A Unified Pitch for Mississippi’s Gulf Coast
Coastal Mississippi must unite its assets and common ground to shape the next decade of economic growth, according to Ricky Mathews. Mathews outlined a regional strategy designed to diversify an economy heavily dependent on gaming and government by attracting major advanced manufacturers to a single, ready site with a unified pitch.
The push comes as the Gulf Coast Business Council’s Masters Leadership class completed the Coastal Mississippi Regional Priorities Alignment Framework.
Mathews Emphasizes Raising the Bar Through an Aspirational Regional Plan
The newly delivered framework highlights where the region’s existing plans already point in the same direction, providing a common ground and a compass for moving forward. Mathews emphasized that the next step requires raising the bar through an aspirational regional plan that aligns stakeholders who control land, money, and companies.
Ricky Mathews writes in his latest column about how Coastal Mississippi mayors and the Gulf Coast Business Council are working together to advance regional growth and realize the Coast’s full potential.https://t.co/Hz5u8XymZx
Forming the Economic Development Partnership
A single regional plan ensures that industrial prospects hear one pitch about the Coast rather than three competing county-level narratives. The proposed Coastal Mississippi Economic Development Partnership would bring together the three counties, local ports, airports, military installations, colleges and universities, and the private sector at one table to pursue transformational projects beyond the reach of any single county.
Leadership Transitions at the Helm
Execution of this strategy falls to the Business Council-created Coast Forward Committee.
Miller will stay involved in the Business Council through the transition and will continue to co-chair the Coast Forward Committee alongside Dave Dennis. Mathews noted that he and Dennis have worked together for years, including through the Governor’s Commission after Hurricane Katrina and in the early formation of the Business Council.
Targeting High-ROI Projects
Local economic development teams will continue their existing work within individual counties, while the regional structure aims to multiply those efforts by targeting high-ROI projects using remaining BP funds. Mathews pointed to Huntsville as an example of a region that successfully used a unified federal anchor, research park, and single-voice marketing effort to land advanced manufacturing companies.
