At some point, the local governments can’t continue throwing
money at a failing system, and it is clear that the Economic
Development Corp. of San Benito County must change the way it
operates and communicates if it plans to keep receiving public
funds.
At some point, the local governments can’t continue throwing money at a failing system, and it is clear that the Economic Development Corp. of San Benito County must change the way it operates and communicates if it plans to keep receiving public funds.
County supervisors last week reluctantly approved another $50,000 allocation to the organization, but it came with some direct caveats that should heighten the level of accountability while ensuring there are regular updates to officials from the EDC and its president, Nancy Martin.
Public funds have been crucial to the EDC – which also receives $75,000 from a Hollister Redevelopment Agency that faces an uncertain future due to the state budget – as it makes efforts to recruit new industry and maintain the health of existing companies. Those funds most certainly are not, however, an entitlement, particularly during such difficult economic times with the need for massive cutbacks in public spending.
Supervisors not only have every right to pressure Martin and demand more objective goals, but they also have an obligation to do so. At some point, if the EDC continues down a failing path, it is incumbent upon elected officials overseeing those tax dollars to reduce or eliminate the investment made by taxpayers. At some point, if the EDC continues down this path, the organization itself must reassess how it functions and essentially start over from Point A. That might include a need to move toward operating without public funds.
To this point during Martin’s three-year tenure as head of the group, there has been no mention of any tangible progress – or outside industry moving to the county and creating actual jobs. Reflective of the lacking movement, meanwhile, has been the fact that the EDC has somehow failed to launch a long-expected website that is essential to the organization having any credibility on initial communications with outside employers.
Instead, her explanations of progress invariably focus on vague details about prospective companies having interest in the area – companies that apparently, to this point, have passed on the prospect. She also often underscores overseeing such initiatives as efforts to open up runway access to private property owners at the Hollister Municipal Airport, which was boosted largely by Congressman Sam Farr’s help during his reelection campaign, and improve the broadband capabilities at the county’s industrial parks. Both are potential achievements, but to this point the side projects hold promise in the long term at a time when such a hefty and important investment should demand a higher-perched pedestal of successes, in the present and future. And that means producing new jobs.
The board of supervisors was right to demand more quantitative measures of progress. It is important that such objectives are not merely, for instance, the number of “contacts” Martin made during a given quarter. They must be objectives that measure clear indicators of improvements or deterioration. It’s not rocket science. For one, Martin should have an inventory of the square footage over which the EDC has influence. Such a barometer is a basic, but to this point unmentioned, way to keep tabs on the organization’s direction over time.
This lack of clear direction is not just Martin’s problem. It is a problem that needs serious attention from the EDC board and the elected officials who represent the county’s citizens, taxpayers desperately in need of more opportunities for employment.
