Economic Development Commission kicks off

(2/1) On January 24, Bob McNally, Leanne Tennant, Linda Morgan and Ryan Csajko were sworn in for three-year terms as board members on the new Economic Development Commission.

Morgan was voted to be the Chair of the Commission in absentia by Bob McNally "because she is the most qualified," adding with a smile, "and because she is not here to object." McNally volunteered to serve as vice-chair and Tennant volunteered to serve as the commission’s secretary.

The purpose of the commission, said Town Council liaison Michael Bailey, is to foster a business friendly environment, including identifying incentives that will draw new business to the town, "especially to the more blighted areas with vacant buildings."

Bailey also stressed the importance of working hand in hand with the Walkersville Business and Professional Association (WBPA) and the Frederick County Office of Economic Development to ensure there is no duplication of effort. "Every group brings something good to the table, and we all need to work together." He said.

To achieve that goal, Morgan volunteered to be the commissions liaison with the County’s Office of Economic Development with Tennant working with the WBPA.

Bob Susman, past President of the WBPA briefed the commission members on the history and purpose of the association, which has 44 members. According to Susman, the association offers its members local networking opportunities. "If you can help bring in businesses, we promise to help plug them into the community and keep them going. Our goal is to find opportunities for businesses in Walkersville to do business with other Walkersville businesses."

The first order of business for the new commission was to discuss the development of a business directory on the new town website, and what type of business could or should be placed on it. Specifically would the directory be limited to brick and mortar businesses physically located within the town limits, or include listings of professionals who live in town but work outside of town.

Ashley Bailey, the town communication manager, told the members that the current business directory on the town website will be moved over to the new website and that once the commission decided what criteria they will use to list businesses, any business that meets that criteria can contact her and she will update the website with their information.

Bailey told the commission that she expects it to be called upon to provide input to the town council on the distribution of COVID-19 relief money. "We will be seeking your input on who should get the relief money and what criteria should be used to determine how much each business should get." The commission agreed to tackle that at their meeting in February.