‘Creating a place for people to prosper.’
That’s the tagline of the
Blue Meets Green coalition, part of a St. Clair County economic development strategic plan. Since its formation in 2010, the coalition has demonstrated how collaboration between stakeholders, nonprofits and philanthropy, the business sector, local government entities, school districts, and healthcare organizations is vital for moving a mission forward.
Randy Maiers is the president and CEO of the
Community Foundation of St. Clair County and an integral partner in the coalition.
The foundation is the largest grant-making entity in the thumb region, and has been providing philanthropic support to the region for 80 years.
Building a true collaborative
Maiers says the idea for the Blue Meets Green coalition began around 2008 or 2009, following the economic impacts of the 2008 recession.
“Everyone got to a point where things were so bad, and we realized we had to start working together better,” he says. “Historically, there wasn’t necessarily great collaboration in the region, so coming out of that recession in 2008, the leading stakeholders said ‘things have to change, we’ve got to learn how to communicate better, create some shared values, goals and objectives for our region.’ It took some time to get everyone on the same path, but within a couple of years, Blue Meets Green was born. It’s been a really strong, important part of our region ever since.”
The mission is to help identify projects, programs, initiatives and areas of interest that the Blue Water area needs to focus on in one- to three-year increments. The goal is to get stakeholders aligned to work on the most pressing challenges and unique opportunities to grow regional prosperity.
Maiers says many people are not fully aware of how the coalition operates behind-the-scenes.
“Blue Meets Green is not a legal entity, it’s not a 501(c)(3), it’s not a unit of government, and it has no legal standing whatsoever,” he says. “I honestly think that’s why it’s endured so well, because our members aren’t here to support the entity, the focus is on growing the region. It’s truly a loose collaboration and coalition of stakeholders who agree that we need to get together on a regular basis to identify common goals and objectives. That to me, is the strength of it.”
The Community Foundation of St. Clair County is in charge of covering running costs for the organization, which is minimal, says Maiers. It is also a big funder of different projects and programs that come out of the coalition. One of those ongoing projects is support for water and land-based resources, including enhancement of the trail system.
Connecting trails to economic development
Sheri Faust is executive director of the
Friends of the St. Clair River, the Blue Water area’s largest environmental nonprofit. Its mission is to work together with partners on the Canadian and American sides of the St. Clair River to monitor and improve water quality, clean up the river, and promote responsible recreation and habitat stewardship.
Friends of St. Clair River helps to ensure healthy rivers, green spaces and accessible trails, which improve the overall quality of life for plants, people, and wildlife in the region. It's been involved in Blue Meets Green since 2019.
Faust says that a regional priority for Blue Meets Green is enhancing trails and greenways, with an additional 20 miles along the Bridge to Bay Trail and directing trails into downtowns.
"We view trails not just as amenities for the few, but essential infrastructure to connect communities to each other and to the outdoors,” she says.
Serving as trail champion, Faust says the organization’s role is an important one in a cross-boundary collaboration to advance the collective vision across the Thumb Coast.
“Having this connected trail system really showcases our county’s amenities, which makes economic sense,” she says. “Trails are an economic development tool that checks a lot of boxes: public health initiatives, recreational activities, property values, business creation, and workforce development goals. We see the big landscape picture because we think, plan, and act on the landscape level.”
Looking ahead for the remainder of 2024 and 2025, Faust says Friends of the St. Clair River is looking at tackling some of the complex and costly trail routes north of Port Huron in Fort Gratiot, and also south of St. Clair. The work will close current gaps in the trail and allow hikers to move seamlessly between communities.
"They’ll be able to access these economic centers downtown, and also the shoreline too, with the riverfront to enjoy bird watching and getting to the beach,” Faust says.
Nearly every segment of the economy is represented in Blue Meets Green, and typically 30 or more people meet every other month to further the county-wide goals, says Maiers.
“Every 18-24 months, we do a half-day retreat and invite 100-120 people, and have a chance to learn about the priorities, projects, and there’s a voting process,” he says. “By the end of the retreat, we hopefully reach consensus on what the two, three or four top priorities are.”
Currently, Maiers says one of the top priorities is providing additional daycare in the region.
“We have members of Blue Meets Green who are experts in that area, and can educate others about how challenging it is, and the obstacles that are there,” he says.
One of those experts is Josh Chapman, president and CEO of the
YMCA of the Blue Water Area. Chapman has been with the YMCA for about 14 years, and was invited to join the Blue Meets Green group to bring his expertise to the collective table.
Improving access to quality childcare boosts local business
Chapman says the need for more accessible, affordable, quality childcare is not an issue only relevant in the Blue Water area.
“Childcare is a national issue,” he says. “Locally, our major issue is really that we’ve lost an incredible amount of slots, and options for kids to participate in a quality preschool. The pandemic really accelerated that, and it showed the fragile nature of the type of projects or business that it is.”
Chapman says the challenges are making sure students are ready for the K-12 curriculum and benchmarks, but also the economic development component.
“I’m a big champion on looking at not having enough childcare and seeing what that does to the local economy,” Chapman says. “When someone is relegated to stay at home and take care of children, that strains the workforce, lowers household income, and disproportionately impacts women negatively. If we can offer quality, affordable childcare, we can not only ensure that kids are ready for K-12 success, but we can also help the local economy by freeing up eligible workers that aren’t in the workforce and help provide more opportunity for women to advance their careers.”
The YMCA offers many solutions, including the
Warm World child development program in both the Port Huron location and the St. Clair location, which opened a year ago. This location added 103 slots to the child care landscape in the county, Chapman says.
The programs are tailored for children six weeks old to preschool age. In the future, the organization is also looking at offering before-school care in addition to its after-school programs in the Port Huron and Marysville schools.
Chapman says collaboration is necessary because the needs of a community are so intertwined.
“It’s really hard to have population growth if you don’t have adequate housing, good schools, or the potential and ability to secure quality preschool, or if you don’t have places and spaces to enjoy recreation in your community. It’s multi-faceted, they’re all intertwined. We can’t attack these things as independent things because they all coexist and depend on each other.”
Chapman says he is grateful to be working as one individual piece within the larger puzzle of Blue Meets Green.
“I think we’re blessed that we have the opportunity to work well with each other, to really put our egos aside, and do what’s best for our community,” he says. “Hopefully, in the coming years, we can set an example of how -- if you work together, look at things comprehensively -- great things can happen, and can hopefully create results for the citizens and members of our community locally.”
This story is part of our Nonprofit Journal Project, an initiative focused on nonprofit leaders and programs across Metro Detroit. This series is made possible with the generous support of our partners, the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation, Michigan Nonprofit Association and Co.act Detroit.