What Is 'Vision' For Ledyard?

Before Ledyard can grow and develop economically, there needs to be a vision.

That is the premise of a workshop tonight that will include members of the Economic Development Commission and several other town stakeholders. The conversation will be facilitated by Thomas Marano, business development manager for Connecticut Light & Power.

Marano, who worked with the town on its recent social media effort, said the workshop idea grew out of discussions with Mayor Fred B. Allyn Jr. over the past months.

“What we try to do is see if we can come to some agreement on some of the things we would like for the town, then look at some of the constraints and issues that would need to be resolved,” he said.

Marano said his role is to facilitate a conversation in which participants consider what the town is today, then imagine what it could become. As he has done in other Connecticut towns, he said he plans to ask participants three basic questions.

“First, I will ask, ‘What are you?’” he said. “What is your town? A small town? A rural town? Does it have manufacturing? A retail center? Is it a tourist destination?”

Next, he would ask participants what they would like the town to be. In other words, what is their “vision” for Ledyard.

“And from there I ask them what they can be, what’s realistic,” he said. “Here’s the kind of thing we can be, and here’s how we can make that happen.”

Marano said Ledyard tends to be more reactive than proactive when it comes to economic development. The town has no economic development director and, compared to other towns, makes only modest investment in this area, he said.

“It’s primarily a bedroom community, but it’s got some great assets,” he said.

Among them is the town’s frontage on the Thames River, an asset that he said is virtually untapped. With one of the world’s largest casinos, the riverfront and Ledyard’s close proximity to the shoreline, Marano said there is ample opportunity for economic growth and development.

Mike Cherry of the Economic Development Commission was optimistic about the workshop, but cautioned that any vision to emerge from such a process must be embraced by the town’s residents.

“You hear a lot these days about ‘walkability,’” he said. “My vision is you park your car and walk to where you need to go. But is that realistic? It seems people would rather jump in their cars and drive 11 miles for a gallon of milk. Maybe that will change when gas is $5 a gallon.”

Cherry said he would like to increase the town’s tax base, and making the town’s zoning more business-friendly to accommodate economic growth and development is one of the objectives of the EDC.

But that’s only if residents want it, he added.

“What do we want to be? Do we want to be a bedroom community?” he asked. “Well then let’s be the best bedroom community we can be.”

Allyn said he is hopeful the workshop will start a process that leads to greater economic visibility and growth for Ledyard. 

“What we don’t want is to waste everyone’s time just to get something that we put in a drawer,” he said.