2016 Reinventing Delaware Ideas ​- Economic Development

Revitalize abandoned/underutilized industrial sites

Expand the use of the existing Brownfields program to incentivize the purchase and clean-up of these sites

Neighborhood Groups

Incentivize neighborhood groups to pool their resources for the purpose of identifying, prioritizing, and meeting a need that exists in their neighborhood.

Films to Delaware

Make Delaware a destination for major films

Social Impact Bonds

Propose that we (the State and/or City government) adopt a social impact bond to encourage these three organizations and the employers that hire their graduates to train and employ over 500 people annually two years from now.

China Exporter at the Port

Delaware needs to attract a Plastic Manufacturer to export from the Port of Wilmington to China.

Aligning State and Local Gov’t Leadership

For the use of the Bank Settlement dollars and Revisions to the Coastal Zone Act to encourage smart economic development.

Major Cancer Research Center

Using Joe Biden as a resource to locate a major national cancer center in Delaware.

Christina and Delaware Rivers

Let us bring more life back to waterfront properties by making the Christina and Delaware Rivers more accessible to Delaware residents.

Convert DEDO into a Public/Private Economic Development Organization housed at UD

Establish an organization that encourages economic growth throughout Delaware and cultivates a new economy by creating and advocating for an entrepreneur/startup friendly business environment.

Contract and Freelance Workers

Provide a compelling benefits package for entrepreneurs and freelance contract workers that would encourage them to establish a presence in DE.

Purpose Built Communities

Using Purpose Built Communities’ (PBC) proven model of successfully transforming crime ridden, high unemployment, economically depressed communities into vibrant, high achieving communities in Atlanta and 16 other American cities (Birmingham, Indianapolis, New Orleans, etc).

Delaware FinTech

Launch Delaware FinTech – a non-profit trade organization for professionals, entrepreneurs, investors, and support organizations that work in and around the financial technology sector. The group would help Delaware’s FinTech sector and its regionally-situated professionals advocate, collaborate, expand, improve, and promote its capabilities to a global audience.

Blockchain Center Development Act

Blockchain Center Development Act – The Blockchain “distributed ledger” technology platform, with its transparency and speed, promises to have a major impact on several industries, including the financial services and insurance sectors.

Large and Small Business

Create an entity that would foster relationships between large and small businesses.

Delaware Shop Local

Form an online site called Delaware Shop Local with the help of these new tech programmers from Zip Code Wilmington.

The Yiqi Investment Bank, Zip Code 19801

Delaware needs a Chinese Investment Bank to focus on bringing Chinese money to Delaware.

Smart Cities. Smart Wilmington

Development of a Smart Cities Institute in Wilmington focused on best practices for Smart Cities worldwide.

Fisker 2.0

Bring Fisker back to the Boxwood Road plant. Henrik Fisker was previously on board with the Delaware location and refurbishment of the Boxwood Road Plant — so why not again?

Invest in Infrastructure

Safe and reliable utility infrastructure can be critical in attracting new business and/or manufacturing to the state and investing in infrastructure significantly adds to job creation.

Reinvent Delaware

To reinvent Delaware by revitalizing large economically depressed neighborhoods beginning with Wilmington, Murder Town USA.

News Journal Structure

Spin News Journal out to be a non-profit…. invest more in reporters.

Textile Study

Launch a Wilmington based investment in a feasibility study examining the re-invention of the $400B textile and apparel manufacturing industry within the United States.

Pay-for-Success (PFS) funding mechanism in Delaware to spur economic development

Challenges: Job losses & brain drain in Delaware, Investment capital needed. Stimulation of small to mid-sized businesses.

Solution: Pay for success (PFS) Mechanism, initial funding from private sector, managing risk through personal income tax (PIT) payback after job creation.

Virtual Reality

Make Wilmington and Delaware the place in the country that opens its arms to creative uses of AR – so Microsoft and others come to Delaware to experiment and test.

Mobile Team

Build a Mobile Team of business professionals who go to all the public schools from 4-6 pm and teach workforce readiness skills: IT, time management, effective communications, negotiation, and case studies. Things the kids do not normally get taught day-to-day.

Medicaid Covered Births

45% of birth deliveries in Delaware are paid for through Medicaid. As an indicator of children being born into poverty, the nonprofit community should target this metric in the years to come and seek to reduce this figure.