At the recent Good Morning Winslow meeting hosted by the Chamber of Commerce, Winslow’s Economic Director Jack Fitchett, delivered an insightful presentation on the city’s economic development initiatives.
Fitchett highlighted the resources he is able to connect in economic development, including connecting businesses to available opportunities and grant writers. “When grants come out related to economic development, there’s not a lot of them. I talk to people all the time who say, ‘I didn’t even know that existed!'”
He shared information about a promising program that is pending council approval, which aims to provide incentives for starting and expanding local businesses. His long-term hope for the program is to make this an annual opportunity. Fitchett has requested $30,000 from the council, which he envisions will translate into six $5,000 grants for local businesses. Unlike many economic development grants, this program will offer more flexibility in how the funds can be utilized. Fitchett hopes to begin accepting applications by the end of July, with a 30-day application window.
In addition to discussing grants, Fitchett introduced the chamber attendees to Buxton Analytics, a powerful tool licensed by the City of Winslow. Buxton Analytics provides extensive demographic information, data on foot traffic, and in-depth insights for businesses to use when making investment decisions. It uses cell phone geographic data to inform about “retail leakage,” which identifies whether people are staying in the Winslow area to purchase goods and services or going elsewhere. He explained how this data could be used by businesses to see what products and services people in Winslow are buying but don’t have a local option for.
Fitchett also went over the many organizations that can benefit the development of businesses, including Arizona@Work, Arizona Commerce Authority, Local First, Navajo County Workforce Development Board and Northland Pioneer College. These organizations offer various resources and support for local businesses, contributing to the overall economic growth of the area. Most of the ways he explained that these organizations help are through grants, as well as workforce training and assistance to other resources businesses need.
He also discussed with the chamber audience the ongoing developments around town. These include two truck stops, 180 residential units, several restaurants, one and potentially two hotels, an RV park, the Atlas Global project, and projects near the airport related to the air travel industry. He mentioned the logistics trade port, noting that it’s the only project he has not seen a site plan for yet but felt it was important to bring up due to recent discussions at city council meetings.
Overall, Fitchett’s presentation provided a comprehensive overview of the efforts being made to support and grow Winslow’s economy.
