Leading economic development agencies seek formal collaboration
Berkshire County leaders believe in a strong, vibrant future for the region. The boards of directors of the Berkshire Chamber of Commerce, Berkshire Creative Economy Council, Berkshire Economic Development Corporation, and the Berkshire Visitors Bureau announce today the creation of a formal, strategic partnership among the four organizations. This alliance, informally known as 1Berkshire, strives for intelligent, sustainable growth to create prosperity for every citizen of the Berkshires.
The project is chaired by Michael Daly, President & CEO of Berkshire Bank and Chair of 1Berkshire, together with Roger O. Goldman, managing director of the Berkshire Opportunity Fund and 1Berkshire’s volunteer Acting CEO. Daly and Goldman, are joined by steering committee volunteers, C. Jeffrey Cook, of Cohen Kinne Valicenti & Cook LLP, Laurie Norton Moffatt, Director/CEO of Norman Rockwell Museum and Joseph Thompson, Director/CEO of MASS MoCA.
“Forward-thinking regions across the country and internationally are now positioning themselves to be leaders in the new economy. These leading regions are already investing millions for collaborative initiatives designed to spur regional prosperity while preserving a high quality of life,” said Goldman. “We are creating a streamlined, coordinated economic development engine to provide a seamless single point of service for inquiries and opportunities related to the region.”
In addition to Daly, Goldman, Norton Moffatt, and Thompson, the interim board includes David Avery, UBS Financial Services; Mick Callahan, Callahan Sign Company; Stuart Chase, Berkshire Museum; Jeff Cook, Cohen Kinne Valicenti & Cook LLP; Reggie Cooper, Canyon Ranch in Lenox; Nancy Fitzpatrick, The Fitzpatrick Companies; Beth Mitchell, Petricca Industries; Stan Rosen, Hampton Terrace Bed & Breakfast; Ellen Spear, Hancock Shaker Village; Karen Zink, Berkshire Gas Company; and Michael Zivyak, Berkshire Living Magazine.
“On a larger scale, we are striving to create a unified Berkshires brand as a means to compete to the maximum effect for attraction of talent, visitation, quality of life and business opportunities,” said Daly. “Additionally, the region can foster even greater influence generated through a larger representative membership while also obtaining larger and a wider range of national, state and private funding.”
At the core of the project, Berkshire business and community leaders view this strategic partnership as the next step to build on the strong movements that began with the collaborative unified regional planning through the Berkshire Compact for Higher Education in 2005, the Berkshire Strategy Project in 2006, the launch of Berkshire Blueprint in 2007, and the formation of the Berkshire Creative Economy Council established in 2007.
Click here to hear WAMC’s coverage of 1Berkshire.
Click here to read the Berkshire Eagle’s coverage of 1Berkshire.
More about 1Berkshire….
Goals of 1Berkshire
The project has four goals:
- To create a collaborative investment in the future of the Berkshires’ economy and reach new levels of prosperity by unifying the efforts of the Berkshire Chamber of Commerce, Berkshire Creative, Berkshire Economic Development Corp. and the Berkshire Visitors Bureau.
- To leverage the strong momentum that started with the Berkshire Strategy Project, to the Berkshire Blueprint, the Berkshire Compact for Higher Education and Berkshire Creative Economy Project.
- To utilize the success and vision of Berkshire business leaders to design strategies to best promote the Berkshires and implement business growth initiatives.
- To create a collaborative community climate where public officials, residents and businesses work together to grow our regional economy.
A unified economic development effort will better leverage assets and increase economic prosperity by:
- Serving as a single point of service for Berkshire County.
- Generating greater “clout” for resource procurement through larger representative membership, thereby accessing more substantial and varied sources of national, state and private funding.
- Streamlining and coordinating economic development agencies and their efforts.
- Coordinating unified branding of the Berkshires to compete more effectively to increase visitation and attract new talent.
- Supporting and enhancing the efforts of the Berkshire Regional Employment Board, Berkshire Community College, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and others to ensure that a skilled and educated workforce is ready to meet the needs of existing and new businesses.
