Published: August 05, 2008 09:54 am         

Local officials attend Orange Carpet Tour

Two rural Tennessee regions hosted veteran site selectors for the first round of the state’s inaugural Orange Carpet Tour program. The tours, patterned after the traditional economic development “red carpet tours” employed by many urban chambers of commerce, were announced at the Governor’s Conference on Economic and Community Development last September.

Representatives from Plante Moran, a nationally-known business consulting firm, visited Morgan, Cumberland and Roane counties on June 10 and 11 and Clay, Pickett and Fentress counties in East Tennessee June 12 and 13 for the first two of five planned Orange Carpet Tours this summer.

“Orange Carpet Tours present a unique opportunity for each participating region to receive valuable feedback from experts in site selection and corporate real estate,” Governor Phil Bredesen said. “The benefit to communities is that they get to make their best pitch to industry professionals who might not otherwise be familiar with the regions and their potential as business locations.”

The project involves a two-day, intensive site selection visit in which the communities organize a comprehensive tour and presentation for the consultants. Consultants evaluate the communities’ strengths and weaknesses and provide community leaders with direct feedback, including detailed information on potential improvement, especially in areas of highest interest to relocating companies.

“The regions should be applauded for their willingness to step up and go through this process,” said Matt Kisber, commissioner, Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development. “These Orange Carpet Tours offer a tremendous opportunity, but they require hard work and regional cooperation. The consultants’ recommendations are an invaluable tool communities can use to make themselves more competitive.”

The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development will work with local leaders at the conclusion of the tours to assist them in implementing strategic recommendations based on the feedback.

“The Orange Carpet Tours is a fantastic learning experience and Cumberland County is eager to apply the feedback we received to our strategic plan,” said Beth Alexander, president and CEO, Crossville-Cumberland County Chamber of Commerce. “It helps to know our neighboring counties are going through this process along with us. That regional cooperation is critical to our success.”

“I appreciate the Governor Bredesen’s commitment to make this program possible,” Pickett County Executive Stephen Bilbrey said. “The Orange Carpet Tours are stepping stones for rural communities like Pickett County to make themselves more marketable to industry and we’re grateful for this opportunity.”

The tours are part of Governor Bredesen’s Rural Opportunity Initiative, a three-prong approach to increase economic development efforts in the state’s more rural areas. In addition to the tours, it includes an enhanced series of tax incentives for companies investing in rural Tennessee and the Rural Opportunity Fund, a new source of capital available to rural Tennessee businesses.

Three remaining regions will host Orange Carpet Tours in August. The county clusters are Lauderdale, Haywood and Tipton counties; Lewis, Wayne and Lawrence counties; and Coffee, Franklin and Lincoln counties. Specific tour dates will be announced in the coming weeks.

For more information on Orange Carpet Tours, the Rural Opportunity Initiative or the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, please visit www.tnecd.gov.