by William H. Woodwell Jr.

What should the federal government be doing to help strengthen local and regional economies? How can municipal officials best support the retail sector as a force for region-wide economic vitality?

Members of the NLC Advisory Council explored these and other questions during a day-long dialogue that continued the group?s focus on the economic vitality topic. In a series of presentations and small group discussions on March 12, the Advisory Council began to wrestle with some of the themes and issues that will be the focus of the group?s 2006 Futures Report, as well as other resources for NLC members.

?We want to look at a couple of specific aspects of the economic vitality topic with the goal of getting some solid information to our members and making some real recommendations to NLC,? said Advisory Council Chair Jim Dailey, mayor of Little Rock, Ark., in introducing the day?s agenda.

Before discussing the topic of economic vitality, the Advisory Council heard from Bob Treadway, a prominent futurist who has worked with a range of public and private sector clients.

Treadway was invited to the meeting to help the Advisory Council think more deeply about its own ?futuring? work as it explores trends and changes occurring in the nation?s cities and towns. He will continue to work with the Advisory Council through 2006.

Treadway emphasized the value of contemplation in the work of the nation?s municipal leaders.  ?One thing that is most missing in your work is adequate time to consider the implications of what?s ahead,? he said.  He went on to offer an overview of the tools and strategies used by futurists ? from Future Wheels to ?backcasting? ? to help organizations identify important trends, explore future scenarios and develop plans.

Also addressing the Advisory Council was Stacy Palmer Barton, chief of staff to U.S. Rep. Michael Turner (R-Ohio), who chairs Congress? Saving America?s Cities Working Group.

Barton provided a brief overview of the working group and engaged in a wide-ranging discussion with Advisory Council members about federal policy in areas that impact local and regional economic vitality ? from the future of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program to the use of eminent domain. 

In small group discussions following Barton?s presentation, Advisory Council members expressed their views on the role of the federal government in supporting local and regional economic vitality.

Asked how to enhance the federal role, the small groups proposed a range of ideas, including strengthening the capacity of local governments to support alternative fuels as an economic development strategy; and adopting a more aggressive approach to reengineering the U.S. workforce.

The focus on economic vitality continued in a panel discussion on retail development as a regional issue. Panelists included Doyle Hyett, chairman of Hyett Palma, a national consulting firm specializing in the economic enhancement of downtowns and older business districts; Cynthia Stewart, director of local government relations with the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC); and John Parr, president and CEO of the Alliance for Regional Stewardship. 

Hyett, who has worked with NLC for 20 years on downtown issues, told the Advisory Council that a community?s downtown area is a reflection of its aspirations for the future. ?You can?t have a first-class town without a first-class downtown,? he said.  Hyett described the NLC program, ?America Downtown: New Thinking. New Life,? which helps city officials who want to start, refocus or energize their downtown enhancement efforts.

Stewart emphasized the value of retail in local and regional economic development efforts. Localities, she suggested, need to shift from trying to compete with neighboring cities and towns for retail development to promoting vital retail centers throughout the region, including underserved areas. 

Parr?s presentation underscored the importance of every community figuring out its niche in the local region. Using examples of cities in the metropolitan Denver area, he said municipal officials and their constituents should be active partners in creating a broad vision for their regions, while at the same time identifying ?what to focus on so your community stands out.?

The retail panel was followed by another set of small group discussions during which Advisory Council members reflected on how to develop and support the retail economy in their regions.

Ideas emerging from these dialogues included providing more support to minority and immigrant retail development and cooperating with other cities and towns to develop roads, water, sewer and other infrastructure to support quality retail.

During the day, the Advisory Council also heard from NLC President Jim Hunt, councilmember from Clarksburg, W.Va., about the implementation of his Inclusive Communities agenda.

In addition, David Parkhurst, NLC principal legislative counsel, Center for Policy and Federal Relations, provided the group with a briefing on congressional activity on key issues affecting America?s cities and towns.

Details: The Advisory Council will hold its next meeting May 11-12 in Little Rock, Ark. The 2006 Futures Report will be available at the Congress of Cities in December.