1. Baraboo Economic Development Commission (BEDC) Common Council Update
June 2010

2. Baraboo Economic Development Commission
Commission Members:
Michael Palm, BEDC Chairman
Ann Burke
Aural Umhoefer
Buddy Huffaker
Christine Kortbein
Kim Kalepp
Sandy Anderson
Phil Wedekind
Brett Topham
Tom Pleger

3. Mayor’s introduction and history-

4. By-Laws - Section 2 - Power and Duties - The Commission shall work on various projects as assigned by the Mayor and/or City Council for the improvement of the economic vitality of the Community. These projects may include redevelopment planning, tourism, nature conservancy, or other matters related to economic development or the improvement of municipal operations in the community to serve such. The Commission shall cooperate with the Sauk County Development Corporation to study and make recommendations to the Council for the continuing improvement of the economic climate of the City. The Commission shall, at least once a year on or before October 1st of each year, report to the Council concerning its activities and recommendations with regard to economic development matters

5. BEDC held a spring workshop series in 2009 which identified Baraboo Economic Interest Groups, SWOT analysis, and Baraboo’s differentiators.  

6. BEDC Mission Statement – To provide intellect, vision and advocacy for community development to serve as a catalyst for diverse economic growth Spring 2009

7. BEDC created a: Development Review Subcommittee, Economic Strategy (marketing & branding) Subcommittee and Education/Business Technology Subcommittee to discuss specific items identified at the spring workshop. These committees meet independently for discussion and report back to BEDC on progress/ideas/discussion

8. We have developed a list of ideas to proactively position Baraboo for economic growth and are in the process of prioritizing those ideas for implementation.

9. Some of the identified areas of Baraboo expected to undergo economic activity/enhancement in the foreseeable future include:
Downtown Area

10. Ringling Riverfront

11. Highway 12 By-pass area and Gateway Industrial Park

12. East Side

13. South Boulevard

14. Other issues that will affect the long term economic health of the City include:
Resolving City Government Space Needs Issues
Living and Learning Center at UW Baraboo Sauk County
Potential Education and Technology Center
Airport Improvements
Library Expansion
Community/Senior Center
Riverwalk/Ice Age Trail Completion
Circus World Museum, International Crane Foundation and Aldo Leopold Legacy Center
K-12 Education Improvements
Financial Capital Requirements for Development Projects
Current Commerical/Industrial Vacancies and Residential Foreclosure Issues
Affordable and Diverse Housing Stock

15. We recommend facilitating ongoing collaboration between the Baraboo Economic Development Commission (BEDC), the Sauk County Development Corporation (SCDC), the Baraboo Area Chamber of Commerce, the Community Development Authority (CDA), Downtown Baraboo Incorporated (DBI), the Business Improvement District (BID), and other interested parties to discuss and further refine economic development drivers for the City.

16. At some point we will need to engage outside assistance to create the economic strategy vision that we believe is necessary to position the city for pro-active development. We ask for the council’s continued enthusiastic support in these efforts.