CREDC: County funding signals we’re ready to work together

CREDC-Spotlight
A 2015 photo of Columbia River Economic Development Council staff.

The Clark County Board of Councilors has voted to restore annual funding to the Columbia River Economic Development Council (CREDC).

The board’s 3-2 vote on Tuesday reestablishes the county’s $100,000 annual contract with Southwest Washington’s largest public/private economic development organization, nearly three years after county councilors (then commissioners) curbed it.

“Clark County’s formal re-engagement with the CREDC is a strong signal to the business community that we are ready to work together to advance our local economy,” said Mike Bomar, president of the CREDC. “The CREDC and our partners are grateful to the county staff, the Board of County Councilors, and our community supporters, who have worked hard to restore this important partnership.”

While the organization never stopped working with county staff on economic development over the past two-and-a-half years, Bomar said the renewed funds represent a critical piece of the CREDC’s budget moving forward.

“[These funds] will allow us to move forward on key initiatives this year, including an update to our comprehensive economic development plan,” he said.

Bomar admitted that reestablished support from the board “takes some of the clouds that have been hanging over, away.”

“It’s nice to be able to do [our work] in the light, in a way that we don’t have to worry about the political side and we can really focus in on the work that we do,” he said.

Councilors David Madore and Tom Mielke voted against restoring the CREDC’s funding. Councilors Marc Boldt, Julie Olson and Jeanne Stewart voted in favor.

In January 2013, when councilors Madore and Mielke originally voted against renewing the CREDC’s annual contract, the pair said it was due to the organization’s support of the Columbia River Crossing project.

During Tuesday’s board meeting, Councilor Madore once again brought up the failed bridge project, and he and Mielke both questioned whether the county can afford another six-figure investment to the CREDC (the board recently approved a separate $100,000 county/CREDC contract to identify development-ready land).

“We’re spending money like a drunken sailor,” cautioned Mielke.

When asked about the concerns held by councilors Madore and Mielke, Bomar said one of the goals of the CREDC is to raise tax revenue for the county through increased economic activity and jobs.

“A large single project can have a decades-long impact on stronger tax revenues and greater employment results, and ultimately that feeds back into what the county does in terms of health and public safety,” he said. “When we are raising wages, when we are raising the quality of jobs and the number of jobs in our area, it relieves some of the burden in other areas. We certainly don’t see [this contract with the county] as a charitable donation. We see it as a strong investment.

“Economic development is not all created equal,” Bomar added. “It really comes back to the quality of the people involved, the quality of the plan and the ability to execute it. I think we have that here, and I am very confident both as a tax payer and as the president of the CREDC that it is a good investment.”

Bomar testified that as of this week, the CREDC is involved in 21 active business recruitment projects including 10 in manufacturing, three in distribution/logistics, two in IT/software, one in bio-science and five in professional services. The organization is currently assisting more than 30 local businesses with expansion projects.

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