Mount Prospect wants plan to lure new business

Mount Prospect is searching for an identity -- or at least a brand it can present to potential businesses and consumers.

With that in mind, village staff presented the village board this week with a proposal to develop a marketing plan.

In addressing the board, Village Manager Michael Janonis pointed to the redevelopment of the downtown and the upcoming redevelopment of Randhurst Shopping Center, the diversity of shopping opportunities throughout the village and the marketing of the Kensington Business Center as more of an international business center.

"These are all assets of the village that need to be marketed," he said.

Janonis said piecemeal efforts have been made by the village administration in the past, but recent discussions have led to the idea of developing a comprehensive marketing plan.

He said it would be a multiyear project and rely less on printed material, which becomes outdated fairly quickly, and more on an electronic presentation.

There would be a market analysis, and a consultant would be brought in to help.

Trustees Paul Hoefert and Arlene Juracek were enthusiastic about the idea.

Hoefert said, "The village manager always talks about how people in the community always say we should run ourselves more like a business … but one of the ways that we should operate more like a business is developing a marketing plan and setting off on a mission, not just having it be haphazard."

"I'm 100 percent behind this," Juracek said. "It's creating the brand identity for our economic development and community development efforts."