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3 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Rogue Valley organ donors give gift of life ... Thousands wait for organ donations ... Mail Tribune 100, Jan. 17, 1916 ... Rogue Valley organ donors give gift of life ... Thousands wait for organ donations ... Mail Tribune 100, Jan. 17, 1916 ... FROM THE COUNCIL From the Council: City is committed to economic development By Gary H. Wheeler MailTribune.com By Gary H. Wheeler Posted Jan. 17, 2016 @ 12:01 am By Gary H. Wheeler Posted Jan. 17, 2016 @ 12:01 am » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2325,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> In my last opinion piece, I wrote about a convention/conference center as part of an overall economic strategy for our city. The response exceeded my expectations! Several letters to the editor and an editorial, along with four front-page articles have help start the dialogue. The center is only one part of a planning policy to encourage the growth of our economy as a city. We have already met with the private sector to get their feedback and will continue having them as part of the process. But, a center is just one part of the puzzle. Encouraging economic growth is a multifaceted process involving many parts of our community. Tourism, health care and related services, retail business and light industrial manufacturing, to name a few, make up a healthy mix of businesses along with many others. A major portion of our local economy is composed of locally owned and operated companies, ranging from the small “mom and pop” businesses to the larger employers in our valley. The distinction is that these operations are locally owned, for the most part, and operated by people who live in the valley. Some grew up here, went to school here, raised their children and grandchildren here and have a strong connection to this area. They are willing to invest not only their dollars but their time and commitment to this city. We need people and businesses that are willing to step up and work hard for the betterment of this community. We have been able to attract and keep these businesses in our community. They have invested in our community, not only in bricks and mortar, but also in time, talent, and jobs. We have been able to do this by making Medford not only an attractive place to live, work and play, but also a place with an attitude of making businesses feel welcome. We strive to make a business-friendly environment within our city. Cities can either be facilitators or impediments. Our goal is to be a facilitator and for people to come to our city and feel that we are there for them. To this end, the city has worked hard to make it easier and less complicated to use our development services. We have brought all of our development services under one roof to facilitate the process of bringing new businesses to our community and to help with the growth of existing businesses. Oregon is noted for its complex land-use laws and our city does not have to add that complexity. We try to update and simplify our codes where we can and still conform to the Oregon codes. We have within our city not only a development services director, but also an economic development director. We work closely with SOREDI (Southern Oregon Economic Development Inc.) and other groups including the Chamber of Medford/Jackson County. We actively pursue leads and inquiries from out-of-state companies but also from local businesses looking to expand. Local businesses are an extremely important part of the overall economy. We have an Economic Development Zone and an e Commerce Zone in place to facilitate the use of tax and other incentives to attract business expansion. We also have a first-class infrastructure in place. This includes a safe and steady water supply, good roads, sanitary sewer and storm drains. Our school system from K-12 is excellent and there are higher education opportunities at RCC and SOU. These are strong selling points when talking to prospective companies. A city can never be passive in working with our local companies. Retention and recruitment are key words that have to be uppermost in our minds. To that end, I want to assure you that we will, as a city, try our best to work hard toward improving our city. As mayor I am very proud of our accomplishments, and I continue to be optimistic about the future of Medford. Gary H. Wheeler is mayor of Medford. The views expressed in this piece are the individual's and do not necessarily represent the opinions or positions of the City Council. By Gary H. Wheeler MailTribune.com By Gary H. Wheeler Posted Jan. 17, 2016 @ 12:01 am » Comment or view comments Terms of Service /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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