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RECERTIFICATION

Nebraska Economic Development Certified Community Program

Eligible applicants: Entry into the Economic Development Certified Community program is open at any time to any community in Nebraska. For the purpose of the program, a community is a single entity.

Every five years, communities with the EDCC designation must submit a recertification application that includes the following:

  • A long-range community strategic plan that includes economic development
  • Marketing materials to support strategic plan
  • A long-range funding plan
  • Current and consistent information in LOIS (Location One Information System)and community websites
  • Fully populated demographic information in LOIS for community
  • An economic development evaluation delineating successes and disappointments
  • A letter from applicant municipal government identifying lead economic development agency and local contact person for this program.

Each community’s EDCC status is valid for five years from date of approval of EDCC application. During this five-year period, each certified community shall participate in an ongoing Recertification program as described below. Within three months prior to EDCC expiration date, each certified community must submit a Recertificaton Application, via email and 5 MB or less in size, to LynnKohout at

RECERTIFICATION PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

  1. Current and fully populated information in LOIS and Community Websites with LOIS being linked within community websites.
  1. Web site & collateral marketing materials (working links)
  • Community/Economic development web site URL and criteria.
  1. Identification

Name of community or organization

Name of STATE – Nebraska clearly shown

Map showing location of community within Nebraska (preferred)

Location identification should be found on EVERY page (e.g., on secondary pages).

Action photos showcasing your community

  1. Contact Information

Full/complete information (physical address, telephone with area code, email)

Found clearly on home page and in the footer/header/sidebar of EVERY page on site

Emails should be “hot” or working. They should be spelled out – not somebody’s name underlined or a sentence saying “email us.” Remember the people that want to print off the paper and call or email you later.

If the page has a “Contact Us” button or tab – it should open another page on the website with the same look and feel and it should contain contact information. This should NEVER be a link that automatically opens an email.

  1. Navigation

Should be intuitively easy to follow

Easy to identify where at all times within the site

Provides way back home without having to use “back” button

  1. Economic Development page

A page dedicated to what this organization or community is going to do for the prospect with CONTACT info.

Should have dedicated place within website – preferably own tab

  1. Online Properties

Should have working database of available properties that includes all information fully populated

Local economic development site must have linkage to LOIS site…when tying in to 3rd party database (e.g. LOIS, FastFacilities, etc.) need to have DIRECT links to the specific properties.

  1. Describe status of infrastructure extensions/upgrades needed to serve industrial/business sites and parks to meet community’s targeted industry goals.
  1. Link in application to each controlled industrial/business and sites’ inventory or to community’s “front page” of their sites in LOIS
  1. Link to all presently available buildings or to community’s “front page” of their buildings in LOIS
  2. Business Retention Activity
  • Describe ongoing business retention and expansion activities, as well as the organization’s recognition efforts.
  • Documentation of at least the recommended number of Synchronist business interviews and data entry for the guidelines below based on population served in your respective community/region.

<5,000 – 15 interviews

>5,000 to 10,000 – 25 interviews

>10,000 – 35 interviews

  1. Long-Range Strategic Plan

Within this five-year period, each community must participate in a long-range strategic planning process. This process should include:

  • Assessment of the community’s assets and liabilities.
  • Identification of key local issues
  • Outline of goals and objectives; objectives should describe the key results to be achieved, measures of progress and target dates for achievement
  • Development of strategic actions that will bring about the accomplishment of your goals and objectives
  • Implementation plan that includes organizational responsibilities, resource allocation, and a one-year work program (annual action plan)
  • Evaluation methods that will enable your organization to determine if it is achieving the result expected. The plan should be flexible enough to allow for emerging opportunities.

At the conclusion of this process, the leadership of your organization and the community should have a three-to-five year plan. The plan should identify what needs to be done to foster economic development as well as the process and steps to accomplish.

  1. Marketing Materials

Provide a copy of pertinent marketing materials as attachments.

  1. Long-Range Funding Plan

The long-range funding plan should be an outgrowth of your long-range strategic plan. Identify the cost for implementation of each strategy as well as identify potential resource providers. Include the cost for time and travel of staff, contracted service providers and volunteers involved in the projects. Also, identify other organizational needs, including adequate staffing, equipment, and resources to operate an efficient and productive economic development business. Include necessary capital reserves to respond to immediate business opportunities. Identify funding sources for a ongoing operation of economic development group. Budget should reflect above information and must balance.

  1. Current Labor Informationfrom survey or compiled report
  • Labor information must not be older than three years.
  • Labor information may be compiledby community from Department of Labor website or they may have partners assist them in compiling a report.
  • Data should support targeted markets.
  1. Economic Development Evaluation

Prepare and submit an evaluation of the economic development efforts in your community during the five years since you were recognized as an EDCC. This evaluation should include quantifiable results, such as:

_____# of new manufacturing businesses located in your community/county

_____# of new jobs created from these new manufacturing/service-sector businesses

_____# of new small businesses created in your county

_____# of new jobs created from these new small businesses

_____# of business expansions

_____# of new jobs created from these business expansions

_____# of jobs retained from economic development efforts

_____# of businesses closed

_____# of jobs lost due to business closures

_____# of industrial sites developed

_____# of volunteers working on economic development with you

List collaborative efforts with local, regional and state economic development organizations

Examples______

The information outlined above should be submitted to LynnKohout at

Applicants need to treat this application as a “Request For Proposal”.

Separate attachments and label them in thumbnail or provide a “Table of Contents” that is “clickable”. Make it easy for potential prospect and reviewers to easily find appropriate information/attachments and return to main body of application.

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