The next meeting for SET (Town of Sodus Economic Team) will be on
February 7, 2012 at 10:00 AM
at the Sodus Community Library.
All meetings are open to the public.

On Thursday, 15 September 2011, a group of concerned citizens, business people, and community leaders met to discuss Sodus – past, present, and future – and how best to improve the economic and civic climate within our communities. An approximate record of that meeting follows:

In attendance:
The Honorable Michael Sullivan Mayor, Sodus Point
The Honorable Christian Tertinek Trustee, Sodus Point
Mary Jane Mumby Chair, Sodus Chamber of Commerce; Planning Board, Town of Sodus
Bill Paton Owner, The Marketplace
Manfred Lichti Owner, Lichti International, Inc.
Mark Vande Sodus Point
Paul Lowans Owner, Lowans IT Service; Wayne County Business Council
David Englert Planning Board, Village of Sodus

Manfred Lichti called the meeting to order at 2:00 PM. A thoughtful conversation ensued, in which all agreed that Sodus (the Town and its villages and hamlets) needs a cohesive strategy for economic development.

The group then discussed various existing organizations with interests in economic development. The question was raised if this group should lend its support to an existing organization’s ongoing efforts, or if they should encourage the formation of a new team to take on the task of local economic development. It was the consensus of those gathered that the idea of a comprehensive strategy focused on the improvement of Sodus – although closely aligned with the missions of several existing organizations, such as the Chamber of Commerce, the Planning Boards of the Town of Sodus and the Villages of Sodus and Sodus Point, and economic development agencies, such as the Wayne County EDC and Governor Cuomo’s newly minted Regional EDC – exceeds the mandate and available resources of all known existing organizations. Therefore, it was agreed upon that the task of crafting a strategy for the betterment of the economic climate in Sodus should fall to a new group. At this point, Mr. Sullivan had to leave to honor a prior commitment. Everyone remaining at the table was polled, and without exception, all expressed an enthusiastic willingness to participate in this group.

It was also agreed upon that:
1. This new group needs a catchy name or acronym
2. Anyone and everyone with a sincere interest in improving our communities, and a willingness to commit time and energy to this project is welcome and encouraged to participate
3. The sooner we get started, the better

Therefore, this group will be holding an organizational meeting at which a course of action will be identified and enacted. This meeting will be held at the Sodus Community Library at 10:00 AM on Tuesday, 4 October 2011. The meeting is open to the public.

Numerous well-documented studies support the many benefits to our communities and to each of us when we choose to shop local and at independently owned businesses. It is not always possible to purchase what we need locally so I merely ask you to consider “Local FIRST!”

My top reasons to Think Local - Buy Local - Be Local

Buy Local and Support yourself: Studies, many of them, support the fact that when you buy from a local independent owned business, rather than a nationally owned big chain, significantly more of your Dollars are spent to make purchases from other local businesses, service providers and farms -- continuing to strengthen the local economic base of the local community.(Click here to read summaries of a many of economic impact studies; these studies are showing that locally-owned businesses generate an enormous economic impact to the community and to our tax base.) » read more