[00:00:03]
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY SEVERAL YEARS AGO TOOK AWAY THE PRIVILEGE LICENSE OPTION AWAY FROM LOCAL MUNICIPALITIES.
SO THERE IS NO PROCESS TO COME TO THE CITY AND GET A LICENSE TO OPERATE AS LONG AS SOMEONE GOES INTO A PROPERTY THAT IS ZONED APPROPRIATELY FOR WHATEVER BUSINESS THEY'RE LOOKING TO OPEN.
SO THEY WOULD, I WOULD ALWAYS RECOMMEND PEOPLE CONTACT DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, GIVE 'EM THE ADDRESS OF THE PROPERTY YOU'RE LOOKING TO GO INTO, AND THEN THEY CAN GIVE YOU WHAT THE CURRENT ZONING IS AND LET YOU KNOW IF THERE'S ANY OTHER PERMITTING OR REGULATIONS THAT WOULD APPLY.
SO I KNOW OFTENTIMES PEOPLE THINK THAT THE CITY HAS THIS MAGIC WAND AND WE CAN WAVE IT AND SAY, YES, YOU CAN HAVE THIS BUSINESS THERE, OR NO, YOU CAN'T, WE REALLY DON'T HAVE THAT LUXURY.
UH, ARE THERE THINGS THAT COME HERE SOMETIMES THAT WE WISH IT WOULD BE SOMETHING DIFFERENT? SURE, OF COURSE.
BUT YOU KNOW, IT IS THE FREE MARKET, FREE ENTERPRISE.
IF SOMEONE WANTS TO MAKE AN INVESTMENT IN OUR CITY IN A NEW BUSINESS AND THEY WANNA PUT THE MONEY UP AND THEY WANNA OPERATE THAT BUSINESS, THAT'S THEIR RIGHT TO DO SO.
I'VE HEARD, YOU KNOW, OFTENTIMES WE'LL HAVE A VACANT BUILDING.
SOMEBODY SAY THIS WOULD BE PERFECT FOR A TRAMPOLINE PARK OR A BOWLING ALLEY.
THE CITY DOESN'T HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO SAY THIS CAN ONLY BE THE TYPE OF USE THAT GOES IN THAT BUILDING AGAIN, AS LONG AS IT MEETS THE CURRENT ZONING AND OBVIOUSLY WHATEVER PERMITTING ASPECT THEY WOULD NEED TO DO FOR UPFITTING THE BUILDING.
THERE'S A PROCESS AND PROCEDURE FOR ALL OF THAT, BUT THE CITY DOESN'T SAY YES OR NO FOR ANY TYPE OF BUSINESS.
SO WHAT MAKES NEW BERN SO UNIQUE AND SPECIAL IS WE HAVE A LOT OF LOCALLY OWNED, WHAT WE CALL MOM AND POP LOCATIONS.
UM, THEY'RE NOT CHANGED, THEY'RE NOT BIG BOX BRAND STORES AND THAT MAKES NEW BERN WHO WE ARE, BUT THERE'S ALSO ANOTHER SECTOR OF OUR POPULATION THAT WANTS SOME OF THOSE BRANDS AND BIG BOX STORES.
BUT WHEN YOU GET INTO LARGE CORPORATIONS, THEY ARE GOING TO HAVE DEMOGRAPHICS AND CRITERIA THAT THEY LOOK AT TO EVALUATE WHETHER OR NOT A, UH, INVESTMENT IN THAT PARTICULAR MARKET IS GONNA BE SUSTAINABLE.
SO THEY LOOK AT THINGS LIKE POPULATION, THEY LOOK AT MEDIAN INCOME, THEY LOOK AT THE AGE DEMOGRAPHICS BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY IF YOU'RE LOOKING TO PUT SOMETHING IN FOR KI KIDS OR CHILDREN TO DO FROM AN ACTIVITY STANDPOINT, YOU HAVE TO HAVE THE POPULATION THERE TO SUPPORT THAT.
I SAW RE ON ONE OF THE RECENT SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS ABOUT SOMETHING FOR KIDS TO DO A PLAY AREA AND A PATRON OR SOMEBODY ELSE IN THE CITY ACTUALLY MADE A COMMENT AND SAID, WELL, YOU KNOW, HERE'S SEVERAL THINGS THAT ARE IN OUR COMMUNITY ALREADY, THE YMCA AND THEY LISTED OTHER THINGS AND THAT PERSON CAME BACK AND SAID, YEAH, BUT ALL OF THOSE REQUIRE A MONTHLY SUBSCRIPTION OR MONTHLY MEMBERSHIP.
I JUST WANT TO GO WHEN I WANT TO GO.
WELL, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THAT FROM THE BUSINESS AND THE FINANCIAL ASPECT OF IT, WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT INVESTING WELL OVER A MILLION DOLLARS INTO A BUILDING TO CREATE A TRAMPOLINE PARK, YOU CAN'T HAVE PEOPLE COMING ONCE OR TWICE A YEAR.
YOU HAVE TO HAVE SUSTAINABLE PATRONS TO COME THERE AND SPEND MONEY TO KEEP IT VIABLE.
YOU KNOW, WE WANT THESE BUSINESSES TO COME, BUT WE ALSO ALSO WANT 'EM TO BE SUCCESSFUL.
