Sonoma Mendocino Economic Development District
PROJECT BACKGROUND
The Sonoma-Mendocino Economic Development District (EDD) unites the counties of Mendocino and Sonoma in creating the first joint economic development strategy for the two-county region. To be developed in collaboration with input from local partners and community members, the multi-year strategy aims to uncover untapped economic potential in the region and to secure a robust and stable regional economy for many years to come.
WHAT IS THE SONOMA-MENDOCINO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT?
The Sonoma-Mendocino Economic Development District is a two-county partnership, created through a joint power's agreement in 2015, to engage in regional economic development planning. County leaders recognized an important opportunity to coordinate and pool resources in areas where joint planning can accomplish more for the region’s development than either county’s independent efforts. The District is responsible for overseeing completion and implementation of the Sonoma-Mendocino CEDS. The last, and current, CEDS was written in 2016 and is currently being updated by a regional strategy committee.
WHAT IS A CEDS?
A CEDS is a federally-required regional economic development plan that must be completed in order to become eligible for various funding programs under the Economic Development Administration (EDA), an agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce. A CEDS should not be viewed solely as a mechanism for qualifying for federal funding. It should serve as a roadmap for regional economic development in general—linking, leveraging, and aligning local assets and stakeholders to achieve regional goals.
Round 2 of Feedback Begins
Sonoma and Mendocino County residents, business owners, and stakeholders are invited to participate in a second round feedback on the draft five-year Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS). Using the first round of community input, the CEDS Strategy Committee has further honed the strategies and goals outlined in the CEDS draft to better reflect the economic development needs of the region. Current goals include:
- Further development of innovative and value-added sectors
- Increase equitable community-wide prosperity
- Accessible and affordable services and training for regional community
- Community resiliency against fire and drought
Click here to view the draft CEDS. Goals, objectives, strategies, and projects are listed at pages 20-47. Submit your comments or questions to SMEDD Economic Development District Manager, Bradley Johnson, at Bradley.Johnson@sonoma-county.org. Public comment period for the draft CEDS will close on Tuesday, June 7th.
2022 Draft CEDS (PDF: 21.3 MB)
Feedback: Bradley.Johnson@sonoma-county.org
CEDS Strategy Committee Meetings
Mar 1, 2022, 1:00 PM | AGENDA AND PACKET
Mar 16, 2022, 1:00 PM | AGENDA AND PACKET
April 7, 2022, 9:00 AM | AGENDA AND PACKET
SMEDD BOARD OF DIRECTORS
The Sonoma-Mendocino Economic Development District’s Board of Director’s meetings are held on the third Thursday of each month from 10-12PM. Logistics for future meetings can be found in the agendas posted below. Board meetings are accessible to the public.
Jan 20, 2022 10:00 AM | AGENDA
Jan 27, 2022 10:00 AM Special Meeting | AGENDA
Feb 17, 2022 10:00 AM | AGENDA
Mar 17, 2022 10:00 AM | AGENDA | ADDENDUM
April 1, 2022, 2:00 PM Speacial Meeting | AGENDA
April 21, 2022, 10:00 AM | AGENDA
April 27, 2022, 4:15 PM Special Meeting | AGENDA
May 19, 2022, 10:00 AM | AGENDA
Mendocino County
Name |
Organization |
Term Effective Date |
Term End Date |
Mary Anne Petrillo | West Business Development Center | 2/4/2020 | 2/4/2024 |
Jon Frech | Black Oak Coffee | 5/10/2020 | 5/10/2024 |
Katrina Kessen | The Greater Ukiah Business and Tourism Alliance | 4/20/2021 | 4/20/2021 |
Paul Garza | Garza Consulting | 4/20/2021 | 4/20/2025 |
Sonoma County
Name |
Organization |
Term Effective Date |
Term End Date |
Mike Nicholls | Sonoma County Economic Development Board | 4/7/2020 | 4/7/2024 |
Robin Bartholow | North Coast Builders Exchange | 4/7/2020 | 4/7/2024 |
Jeff Kelly | Tri Counties Bank | 10/13/2020 | 10/13/2024 |
Lisa Badenfort | North Bay Association of Realtors | 10/14/2020 | 10/14/2024 |
SMEDD Appointed
Name |
Organization |
Term Effective Date |
Term End Date |
Paul Castro | California Human Development | 10/21/2020 | 10/21/2024 |
Staff
Name |
|
Role |
Calvin Sandeen | Calvin.Sandeen@sonoma-county.org | District Manager |
Rebekah Heinze | Rebekah.Heinze@sonoma-county.org | District Fiscal Agent |
Ethan Brown | Ethan.Brown@sonoma-county.org | Sonoma County Administrative Staff |
Bradley Johnson | Bradley.Johnson@sonoma-county.org | Recovery and Resiliency Analyst |
Robert Gernert | robert@edfc.org | Mendocino County Administrative Staff |
Robin Peckham | robin@edfc.org | Mendocino County Administrative Staff |
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