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| QuickTracts Named Program of the Year |
| Economic Development Association Recognizes Effort to Meet the Real Estate Needs |
| September 16, 2003 |
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STATEWIDE - QuickTracts is now an award-winning program.
The program designed to certify and market Connecticut’s shovel-ready sites will receive the Northeast Economic Developers Association’s (NEDA) Program of the Year Award Monday, September 22, in Bar Harbor, ME, at the Bar Harbor Regency, site of the organization’s 47th annual conference.
The goal of the QuickTracts program is to identify sites in Connecticut that are ready to break ground within 90 to 180 days and to promote these sites to companies and real estate professionals. Towns and cities receive national marketing free of charge, while the companies and real estate professionals know that when they are looking to move quickly, they have an easy-to-access database of properties at their fingertips. QuickTracts is sponsored by The Connecticut Light & Power Company and The United Illuminating Company, and marketed by CERC, a statewide economic development company in Connecticut.
“QuickTracts encourages decision-makers in Connecticut’s towns and cities to select and prepare sites for targeted development appropriate for their communities. Towns commit to expedite the approval process on a site before it is accepted into the program,” said John O’Toole, manager of Economic and Community Development at Connecticut Light & Power. “This focus, in turn, makes the process easier and faster for companies looking to build quickly, allowing them to avoid permitting obstacles and expedite construction.”
The selection criteria set for the NEDA awards is detailed. Each program is rated on a scale for its ability to meet each of the factors, including economic development strategy, longevity, demonstrated results, benefits, comprehensiveness, community building, effectiveness, strategic thinking and thoroughness/research.
The awards committee is made up of a representative from each of the 11 states and one district represented by NEDA – Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont.
“The projects are truly being judged by the entrants’ peers from across the entire region,” said Elizabeth Spinelli, chair of the awards committee. “We had full participation – a lot of entries this year – and the quality of the projects was outstanding. It’s such a grand opportunity for NEDA to say thank you for the thought and purpose economic developers throughout the states are putting into their programs.”
QuickTracts can be accessed through its Web site, www.QuickTracts.com, and through the CERC SiteFinder™ database at www.CTSiteFinder.com.
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