SOUTH PORTLAND – On its second application, South Portland has won certification as a “business-friendly community” by the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development.
Belfast, Caribou and Hermon also were named to the list, which now includes 22 towns and cities in 11 Maine counties.
“The addition of these four communities to an already impressive list further strengthens my belief that Maine is a great state in which to do business,” said Gov. Paul LePage, as quoted by the release. “These communities lead by example and have found ways to improve their own services and processes for the benefit of job creators. This is the kind of proactive approach that Maine embraces to attract and retain businesses.”
“We are thrilled to be one of the communities within the state of Maine to receive this designation,” wrote City Manager Jim Gailey in an email on Friday. “The designation compliments the businesses that call South Portland home. We have great businesses from the corner mom-and-pop shops to national and international headquarters, all making South Portland a strong vibrant business community.
“This is also an honor for staff, who have done a tremendous job in working with businesses, making it welcoming and easy to do business in South Portland,” wrote Gailey. “South Portland is doing great things and I believe by this designation it shows we are doing it right.
South Portland initially was denied the certification in June 2012, when just one of the original 19 applicants were recognized. It was a slight that perplexed city officials, in part because the seven-member reviewing team gave South Portland a higher score than Sanford, which was certified, while only two members initially voted against South Portland’s inclusion.
“I have a hard job believing that we send $800 million-$900 million in tax revenue up to the turnpike every year, get $6 million back, and we’re not business friendly,” Gailey said at the time.
“We believe South Portland should hold the designation of a ‘business-friendly community’ as we have a larger commercial base than most,” Gailey wrote in an email Friday, of the decision to re-apply for certification. “Through the designation, it shows the city supports its businesses and works with the them to make South Portland a great community to do business in.
Among critiques made by the reviewers on the first application, four stood out. They included a belief that South Portland had a “complex permitting process with vague timelines,” and that “efforts to clarify the process and decision-making timeline need to be undertaken.” Also, the review team said South Portland should undertake “more involvement/collaboration with Chamber,” while “use of CDBG funds could be more aggressive/supportive of business.”
In the new decision, the latter two complaints turned into compliments, as the review team credited South Portland for “active partnership with the South Portland-Cape Elizabeth Community Chamber of Commerce,” and praised “utilization of the city’s ‘set-aside’ account funded from Cumberland County’s Community Development Block Grant program for economic development, public infrastructure improvements and the establishment of a housing revolving loan fund.”
Other business friendly kudos this time around included South Portland’s “impressive track record” of 13 tax increment financing (TIF) plans and 17 credit enhancement agreements, which, the review team noted, “have generated more than $74 million for public infrastructure improvements, credit enhancement payments back to businesses and economic development.” South Portland also was singled out for being the first community in the state to establish a transportation TIF district to assist in management and maintenance of its bus service and a transit TIF to help expand services.
By getting the “business-friendly” designation, South Portland will be presented with a certificate and two Maine Department of Transportation road signs attesting to its status. State economic development officials also promise the city will “become a key part of Maine’s business attraction strategy.”
According to Assistant City Manager Jon Jennings, the presentation of the signs was set to take place Wednesday afternoon in Legion Square, after deadline for this week’s Current.
However, the real benefit of the program, according to said DECD Commissioner George Gervais, is that it forces member-communities to constantly re-examine their permitting processes for maximum efficiency, in order to maintain their business-friendly certification.
“The communities that take the time to go through the application process, take a critical look at all areas of their business strategy and examine the ways in which their community interacts with businesses,” he said. “And if this certification reminds the communities to ask the question – ‘Is this program or initiative we’re about to undertake truly business-friendly?’ – then the certification is truly working for them.”
Business-friendly designees also get bonus points on future CDBG applications to the state. However, that’s a benefit that will not apply to South Portland because its block grant money is funneled through Cumberland County directly from the feds as a fixed percentage of funding to Portland.
Business Friendly Communities are to be certified for two years. New certifications are made on a quarterly basis. Of the 10 communities denied in the first round last year, three have since been awarded the business-friendly label, including Cumberland in the second round, Kennebunk in the third, and now South Portland.
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