St. Louis, St. Louis County plan joint economic development conference
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
May 20, 2011
By Tim Logan
Who says St. Louis City and County can't pull together on economic development?
The jobs-creation arms of the two big local governments said today that they're hosting a joint conference on economic development next month. The morning session, titled "Best Practices in Regional Economic Development," will take place June 14 at the Missouri Botanical Garden. And it'll a panel of experts from three other regions we regularly compete with for jobs, to give a sense of how they do it.
Panelists will include Robert Marcusse, president and CEO of the Kansas City Development Council, Robin Roberts Krieger, executive vice president of economic development for the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber, and Janet Miller, director of marketing and economic development for the Nashville Chamber of Commerce.
The conversation will be led (jointly, of course) by Denny Coleman, president of the St. Louis County Economic Council, and Rodney Crim, executive director of the St. Louis Development Corp.
And, yes, this event is fraught with greater significance. As readers of Building Blocks are no doubt aware, St. Louis City and County have been holding talks of late about how they might share more services, with economic development often mentioned as a likely area of cooperation.
A joint conference may not quite be full collaboration on a charged issue like incentives, but it is a first step, at least.
For more on the conference, click here.
