GEDC and Grundy County Chamber seek public comment for draft of Advancing Grundy plan

The Grundy Economic Development Council and the Grundy County Chamber of Commerce are inviting the community to comment on “Advancing Grundy,” a comprehensive economic development plan that provides a five-year vision and framework for countywide prosperity and resilience.

“It is exciting to reach this stage of the Grundy Resiliency Project. Our consultants, TIP Strategies, have dove into our community’s data and sought out real conversations with business and residential representatives. The result is an action-oriented plan that will lead us to a diverse and thriving Grundy County,” said Nancy Norton, GEDC President & CEO.

TIP Strategies completed the plan as phase two of the economic development roadmap, which was funded by grant dollars from the US Economic Development Administration along with a match from Grundy County. The grant administrator is North Central Illinois Council of Governments, and a stearing committee is made up of 12 local organizations that have convened regularly to contribute strategic oversight and share ideas.

The project launched in Spring 2024 with the first phase focused on data review and industry analysis, and the second phase including individual and group conversations.

According to a Thursday news release, the “Advancing Grundy” draft identifies dozens of actions for building a resilient economy across 10 strategic areas identified by the community as high-impact areas.

“Advancing Grundy is truly a community-wide plan. The planning process was marked by extensive stakeholder engagement which has been critical in shaping the priorities and direction for the plan,” said Mishka Parkins, consultant at TIP Strategies and project manager for Advancing Grundy.

Public comment is encouraged on the document and will be taken through Friday, Dec. 13. Comments can be emailed to info@resilientgrundy.com or emailed to Grundy Chamber, 909 Liberty St., Morris, Attention Christina Van Yperen. A printed copy of the draft is available upon request, and those making comments are asked to refer to the page number or section heading when submitting a comment.

“Throughout the Grundy Resiliency Plan project public feedback has been imperative,” said Christina Van Yperen, Grundy Chamber President & CEO. “The community responded in number to our public surveys and town hall meetings. We ask you to again give us a little of your time to review the Advancing Grundy draft to ensure we are headed in the right direction from our community’s perspective.”

All comments will be reviewed and considered by the steering committee, which will then revise the draft strategy before publishing the final document.

For more information, visit resilientgrundy.com.