What's With the Iron County EDC?

It took a while to get the Iron County EDC's corporate charter but
an excerpt appears below after being processed through an optical
character recognition and scanner program. Blame the original typist
and the scanner for any errors! I reformatted it to fit this publication.

But first, let's look that the "mission statement" the EDC has been
promoting ever since I moved to Iron County:

"To implement strategies that will increase job opportunity, tax base
and quality of life within the county of Iron."

see:   http://www.iron.org/business.php

That's nowhere near what the corporation charter, the official document
I got from the Iron County Clerk's office says in the excerpt below. I've
reproduced Article II.

One of the aspects of the authority granted by this charter, in in
this writer's opinion a very important one, has received no attention
of which I am aware. Item J is authority to advertize. There should be
a huge advertising budget every year, in markets like New York, LA,
Chicago, and any other region that has a concentration of corporate
headquarters where decisions to expand are made. It doesn't end
there, of course, but this is the most crucial example of a shortcoming
by the EDC.

And according to this charter, the EDC is supposed to be pro business
even where it bucks the desires of local government officials.

Obviously you're not going to get very good mileage out of an  EDC
that has the same people running it that have been running everything
else in Iron County during the County's declining decades. A new, full
time, visionary, hands on, director needs to be hired and given a budget
that will allow growth and progress. The EDC, as it has been organized
and operated since I've been in Iron County (since 2003) is nothing
more than a social club lacking a positive agenda. Where is the
public dissemination of the minutes of the public meetings? Where
are the constant invitations for the Iron County public to participate?

A working, positive, growth oriented EDC is important to this
County and indeed to this region. All that requires is a County
Board and an EDC board willing to put in whatever it takes
to achieve positive, significant, results. All I've seen has been
coasting and the traditional grant searching that has become
the hallmark of Iron County. Isn't it time to actually do something
about the economic depression that's been here for 35 years?

Bill Vajk

Excerpt from EDC's corporate charter follows.

                                       Article II

Purpose: The corporation Is organized pursuant to Act 338 of the
Public Acts of 1974 as amended. Its purpose will be to alleviate
and prevent conditions of unemployment, to assist and retain local
industries and commercial enterprises, to strengthen and revitalize
 the economy of the County of Iron, to provide means and methods
for the encouragement and assistance of industrial and commercial
enterprises, including small business concerns, in locating, purchasing,
constructing, reconstructing, modernizing, improving, maintaining,
repairing, furnishing, equipping, and expanding in the County of Iron
to encourage the location and expansion of commercial enterprises
in the County of Iron, to more conveniently provide needed services
and facilities for the commercial enterprises in the County of Iron
and its residents, and to accomplish the foregoing by the following
means:

A) Construct, acquire by gift or purchase, reconstruct, improve,
maintain or repair projects and acquire the necessary lands for
the site therefor.

B) Acquire by gift or purchase the necessary machinery,
furnishings, and equipment for a project or projects.

C) Borrow money and issue its revenue bonds or revenue notes
to finance part or a11 of the cost of the acquisition, purchase,
construction, reconstruction, or improvement or a project or any
part thereof, the cost of the acquisition and improvement of the
necessary sites therefor, the acquisition of machinery, furnishings,
and equipment therefor, and the costs necessary or incidental to
 the borrowing of money and issuing of bonds or notes for such
purpose.

D) Enter into leases, lease purchase agreements or installment
sales contracts with any person, firm, or corporation for the use
or sale of the project or portions thereof.

E) Mortgage the project in favor of any lender of money to the
corporation.

F) Sell and convey the project or any part thereof for a price
and at a time as the corporation determines.

G) Lend, grant, transfer, or convey funds, received pursuant
to Section 27 of Act 338 of Public Acts of 1974, as amended,
as permitted by law, but subject to applicable restrictions
affecting the use of those funds.

H) Assist and participate in the designation of the land area
which will be acquired in the implementation of a project
or projects.

I) Prepare, assist and aid in the preparation of plans,
services, studies and recommendations relative to the
public purposes of the corporation and secure approval
of the same by the affected municipalities.

J) Encourage citizen participation and assistance in
industrial and commercial enterprises, housing and
community improvements and,to disseminate
information to the general public concerning the purposes
and objectives of the corporation.

K) Aid, assist and participate in the acquisition,
rehabilitation or construction of industrial and
commercial improvements, dwelling units or other
structures or matters incidental thereto.

L) Hold, demolish, repair, alter and improve or otherwise
develop, clear, and dispose of real property.

M) Enter into agreements and contracts with and accept
grants from any state or Federal agency or department,
its political sub-divisions and agencies or departments
thereof, or any other official public body and any individual,
corporation or other organization in connection with or in
furtherance of the purposes of the corporation, subject to
applicable laws and regulations.

M) Accept, hold, own and acquire by bequest, devise, gift,
purchase or lease any property, real or mixed, whether
tangible or intangible, without limitation as to kind, amount
or value.

N) Sell, convey, lease, rent, and mortgage of any such
property, or any interest therein or proceeds therefrom, and
to invest and reinvest the principal thereof and receipts
therefrom, if any, subject to applicable laws and regulations.

O) In general, and subject to such limitations and conditions
as are or may be prescribed by law, to exercise such other
powers which now are or hereafter may be conferred by law
upon a corporation organized pursuant to Act 338, Public
Acts of 1974, as amended, and for the foregoing purposes.

P) This corporation shall not, however, exercise jurisdiction
over any project within a municipality which has been or may
hereafter authorize the organization of an economic development
corporation for such municipality, unless said constituent
municipality and its corporation each specifically consent to
such jurisdiction.