Job opportunities await hundreds of thousands of individuals, including Miami University students, according to Agenda 360's most recent proposal to jumpstart Southwest Ohio's economy.
Agenda 360, a regional action plan developed by leaders and high-powered volunteers from a variety of sectors within the greater Cincinnati region, unveiled their most recent proposal to address financial prospects and methods of transforming the counties of Butler, Clermont, Hamilton and Warren by 2020.
According to Myrita Craig, Agenda 360's executive director, the proposal established a list of six main priorities such as creating a quality place to live, growing future businesses, developing a qualified workforce, expanding transportation options, becoming more inclusive and encouraging local governments to work together.
Craig said Agenda 360 initiated three major, long-range goals that include adding 150,000 additional 20 to 34-year-olds to the labor force as well as 200,000 new jobs to the region. These numbers account for a 50 percent increase in the number of jobs from previous years.
Agenda 360 plans to begin working March 1 to achieve the goals and further stimulate the economy, Craig said.
Greg Hartmann, Hamilton County commissioner, said the plan is a great initiative for the entire region. He said not only is it important to surrounding counties, but it is equally important to the students enrolled at Miami.
"The university itself is a big part of the strategy," Hartmann said. "This is an ambitious goal to keep talent in the area."
According to Alan Kyger, Oxford's director of economic development, these goals would benefit and strengthen the city of Oxford.
Although Kyger said he believes challenges will arise in matters concerning the collaboration of independent chambers within area counties, he said nothing could be more beneficial than a vibrant Cincinnati region.
According to Diana Durr, director of the Oxford Visitors and Convention Bureau, Agenda 360 visited Oxford about a year and a half ago while engaging with a number of local participants.
Durr said she was one of many citizens to take part in the Oxford Community Engagement Forum. In addition to working with the Agenda 360 leadership team, Durr said she worked alongside members from a collection of Oxford institutions such as the League of Women Voters of Oxford, the Oxford Chamber of Commerce and Butler Advocates for Responsible Development.
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"The (newest) Agenda 360 proposal can be very beneficial to us based on the fact that our current layout of roads and routes is not necessarily easy to get around," Durr said.
With the implementation of the Agenda 360 proposition, transportation routes will be restored to meet the needs of citizens within the area, Durr said.
While a budget for the proposal is in the process of being created, it is not a major fundraising initiative, Craig said.
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