Gov. Hickenlooper releases updated economic development plan

DENVER — Monday, Oct. 24, 2011 — Gov. John Hickenlooper today released an updated version of the statewide economic development plan created earlier this year to spur Colorado’s economy, help businesses grow and attract new jobs to the state.

“Colorado is already seeing the benefits of taking a bottom-up, collaborative approach to economic development,” Hickenlooper said. “Earlier this month Arrow Electronics announced it will locate its global headquarters in Colorado and GE committed to building the largest solar manufacturing facility in the country here. We want to thank the thousands of Coloradans who continue to contribute to the bottom-up economic development plan. We know that through a comprehensive and collaborative approach to economic development our state will reap the benefits of new jobs and a strong recovery.”

“The Colorado Blueprint: A bottom-up approach to economic development” was released for public comment at the end of the summer after an unprecedented effort that engaged every county in Colorado on how best to improve the state’s economy.

The newest version of the plan includes more explicit details, clarified leadership roles and accountability, tighter timelines and more specific measureable outcomes on the 24 tactics outlined in the document. One notable change is the identification of a three-dimensional strategy which will align resources and strategies on a state, regional and industry cluster level. Specifically, changes include:

Increased engagement of the business and economic development communities to develop a comprehensive statewide industry cluster strategy in the next three months, rather than the next nine months (Section II.C.)
Increased focus on local and regional infrastructure development that aligns with regional economic development priorities (Section II.D.)
A structure for engaging industry partners in promoting the Colorado brand through the International Trade and Tourism Ambassador Program (Section IV.C.)

“The revised plan improves our comprehensive statewide economic development strategy,” said Ken Lund, executive director of the Office of Economic Development and International Trade. “The plan coordinates state government resources, facilitates more robust regional strategic plans and creates industry cluster workgroups to better focus efforts on growing jobs in Colorado. We will continue to proactively engage individuals and businesses to grow the economy across the state.”

The Colorado Blueprint maintains its focus on six core objectives:

Build a Business-Friendly Environment
Retain, Grow and Recruit Companies
Increase Access to Capital
Create and Market a Stronger Colorado Brand
Educate and Train the Workforce of the Future
Cultivate Innovation and Technology

The complete “Colorado Blueprint: A bottom-up approach to economic development” can be reviewed at www.colorado.gov/coloradoblueprint.

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