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Program aims to market Escanaba

Jenny Lancour | Daily Press Dotty LaJoye, director of the Central Upper Peninsula Planning and Development (CUPPAD) Regional Commission discusses ways to attract people to visit, live and invest in Escanaba during a marketing work session at city hall Tuesday. Pictured, from left, are Public Works employee Keith Marenger, City Clerk Bob Richards, LaJoye, and Richard Smith, also of CUPPAD.

ESCANABA — Many good things were said about Escanaba during a work session at city hall Tuesday focusing on how to promote the city’s strengths and unique assets through a marketing strategy.

Escanaba is participating in the Redevelopment Ready Community (RRC) program offered through the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) to become certified as a municipality that has a future vision and is ready for development.

Escanaba will be the first community in the Upper Peninsula to become certified in the program that lets developers know the city is ready and prepared for economic growth. Currently, 10 municipalities downstate have achieved the certification.

According to the MEDC website, the RRC is a voluntary, no-cost certification program promoting effective redevelopment strategies through a set of best practices that help streamline development practices.

Escanaba was accepted into the RRC evaluation program in 2014 to work toward becoming certified as an RRC community based on its policies, practices, community support, and development strategies.

Since then, the city has been working to meet the best practices. In addition to an updated master plan, the city recently approved a more flexible parking ordinance downtown and created more uses for the downtown central retail district, pointed out City Manager Jim O’Toole.

A comprehensive marketing plan is among the final steps Escanaba needs to accomplish to receive the RRC certification, explained Ryan Soucy, an RRC community development planner from Lansing.

Escanaba has worked through most of the required items but still had a couple best practices to meet, including the marketing strategy, explained Soucy, noting the city has been very cooperative in the process.

“They’ve been terrific. They’ve been excellent to work with,” he said.

According to Randy Mielnik, a consultant hired to assist MEDC in the RRC program, there are essential elements that make up a successful community marketing strategy.

The first element is promoting the community’s strengths and authentic identity. Next is defining and maintaining a community’s image through branding such as logos and consistent signage. The third essential element is communicating to target audiences, he said.

Mielnik described the RRC program as a “challenging” certification process which includes an analysis of the city by the MEDC. In Escanaba’s review, the city lacked a community marketing strategy, he said.

In a PowerPoint presentation, the consultant reviewed the marketing strategies of other cities and pointed out Escanaba’s branding efforts including its gateway signs and city directions signs. He complimented the city for its use of history on its city parking lot signs.

About three dozen people attended Tuesday’s work session where they formed four groups to brainstorm what’s unique about Escanaba, what’s working well — and not so well — in terms of community marketing efforts, and what can be done to enhance the city’s identity to attract people to visit, live and invest in the community.

During the brainstorming session, participants came up with a list of what makes Escanaba special including the city’s historical character, small town appeal, and the safe and friendly community.

Additional assets include the waterfront, local arts and cultural activities, recreational opportunities, business and industry, schools and college, low-cost utilities, various modes of transportation, area medical services, and the U.P. State Fair.

“I heard a lot of good discussion,” O’Toole commented after the meeting, explaining that a marketing strategy will be drafted and presented to council for consideration.

Once approved, the document will be forwarded to the MEDC to consider the city for RRC certification.

Mayor Marc Tall noted that not only will Escanaba have the status of being certified as an RRC community — letting developers know the city encourages and is ready for economic growth — the city will also have greater opportunity to receive state funding through the MEDC.

Being the first community in the U.P. to be RCC certified, will also be notable, said Tall, adding, “We want to be leaders.”

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Jenny Lancour, (906) 786-2021, ext. 143, jlancour@dailypress.net

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