GREATER GASTON DEVELOPMENT CORPORAT

THE POSITIVE ECONOMIC PROSPECTS OUR GASTON COUNTY COMMUNITY FACED IN 2019 DID NOT RANDOMLY APPEAR. THE GGDC, ALONG WITH THE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTORS, WORKED COLLABORATIVELY TO POSITION GASTON COUNTY TO CREATE AND TAKE ADVANTAGE OF GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES. MUCH OF THE GGDC'S EARLY EFFORTS WERE GUIDED BY THE ORGANIZATION'S 2014 ALLIANCE FOR GROWTH PLAN, DEVELOPED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH OVER 100 GASTON COUNTY LEADERS, WHICH FOCUSED ON SEVEN STRATEGIC GROWTH PRIORITIES COMPRISED OF 1) COUNTYWIDE IMAGE BUILDING & MARKETING, 2) ENTREPRENEURIAL & SMALL BUSINESS GROWTH, 3) WORKFORCE PREPAREDNESS, 4) NEW & EXPANDED BUSINESS RECRUITMENT, 5) GROWTH & REGULATORY PROCESSES, 6) SITES, BUILDINGS, & INFRASTRUCTURE, AND 7) TRANSPORTATION & ACCESS. IN 2019, THE GGDC WAS ENGAGED IN A NUMBER OF ACTIVITIES IN SUPPORT OF ITS MISSION. ADVOCACY FOR TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENTS, LIKE ADVANCING A COMPREHENSIVE MULTIJURISDICTIONAL MULTIMODAL TRANSPORTATION VISION FOR THE CHARLOTTE REGION, WAS A MAJOR COMPONENT OF GGDC EFFORTS. THE GASTON OUTSIDE CAMPAIGN, LAUNCHED IN JUNE 2016 TO BUILD AWARENESS WITHIN THE REAL ESTATE, BUSINESS, AND HOMEBUYER AUDIENCES OF ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES THROUGHOUT GASTON COUNTY, ENJOYED ITS MOST SUCCESSFUL YEAR TO DATE IN 2019. THE GGDC WAS ALSO INSTRUMENTAL IN THE CREATING, LEADING, AND SUPPORTING THE 2019 GASTON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY COMMITTEE AND RESULTING REPORT, WHICH LED TO A THIRD-PARTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ASSESSMENT OF GREATER GASTON. ASSESSMENT FINDINGS RESULTED IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT BEING IDENTIFIED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS AS A HIGH PRIORITY FOR GASTON COUNTY IN 2020. SINCE THE ASSESSMENT'S DELIVERY IN LATE 2019, THE GGDC WORKED IN CLOSE PARTNERSHIP WITH THE COUNTY MANAGER'S OFFICE AND PARTNERS TO DEVELOP A COMPREHENSIVE COUNTYWIDE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY, HELPING LEAD GASTON COUNTY TO A PROSPEROUS AND ROBUST ECONOMIC FUTURE. FOR THE IMPORTANT WORK OF THE GGDC, THE ORGANIZATION WAS RECOGNIZED IN TWO 2019 MOMENTS FOR ITS YEARS' WORTH OF COLLABORATIVE EFFORTS: FEBRUARY 2019 - THE GGDC RECEIVED THE ANNUAL EPIC AWARD FROM THE MONTCROSS CHAMBER OF COMMERCE FOR INNOVATIVE COLLABORATIVE STRATEGIES AND APPROACHES. MAY 2019 - THE GGDC RECEIVED THE ANNUAL COMMUNITY LEADERSHIP AWARD FROM THE GASTON TOGETHER: COMMUNITIES OF EXCELLENCE IN RECOGNITION OF THE GASTON OUTSIDE (GO) IMAGE AND MARKETING CAMPAIGN. MOVING INTO 2020, THE GGDC LOOKS FORWARD TO CREATING AN ENVIRONMENT OF STRATEGIC LEVEL THINKING AMONG PARTNERS, ALIGNING THE PUBLIC, PRIVATE, AND NONPROFIT SECTORS AROUND A HOLISTIC VISION OF GASTON COUNTY'S FUTURE, AND WORKING AGGRESSIVELY TO ACHIEVE THIS VISION.