Greetings!  Last Monday two new City Councilors were sworn into office in Ketchum.  Below are remarks I made during the meeting's public comment period.   

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Congratulations to Michael and Jim. Your election marks a potential turning point for Ketchum's economy. You ran on the promise to listen to Ketchum's residents and business people, rather than pursue your own agenda. The message was well-received and here you are!

The next year offers a steep learning curve.  The Comprehensive Plan, meeting laws, ordinances, budget, and a decade of the city's governing history must be mastered for you to feel you know what you're doing. But I know you won't fail to speak out, ask questions, and challenge previous decisions when you feel you need to understand something. You are the public's ears and voice. If you don't understand something, we surely don't.

In the previous decade, the Council focused economic development solely on hotels, even though every definition of economic growth points to the power of a diversified economy. I hope you revisit this short-sighted policy. The heart of a rural economy beats through its local entrepreneurs who quietly, steadily persist in their year-round businesses. That's not my concept but one that is widely accepted. 

The City's paid economic development staff: the Economic and Community Development department, the Community Development Corporation (KCDC), and the Sun Valley Marketing Alliance, are well-meaning and good people but, in my view, inadequately experienced and trained for their work. More important, I believe they have received flawed direction and have not been held sufficiently accountable for setting informed goals. Their weak economic development performance must, however, be attributed to their ultimate "boss," the City Council.  

The Urban Renewal Agency (URA) has performed questionably; many citizens perceive conflicts of interest and a decision-making tendency that favors special interests. The URA has been arrogant in its attitude toward the public and unwilling to entertain its concerns. Since the body is appointed by the Council, not elected by the public, it is up to the Council to more effectively manage the URA.     

There are approaches the Council could take to diversify Ketchum's economy by strengthening the entrepreneurial sector. Staff experienced in the broad scope of economic development should be charged with implementing productive initiatives that involve local talent and resources. These include:

    > Partnering to create a local, affordable entrepreneur rental space: offices that    

    provide shared administrative resources, meeting space, and the ensuing  

    networking opportunities.  

    > A mentoring program for emerging, as well as established, entrepreneurs.

    > A micro-finance fund based on deposits at a local bank. While the KCDC once

    received a revolving loan fund grant from the USDA, it was rescinded after several  

    months because, despite good applications, no loans were made.  

The idea is still a good one. A template and turnkey operation for a micro-finance fund exists through The New Economics Institute. It relies on a bank account of interest-earning deposits made by everyday people. Reasonably-priced short-term loans are made to locals by a panel of investors experienced in evaluating more risky ventures.   

This is a critical time for the north valley's economy. The business community has felt discouraged, demoralized, and scorned by an indifferent, often angry city government.  My heart is lighter since your election, Michael and Jim. I trust that you, along with Nina (often cast as an outsider by the previous Council) will have the energy, persuasive skills, imagination, and information to build a more hopeful future. I look forward to the Council, as a whole, acquiring a shared new vision of broadened opportunity that will benefit tourists and residents, retail businesses and entrepreneurs, second-home owners and year-round young professionals, in short, the entire spectrum of our economic base.   

Until next week...Jima Rice