Led by Phil Sharre, Manager of Community Development for TVA and instructor for the three-star program, the class explored key factors in attracting economic growth and prompted those in attendance to explore several scenarios with White House in mind. “It was a good class,” Bolton assessed afterward. “It was beneficial to focus on seeing the city grow, and that’s always an exciting thing. I’m looking forward to working with the city to do what I can to help.”

According to Sharre’s presentation, all three levels of employers- primary, business support services and consumer services- are vital to a thriving city economy. Because many projects find options for a home on the world wide web, it is imperative that White House’s profile with resource groups such as MTAS is appealing. It will be equally important for every department within the city to be considering future plans with economic impact in mind. That unified focus was one of the factors that prompted Carrier to schedule the class for city employees and leaders.

“I thought it would be good for all of the departments to come together and think about the city as a whole and to learn about ways they can contribute to its overall economic development,” she explained. “It’s good to be able to work together.”

In addition to Friday’s training, representatives from the city will soon attend the Tennessee/Kentucky Idea Exchange hosted by ICSC where the focus will be retail businesses and their role in city economies.