This week we wanted to take some time away from focusing on economics and center the discussion a little closer to home.
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On Jan. 20, Toledo City Council made one of the most important votes for the city in the past decade, and thankfully they got it right.
We are thrilled with the possibilities that come with ProMedica’s move to Downtown Toledo, but the implications go much further than what this means for their operations and their employees.
The benefits of ProMedica’s move are too numerous to summarize in one column, but will include more tax revenue for the city and more business volume for various retailers and restaurants Downtown.
Those are the immediate short-term benefits; however, this vote sends a deeper message to the business community, and to money outside Northwest Ohio about Toledo. This vote shows that Toledo is open for business, and that we stand by our century-old slogan, “You will do better in Toledo.”
For far too long, our community has lacked significant development for a multitude of reasons, which is another list that is far too long to explore in this short column.
For years our read has been that business leaders find it nearly impossible to efficiently set up shop in Toledo while simultaneously attempting to navigate the bureaucratic red tape, media firestorms, various community boards and City Council.
The ProMedica vote shows the business community that we are ready for development, open to new ideas and willing to help cultivate them.
Frankly, the fact that we had even one dissenting vote is a bit of an embarrassment, but at the end of the day, Council voted correctly. It was heart-warming to see our elected officials stand up to protesters and former community “leaders” who implied we should not take the opportunity to develop our waterfront but rather should keep it available in case something better came along.
That is not how business is done, but that is exactly how it has been conducted in this town for far too long.
If Toledo properly markets the success of this deal, the possibilities are endless. We could see money flow in from throughout the region to help develop our underutilized exposure to Lake Erie West, or even international dollars to help revitalize Downtown.
Council made the right move to work with ProMedica on this deal. Now the ball is in ProMedica’s court to help turn Downtown around. We have faith in them and their vision. We only hope that this is just the beginning of a Downtown renaissance, and that ProMedica will provide a glowing example of a business that gave Toledo a chance, and Toledo answered the call.
Godspeed ProMedica. We are excited to announce that Toledo is open for business.
Ben Treece is a 2009 graduate from the University of Miami (Fla.), BBA International Finance and Marketing. He is a partner with Treece Investment Advisory Corp (www.TreeceInvestments.com) and licensed with FINRA through Treece Financial Services Corp. The above information is the opinion of Ben Treece and should not be construed as investment advice or used without outside verification.
