Economic Gardening Focus Under Consideration in Oregon

A bill before the Oregon Legislature would create a task force to examine whether the idea of "economic gardening" could provide a boost to the state’s sputtering economy.

While we would typically run, screaming in horror, at the idea of yet another government task force, the time is right for the so-called "Oregon Economic Gardening Council."

Corvallis Mayor Charles Tomlinson has been among the local officials who have been pounding the drums now for more than a year, trying to call attention to the idea of economic gardening.

At the risk of oversimplification, the idea behind economic gardening (created in large part by economic developers in Littleton, Colo.) http://www.littletongov.org/bia/economicgardening/ (be sure to sign up for the listserve http://www.littletongov.org/bia/economicgardening/econdev.asp ) is for a community to grow its own jobs by encouraging local entrepreneurial activity.

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