It’s been nearly six years since northern Indiana had to ride out a rough economic storm that pushed the area into a deep and dark recession.
At its worst, the storm had LaGrange County, along with neighboring Elkhart County, leading national nightly news programs, as the two posted the worst unemployment numbers in the nation: nearly 20 percent.
But now, LaGrange County, as well as DeKalb, Noble and Steuben counties, are steering through much calmer economic waters, and most of the damage done by the recession has been erased by the region’s economic comeback.
Lessons learned by economic development officials during the recession have led to new economic strategies. They hope those plans will help prevent any future economic downturns from rocking local economies and local workforces as hard as the recession of 2008-2009.
Rick Sherck, Noble County Economic Development Corp. executive director, said one single word might be the key.
“Diversification,” he said.
Sherck, like his counterparts in LaGrange, Steuben and DeKalb counties, said his organization has been working hard since the recession to grow the economic base of his community.
“This is the time to diversify,” he explained.
So far, that effort has paid off with new industries moving into the area, but not enough for Sherck to relax. He said Noble County has been able to attract new medical-device industries, but he would like to see more.
Sherck is not alone in his pursuit to diversify and add to the region’s economic base.
“DeKalb learned we weren’t as diversified as we should be,” said Ken McCrory, executive director of the DeKalb County Economic Development Partnership. “We were hit hard, as well. We’re fortunate we didn’t loose the footprint of any industry. But we’ve struggled though that, to where today we’re actually exceeding the pre-recession employment levels, so we’ve fully recovered — plus — but it’s been a long, slow, monotonous trip to get there.”
Steuben County fared slightly better than the rest of the region during the recession, said Dave Koenig, executive director of the Steuben County Economic Development Corp., but he added his organization is looking to broaden its economic base.
“Steuben County’s economy is not overly dependent on any one industry at this time, but we need to migrate toward industries that are in a high-skill, higher-wage environment, and technologies at the infancy of their life cycle rather than at maturity,” Koenig said.
A just-completed local study examines how best to utilize a more than 1,200-acre area near the intersection of Interstate 69 and U.S. 20 in Steuben County.
“You could call it more of a redevelopment project than a development project, because it will involve finding a higher use for the property around the intersection,” Koenig said. “That study recommends we pursue a certified technology park.”
McCrory said having the entire northeast Indiana region back on solid economic footing gives local economic development officials a chance to be a little more creative in looking for new businesses and industries.
“There was a point in 2008 where we were doing everything we could just to get people back into the workforce. I think today we’re in a position now where we can be more selective. We can take a deeper breath and work at diversification,” he said.
But McCrory and Sherck are quick to point out diversification doesn’t mean turning their backs on the industries already in the area. The automotive industry still plays a large role in the economic health of Noble, DeKalb and Steuben counties. Recreational vehicle manufacturing still plays a large role in the economic health of LaGrange County.
“And that’s not a bad thing. That is a part of our culture. It is one of the biggest industries we have here, the RV industry, said Lora Tormanen, interim president of the LaGrange County Economic Development Corp. “However, I think that overall, there are many, many startup businesses that are growing, doing other things besides supplying to those RV manufacturers. We’re starting to see a steel fabrication boom taking off here.”
Maintaining the businesses and industries already in the area is an important part of the region’s overall strategy.
“We want to keep and help expand the industry we have, building on the the supply chain that reinforces industries already in our county,” McCrory said.
Areas targeted for growth include attracting biomedical and medical-device manufacturing, agribusiness and ag-based manufacturing, he said.
Another key element could create new economic growth, Sherck said.
“The story I think we need to tell is workforce development. And if we get the simple basic math match, basic reasoning, and work ethic accomplished, we’ll be able to diversify even further,” he said. “We have to tie our educational system to real-life jobs.”
One of the final keys to success, said all of the local leaders, is that the region must work together. Steuben, Noble, LaGrange and DeKalb counties already cooperate in producing an annual wage and benefit survey, and they commonly share resources, stage workshops and share industrial leads.
“Boundaries are invisible to industry,” McCrory said, talking about county and state lines. “We either fail together, or we succeed together.”
Tormanen said the next big thing she sees coming is a regionwide push to bring in the best and brightest young business minds from around the country, a program undertaken by the Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership.
“We want to aggressively bring new young talent to the state,” she said. “We want them to work, grow and play here.”