Can niche plan bring wealth to Dayton?; Update to city's economic development plan may bring more jobs to area.

DAYTON - The goal is to bring wealth into the city of Dayton.

Last week, the Dayton City Commission heard an overview of a strategy to help the city establish a niche in the global marketplace, while retaining and growing existing businesses.

"I think we have a vast wealth of opportunity to make this happen," Dayton Mayor Rhine McLin said. "We can't put our head in the sand and wait for someone to bring in 10,000 jobs and save us."

The plan, an update to CitiPlan 20/20 and Focus 2010, will be used by the City Commission to set economic development policy and guide economic development investment.

About 100 volunteers from government, industry, academia, nonprofits and the medical industry helped draft the plan.

Steve Nutt, director of strategic development for the CityWide Development Corp., said communities worldwide are trying to figure out how they can compete in a global marketplace.

Dayton is no different.

"Everybody recognizes there has been a lot of job loss in Dayton, the kinds of jobs that brought net wealth back to the city," Nutt said.

Jobs, Nutt said, like those in the auto industry.

* The plan calls for Dayton to concentrate on five core industry clusters: data management and sensors; advanced materials and manufacturing; hospital/health care, which employs 21,000 people; aerospace research/aerospace medical; and heritage, cultural and recreation assets.

* With the targeted industries defined, Dayton also must be able to provide a qualified work force, create spaces and amenities for the businesses and establish an environment as a community willing to work with companies, Nutt said.

With that in place, Dayton also needs to market itself, he said.

* The plan also outlines places in the city that offer prime development opportunities including TechTown, Stewart Street, the Dayton Campus for Advanced Materials Technologies, Dayton International Airport, McGregor Park, the former Parkside Homes site, Research Park, Elizabeth Place and the former Delphi facility.

Collaboration is key, Nutt said.

* Historically, when the city thought of economic development, it was within the walls of City Hall. The new plan moves beyond those confines to include community partners such as universities, recreation services, work force development experts and business leaders.

Each of the strategies must have an action place, a plan that defines who does what and how it gets done. Nutt said those plans are already under development.