Heartland Forward launches center to boost investment
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Illustration: Lazaro Gamio/Axios
<br/>Bentonville's Heartland Forward has launched a new center to help up to 30 cities across the middle of the country attract investment and grow local businesses by 2030.
Why it matters: Many mid-sized cities in the heartland struggle to draw investors despite strong local industries. The nonprofit's new center aims to make those communities more competitive.
State of play: Heartland Forward's Center for Investment Readiness will leverage economic frameworks, research and connections it has developed over the past five years to advise the 30 small metropolitans and micropolitans (cities with populations between 10,000 and 50,000).
- Using data, employees will coach each community's stakeholders so they can compete for projects and jobs.
Zoom in: A key nuance will be using an "investor-first" lens to attract industry, development vice president Krista Cupp told Axios.
- Investors look for opportunities in the middle of the country, but maybe don't know enough about these communities, she said. The center will help bridge that gap.
Because some investors see the middle of the country as slower growing than the coasts, the center's mission is also to "change the narrative," or reframe how people perceive economic opportunities in the 20 central states.
The latest: In its launch, Heartland revealed the center is working with Enid and Perry, Oklahoma; and Hutchinson, Kansas. Other cities will be selected on a rolling basis.
What they're saying: "I think what Heartland will be able to help us do is couple our story of tradition with data," Marice Mack, executive director of Enid's Regional Development Alliance, told Axios.
- "When we're able to put that together, we can actually show a stronger … return on our impact for the area.
"In my past work with developers, they've often asked for detailed information about service area populations, traffic counts, project timelines and other market data," Perry city manager Nate Reed said.
- "Heartland Forward's tools and connections appear designed to help us answer those questions more effectively and strengthen our position when pursuing new opportunities."
What we're watching: We'll want to see what cities Heartland selects in the next few months.