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Recent Successes
Somerset Economic Development Corporation collaborated with the investors of Maine Woods Pellet and the Town of Athens officials in successfully bringing about the investment in the town of a new wood pellet mill. The new mill is state of the art and employs 32 people. Somerset Economic Development Corporation was successful in attracting $950,000 in State and Federal grants to assist in the capital investment in the new facility.
Somerset Economic Development Corporation was instrumental in collaborating with the officials in the Town of Anson and Cousineau Wood Products in securing a $60,000 grant that assisted Cousineau Woods Products to acquire equipment that led to the creation of five new manufacturing jobs in this distressed sector.
We were also recently successful in obtaining a $50,000 grant for the newly created Somerset Grist Mill that will lead to three new jobs in the sustainable agriculture sector. This project also has future plans to create an artists incubator site and a new local bread bakery that will utilize locally grown grains, which will also support local agricultural producers.
Somerset Economic Development Corporation, in collaboration with the Somerset Workforce Development Team (SWDT) organized and implemented a training program for workers to teach them soft skills employers have indicated are lacking in segments of the labor force. The Workready program is on going and plans are to offer it at least twice a year. Recently the training was expanded to a group of individuals at the Somerset County Jail. We see this as part of the training to prepare people for new and more productive lives. The Somerset Regional Chamber of Commerce group designed, printed and distributed a Somerset County map and guide, which depicts recreational, cultural, and historic sites and identifies public lands and sites in the county. SEDC was instrumental in guiding the groups work and in obtaining grants to assist in funding the project. You can view the map (pdf format) by clicking here: Map Front, Map Back.
Current Projects
Several years ago, Somerset Economic Development Corporation organized the Chambers of Commerce in Somerset County to collaborate on issues of importance to businesses in the county. Several projects have been completed.
Currently the Regional Chambers have distributed the 2010 Somerset County Events brochure. The brochure is a comprehensive listing of various events occurring in the county during 2010. The above-mentioned Somerset County map and guide is also a regional chamber project.
We are collaborating with the Run of River Committee in writing a grant to help leverage funds to perform river bed modeling in the Kennebec River gorge. The purpose of the modeling is to determine the feasibility of creating a white water park in the gorge section of the river in downtown Skowhegan.SEDC in conjunction with the Western Mountains Alliance (WMA) sponsors two legislative forums each year. These forums provide the opportunity for a dialogue between Somerset County Legislators and business and community leaders on topics of importance to businesses and communities. Recent forums focused on state tax reform, health care reform and the tourism industry, an important sector in the Somerset County economy.
In addition to the collaboration on the Workready Training, mentioned above, the Somerset Workforce Development Team (SWDT) in conjunction with SEDC is collaborating with leaders in the education community and the business community to identify and promote career opportunities for young people in our labor force.
Somerset County as well as Maine faces potential shortages in our future labor force. We must act now to identify critical skills that are required by our businesses and work with the business and education communities to assure that these skills will be available in our future labor force. Part of the solution to this situation is to inform our young people of the opportunities that exist in their own communities.
Somerset Economic Development Corporation has a position on the Board of Directors of the Old Canada Road Scenic Byway, Kennebec Valley Tourism Council, Central Maine Growth Council, the five county workforce investment board and the Comprehensive Economic Development Committee of the Kennebec Valley Council of Governments. We work with all of these groups and others to promote various aspects of our economic development strategy for Somerset County.
We believe that economic development requires a regional approach and our work with these organizations provides the avenue for regional collaboration and cooperation to assist us in achieving a better future for the residents of Somerset County.
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41 Court Street
Skowhegan, Maine 04976
(207)474-0166
fax (207)474-0465
