWine now sits on the committee.
Such connections could prove invaluable.
Competition: But in the end, if the application for an empowerment zone either jointly from Youngstown and Warren or individually from each city fails to stand out from the hundreds submitted to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, having friends in all the high places won't make a difference.
HUD evaluates the applications objectively using a formula that considers numerous factors about a community. As Youngstown and Warren separately and jointly have learned, the decision-makers aren't impressed with the story of how the region's economy collapsed when the major steel plants shut their doors.
Instead, one of the main issues that HUD officials look at is how much of a commitment financially or otherwise a community is willing to make to secure the millions of dollars from Washington.
Thus it would be foolhardy to think of the third time's being a charm when empowerment zone applications become available by the end of April.
It will be Round 3 for the program, and it could well be Valley's last chance to secure a designation. President Bush isn't a fan of empowerment zones and has talked about replacing them with a program that focuses on enticing businesses to poverty-ridden inner cities by providing federal tax breaks and other incentives.
Nine zones: HUD has announced that there will be seven urban and two rural zone designated and that while funding from the federal government may be structured differently from rounds one and two, the designations will be in place for 10 years.
What will it take for Youngstown and Warren to be successful this time around?
First, local officials must figure out why the two previous applications were rejected. It isn't enough to blame former President Bill Clinton, a Democrat, for not helping this predominantly Democratic area.
And it certainly isn't helpful to dwell on Congressman James A. Traficant Jr.'s strained relationship with the Clinton White House. Indeed, Traficant of Poland, D-17th, has such a close working relationship with the Republican leadership in Congress that he was able to secure $26.8 million for a convocation and civic center for downtown Youngstown.
Once the flaws in the previous applications have been identified, then it is important for both Youngstown and Warren to decide whether a joint application is the preferred route.
Tall order: And finally, the application must be developed with the input of as many people as possible. All the expertise in this region must be tapped to ensure that the it is not only perfect, but is impossible for HUD to reject. Yes, that is a tall order.
It is also essential that a consultant be hired who has a track record of developing successful applications.
In a nutshell, the time has come for the Mahoning Valley to get its act together and not give the federal government a reason to say no.
In 1999, Washington committed $3.8 billion in federal grants and other assistance to 15 urban and five rural communities to spur job creation and neighborhood revitalization over the next decade. Cincinnati and Columbus were among the 15, which has prompted Traficant to urge Congress to create a special category that would prevent cities like Youngstown and Warren from having to compete with the heavyweights.
We would urge the Bush administration and Congress to embrace Traficant's recommendation. It is time to level the playing field.