Girard looks to KSU for economic plan

By John W. Goodwin Jr.

Officials will receive a proposal by the end of the month.

GIRARD — Council members are looking to put an economic development plan in place for the city, and they are hoping a group from Kent State University can help in that effort.

Councilmen Brian Kren, Larry Williams and Tom Seidler met with Christopher Diehl, director of the Urban Design Center at Kent State University, for a brainstorming session earlier this week.

The center works to improve the quality of urban areas through technical design assistance, research, education and advocacy.

Seidler told Diehl the city once had many stores that have now closed because of growth and development in surrounding communities. He said city leaders no longer want to see this in the future.

“The three things that attract people to a community are is it safe, is it clean, and [quality of ] the schools. We have made progress in these areas. Now the issue is what can we do with economic development,” Seidler said. “I am tired of sitting around and waiting for the other shoe to fall or another business to close, then cutting the budget back. It’s time to start taking a look at what we can do.”

Seidler said the city does have a lot of commercial land available, particularly in the downtown area, but there must be a plan in place to determine what to do with the land and how to market the area.

“I would like to see our downtown filled with mom-and-pop shops,” he said. “We are in a prime location right off of the highway [U.S. Route 422].”

Kren said a plan for the downtown area will be critical if the city hopes to attract any grant funding that can go toward revitalizing or developing downtown parcels.

Should any plan devised for the city include zoning changes, Williams said that is something council will likely be willing to entertain.

Diehl told the lawmakers there is no quick fix or fast track to a suitable economic development plan, but he did show them a plan devised by his organization for the city of Hubbard several years ago. The Hubbard plan also encompassed that city’s downtown area.

“I don’t see any reason why we can’t emulate that [plan] in some form or fashion here,” Seidler said.

Diehl said a plan similar to the one devised for Hubbard would cost near $30,000. A plan for the entire city would likely cost between $70,000 and $100,000.

Kren said he will draft a proposal for city officials to consider. The proposal will not cost the city any money and will be completed by the end of the month.

Once the proposal has been completed, city officials will have to decide whether to accept it and move forward with drafting the economic plan.

jgoodwin@vindy.com