Vote for the Valley

I’ve gotten an e-mail about this about ten times, in addition to being at the meeting where it was originally announced. I guess it’s time to post it here.

The EfficientGovNow program, presented by the Fund for Our Economic Future as part of the ANEO Choice Awards, aims to accelerate government collaboration and efficiency by providing as much as $300,000 in funding to as many as three collaborative government projects from throughout Northeast Ohio. The Fund will select the round of finalists and the residents of the region will determine which projects receive funding.

The Mahoning Valley has two important proposed projects at stake:

Partners: Mahoning River Corridor Mayors’ Association communities (Lowellville, Struthers, Campbell, Youngstown, Girard, McDonald, Niles, Warren and Newton Falls)

Meet this finalist via a 60-second YouTube clip.

Utilizing the YSU Center for Urban and Regional Studies (CURS), the nine communities in two counties in the Mahoning River Corridor Mayors’ Association propose to collaborate in implementing an interactive website marketing sites available for economic development in the river corridor.

Information about property available on the websites is incomplete, or non-existent, due to the lack of resources and expertise to implement and maintain them. Despite the need, the cost for each community to implement their own interactive site would be cost prohibitive.

As partners in the broader YSU CURS Mahoning River Corridor Initiative, the communities are collaborating in identifying, inventorying and prioritizing sites for economic, recreational development, preservation, implementing brownfield assessment/remediation and infrastructure improvements.

The website would provide comprehensive and interactive site maps/photos and updated information on site characteristics, ownership, zoning, utilities, property taxes, permitting procedures, financial assistance tools, marketing demographics and points of contact.  In effect, it would be a one-stop shop for marketing property in the corridor communities.

The project will expand the regional collaboration’s effort, enhance the corridor’s economic competitiveness and more efficiently and effectively use resources to promote economic development at a substantially reduced cost to each of the nine communities. One-time and recurring savings to each community are estimated to be $24,721 and $6,750, respectively.

Matching funds for project implementation will be provided by each community from the financial commitment made to the Corridor Initiative.  Thereafter, communities would share the cost of managing the website through their Corridor Initiative assessment.

The City of Campbell will serve as the Lead Applicant.  

Project Goal:
To implement an interactive website to enhance economic competitiveness and the more efficient use of local government resources to promote economic development in the Mahoning River corridor communities.

Total project budget:
$67,590 

Amount of reward request:
$57,451

and

Partners: Mahoning County Auditor’s Office, City of Youngstown, Boardman Township, Austintown Township, City of Canfield

Meet this finalist via a 60-second YouTube clip.

Six local and regional governments will interconnect to available multi-county broadband networks for the purpose of providing three primary services: 
1.    Access to critical information assisting law enforcement agencies
2.    General IT Services/Shared Services
3.    Disaster Recovery Services

Local and Regional governments are being challenged daily to provide an increased demand for services while tax bases and consequently budgets shrink in comparison. Taxpayers are being burdened with increased tax rates that are, in part necessary because of duplicated services in key areas. Local/regional governments find themselves acquiring/building/maintaining separate individual information technology systems and infrastructures to provide services which they all have in common, wasting tax dollars on these multiple duplicate systems.

Usually local governments are without service or under-served in utilizing technology to improve service quality and keep taxes lower. Many local governments are forced to do without needed services because of shrinking budgets. This diminishes the very security of their citizens. The criminal justice system is a major area where local governments find ever increasing expenditures outpacing tax revenues.

Substantial gains in cost savings and service provision can be achieved through sharing common services among governments. Using high speed connectivity and appropriately managing shared services, the duplicated services can be eliminated increasing the quantity and quality of services across all collaborating governments.  This optimizing of shared services can lower taxes and provides efficiencies in government work and process that enhances the economic competitiveness of the collaborating region and northeastern Ohio.

Project Goal:
Reduce local government expenditures and increase economic competitiveness for 6 regional/local governments by collaborating in shared information technology services

Total Project Budget:
$312,000

Amount of Reward Requested:
$120,000

Please take a moment to vote for these projects, if you haven’t already. Thank you!

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