Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Economic Development topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Willows City weighs hiring an economic‑development liaison while favoring website-first steps
Summary
City Manager Marty Brown outlined options to attract and retain businesses, including a new economic‑development hire, a business resource center and predevelopment conferences. Councilors split between deferring a hire for fiscal reasons and improving the city website and online tools as a first step.
City Manager Marty Brown told the Willows City Council on Jan. 27 that the council’s 2025 priorities called for “establish[ing] a clear strategy for attracting support and retaining businesses in Willows.” Brown presented a range of initiatives: designating a staff economic‑development/business liaison, launching a physical or online business resource center, offering predevelopment meetings, and running property improvement incentives and façade grants using potential CDBG or other funds.
The proposal emphasized that the city currently has no single staffer with capacity to absorb the work. “So this would be…a new hire,” Brown said, adding that several items could be implemented incrementally, such as FAQs, online forms and scheduled predevelopment meetings.
Why it matters: Councilors said a clear, simple path for applicants could encourage investment, reduce permit confusion and make the city more business‑friendly — potentially increasing private investment and jobs — but they disagreed about timing and cost.
Council member Bridal said she supports the framework but urged code updates and stronger code enforcement before adding headcount, noting local housing shortages and the area’s limited workforce: “I don’t think to hire any new positions at this point in time for economic development.” Council member Hanson echoed the fiscal caution: “My position hasn’t changed…we can’t afford this position,” citing outstanding public‑safety and infrastructure needs.
By contrast, Council member Busby argued the city needs to invest to grow revenues and avoid future tax pressure, saying the municipality may eventually have to “take on a little bit of risk and take on a little bit of investment” to expand its revenue base.
Vice Mayor Thomas proposed a staged approach: hiring will be difficult now, but the council can start by prioritizing the city website — fees, forms and FAQs — and add tools that guide applicants. The mayor suggested exploring automated permit‑guidance tools: an AI‑driven questionnaire that could tell a homeowner which permits are needed for common projects such as an ADU attachment.
What’s next: Council direction favored incremental, lower‑cost actions first: improve online resources and market predevelopment meeting opportunities while tracking which initiatives would require additional staff. No formal action was taken to create a new position; staff will incorporate the council’s feedback into an implementation plan.
