Receive recommendations on the American Rescue Plan Strategic Plan Implementation area of Economic Development and provide Board direction. (No general fund impact) (Rinde/Will)

Receive recommendations on the American Rescue Plan Strategic Plan Implementation area of Economic Development and provide Board direction.

On September 28, 2021, the Board of Supervisors (Board) approved the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Expenditure Plan and directed staff to begin the implementation of the plan and its elements. Included in the Expenditure Plan are priority projects and categories, strategic implementation, and other uses (staffing, revenue reimbursement, reserves), all with associated activities planned for the ARP process. Over the past several months, staff has returned with recommendations for the priority category areas and plans to begin bringing forth the strategic plan implementation pieces as well. In the following report, staff outline recommendations associated with beginning to implement the Economic Development strategic plan implementation area. Over the next several months, staff anticipates bringing forward the other remaining priority categories and the strategic plan implementation including areas of Climate Action, Broadband, and Water/Wastewater Infrastructure.

As part of the ARP Expenditure Plan in September 2021, the Board included $500,000 for activities associated with Economic Development, as this area is included in both the County's 2020-2025 Strategic Plan and was noted as an item of interest during ARP community engagement. Over the past several months, staff from the County Administrator's Office have worked to review potential proposals for these activities and have engaged consultants to develop a scope of work. The staff recommendation at this time includes two activities in the amount of $129,750, which would leave $370,250 remaining in ARP Economic Development funding.

The first recommendation is to fund an expansion of the Lab@AgStart facility, which the County previously provided funding for start-up assistance. This incubator has added at least 18 full-time jobs in Yolo County and brought in over $33 million in private capital into the County. Currently, demand for these types of facilities has exceeded capacity and the facility is requesting an additional $100,000 to fund a 2022 facility expansion.  These funds would be used to pay for laboratory benches, furnishings, instruments, and equipment to open this facility expansion. This expansion seeks to further increase jobs and capital in Yolo County, expanding the job market through innovation. More information on this proposal may be found in Attachment A of this staff report. The City of Woodland has also been requested to contribute $100,000 of additional funding toward the expansion which is expected to be taken up at their June 7th meeting as well.

The second recommendation is to fund a Yolo County Economic Development Strategy update in the amount of $29,750. County staff sought proposals from local consulting firms to prepare a scope of work that would set forth potential avenues to explore future economic development in Yolo County by leveraging local assets and identifying areas for development. Specifically, this scope of work would include an evaluation of economic opportunities and constraints focused on agriculture-related cluster dynamics, sustainable resort/tourism development, and unincorporated communities, and analysis and evaluation of opportunity sites. This would provide a framework for discussing policy implications and revisions associated with the results of this analysis and evaluation. This work is anticipated to be completed in approximately 12 weeks upon execution of a contract and results returned to the Board later this fall. More information on this proposal and scope of work may be found in Attachment B of this staff report.

Staff anticipates providing a presentation on Economic Development at the June 7, 2022 Board of Supervisors meeting. It is further anticipated that all Economic Development activities will need to be funded through ARP Revenue Reimbursement, as the activities are not strictly adherent to COVID-19 Response efforts.