Economic disaster can strike for any number of reasons. Sometimes it can accompany a major disaster such as a flood or freeze. It happened as part of COVID-19 and also the Great Recession. The Economic Disaster Mitigation Plan was created by TCOG to strengthen the regional economy to better withstand economic impacts, allow the region to respond aggressively when an economic disaster strikes and rebound more quickly.
What is this Workshop About? The purpose of the Economic Recovery & Resiliency Workshop is to showcase four ways to increase regional resilience and build a stronger regional economy. Each topic is based upon recommendations of the Economic Disaster Mitigation Plan.
Who is this Workshop For? The workshop is for all with an interest in building a thriving business environment throughout the TCOG region including business owners, city/county officials, planners, economic development professionals, financial institutions, higher education institutions, other business support leaders and associated nonprofits
regional services community & economic development
Kevin will discuss the fiscal implications of decisions and how a fiscally sustainable approach can place communities and counties in a stronger position to address economic shocks.
Kevin Shepherd, PE, ENV-SP Kevin is a licensed engineer with over 27 years of experience in civil engineering, planning, site development and municipal finance. In 2011, he founded Verdunity to provide resource-focused planning and engineering solutions to progressive cities and developers seeking to move beyond business as usual.
Dr. Summers will describe the importance of a strong local business presence in communities of all sizes and offer ways in which communities and their partners can foster the environment needed to start and grow businesses.
Dr. Summers is an Associate Professor of Economic Development and Entrepreneurship at the University of Houston-Victoria. Dr. Summers is actively involved in economic development and entrepreneurship serving as the President of the West Kerr County Chamber of Commerce, facilitator of a volunteer economic development group for west Kerr County, teaches the entrepreneurship portion of the Texas Economic Development Council’s Basic Economic Development Course, and serves on the Education Committee of the Texas Economic Development Council.
Ryan will present the value of a highly marketable identity and different ways to “own” that identity. Similarly, he will offer the benefits of a regional brand and the methods for incorporating a regional brand into local marketing and tourism efforts without losing community/place/business autonomy and identity.
Ryan is the founder of CivicBrand and since 2008 he has built and led an awardwinning team that focuses on city branding, public engagement and destination marketing. CivicBrand is an award-winning agency that consists of a team of strategists, creatives and storytellers with a passion for helping communities tell their story.
Tony, Naina, Charlene and Jim will offer creative ways to make projects of all types possible by using the full set of tools and resources available. Discussion will include use of special districts, grants, partnerships, development agreements, the PACE program and more.
Tony offers three decades of experience discovering creative and implementable economic solutions for regions, communities, downtowns, and districts throughout the country, crafting solutions centered around memorable places, local business growth and sustainable economic prosperity.
Naina has over 20 years in economic development, planning and financial analysis experience serving both public and private sector clients in supporting new investment and facilitating development through creative and implementable solutions.
Charlene is president of the Texas PACE Authority, the nonprofit administrator of Texas PACE programs, and executive director of Keeping PACE in Texas, where she led the PACE legislative effort and the collaborative PACE in a Box model program. Heydinger is a member of the Texas, Washington, DC, Michigan, and US Supreme Court Bar Associations and serves on the executive board of the Capitol Area Council, BSA and the board of SPEER.
Jim Webb, AICP, ENV SP
Jim is the CEO at The Goodman Corporation. His passion for translating concepts into the built environment has enabled him to leverage significant public and private resources towards project delivery. Jim has significant experience in transportation planning, economic development, public-private partnership creation, funding pursuit, and overall project management processes.
William joined the Denison Development Alliance and Denison Industrial Foundation as VP of Business Development in December 2013 and has 17 years experience in economic development. William is responsible for business recruitment, small business development, and management of DDA programs including the Destination Creation Grant, Historic District Façade Grant, and the Ecommerce Accelerator Incentive. He is currently serving on the Texoma Health Foundation Board of Directors and Texas Economic Development Council Board of Directors.
Audrey was selected as the Executive Director of the Gainesville Economic Development Corporation in February 2020. Her previous experience at the Abilene Industrial Foundation and the Brazos Valley Economic Development Corporation lends itself well in developing new growth strategies for small-tomidsized business and emerging markets. Audrey serves on the boards of the Texas Economic Development Council and Workforce Solutions of Texoma.
Kent became the President of the Sherman Economic Development Corporation (SEDCO) in January 2019. Kent has 30 years of experience in Texas economic development (Type A and Type B) having served as the CEO of five previous municipal economic development organizations: Shamrock, Stamford, Big Spring, Gainesville, and Abilene, TX. Kent was appointed by the Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives to serve as the charter board member of the Office of Rural Community Affairs. Kent is currently serves on the board of directors of the Texas Economic Development Council as Vice Chair of the Membership.
regional services community & economic development
