Many Discuss Development Concerns

“Jasper County — small town feel, urban access, endless opportunities” is the vision statement developed by a group of community leaders at the closing of an all-day meeting last Friday.

The meeting was a follow-up to a meeting held in Atlanta in February, where the community leaders learned strategies about economic development and received tips on how to market our community. Although the overall theme is economic development, neither meeting was designed to particularly work to attract a company or industry. It was more of an educational overview. Much of Friday was spent determining howwe see ourself as a community and in what direction we would like to go.

The consensus of several groups working together, and then all the ideas being combined, is that we enjoy our small-town “Mayberry-esque” lifestyle, and are not interested in major changes, although we recognize the need for some retail and industrial growth to be able to provide services.

It was stressed that the vision needs to be apparent to all.

The group also developed short term strategies for achieving goals, with an 18-month work plan to be reviewed and updated in 12 months or sooner.