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Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2009

Business leaders draft 'letter of nonconfidence' in Merced County Board of Supervisors

Local business leaders are taking aim at the Merced County Board of Supervisors.

In a draft letter obtained by the Sun-Star, several chamber of commerce presidents are set to sign a "letter of non-confidence" in the county's economic development programs, permitting processes and planning programs.

"For too many years Merced County leadership has invested millions of dollars on economic development strategies and competing agencies that have not produced the promised results: jobs and smart growth," the letter states.

The Merced County Chamber of Commerce's Roundtable membership, which represents some 3,000 businesses in Merced County, voted to draft the letter at its Oct. 27 meeting.

Mark Hendrickson, the county's director of commerce, aviation and economic development, said he was surprised by the letter and that county officials weren't invited to speak to the roundtable about their concerns before the letter was drafted.

He said the county was doing a number of things to spur economic development, including the creation of new enterprise zones, business counseling for small businesses in areas such as Delhi and competing for a state grant that would designate Castle as an "Innovation Hub" where entrepreneurs could gather to form and build small businesses.

When asked to respond to the letter, Hendrickson said: "The strength of any economic development program, I believe, is working together with the community. Collaborative partnerships are key. I really believe that the less divisive we can be, the more we can do to improve the community."

Katie Albertson, county spokeswoman, said the county is already taking many of the steps the chambers are asking for, such as speedier permitting through the preliminary application review process, which allows a panel to make some planning decisions more quickly.

"We understand that prospective businesses need projects to be approved quickly," Albertson said.

The letter's signatories, however, counter that the county's economic development organizations are too cumbersome; that a planned one-stop permitting center was stalled; and that a proposal to bank land for future specific uses was never taken seriously by administrative officials.

The roundtable asks for information about the proposed one-stop permitting center, plans for improving the county planning department and an overview of future plans to attract businesses and employers.

Steve Gallichio, chairman of the Merced County Chambers of Commerce Roundtable, did not return several calls for comment.

Late last week, a number of chambers in the county said they didn't plan to sign the letter. The chamber in Los Banos said Friday it didn't plan to sign the letter. The issue is still under discussion at the Atwater chamber, president Jeff Stopper said. A source said the Greater Merced chamber also wouldn't sign the letter.

Other chambers declined to comment on the letter before it's made public.

Julius Pekar, chief executive officer of the Merced County chamber, said late Monday that a final version of the letter had been approved and signed by "75 percent" of the chambers in Merced County.

He declined to release the final version, but said it was "a little softer with more openness at the end about meeting with the county," he said.

(A draft had demanded a response from county leadership to Gallichio by Dec. 6.)

A copy of the final letter was set to be delivered to each supervisor this afternoon. It will be released to the media Wednesday, Pekar said.

Hendrickson became the head of economic development for the county one year ago. He used to be president of the Greater Merced Chamber of Commerce, around five years ago. He said it was a "privilege to lead that organization," which is a "long-valued leader" in business here.

Merced County ranks neither at the top nor the bottom when it comes to leading economic indicators in the Central Valley, according to a recent report. While in some cases -- unemployment and foreclosures -- Merced is near or at the bottom, in other areas it is either average or above average, in agricultural production, for instance.

Reporter Danielle E. Gaines can be reached at (209) 385-2477 or dgaines@mercedsun-star.com.