Clallam Networks Economic Development Study

In 1999, Clallam County, Washington -- a northern slice of the the Olympic Peninsula, including Sequim, Port Angeles, Forks, the Makah Indian Reservation and a big chunk of the Olympic National Forest; population about 68,000 -- began a five-year economic development process led by a group called ViTAL Economy, based in Riderwood, Maryland, a suburb of Baltimore.

The chair of the Clallam County EDC, Jim Haguewood, championed the process. He's in town on Friday to lead the morning session of an all-day economic development workshop sponsored by the NW Oregon Regional Partnership and the Columbia-Pacific Economic Development District (Col-Pac).

Commissioner Sam Patrick gave me a copy of "The Clallam Networks Story" a couple weeks ago and it's a good read. A few years ago I had the pleasure of working with John Berdes, CEO of Shorebank Enterprise Pacific, and have tremendous respect for his intellect and business acumen; Shorebank is now working with Clallam County to provide initial financing of start-up businesses, spurred by the strategies put in place by the ViTAL Economy plan.

The ViTAL Economy plan espouses what it calls "the 3C's of Regional Economic Development": Collaboration, Connectivity and Changed Spending Behavior. The eco devo plan was wrapped around these priorities:

1. The importance of high-speed redundant communications.
2. The importance of health care systems. Employment in the health care field pays some of the highest wages and provides private insurance.
3. The importance of family wage jobs with health benefits. In 2001, 73% of all billings for medical services were to government healthcare insurance, with Medicaid paying only 30 cents of each dollar of service provided and Medicare only 65 percent. At this rate the health service industry in Clallam would soon be bankrupt.
4. Collaboration among industry segments, forming industry "clusters": marine services, forest resources, technology, tourism and agriculture; and two support clusters: education and training centers of excellence, and integrated finance strategies.
5. The protection of agricultural lands for agri-tourism industry.
6. Putting tourism dollars in the hands of private industry, not chambers of commerce.

Clallam and Clatsop have a good deal in common, and Mr. Haguewood's presentation could offer some useful ideas for the transformation of Clatsop's economic development process.

9:30am-3:30pm, Friday, April 7, at the Maritime Museum. Cost: $20, including lunch. Call Karen Kent, 503.397.3099, to register or for more info.