In addition, most towns in the county currently are working on their own versions of economic development commissions that are geared to courting business and industry. Some of the long-term projects for those groups may eventually include creating incentives, such as tax breaks, to lure desirable businesses into town. But the bad news is that the commissions seem to be finding it hard to get started, especially in the more rural towns. As a result, developers go elsewhere without making serious inquiries into the area. State interference poses a problem, too, Hopkinton's Schaffer says.
Interested businesses go to the state first, and the towns are always the last to know.
That's one area where regional planning could help, Charlestown Town Council President Charles Beck says. The theory is that towns working together could attract businesses directly to the region, without using the state as a middle man, and point them to the local town that best fits their needs.