Welcome homecoming for new economic development director

by Erica Peterson 

New city Economic Development Director Jessica Hyser is happy to be able to work in her hometown. 

The 30-year Independence resident and IHS graduate said she had talked with Mayor Greg Kurtz over the years about the possibility of working for the city. With former Economic Development Director Jeremy Rowan leaving in March to pursue a position in Brooklyn, Ohio, “[the stars] lined up,” Kurtz said at an economic development committee meeting.

“We are just so excited about the different dynamics, experience that she brings to the table,” he said. 

Hyser, too, said she is excited about the opportunity. After spending 11 1/2 years as the city of Green’s community development administrator, focusing on economic development, she said, “it was time for a change.” 

“There are some great projects that I see coming on line here in Independence that I wanted to be a part of,” she said. 

Hyser officially started on June 1. When she was considering a community to work for, Hyser considered things like stability, resources, the opportunity to develop land, and an administration that would support development. 

“All those boxes are checked here in Independence,” she said. 

She is also looking forward to working closer to home and her husband Chris and her 4-year-old and 2-year-old children. 

Hyser got her undergraduate degree in political science, with a minor in economics, from Ohio University. While she was doing economic development and marketing research at the Greater Cleveland Growth Association (now the Greater Cleveland Partnership), she earned a master’s in public administration, concentrating in urban economic development, from Cleveland State.

In Green, Hyser managed more than 40 Tax Increment Financing projects, so she is familiar with the economic development tool. She also brings other economic development strategies to the city, including creating and expanding a Community Reinvestment Area in Green.

CRAs allow property tax abatements for companies who qualify. “It’s a tool that’s talked about in the Independence Economic Development Strategy Plan,” she said. 

“One of the unique things that we did do in Green was create what they call a Community Entertainment District, which was a tool to leverage liquor permits in an area that was deficient,” she told the economic development committee. 

Hyser also helped create a business retention program called Leadership Green, modeled after similar programs in other communities. “The idea is to get executives in your companies to become more engaged in the community,” she said. She said when they are more engaged, company leaders are more likely to stay and help their companies grow local operations.

Focus on retention 

When it comes to economic development, there are three main areas of focus, Hyser said: business retention, business expansion and business attraction. She sees retention as the priority in Independence, especially in light of the pandemic. 

“This whole COVID situation changes the economic development landscape,” she said. “We really want to focus on retention and expansion opportunities as they are available. You want to keep the businesses in your community before you lose them.” 

Retention strategies include focusing on businesses that have leases close to expiring to “see what their critical needs are,” whether that be finding room to expand or another location in the city that better meets their needs.

Keeping in contact with those companies to help meet their needs is vital, Hyser said. But because Independence has so many office jobs, the quickly changing work culture and health and safety guidelines amid the pandemic makes pinpointing those needs a challenge.

“We are all trying to figure out how COVID is going to play out, and how we can all thrive and survive,” she said.

Hyser doesn’t expect remote work to continue long term.

“Companies will be challenged to bring people on board,” she said. “We can do things virtually for a while, but it’s difficult to bring people into your culture and build relationships and keep communication open in a virtual world.” 

In fact, pre-COVID, she was approached by a tech company that was looking for office space because when they were recruiting potential employees, they had nowhere to meet.

“She would be meeting people in Panera, and other recruiters were out there overhearing her conversation with potential recruits,” she said.

Having an office space adds legitimacy, Hyser said. “That’s why I see [working remotely] as short term,” she said.

Tools to attract development 

Working on attracting new business would come next, Hyser said, by introducing more incentive programs, including CRAs.

“Right now, really the only tool we have is the job retention and creation grant program,” Hyser said. “This would layer in another tool for some of these opportunities that may be more challenging.” 

The city would also like to improve its external marketing, she said, including creating a more robust website. 

“Site selectors often go to a community’s website as their first interaction with a community,” she said. “When they go there, they’re going to want to find what is available as far as commercial space. I’ve identified that as a gap on our website; we don’t have that information listed.” 

It’s important that the city have a good handle on that information so it can be shared with their economic development partners including Jobs Ohio and Team NEO. 

Jobs Ohio maintains a database of all the commercial real estate in the state that it and Team NEO uses to help interested companies find a site for their projects.

“Our commercial real estate agents and our properties are not being plugged into that pipeline,” Hyser said. “We want to get plugged in.” 

Back home 

Hyser got her first job in the city, working as a lifeguard and swim coach and instructor at the city pool while in high school and college. It helped fund her college education. “When college prices were a lot lower, what you could earn over the summer was enough to pay for half of your school year the next year,” she said. 

She said she worked long hours and loved it. “My best job will always be my lifeguarding job,” she said. 

Hyser is looking forward to see what her new city job brings her during this uncertain time.

“It’s a really exciting time to be in economic development. It’s uncharted territory, but it’s fun” she said. “I’ve always enjoyed my work in economic development. It’s fun to put together deals. It’s challenging at times, but it’s also interesting to learn about some of the assets that you have in your own community.” 

Being familiar with the community is also a big help, she said  “It’s really rewarding to be in the community that I grew up in,” Hyser said. “Nobody needs to tell me there’s a lot of businesses on Rockside Road, or how to get there, or where Pleasant Valley is and who’s down there. I don’t have to learn from the ground up some of that basic stuff. I know the history.”

Feature image photo caption: Jessica Hyser