01/15/2020- The majority of the Marinette County Board says when it comes to the administration of economic development and tourism promotion, they want the job done in-house. The Board was first asked Tuesday to consider directing the County’s Development Committee and County Administrator to create a new community development position. For months supervisors have gone back and forth whether to establish an internal development role or contract those services out to another agency and while proponents of the in-house option feel it will provide more transparency and a better relationship, Supervisor Ginger Deschane says they’ll be starting from scratch and duplicating services that already exist locally.

Following their discussion on development, the Board turned their attention to tourism. The County has already begun an effort to create a program assistant in the Facilities and Parks Department to promote and develop county-owned assets, but some municipalities, including the City of Marinette, have come out saying that heavily favors the northern part of the County. That program assistant could work with cities and towns on specific promotion projects as requested, but Supervisor Bonnie Popp says she wants to see the County bring a Tourism Director on board who will market the county as a whole.

The Board tasked the County Administrator and the Development Committee with crafting job descriptions and identifying funding sources for both the Community Development and Tourism Director positions. Each will still require final approval from the Committee and the full County Board.