Economic Opportunities in Allen County

 The LACRPC planning philosophy is both inclusive and cumulative.  Inclusive, with respect to the number of individuals and interests represented and considered; cumulative, in that it represents the past planning efforts of various entities and agencies.  The LACRPC recognizes the region's strength of diversity in terms of population characteristics, its economic base, and its infrastructure.  The Commission also recognizes that each Allen County political subdivision possesses its own strengths and weaknesses, but shares similar problems and aspires to new opportunities. 

Economic development strategies are developed by the various community stakeholders and individual economic development organizations, such as the Allen County Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Allen County Port Authority, the Allen Economic Development Group, the Bluffton Chamber of Commerce, the Delphos Area Chamber of Commerce, the Lima Area Chamber of Commerce, the Spencerville Chamber of Commerce, as well as the Regional Office of the Ohio Department of Development (ODOD). 

Historically, the local community has relied on improving infrastructure to support or expand its economic base.  Such support was largely limited to infrastructure improvements supporting public roads and water as well as sanitary and storm sewers.  Funding for such projects typically utilized multiple sources, but included Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), Ohio Public Works Commission (OPWC) Grants and Loans, Issue I and Issue II program monies, Economic Development Administration monies, State Infrastructure Bank Loans, or General Fund monies. The State of Ohio has helped local development initiatives with funding for other public infrastructure improvements, including rail siding, roadway improvements, and utility extensions. 

Allen County has utilized its financial resources to acquire and develop industrial parks.  Working with public-private partnerships, the community has been successful in establishing spec buildings at various sites to assist local development initiatives.  Publicly supported industrial/commercial parks have been successfully sited and developed in Perry Township as well as the City of Lima, City of Delphos and the Village of Ft. Shawnee.