Local economic development organization The Right Place unveiled their strategic 3 year plan that hopes to bring hundreds of millions of dollars into the West Michigan economy over the next 3 years.
$500 million in new capital investment, $150 million in new retainable payroll, and 4200 new jobs are the goals of The Right Place by 2019. While some local economists have forecast a West Michigan recession by 2019, Right Place Birgit Klohs says she believes those projections are still attainable.
“We still believe that there are projects out there that there are companies locally that are going to expand, we are doing a lot of out outbound, inbound marketing so we think that is a realistic goal,” Klohs says.
One local company is already expanding as the Right Place announced Wednesday that Saranac-based Poultry Management Systems Inc. will be expanding in Lowell, adding nearly 30 new high-tech jobs and investing more than $2 million to support the expansion.
“We are still working very hard to create those jobs, work with 400 companies locally, and market the area globally.”
Last week, Klohs was inducted into the Michigan Business Women’s Hall of fame, but says she has no plans to retire, and is proud to see how far Grand Rapids has come.
“I’ve never regretted the 30 years I have spent here and continue to love what I do, I mean we decided we were going to revitalize our city, and we did. You know, it’s a journey, not a sprint, but we really did it, we turned a mid-sized American city in the upper Midwest in cold weather into a really, pretty darn hot spot. It’s been a great ride. I love it.”
