The Chippewa Economic Development Corp. (CEDC) has been boosting the Chippewa County area for more than 30 years. Through numerous programs, events, and initiatives, it serves as a catalyst for economic growth and vitality in Chippewa County and beyond. Over the years, CEDC actions and programs have resulted in nearly $800 million of capital investment. Since its inception-the Chippewa Economic Development Corp. has kindled the fire of capital and talent investment. Through all phases of the economic cycle, the CEDC has focused on helping entrepreneurs start their businesses, attracting and recruiting new businesses, helping existing businesses expand and grow– and that remains its focus today. More than 100 private investors are part of the CEDC, and the organization also maintains partnerships with local units of government, the regions many chambers of commerce, economic development stakeholders, the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp., and others.
“Each year we come together at our annual meeting to have a celebration where we highlight the best of entrepreneurs and the best of expanding businesses,” explained CEO and President Charlie Walker. “This year is important in how we approach coming together, because the two months has been difficult as a pause in our economic development mindset has occurred. And so we’re gathering to reflect and to stay motivated, knowing that together we can reignite and kickstart a different approach to economic development that learns from the past, but more importantly embraces the opportunities of the future and how we all work together to grow, create jobs, creative wealth, sustain the tax base, and renew with new talent and new business ideas. That’s what the meeting is about.”
“We just want to reignite the flames,” said Walker, citing the theme of the organization’s annual meeting, which will be Friday, May 17. That theme serves as a reminder that public and private leaders in Chippewa County have a history of working together to solve problems, and that the same can-do spirit can be brought to bear today as the region addresses the closure of two hospitals, including HSHS St. Joseph’s in Chippewa Falls. The annual meeting will be held at the Eau Claire Event District (5633 20th Ave., Eau Claire), which opened last year as the new home of the Country Jam and Reverb music festivals. While the venue has an Eau Claire address, it’s located in Chippewa County – a reminder of the interdependence of the region’s economy, which transcends city limits and county lines. As Walker noted, “We’re all in it together.”
The event will feature a keynote address from Kip Ritchie, CEO of Potawatomi Ventures, the economic development business of Wisconsin’s Forest County Potawatomi Community. It will also include the presentation of awards to a number of businesses, individuals, and organizations who had helped improve the region’s economy.
The CEDC’s numerous activities and initiatives include:
HATCH COMPETITION. Each fall, the CEDC is one of the hosts of HATCH: An Idea Pitch Competition, which brings together investors, innovators, and community partners to celebration the Valley’s entrepreneurial spirit. Local entrepreneur organizations sponsor contestants, who pitch their business ideas to a panel of judges. The most recent winner – Whitney Stuart of Half Moon Clay in Eau Claire – received a $5,000 grand prize to help expand her business.
LEGISLATIVE SPEED DATING. The organization connected state and federal legislators to more than 40 representatives of the local banking, heath care, agriculture, manufacturing, education, and construction sectors in a “speed dating” event in March. Five local members of the state Assembly and Senate, as well as a representative from the office of U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden, rotated among the tables at Chippewa Family Restaurant, where they learned about a variety of issues important to the region’s economic health.
BEAR EXPANSION AND RETENTION (BEAR). “BEAR” encompasses a number of CEDC initiatives, including visiting existing businesses and advocating for them with policymakers; holding discussions and “lunch and learn” programs to foster communication among businesses and stakeholders; granting awards to local businesses as well as nominating them for regional, state, and national awards; and the ongoing BEAR Discussions podcast, in which Walker interviews local entrepreneurs about their business dreams and accomplishments.
STEAM NIGHT. The CEDC recently collaborated with Chippewa Falls Senior High School to hold a STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) Night, which featured more than 40 employer-sponsored booths to showcase regional careers in STEAM fields. More than 1,000 students experienced firsthand the intersection of these disciplines and their real-world implications.
BUSINESS RECRUITMENT
On www.chippewa-wi.com pictures can be found of business and elected officials cutting the ribbon on a new manufacturing facility that is new to the community. In economic development, this is what we call Business Attraction or Recruiting, and it is what most people think of when they think of economic development. Recruiting is an important part of Chippewa County’s economic development strategy. Specifically, when those strategies target emerging industries and industries that pay higher wages per skill level. CEDC’s recruiting activities, along with everyone else’s, has a lot of attrition. Nationally for every 1000 companies an economic development organization reaches about 7 will want to explore the idea. Typically, two out of seven will make a serious site visit to the community. and one will select a community to operate in. Moreover, on average, it will take between 3-5 years from that first conversation to the facility ribbon cutting.
2024 looks to be a busy year with sales missions, RFI responses, trade shows, and target marketing to promote the Chippewa County area for companies to make investments and create jobs. While recruiting is not the majority activity that CEDC spends its time on is an important part of our overall economic development strategy because it brings in new idea, talent, and capital.
PLANTING THE SEEDS
All of these programs and more are meant to help the region’s economy “go to the next level,” Walker said. He compared the work of the CEDC and its partners to “economic gardening”: Crops need watering and weeding, but they also need encouragement. So too does the idea of economic development. “Maybe it’s time to talk to the plants,” he quipped.
It’s a fitting analogy considering the importance of agriculture to the region’s economy as well as the fact that Chippewa County will host Wisconsin Farm Technology Days later this summer. From Aug. 13-15, Close Farms – a family-owned grain operation outside Cadott – will serve as the host farm for the event, which annually draws tens of thousands of visitors as well as hundreds of vendors. The state’s largest annual outdoor agricultural event will be held on the adjacent grounds that host Country Fest and Rock Fest, and will showcase the latest developments in farming technology.
True to its role, the CEDC has been heavily involved in helping ensure the event is a success, from engaging volunteers to organizing the “tent city” of exhibitors. It’s all part of its mission of catalyzing economic development across the region.
“When one speaks of Chippewa County, you can’t ignore the economic development activities and the organization behind creating jobs, helping entrepreneurs grown, helping those existing businesses succeed,” Walker said. “For over 30 years, Chippewa Economic Development Corp. has done just that, and they look forward to the next 30 years!
This article was produced in partnership with the Chippewa Economic Development Corp. To learn more about the CEDC and its programs, visit the EDC’s website at chippewa-wi.com. You can also find the Chippewa County EDC on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn, or reach them by phone at (715) 723-7150, via email at staff@chippewa-wi.com, or in person at 770 Technology Way in Chippewa Falls.