Accelerate April 2021 Magazine

The onset of COVID-19 brought hurdles for the Waukesha County Center for Growth (WCCG), as it did for many people both personally and professionally. However, the pandemic also provided an opportunity for growth. In March of 2020, our team quickly pivoted to focus on assisting businesses, especially small businesses, to respond and recover from the economic impacts of the pandemic. We reached out to our private sector partners and local governments to receive the most accurate information on the many financial assistance programs that were created in response to COVID. We then provided timely updates to businesses and municipalities in the county, doing our best to stay at the forefront of changes and new information. Our partnership with the Waukesha County Business Alliance was more critical than ever, as staff worked together to consistently update and disseminate content and to transition to virtual work with our partners and clients. We hired an additional business consultant and drew support fromWisconsin's Small Business Development Center while our staff concentrated on providing consulting and technical assistance to more than 323 businesses. We also participated with several of our communities in their local recovery efforts and assisted in getting municipal funds out to more than 100 businesses. We worked with elected and staff leadership in several municipalities to host “Reopening and Recovery” webinars focused on efforts and programs in each community. In addition to these direct services, we provided more than 900 letters to assist companies in accessing Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation's “We’re All In Grants." In addition to the COVID response, we continued working with businesses/ start-ups and assisted 379 other clients in 2020. Since WCCG's inception in 2016, our impact has been substantial. We have worked with 90 businesses on expansions or new facilities in the county. These companies have committed to $250 million in capital expenditures, retained 300 jobs, and created over 1,900 jobs. As we head toward recovery, we truly believe Waukesha County is well- positioned. Our team is focusing our efforts on directly assisting clients through our business consulting services. Since January 1, 2021, WCCG has worked with over 125 clients, providing strategic advice, financial modeling, access to capital and grants, workforce solutions, site selections, and connecting the abundant resources we have in the county, region and state to help businesses grow and expand. Additionally, we have focused our efforts on our main street/downtown areas of the municipalities we serve, where retail and restaurants have been the hardest hit. We have offered e-commerce and placemaking webinars and fostered economic development discussions around new trends to adapt and overcome the challenges of our changed world. Rest assured, the Waukesha County Center for Growth is at the forefront of economic development and continues to work diligently to connect businesses to the resources they need to thrive in Waukesha County. • JUDIE TAYLOR Executive Director, Economic Development, Waukesha County Center for Growth CENTER FOR GROWTH WORKING HARD TO SUPPORT RECOVERY The Waukesha County Center for Growth was established in 2016 as Waukesha County's economic development organization. waukeshagrowth.org 12 WAUKESHA COUNTY BUSINESS ALLIANCE, INC. | WAUKESHA.ORG