This November the Cook County Chamber of Commerce is beginning to evaluate and rank proposals originating from Cook County and seeking funds through the 2014 legislative bonding bill or from the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board (IRRRB).
“State and IRRRB funding is limited,” said Jim Boyd, Chamber interim executive director. “This process should enhance prospects that Cook County projects will receive favorable reviews from the Legislature and IRRRB board. The chamber was encouraged to take on this role by our legislative delegation so that the county speaks with one voice.”
Three proposals have been brought to the attention of the chamber: funding for an additional section of the Gitchi-Gami State Trail; additional funding for the Poplar River Water District pipeline; and the Grand Marais biomass district heating project.
“If there are other projects out there, we need to hear about them, and soon,” said Boyd. “Participation in the chamber vetting process is voluntary, but it also is pretty much required if a project is to be taken seriously at the legislature.”
Boyd said the chamber has developed a scoring template that will rate projects on the number of jobs created or retained in the county, revenue created or retained, impact on housing, a project’s consistency with Cook County’s character and values, and other criteria. The projects will be ranked by the chamber board, with the provision that board members who have a vested interest in a project must recuse themselves from ranking that project.
“The process is designed to be as fair and objective as we can make it,” Boyd said.
The ranking will be done by the chamber board: Howard Hedstrom, Jan Sivertson, Dennis Rysdahl, Bill Hansen, Charles Skinner, Jennifer Stoltz, Stacey Hawkins, Dan Anderson, Bruce Kerfoot, Hal Greenwood, and Frank Vecchio.
The chamber also is in the process of hiring a lobbyist to represent chamber interests in St. Paul, Boyd said. “This person will be responsible for ensuring Cook County bonding proposals get before the right legislators and committees, for pressing our perspective on a wide variety of legislative issues and for keeping us apprised of emerging issues with a potential Cook County impact.”
The decision on hiring a lobbyist will be made by the board.
Securing bonding or IRRRB money typically is a difficult, multi-year process, Boyd said. “There will be billions of dollars more projects proposed than there are dollars to distribute,” he said. “Our projects must compete with ones that have been around the Capitol for years, are well known to legislators and make strong public-policy arguments for funding. So we need to begin acquainting legislators with our priorities, educating them about our projects and gradually building support that eventually might yield state or IRRRB funding.” Anyone who would like to learn more about the vetting process, can contact Boyd or any member of the Cook County Chamber board. Boyd can be reached at ccchamber@boreal.org or at 218-370- 9665.
Leave a Reply