By Andy Dahn
NORMAL – Members of the Normal Town Council, Bloomington City Council and the McLean County Board were presented results of a recent study of strengths, weaknesses and areas of improvements for the community’s economy at a joint session Monday night.
Ioanna Morfessis of I-O Inc. conducted the study and interviewed nearly 200 local employers while holding multiple roundtable discussions. She said that while the local economy is in good shape, more work needs to be done.
“Bloomington-Normal is competitive in many respects,” Morfessis said. “But so are other communities. So what we’re trying to find is the DNA, the secret sauce that will set Bloomington-Normal apart from all the rest. That’s what we’re focusing on.”
One of the biggest concerns is what Morfessis called the “restless generation”, young people that leave the area after graduating college.
“They’re in search of lifestyles and jobs that maybe aren’t as abundant and prolific here in McLean County,” said Morfessis. “So that’s part of what we need to look at. What are those jobs? What’s going to keep young people here in this community? And how do we go about growing those jobs?”
Some of the promising industries outlined in the study’s results were finance, agriculture and transportation. Morfessis said the goal is to plan for the future.
“Everyone’s got a direct, vested stake in having success, not just looking in the rear view mirror, but looking way ahead,” Morfessis said. “We want to be as, if not more successful in the next several decades than we have been in the last several.”
Future planning is something Bloomington Mayor Tari Renner said he is all for.
“Bloomington-Normal has a lot of assets,” Renner said. “We’ve got to leverage those assets for the future so we can get more than our share of the economic growth as the economy improves.”
Some changes recommended by Morfessis included constructing a more diverse and welcoming economy and city officials refusing to be complacent when it comes to development. She added that the development of Downtown Bloomington will be a key factor in boosting the local economy.
Morefessis also said that several local business executives have told her that they don’t feel the community is welcoming to diversity.
I-O Inc. will make final recommendations to the community at an August presentation.
Andy Dahn can be reached at [email protected].
