Business View Civil and Municipal | Volume 2, Issue 7

115 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 2, ISSUE 7 PAULDING COUNTY , OHIO the state about programs to help them. Copsey states, “We’ve made a true full-focused effort to try and make sure all of our businesses have what they need to sustain. As that’s taking place, it then leads into conversations about their growth or maybe the growth of one of their suppliers that may be interested in locating closer so that we cut down on some logistics.” Copsey’s office is working actively to put together a marketing plan to make sure people are aware of what Paulding County has to offer. With Toledo, Ohio and Fort Wayne, Indiana winning awards for their business programs, Copsey hopes to benefit from their success. He notes, “With us being right in between those two, we feel that’s a huge potential market for us to be able to solicit for the growth of our area as well.” The county is now focusing on growing their housing stock after a recent housing study others have sprung up on family farms, where sometimes 200 to 300 people are employed. The light industrial parks have room to grow and Copsey emphasizes, “We’re actually putting some infrastructure pieces together for that and making sure that the sites are ready when people enquire.” One of the most important items Copsey is focusing on is a solid business retention plan. During the high tide of the pandemic he called as many businesses as he could – about 422 in 10 days. He shares, “I did it to make sure I knew what they needed, what was going to be helpful to them, and how we could help them sustain through whatever crisis this was going to be and for how long. And with that we’ve made a very good network of communication.” Those lines of communication have stayed open and now more than 700 people are on an email list for information from the county, region, and