Publisher's Statement

Bell tour progress

Written by Tom Pounds | President / Publisher | tpounds@toledofreepress.com

Last week, we reported on former UT President Dan Johnson’s idea to rally local businesses to send Mayor-elect Mike Bell on a world tour of successful port cities to see firsthand some of the programs that could spark Toledo development. There was an immediate response from several local businesses, and we are working with Bell to make this idea a reality.

Johnson elaborated on the tour concept: “Ideally, Bell would be accompanied by knowledgeable business leaders who share the vision of Toledo as a future global city. This might include the chairman of the board of the Regional Growth Partnership, chairman of the Port Authority Board, chairman of the board of the Toledo Area Chamber of Commerce and possibly other business leaders.”  

There are many possible choices for this trip that would meet  the objectives noted above. Among the choices to consider are the following:

Germany: Major centers for photovoltaic research, manufacturing and markets;

United Arab Emirates: Dubai and Abu Dhabi  focus on alternative energy and Masdar Institute;

India: High technology centers;

Singapore: Business community, chamber, port;

Shanghai: Visit SSOE and other Toledo-based companies;

South Korea or Japan: Possible stop-over just to see and meet consul general.

Johnson added, “The focus and selection of cities should be on those cities, regions and nations that share the economic strengths of Toledo or represent potential markets for Toledo products, particularly in the area of alternative energy, health care, transportation and other strengths. The mayor-elect will have his own ideas about which industries he should focus on.”  

These are just some thoughts and suggestions, and the clock is ticking, but pulling this together would be a major coup for Bell, regional development and our immediate future. Thank you to those who have stepped up so far. To help, contact me and we’ll include you in the conversation.

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 1st, 2009 at 3:48 pm and is filed under Opinion, Publisher's Statement.
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2 Responses to “Bell tour progress”

  1. Patrick Warnement

    Doesn’t Toledo have a sister city in China that is a major economic player? I believe it is called Qinhuangdao? I believe Ben Konop made an effort to work with them in the past. This could be a good stop if we are still a sister city.

    This comment was posted on December 1st, 2009 at 8:19 pm
  2. NC

    “Recently, the teachers and students from Toledo University of American came to visit Qinhuangdao.”

    http://www.qhd.gov.cn/qhdenglish/shownews.asp?sid=1641

    Nary another word about Toledo and the relationship between the two.

    And at at the same time, we have many that do not want any involvement with China, and yet they probabaly shop at Wal-Mart, what with all the made in the U.S. products on the shelves.

    This comment was posted on December 2nd, 2009 at 10:57 am

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