EDITORIAL: County support critical for economic health

Kootenai County’s rightful place as Visionary Champion for economic development is in jeopardy.

The Board of County Commissioners has sent up smoke signals that its $50,000 annual commitment to the county’s public/private economic development agency, Coeur d’Alene Area Economic Development Corporation, might miss the cut in the upcoming budget.

We respectfully ask commissioners Bill Brooks, Bruce Mattare and Leslie Duncan to reconsider.

While that level of sponsorship — which has earned the county CDAEDC’s highest status, Visionary Champion — represents a serious chunk of money, the economic development agency offers something other budget line items do not: tangible, immediate and ongoing Return On Investment.

The companies that CDAEDC has directly attracted here since 2015 and those already here that the economic development agency has helped survive and grow, represent more than $182 million in payroll through 3,500 new jobs.

That’s a powerful influence on quality of life, but there’s more: The annual tax impact of those companies and jobs is more than $1.7 million, providing an important revenue stream directly to the county. At the very least, Kootenai County is breaking even on that $50,000 investment while sustaining a tremendous, positive impact on the community overall.

We mentioned earlier that CDAEDC is a public/private partnership, which means private businesses and individuals, as well as government entities, contribute financially and through hard work on the organization’s board of directors.

That board is a who’s who of Kootenai County’s most respected citizens and professionals; the contributing companies, including Avista, Kootenai Health, The Hagadone Corporation, Jacklin Riverbend, and many others, represent thousands of employees and hundreds of years of service to the community.

Outstanding public partners range from the cities of Coeur d’Alene, Post Falls, Hayden and Rathdrum to North Idaho College and the University of Idaho. There is no other partnership like CDAEDC in the region that represents so many diverse interests focused on one common goal: the economic health of Kootenai County.

At the organization’s annual meeting last month, Nathan Ohle, president and CEO of the International Economic Development Council, issued encouragement and a warning in a clear call for support.

"If you don't continue to invest time, effort, money and resources in this work," Ohle said, "in five years, you're going to say, 'Why didn't we invest?'"

Kootenai County’s commissioners have long understood the importance of investing in local economic development. Here’s hoping that commitment is unwavering.