Residents urge support for Clinton County Catalyst and stronger master-plan outreach

Several residents used the public-comment period to press the board on economic-development funding and master-plan outreach. Jesse Stipkak (S8), who identified himself as a business owner and member of the Clinton County Catalyst, invited commissioners to learn about the group's work and said membership has grown to more than 120 businesses. "We've really grown this group over the past year and 0.5 to over a 120 business members," he said.

Mark Schlagle (S11) voiced support for Catalyst but expressed concern over the lead economic-development contract's exclusive language. "One thing is it says it has to be the exclusive economic development for the county. And I would encourage you to take a look at that and potentially strike that language," Schlagle said, asking that the county consider sharing responsibilities or splitting funds with Catalyst rather than granting exclusivity to a single organization.

Other commenters—including Jack Donahue (S13), who described youth and small-business outreach, and David Smith (S14), who urged the board to allocate half of a proposed $100,000 community development amount to the Catalyst—said Catalyst provides mentoring and promotional support that benefits local businesses. Multiple speakers also urged more robust public engagement on the comprehensive plan update, recommending direct mailings or postcard campaigns with QR codes to boost participation and ensure the future land-use map reflects resident input.

County staff and commissioners acknowledged the comments and said contract language and procurement options could be revisited as part of the RFP and contract-review processes.