Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce to Lead Major Initiative to Build a Regional Vision

For Immediate Release Ross Woodstock
January 29, 2014 Kolt Communications, Inc
  517-706-0001/517-410-7636
Ross@koltpr.com

Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce to Lead Major Initiative to Build a Regional Vision

(Lansing, MI) – The Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce (LRCC) will join with Clinton, Eaton & Ingham counties and other community partners to develop a broader regional vision for Greater Lansing. The regionalism effort will seek to bring together organizations including the LRCC, Michigan State University, business and community leaders and local units of government in the tri-county region in creating a regional forum that has previously not existed.

"We have a window of opportunity to build on the momentum that has developed and begin to build a regional vision for Greater Lansing that is supported by all,” said Tim Daman, LRCC president & CEO. "The Chamber has a responsibility to our members and business community to provide the leadership in moving the entire region forward.”

The new regionalism initiative will seek to build on the foundation of success that has been achieved in regional collaboration in the past couple of years. LRCC, Michigan State University, LEAP, Inc. and local business leaders have initiated several efforts towards establishing a regional vision, including the creation of an economic scorecard which compared the cost of local government in Greater Lansing with other regions around the country. The region has taken several steps forward since the scorecard was developed. Most notably, a Shared Fire Services Initiative involving six local units of government has made significant progress in offering more efficient and effective fire services to residents of the region.

"We have a new generation of leaders in our region who have demonstrated they are willing to cross government boundaries and work together like never before,” said Daman. "The collaborations that are already in place have resulted in a new level of trust and respect that we must build upon if we are going to be successful.”

LRCC recently partnered with Marketing Resource Group (MRG) to conduct a telephone survey of 600 residents of Ingham, Eaton and Clinton counties. The research was designed to determine how residents feel about the overall concept of regionalism and various aspects of regional cooperation. 82 percent of respondents said they supported regional cooperation, defined as Greater Lansing businesses, local units of government and residents working together through shared resources and decision-making for the good of the entire Greater Lansing region.

In recent months the LRCC has been meeting with the leadership from Clinton, Eaton & Ingham counties to discuss the development of regional priorities. The LRCC plans to build upon these discussions with additional stakeholders throughout the region to further establish the framework for the regionalism initiative. Some of the major themes that need to be a significant part of the discussion include: good governance, economic development, higher education, talent development and retention and public policy.

"It is our hope that we can pull all of our community partners together in the near future for a GREATer Lansing Regional Visioning Summit at which we can advance ideas and strategies that will help us shape an agenda for regional collaboration that will be embraced by the entire community,” said Daman.

The mission of the Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce (LRCC) is to be the preeminent business advocacy organization in the Greater Lansing region by collaborating for economic growth, creating new opportunities for our members and upholding pro-business ideals through the advancement of sound public policy. More information about LRCC and its programs and services can be found on any of its social media platforms, including www.lansingchamber.org, Facebook, Twitter (@Lansing Chamber), LinkedIn and YouTube.

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