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28 Feature
Business Trend Magazine
Expert Team Chosen to Facilitate
regional growth
The effort to launch a 40-year, strategic
planning process for the tri-state
region reached another milestone
with the selection of a team of expert
firms led by McBride Dale Clarion to
serve as facilitators.
The announcement was the
culmination of a rigorous selection
process including a public meeting on
Nov. 17. More than 300 people attended
presentations by the McBride Dale
Clarion team and two other finalists.
Meeting participants overwhelmingly
chose McBride Dale Clarion, giving them
the most “excellent” ratings for their
presentation.
The McBride Dale Clarion team also
excelled in demonstrating capabilities in
areas such as public engagement, scenariobased
planning, data modeling, long-term
financial planning and more.
In addition to McBride Dale Clarion,
the team consists of Clarion Associates,
Fregonese Associates, Kimley-Horn and
Associates, Brown Pearman Russell, BAE
Urban Economics, Opticos Design, Ann
Coulter, PlaceMatters, the Ochs Center
for Metropolitan Studies and Neathawk
Dubuque & Packett.
For more information
and to see a video about
the Regional Growth
Planning Process visit
www.OurGrowthPlan.com.
The goal of the Regional Growth
Planning Process is to engage people from
across the region in developing strategies
to preserve what residents love about their
home communities while making the
most of economic momentum.
Now that the McBride Dale Clarion
team is set to facilitate the initiative,
Q&A
organizers are working with them to detail
the specifics of how to engage people
from across the region in giving feedback
on issues ranging from education and
healthcare to transportation. The
stakeholder group is aiming to launch the
effort during the first part of 2012.
More than 300 community members gathered to provide feedback on consultant team presentations
at a public meeting held Nov. 17 to kick off the Regional Growth Planning Process.
How is the Regional Growth Planning Process funded
All funding for the process is being invested by local governments, foundations and
businesses. Federal grant requests have not been funded, and the stakeholder group has
decided to complete the process using only local funds to ensure maximum local control
of the process and its outcomes.
Which counties are included in the planning footprint
In Alabama: Dekalb and Jackson. In Georgia: Catoosa, Dade, Murray, Walker and
Whitfield (anchored by City of Dalton). In Tennessee: Bledsoe, Bradley (anchored by
City of Cleveland), Hamilton (anchored by City of Chattanooga), Marion, McMinn,
Meigs, Polk, Rhea and Sequatchie.