Shared economic development manager to serve three Lake County cities

Some small Lake County communities soon could get a leg up in terms of economic development.

The Lake County Ohio Port & Economic Development Authority is hiring an economic development manager to serve Kirtland, Wickliffe and Willowick.

Lake County Commissioner Jerry Cirino said he approached the Port Authority about the idea last year, in light of some of the communities’ struggles. He cited the departure of ABB from Wickliffe, and concerns about the state of the Euclid Avenue and Vine Street corridors.

He said the communities are governed by part-time mayors without the time, funds or resources to adequately address such economic development needs on their own.

“This is a very exciting initiative, and it’s the first time it’s been done in Lake County for sure,” he said. “This is one of those out-of-the-box solutions to bring good experience and competency on a shared basis.”

The cost is to be divvied among the communities. The estimate is between $20,000 and $30,000 a year per city, depending on the candidate. That includes insurance and benefits.

There have been more than a dozen applicants for the full-time position. The hope is to have someone hired sometime in June, said Port Authority Executive Director Mark Rantala.

The manager would work from the Port Authority offices and receive support and direction from Rantala.

“It’s an interesting mix of community needs,” he said. “Willowick has almost no available industrial land, but needs retail and residential development. Wickliffe has long had a part-time economic development consultant, but we expect (it) will benefit from a more focused approach on redevelopment, and Kirtland is exploring ways to open up new areas for development through extension of utilities and implementation of a new master plan.”

Cirino said he has used shared services in many business operations and it works well.

“We’ve talked about expanding this on the east end of the county as well,” he said. “We’ve had preliminary conversations. That may be the next phase of this project.”

Willowick Mayor Richard Regovich sees strong potential for his city to benefit.

“We can plan for the future and actually have a great chance to implement our plan,” he said. “I believe having the backing and expertise of the Lake County Ohio Port and Economic Development Authority will give our cities the tools to be successful in reaching our goals. … It could change how smaller communities share services and do business in the future. The right candidate will be key to making this work.”

Kirtland City Council on May 9 held the second reading on a resolution authorizing a shared manager agreement with the Port Authority and the other two communities.

Wickliffe officials declined to renew the contract with their economic development consultant this year.

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