In October, metro area business leaders traveled to Vancouver to study the innovative ways in which that city is envisioning its future.
The trip was part of the Denver Metro Chamber’s Leadership Exchange program, and it is to be commended. And yet, if innovation is desired, metro leaders may want to look closer to home, at Littleton. In three areas, Littleton has implemented programs that are drawing attention from around the world.
• The Greater Littleton Youth Initiative. Established after the tragedy at neighboring Columbine High School in 1999, the initiative implements programs proven to enhance the development of young people and reduce youth violence. Nine years after its establishment, up to 40 community members and agencies come together monthly to discuss issues affecting youth.
Funded largely by the city in partnership with Littleton Public Schools, the initiative has established eight prevention programs, including those that address bully- proofing, drug and alcohol abuse, family functioning, juvenile decision-making and suicide prevention. (More information at .)
Recently, a BBC television crew documented the initiative’s success. Two members of Tony Blair’s Cabinet have visited the initiative, and a member of the British Parliament came twice.
• The Littleton Immigrant Integration Initiative, funded by The Colorado Trust, provides an Information Center at Bemis Library for newcomers. The initiative (www.connectingimmigrants.org) supports English as a Second Language classes, and uses more than 90 community volunteers to provide one-on-one mentoring for immigrants studying for their citizenship exams. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service said that Littleton’s Citizenship Mentoring program is unique in the nation; now, Douglas County libraries are implementing a similar program.
This initiative recently was visited by officials from Belgium, and will be featured in a TV documentary in Sweden.
• “Economic gardening.” About 1987, the city realized that the traditional model of recruiting industry with incentive packages had been a costly failure.
Instead, Littleton turned to an “economic gardening” approach that focuses on supporting entrepreneurs. Littleton businesses can assess training and seminars in advanced management techniques, and have access through the city to tactical and strategic information from more than 100,000 publications worldwide. Marketing lists, competitive intelligence, industry trends, new product tracking, and legislative research are just part of what the city offers.
As measured by job-creation figures, the “gardening” approach has been a considerable success. According to a 2006 Small Business Report, between 1990 and 2005, the number of jobs created in Colorado increased by 47 percent, with a 64 percent increase in the metro area. In Littleton during the same period, jobs grew by an amazing 135 percent.
Christopher Gibbons, director of Littleton’s Business and Industry Affairs Department who developed the city’s economic gardening program, said more than 500 communities from virtually every state have inquired about the approach, and inquiries have come also from the World Bank, and Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Scotland, the Netherlands, Egypt and Ireland. The program recently won the International Economic Development Council’s national award for entrepreneurship.
Revenues for Littleton, like most Colorado cities, are not increasing as fast as expenses. But in Littleton’s case, the “slow but steady” approach to economic development should help the city ride out the current economic downturn, while its other two initiatives should help keep young people safe and create a community that is welcoming to all.
Susan Thornton, former mayor of Littleton, is a founding board member of the Greater Littleton Youth Initiative and chairs the Littleton Immigrant Integration Initiative.
