The District’s Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy Approved by Federal Government

Document Will Bolster City’s Investment Priorities

Contact: Andi Joseph
Director, Research & Communications
Washington, DC Economic Partnership
202.661.8678
ajoseph@wdcep.com

November 24, 2010

(Washington, DC) On September 21, 2010 the District’s Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS), which the Fenty Administration and the Washington, DC Economic Development Partnership submitted for funding consideration to the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA), was accepted and approved, opening the District to a previously untapped federal funding pipeline. The CEDS is an economic road map intended to diversify and strengthen the local economy. The District’s successful CEDS application will bolster the City’s investment priorities, and will also make it eligible for other federal funding opportunities. This is the first full update of the District’s CEDS since 2004.

“I am thrilled that this partnership with the Economic Development Administration will allow the District to invest millions of federal dollars in the city’s emerging neighborhoods,” said Mayor Fenty. Residents stand to benefit immensely from the new businesses, employment and and entrepreneurial opportunities that this partnership will attract.”

Led by the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, the DC Office of Planning and the Washington, DC Economic Development Partnership, the District has spent the last year developing the CEDS. The team analyzed economic assets, needs and opportunities citywide and in emerging neighborhoods.

“The District has the potential to be a model innovative, green and economically diverse city,” said Office of Planning Director Harriet Tregoning. “The District’s Comprehensive Plan laid the framework, and the CEDS follows that guidance, while tapping into new research and emerging opportunities. As we continue to revitalize emerging areas of the city, the new strategy will support even more vibrant neighborhoods.”

In addition to a review of citywide strategies, the CEDS highlights key neighborhood opportunities, such as the consolidation of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) at St Elizabeths in Congress Heights. For this and other emerging areas, the CEDS establishes objectives and investment priorities intended to improve economic development outcomes.

Following the approval of the CEDS, EDA awarded the District a grant that will allow it to investigate the potential for an innovation cluster centered at St Elizabeths. “I am delighted that the CEDS has already led to a concrete partnership with the federal government around jobs and entrepreneurship East of the River, which seeks to leverage the consolidation of DHS and connect residents to workforce and business development opportunities in an emerging industry in DC,’ said Mayor-elect, Vincent Gray.

The City’s economic development strategy was shaped by public and private sector input, as well as new and existing research and analysis around core and emerging industries, including the District’s creative, green and technology sectors.

“The Washington, DC CEDS outlines a timely, innovative, and 21st Century strategy for the future of the District’s economic development environment,” said Steve Moore, president and CEO of the Washington, DC Economic Partnership. “This is a strategy based on a foundation of research and planning already undertaken; it is comprehensive in nature and specific to the issues and concerns relevant to DC and its emerging neighborhoods.”

For more information on the District’s Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy, please contact the Washington, DC Economic Partnership at 202-661-8678.  To download the document, click here.

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The WDCEP is a 501(c)3 non-profit, public/private partnership dedicated to promoting business opportunities throughout DC and contributing to business retention and attraction activities. For more information visit www.wdcep.com/about.