- Dovetailing with the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission and broad regional development efforts.
- Working to preserve the Berkshires’ assets essential for various economic clusters to survive and thrive, such as the environment, agriculture, culture, arts and industry.
Measure of Success
Success will be measured in prosperity of existing businesses, investments in new ventures, job creation, career opportunities, growth in talented and educated workforce, revenues, visitation, shoppers with greater spending power, and patrons for arts and cultural events. The adoption of sound guiding principles will lead to a shared vision for sustainable regional growth. Growth will result in jobs and a broader tax base to support improved infrastructure for our local communities.
“Our region has a unique history of innovation and has been a place of creative inspiration for centuries. The Berkshires have a unique and special quality with unparalleled assets; we have place esteem,” said Laurie Norton Moffatt, Director/CEO of the Norman Rockwell Museum and Communications Chair for 1Berkshire, “1Berkshire provides a platform for the region to speak with one, collective voice while leveraging our natural treasures, supporting our creativity, culture and the arts, and providing revenue for local businesses all the while preserving what is special and desirable about the Berkshires.”
Berkshires Strong History of Collaborative Regional Planning
In early February, 80 business and community leaders came together for a full-day retreat to have wide-ranging conversations about the future of the Berkshire region, identify priorities, and find ways to overcome real and perceived barriers. From that meeting, 1Berkshire was developed and is focused on uniting the four regional economic development organizations toward one vision as a place to thrive.
“Collaboration is essential to ensure a vibrant and prosperous Berkshire county,” noted State Senator Benjamin Downing. “1Berkshire recognizes that and understands that scarce public resources need to be used efficiently and effectively to create jobs and grow the Berkshire economy. I look forward to working with the partners in this effort, as I have in past, to move this region forward.”
“It is encouraging to see this collaborative effort move forward to support all the communities of the Berkshires as we work together to help bring new visitors, additional investment and expanded business to all of Berkshire County,” said Representative William “Smitty” Pignatelli.
“The Berkshires is a great place to pursue a career, start a business, spend a vacation and live a life. I am most encouraged that these four organizations are working together cohesively and collaboratively to help generate economic growth and really leverage our great natural assets here in the Berkshires,” said Rep. Christopher Speranzo.
“There is a groundswell of interest, a wave of energy building momentum. Through this process we have been contacted by many primary and secondary residents of our community asking how they can be involved. There is so much talent in The Berkshires. I invite anyone interested to contact me,” stated Goldman. Goldman can be contacted at 413-637-8016, or by e-mail at roger@berkshireopportunityfund.com, or contact any of the economic development agencies.
About the Berkshire Chamber of Commerce – www.berkshirechamber.com
The Berkshire Chamber, led by President and CEO Michael Supranowicz, was established to identify and serve the needs and interests of the Berkshire business community, creating an environment conducive to the growth and sustainability of business. The Berkshire Chamber is a proud recipient of a U.S. Chamber 4-Star Accreditation.
About Berkshire Creative – www.berkshirecreative.org
The mission of Berkshire Creative Economy Council, led by Director Helena Fruscio, is to stimulate new job growth and economic opportunity in the region by sparking innovative collaborations between artists, designers, cultural institutions and businesses.
About the Berkshire Economic Development Corporation – www.berkshireedc.com
The Berkshire Economic Development Corporation (BEDC), led by President David Rooney, is the leading private economic development organization providing targeted support for business relocation, expansion or new venture start-up in Berkshire County.
About the Berkshire Visitors Bureau – www.berkshires.org
The mission of the Berkshire Visitors Bureau, led by President and CEO Lauri Klefos, is to stimulate year-round interest and visitation to the Berkshires to generate overnight travel, increase attendance at regional attractions and increase patronage of area businesses for the continual economic benefit of the community.
More information about the Berkshire Blueprint, The Berkshire Strategy Project, Creative Economy Report and Berkshire Compact for Higher Education can be found at:
The Berkshire Strategy Project
