By Leslie Collins
Northeast News
April 4, 2012

Jackson County’s new online economic development tool has already been accessed by 12 countries and 42 states.

Called the Economic and Community Development Viewer, the tool aims to attract new investors and development to the area as well as help communities improve their neighborhoods.

The free online tool provides a searchable database that can be customized for any geographical location within Jackson County. Information includes crime statistics; available economic development tools like Tax Increment Financing (TIF), urban renewal zones, tax abatements, among others; property codes violations; individual 311 call descriptions; blighted areas and properties; properties with water shut-offs; a parcel’s history; census data; and traffic statistics. It also details whether a property is vacant or a rental and includes property indicators like the quality of surrounding sidewalks and the quality of a structure’s roof.

“It’s a pretty powerful tool,” said Jackson County Economic Development Director Robbie Makinen. “One of the most beautiful parts of this is that it was done at no additional tax payer expense. We did this in-house.”

Launched several months ago, the tool is a collaborative effort between the county, the City of Kansas City, the Kansas City Police Department and the University of Missouri-Kansas City, which conducted a blight study of Kansas City.

“Whether you’re someone looking for a house or a developer looking to make an investment somewhere or someone in public policy trying to figure out where you should spend money, all of that information can be found in one place,” Kansas City Council member Scott Wagner said.

“It’s a one-stop shop,” Makinen said.

Before, individuals had to visit a number of places to gain the same information, Makinen said.

“We’ve looked around to find comparable sorts of systems, and there just aren’t any,” Wagner said. “What we have here in Jackson County is unique.”

In addition to helping businesses – both large and small – research a site for future development, the tool will also aid Kansas City in spending its money more efficiently in neighborhoods, Wagner said. Over time, the city will be able to use the online tool to evaluate whether or not city investments positively impacted a neighborhood, he said.

Both the city and county hope to expand the online tool to Platte and Clay counties, as well as surrounding cities.

“What communities need at the end of the day are good investments,” Wagner said, “and this tool can help that along.”