Following a year of review and revision, the Economic Development Commission has unanimously approved a new Strategic Plan for Economic Development at its August 15 meeting.

The draft plan is still preliminary and has been sent to First Selectman Dan Rosenthal for his input. It is then expected to go before both the Board of Selectmen and Legislative Council for review, possible changes, and approvals.

The draft plan, according to the document’s executive summary, “supports the desire for a diverse and vital economy that recognizes the many groups that contribute to the community vision of Newtown.” It further states that it “emphasizes areas that will improve the tax base ratio of commercial taxes compared to residential taxes.”

The plan, which must be updated every five years, is expected by EDC members to be used in whole or in part in the upcoming Plan of Conservation and Development (PoCD), which the Planning & Zoning Commission is expected to begin work on in the near future. The PoCD must be generated by municipalities every ten years by state statute.

The new strategic plan is much shorter than the previous report, and EDC member Tracey Pertoso noted that they wanted the document to be “more nimble than last time.” Chairman Jeffrey Robinson noted that when he left for vacation last month, the document was still ten pages. It now stands at three pages.

“We have [an Economic & Community Development] department now,” said Pertoso. “We did not have that when the initial plan was drawn up.”

The goals of the plan are to develop programs to improve the economic climate by support existing businesses and attracting new businesses. It notes that the town has seven business districts and a goal is to continue to enhance the districts.

The final goal is around community enrichment, and the desire to seek input from residents around their needs and desires, and support Newtown as a destination for businesses.

Objectives include assisting businesses with incentives to develop undeveloped properties, nurturing existing businesses, evaluating infrastructure needs, and enhancing the quality and diversity of businesses available to residents.

To meet those goals, strategies include supporting the Fairfield Hills master plan and bringing new businesses to the campus, assisting in helping property owners fill vacant storefronts and industrial buildings, facilitating communications between business owners and town officials, seeking out available grants, and collaborating with other town commissions and community groups. It also discussed promoting the newly updated Economic Development website as a source of information.

The website is nearing the end of an overhaul and update, according to Economic Development and Fairfield Hills Coordinator Kim Chiappetta. She told the commission she expected it to launch in the next few weeks.

According to the minutes of the February 21 EDC meeting, the Strategic Plan for Economic Development is owned by the commission, but the majority of work is done by staff. Member Peter McLoughlin presented his thoughts on the role of the EDC, and that the commission needs to be proactive and serve the interest of the town in regards to economic development. McLoughlin recognized that the EDC is not a policy-setting group, but a facilitator and organizer to assist the decision-making entities.

The strategic plan is expected to go before the selectmen and the council. The selectmen have upcoming meetings on August 21 and September 5, while the Legislative Council has upcoming meetings on September 6 and 20, which may have the strategic plan on the agenda.

Associate Editor Jim Taylor can be reached at jim@thebee.com.