Bourne holds Economy Summit

The Town of Bourne continues efforts to build upon its economic assets and opportunities and its board of selectmen enlisted the help of the Cape Cod Commission to facilitate a locally-driven conversation and develop an economic action plan.  The town asked that all economic centers be included in this developing economic vision.

The town hosted an economic summit on April 10 at Massachusetts Maritime Academy in Buzzards Bay. The half day event was attended by approximately 40 stakeholders from the public and private sectors to develop an action plan for the town’s different economic centers, including Buzzards Bay, MacArthur Boulevard, Pocasset, Sagamore, Sagamore Beach and Cataumet.

Stakeholders brainstormed ideas on how the town can support and promote Bourne’s local economy and focused on four priorities:

• Encourage year-round, locally-owned businesses,
• Strengthen community amenities: historic, cultural, recreational,
• Ensure development is responsive to community needs in employment, taxes, and services
• Develop and strengthen partnerships to capitalize on existing assets

During the second half of the summit, stakeholders broke into six groups representing each of the town’s six economic centers. Groups focused on placemaking and place-based economic development and discussed ways to promote locally generated investment and jobs.

Cape Cod Commission staff will use the work produced at the summit to develop a draft action plan which will be delivered to the town and presented to the board of selectmen this spring.