Happy Birthday Grow Liv Co
Livingston County Economic Development is excited to celebrate the one-year anniversary of Grow LivCo.
In late 2019, Livingston County Economic Development set out to create and launch a long-term, sustainable brand in a way that represents our efforts to grow Livingston County in Western New York. Over six months, our team conducted market research, focus groups, and collaborated with branding experts to create the perfect brand, resulting in Grow LivCo. Our new brand included a logo suite, color palette, icons, typography, and two sets of sub-logos for our partner organizations and businesses. Additionally, we launched a new website that includes resources and technical assistance.
We are passionately invested in YOU!
To ensure that LivCo grows, we have invested ourselves and resources into making meaningful connections for our businesses – connections to resources that will catalyze growth and incentives that spark success. With your help and continued support, we can invest in future success.
In the past year, we have…
Helped Our Businesses Recover
We launched the Small Business Innovation Fund:
The Small Business Innovation Fund helped businesses adapt to the changes caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdown. The Fund aimed to expand the way businesses interact with their new and prospective customers and encourage grantees to innovate and find adaptations and solutions for conducting business during the pandemic. Businesses that received funding could invest in supplies, training, design, technology, infrastructure, and/or furnishings to adapt their operations or business models.
As a result of the Small Business Innovation Fund:
We Assisted 16 Businesses
$66,628.67 in Grants
$96,277.95 in Match
$162,906.62 Invested
We provided Re-Opening Resources to our LivCo Businesses:
Livingston County Economic Development worked closely with the State, County, and our local partners at the Chamber of Commerce and Small Business Development Center to share resources with businesses as they were available. During these unprecedented times, Livingston County Economic Development is here for our businesses.
Funding Opportunities at the Federal, State, and Local Levels
Contact Information for Specialized Assistance
Up-to-Date Guidelines from New York State
"Safety Signs” in a variety of options and colors for businesses to use inside and outside their store
Shared the Stories of Our Locals
We launched the LivCo Locals Facebook Page:
LivCo Locals was developed as a campaign to share the unique stories of local community members in Livingston County. It began as a Facebook page that quickly grew to more than 1300 followers! We believe that sharing these stories will help support local businesses, develop new connections, and give people another reason to love living in Livingston County.
In one year, we told the stories of 52 LivCo Locals! Check out the LivCo Locals Facebook Page + use the hashtag #LivCoLocals!
Evaluated Industry in LivCo
We expanded industry in LivCo:
In 2020, the Livingston County Industrial Development Agency closed on 6 projects. As a result of these projects:
67 jobs will be created
$30,052,000 will be invested in new or expanding businesses in Livingston County
$2,857,000 cost to the State and region
$109,548,223 benefit to the state and region
Economic Development Loans:
Started the year with 22 active loans
Approved 9 new loans
One loan was paid off
Ended the year with 30 active loans
$750,000 was awarded to the Development Corporation through USDA’s Intermediary Relending Program. This program provides low-interest loans to local businesses to improve economic conditions and create jobs in rural communities. These funds will be available for lending in early 2021.
Developed New Ways to Attract Customers
We became certified Destination Creation facilitators:
In 2020, Economic Development staff Louise Wadsworth and Maureen Wheeler became certified facilitators to teach the Destination Creation Course, a class designed to help business owners increase their revenue and customer traffic during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. Louise and Maureen are the first and only certified facilitators in New York State and two of only 48 trained facilitators in North America.
The Destination Creation Course teaches the proven 14-point business success strategy developed by internationally-known business consultant Jon Schallert. Schallert created this methodology after three decades of coaching independent business owners to make their businesses irresistible to customers. Businesses that follow Schallert’s process can attract customers from far beyond the typical geographic market of a business.
The course is available to LivCo Businesses throughout 2021.
Implemented New Plans + Guides for LivCo
We developed County-Wide Design Guidelines:
We have taken the Design Guidelines that were previously developed for the nine downtown districts and reinvented them into a single, comprehensive, user-friendly, highly visual format. We've added a section on public space and art providing general guidance on the treatment of public and semi-public spaces such as parks, plazas, and public parking areas to ensure visitor comfort and a high-quality downtown image.
The document includes quick references to signage and awning codes from all nine villages. We intend to meet with each village in 2021 to review the document and offer high-level input related to recommended zoning changes that would address common problems and assist with uniform enforcement.
We developed our Wayfinding Master Plan:
Our primary objective for the Wayfinding Project is to develop a Master Plan to improve the pedestrian, tourist, and visitor experience navigating to and within the nine downtown districts in Livingston County. The project inventoried local sites and assets to be included in the Wayfinding Master Plan and identified signage types, locations, treatments, and prioritized phases of installation. The Master Plan will create a unified, consistent impression across Livingston County's nine downtown districts to effectively and safely connect the traveling public to local assets.
Focused on Tourist Attraction
We created our Recovery Assessment + Action Plan with Roger Brooks:
Roger Brooks is the founder of award-winning Roger Brooks International and the Destination Development Association. Roger has assisted nearly 2,000 communities with their branding, tourism, downtown development, and marketing over a distinguished career spanning nearly 40 years. In 2020, we invited Roger to Livingston County to conduct a Recovery Assessment and develop an Action Plan.
The Recovery Assessment is a powerful tool that offers an objective view of what a visitor sees and experiences while in our communities: from the initial planning to on-the-ground exploration. When talking about visitors, this is not only geared toward tourism; any site-selector, investor, business relocation expert, or potential new resident will come to us first as a visitor. What will they see as they explore the community for the first time? What will their first impressions be? What’s missing?
This three-week process began from a distance as Roger Brooks planned a trip to the area, to see what our digital marketing showed. Next, Roger spent two weeks in our communities for a professional, in-depth look as a visitor, potential investor, or future resident. The Recovery Assessment concluded with a Findings and Suggestions Workshop, presented by Roger Brooks as well as a full-day retreat where the Livingston County team developed an action plan.
Three important facts:
#1 - Tourism is the front door to your non-tourism economic development.
#2 - Jobs are going where the talent is or wants to be.
#3 - Quality of life is leading both economic and tourism development.