Meredith town manager hires Florida firm for economic development consulting

MEREDITH — Town Manager Judie Milner says she was brought on board 18 months ago to focus on economic development. She told the selectboard, July 13, that she hired a consultant, from Florida, to assist.

Milner told The Laconia Daily Sun on Wednesday that David Petr, lead consultant and chief executive officer for Marketing Alliance, based in Celebration, Florida, is engaged at a rate of $175 per hour, rather than being on retainer. There is $75,000 in funds earmarked for economic development in the budget.

A point of contention at the selectboard meeting was Milner's inviting the final two candidates for a tour of the town and in-person interview. Milner said on Wednesday that was paid for out of that budget line, to the tune of about $3,800.

“I think it was well worth it,” Milner said Wednesday.

Data gathering and background analysis is being conducted, and Milner said town staff are working on stakeholder interviews and holding focus groups.

“The goal of the next 60 to 90 days is to figure out the priorities, the challenges, the opportunities, and the economic development story for the community,” Milner said. “And for action item recommendations that we’ll be bringing forward to the board.”

Concerns about hiring

Selectboard member Jeanie Forrester asked whether applicants were paid to come and make presentations to the town, and Milner confirmed it to be true for two applicants.

“I thought that was unusual,” Forrester said. “At least in my experience, if somebody wants a job, we don’t pay for their travel, and their hotel, and all that. Is this a new normal?”

Milner said, in this case, the applicants were asked to come to look at the community and give recommendations on how they would move forward.

“It was more like consulting,” Milner said. “So, we did offer to pay their expenses, so that they would come up, and meet us in person.”

Milner told the board the in-person interview was vital in the decision, saying they would have come to a different decision if they were interviewed virtually. She said it was ideal to meet the applicants, see them in action, and what they can do for Meredith.

“Is it something new?” Milner said. “I’ve done it before. Is it something new for Meredith? Maybe, but I don’t think that it’s something that is out of the ordinary, completely out of the ordinary. It wouldn’t be done on most things, but I think this is so important it was right, to get the right decision.”

Forrester agreed it was important, but said she was struggling to grasp the idea a company was hired from Florida, which has a very different economy than New Hampshire.

“It would seem to me like there are economic development professionals in the state who understand our tax system, or lack thereof, and the economy,” Forrester said. “I’m looking for some explanation how you made that decision.”

Milner said there weren’t any New Hampshire companies which replied to the request for proposal, and the company chosen has a lead consultant in Florida, and also has offices in Texas, and other places.

“They have done projects in New England, so they’re not completely just looking at the Florida economy, which I do agree is very different from ours, and let’s keep it that way,” Milner told the board.

Economic development consulting, she said, contains a lot of learning of the background. The hiring is to understand the town's challenges and opportunities. Each consultant had knowledge about tax increment financing, or TIF, districts, and RSA Chapter 79-E, about community revitalization tax relief incentives, which she found vital.

“I do think they can do this project,” Milner said. “I am really happy with this firm, and I think that you’ll be happy with them, as well, but we need to let them do their background work.”

The consultant

Four people responded to the request for bids. While none were from New Hampshire, Milner said Wednesday she wasn’t concerned about that “in this day and age.” The two finalists were invited to see the community.

“We couldn’t really decide from the Zoom interview, and I have experience in this, and I decided I wanted to bring them here, take a tour, and have them tell us their thoughts, and to have an educated decision,” Milner said.

The hiring team consisted of Milner, Chris Janosa, director of human resources and special projects, and Robert Carpenter, the town’s finance and administrative service director. She said the tours allowed her to show the finalists in-person what she felt their focus should be. Milner said her vision tended to align with what Petr viewed as the right moves for economic development.

Focus

“We all know that we are a recreation community, and hospitality is our big thing,” Milner said, adding affordable housing is also of utmost importance.

Milner said there are areas in town that can be developed, and the Route 3 corridor and business parks are underutilized.

The hourly rate is a win for the town, she said, because there could be months that go by where the consultant won’t be used. Marketing Alliance had an hourly rate $100 less than the other finalist.

“We did not go based on dollar amount,” Milner said. “It just happened to work out that way.”

During the meeting, Forrester asked about the final product. She said there was “at least one” selectboard member concerned about what was being done for economic development, and “asked more than once” about the vision before hiring a consultant.

Milner said the firm will identify the priorities and challenges, so they can entice investors and businesses. She said there will be recommended action items within the next three months.

Contract

The contract between the town and Marketing Alliance was signed by Petr on May 26, and by Milner on June 16.

It has a list of services offered, and includes economic development advisory services, stakeholder and community engagement, strategic planning and implementation support, project evaluation and development support, funding and grant assistance, and ongoing consulting and coordination.

The company will bill for consulting, meetings, travel, research, strategic planning, stakeholder engagement, coordination efforts, document preparation, and project evaluation. Pre-approved travel expenses, lodging, meeting expenses, or other expense may be added costs.

Milner said in a Wednesday interview that many grants are due in March, so February will likely be a busy month for the consultant.

“I want to keep a good eye on it, and we only have $75,000, and I want to make sure it is spent right,” Milner said. “There is a lot we can do internally, and we will.”