THE LAST THING WE WANT IS FOR A BUSINESS TO LOCATE TO NEW BERN NOT BE SUCCESSFUL AND CLOSE UP BECAUSE THAT ACTUALLY LOOKS WORSE THAN NOT HAVING THEM AT ALL.
'CAUSE THAT HURTS YOU FOR FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES.
YEAH, SO THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS.
SO IN THE PAST WE'VE HAD AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT MANAGER ON STAFF.
THAT POSITION WAS ACTUALLY TWOFOLD.
IT WAS AN ECONOMIC AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT MANAGER, YOU KNOW, THROUGHOUT HURRICANES AND NATURAL DISASTERS THAT WE'VE HAD THAT POSITION ALMOST MIGRATED MORE TOWARD THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ASPECT AND LESS AWAY FROM THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ASPECT.
WE ALSO ARE PARTNERS WITH THE C ONE A AND THE C ONE A IS OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DRIVER HERE IN THIS REGION, UH, FOR BOTH HAVELOCK, NEWBURN, TRENTWOOD RIVER BEND, ALL THE SMALL TOWNS AND MUNICIPALITIES IN THE AREA DRIVEN BY CRAVEN COUNTY AND THE PRIVATE SECTOR.
SO THEY GO AFTER THE LARGE INDUSTRIAL TYPE OPPORTUNITIES AND THE RETAIL AND HOSPITALITY THAT'S TYPICALLY LEFT TO THE LOCAL MUNICIPALITY.
YOU KNOW, WE SEND STAFF TO TRADE SHOWS THROUGHOUT THE AREA TO TRY TO PROMOTE NEWIN AND RECRUIT BUSINESSES TO COME HERE.
UH, ELECTRIC CITIES, WHICH IS OUR PARTNER FROM A ELECTRICAL PROVIDER STANDPOINT, THEY ACTUALLY HAVE AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ARM THAT PUSHES THEIR MEMBER CITIES.
SO WE HAVE THEM OUT THERE ADVOCATING FOR US.
AS I MENTIONED C ONE A, WE HAVE TDA, WE'VE GOT, UM, CHAMBER OF COMMERCE.
THERE'S A LOT OF FOLKS THAT RECOGNIZE THAT WHEN WE BRING BUSINESSES HERE, IT HELPS THE WHOLE COMMUNITY.
AND, YOU KNOW, I MYSELF, I FEEL LIKE I'M THE BIGGEST SALESPERSON FOR THE CITY OF NEW BERN WHEN I'M OUT AND ABOUT, WHETHER IT'S TRAVEL, UH, ON, ON WORK OR LEISURE.
UM, I'M ALWAYS PROMOTING NEW BERN AND TALKING TO PEOPLE, HEY LOOK, HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT LOOKING AT NEW BERN? AND WE'VE SENT PACKAGES OF INFORMATION TO THEM ON VARIOUS OCCASIONS, BUT AT THIS POINT IN TIME WE HAVE A VACANCY WITH OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT MANAGER.
AND YOU KNOW, MY SUGGESTION TO STAFF IS TO TAKE A LOOK AT THIS AND SEE IF WE CAN OUTSOURCE THAT.
THERE'S A LOT OF THIRD PARTY ENTITIES THAT DO THIS WORK.
UM, THEY ACTUALLY DO IT A LOT BETTER THAN WE CAN, UH, SOMETIMES IN HOUSE AND SOMETIMES IT'S MORE ECONOMICALLY VIABLE.
SO THAT'S SOMETHING WE'RE LOOKING AT.
[00:05:01]
COMING INTO OUR BUDGET SEASON, SO IT'S SOMETHING WE'LL BE EXPLORING.UM, I I WILL JUST SAY THIS, THAT SOCIAL MEDIA MAKES IT EASY FOR PEOPLE TO MAKE COMMENTS ONE WAY OR THE OTHER.
EVERYBODY LOVES POSITIVE COMMENTS.
UM, AND SOME PEOPLE LOVE TO MAKE NEGATIVE COMMENTS.
AND I WOULD JUST WARN PEOPLE THAT WHEN YOU MAKE NEGATIVE COMMENTS ABOUT A BUSINESS THAT MAYBE YOU'RE NOT GONNA PATRONIZE OR IT'S SOMETHING THAT DOESN'T INTEREST YOU, JUST KEEP IN MIND THAT THE NEXT BUSINESS THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE HERE SEES THOSE COMMENTS.
AND THEY PROBABLY THINK TO THEMSELF, IS THIS REALLY A COMMUNITY THAT I WANNA BE A PART OF? SO I WOULD CAUTION PEOPLE AND URGE 'EM, STAY POSITIVE WHEN YOU'RE MAKING COMMENTS.
IF YOU SEE THAT THERE'S AN ANNOUNCEMENT ABOUT SOMETHING THAT YOU'RE NOT INTERESTED IN, JUST BYPASS IT.
YOU KNOW, YOU WANT TO, YOU KNOW, TALK TO YOUR FAMILY MEMBERS DINNERTIME AND SAY, HEY LOOK, DID YOU HEAR THIS IS COMING? I'M NOT REAL INTERESTED IN IT.
BUT WHEN YOU PUT IT ON SOCIAL MEDIA, THAT'S FOR THE WORLD TO SEE.
AND THAT'S ALSO FUTURE INVESTORS IN OUR CITY.