Silver Valley Puts Fortunes In Good Hands

The Silver Valley Economic Development Corp. has just undergone what Margie Gravley Todd calls “a major re-tooling.” It boasts a new board, new bylaws, and newly defined goals. As the organization’s new manager, Todd’s job is to help make sure those goals are met.

“The purpose of the restructuring is to involve more members and put together a board of directors that will actively work to meet the members’ goals,” Todd said.

She noted that the 17-member board includes representatives from every part of the Silver Valley. Its members run the gamut - from small business owners to executives in major industries.

Todd, 41, brings a serene presence to her hectic job. Her office is tucked between a real estate company and a travel agency in downtown Wallace. She is almost always on the phone.

“SVEDC is about connecting people to resources. That’s true whether we’re serving new, existing, or expanding businesses,” she said.

The organization’s goals state that it will continue to recruit new prospects and to support existing businesses. Todd’s background gives her a special feeling for those tasks. A Wallace native, she was raised by a father who owned his own business for 30 years. “The whole family worked,” she said. “When you’re raised in a business, you understand the commitment it takes.”

In the 1980s, operating her own secretarial service in Boise, Todd found herself advising clients who needed to develop business plans.

“They were willing to put in the blood, sweat and tears necessary to make a business work,” she said. “That’s when I fell in love with economic development.”

Todd went on to serve as economic development director for Lincoln County, Mont., and was vice president of Montana’s Resource Development Association. Now she’ll help Silver Valley businesses, whether they want to strengthen a business plan, identify a new market or find a new product to sell. And she’ll be bringing her experience to bear on several other SVEDC goals, as well.

The group’s most high-profile objective is the creation of an industrial park on a parcel of land near the Shoshone Airport, with good visibility and access from I-90.

“The board would like to see some sort of work force training center, open for use by all Silver Valley businesses and residents,” Todd said. “Part of the facility could serve as a business incubator, where we could grow and graduate businesses.”

The board is still working on the structure of the business park and would welcome ideas, she said.

“The board feels that it’s critical for the community to be involved in the process if it’s going to be successful.”

Another SVEDC goal deals with housing. Homes are available, but many date from the early 1900s, and could stand some modernization.

“We expect the area to grow, and we need to be able to provide quality housing for incoming families,” Todd said.

The organization has already obtained a low-interest, low-income home improvement loan, and can make help available to applicants who fit the profile. Information on that program is available through Todd or at local banks. Finally, the revitalized SVEDC plans to do all it can to increase member involvement and improve communication, Todd said.

“We have a very salable area - low crime rate, low cost of living, high-quality schools and health care. Combine that with the low cost of doing business in Idaho, and … it’s going to happen. We just need to get ourselves ready.” Bekka Rauve is a free-lance writer who lives in the Silver Valley. Panhandle Pieces appears every Saturday. The column is shared among several North Idaho writers.

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