EVANSTON — Luring new business to an area is a key component of economic development and often a difficult task. How do community leaders know what type of industries are a good fit and which businesses to actively pursue? How do they identify impediments that may be preventing existing businesses from reaching their full potential? 

Officials in Uinta and South Lincoln counties hope that recently-approved grant funding through the Business Ready Community grant and loan program will help to answer those questions and provide some guidance on the type of industries and businesses that would do well in this southwest corner of the state. 

Following a positive recommendation from the Wyoming Business Council, the State Loan and Investment Board (SLIB) recently approved a $50,000 grant request from Uinta and South Lincoln counties to pursue the Southwest Wyoming Targeted Industry Implementation Plan. 

The goal is to use the funding to hire an outside consulting group that specializes in target market studies, essentially looking at community resources and needs and matching those with business needs. 

At a recent Wyoming Business Council meeting held in Evanston in March, multiple individuals spoke urging the WBC to issue a positive recommendation on the grant request. Uinta County GIS Coordinator Gary Welling said the idea to pursue the target market study came from a similar study done in Goshen County that had been very successful. 

Andrew Nelson, Kemmerer City Administrator, said that cooperation with Uinta County was very promising for South Lincoln County as the two counties already work together on other initiatives and have a significant shared workforce. 

Bear River Town Councilwoman Liz Pace, also a member of the Uinta County Economic Development Commission (UCEDC), said, “The commission has great ideas, drive and knowledge, and it would be great to get funding to help market our gem of a community.” 

The WBC recommended approval of the grant request at that meeting, and the request then went before SLIB, which is made up of Wyoming’s governor, secretary of state, treasurer, auditor and superintendent, on April 12. 

Evanston City Clerk and UCEDC Chair Amy Grenfell said she is very pleased the request was approved and believes it will be helpful in targeting the region’s economic development efforts. “Given that we have limited economic development resources, I would much rather focus efforts more strategically with the hopes of a better return on investment.” 

Evanston Community Development Coordinator Mieke Madrid said she’s excited about the fact this is a regional effort because Uinta and South Lincoln counties have so much in common and economic development in one county affects the other. 

Madrid also said, “It is our collective hope that once the targeted industry plan is completed, it will not only guide us in the recruitment of new and compatible businesses to the region, but it will also assist our existing manufacturers and entrepreneurs by identifying disparities in services, infrastructure, education, etc., necessary for them to develop, improve and thrive.” 

The next step in the process, according to Grenfell, is to develop a Request for Proposals (RFP) to issue to solicit proposals from consulting groups to conduct the study. The funding itself won’t be released to the regional partners until early July, but the plan is to have the RFP written and ready to be sent out as soon as the money is received. 

Welling said he too is hopeful the study will produce results for southwest Wyoming. “My hope…will be to establish or define our regional image, assess our economic base and define our competitive advantages, while creating a comprehensive marketing strategy to attract a more diverse spectrum of targeted industries as well as strengthen and retain our existing businesses.”

Welling stressed the goal is to lure in new businesses while supporting those already here. “Our intent is not to find an industry to come in and chase other industries away.” He also stressed the long-range goals of the study. “One of our goals with this grant is to identify and recruit at least two primary sector industries to the region within a seven-year period, generating between 50 and 100 new jobs.”