Tuscola County EDC seeks to regroup, form nonprofit
Development Corp., says a new nonprofit formed by the organization
could begin to address its financial struggles – and ultimately lead
to more business in the area. (Photo by John Cook)
The Tuscola County Economic Development Corp. is forming a new nonprofit modeled after successful economic partnerships in other parts of Michigan, with hopes to secure more funding – and business for the area.
The idea, said Christine Young, chair of the Tuscola County EDC, is to give businesses and other organizations more incentive to contribute funds to the newly formed nonprofit because such contributions would be tax deductible.
The as-yet unnamed nonprofit would operate in conjunction with the existing Tuscola County EDC, Young said.
The new nonprofit would take on the business attraction and retention duties of the Tuscola County EDC, the board of which approved Tuesday spending up to $5,000 on legal expenses related to forming the organization.
“The main idea that we want to move forward with, is to leave this committee in place, but create a new entity that would go after funding sources,” Young said.
Young said during Tuesday’s Tuscola County EDC meeting that the idea came after the board formed a strategic committee in late 2016 that has since met with officials from the Lansing Economic Area Partnership and the Shiawassee Economic Development Partnership to learn how each respective organization operates.
“What we want to do, is pattern a new organization to kind of run side-by-side with this one,” Young said, referring to the existing Tuscola County EDC. “So we’re putting together articles of incorporation and by-laws, which we received from those other two groups (Lansing and Shiawassee)…this is the way they both operate.
“Our funding sources would then be government, agriculture, industry, and public and private nonprofits,” Young said. “We would increase our funding sources dramatically.” (Read more)
(This story originally appeared in the Jan. 28, 2017 print edition of The Tuscola County Advertiser and can be read online in its entirety here.)
