To a packed room of Aurora-area business and government leaders in the ballroom at North Island Center in downtown Aurora on Friday, Kelly O’Brien said that the newly-formed local organization she leads represents a “paradigm shift” in regional economic development.
“We have an ambitious agenda to transform the region into a premier hub for innovation and technological advancement,” she said during her speech.
O’Brien is the president and CEO of the Aurora Regional Economic Alliance, which was recently formed by joining together four local organizations: Aurora Downtown, the Aurora Regional Chamber of Commerce, Invest Aurora and the Quad County African American Chamber of Commerce.
The new alliance celebrated its official launch in the Meyer Ballroom at North Island Center on Friday with an event that drew over 200 attendees and featured live music, food, drinks and announcements about the organization’s goals and strategies.
Those who attended the event represented Aurora-area businesses — ranging from large companies that do business in Aurora, like Cyrus One and Penn Entertainment’s Hollywood Casino, to local businesses that call Aurora home — but also civic organizations and local governments.
Many area elected officials or their representatives were also in attendance, including state Rep. Barbara Hernandez, D-Aurora, Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin and some members of the Aurora City Council.
“Today, we are not just introducing a new organization,” Irvin said during his speech. “We are ushering in a new era of economic growth, collaboration and innovation for our great city.”
O’Brien told the gathered group of area leaders that the new alliance, which is an economic development organization, will combine the efforts of the four organizations that came together to form it.
This creates a “unified platform that amplifies Aurora’s competitive advantages in the global innovation economy” and gives the region “a stronger and more coordinated voice in advocating for growth and attracting investment,” O’Brien said.
This alliance will also create partnerships between local industry, educational organizations and government, she said.
According to O’Brien, this is currently a time of “profound change” as things like “rapidly advancing technology, the climate crisis, demographic shifts and evolving social norms” significantly change how people live and work across the globe.
So, to better understand Aurora’s regional economy, and to lay out steps the Aurora Regional Economic Alliance can take to grow that economy and to support its businesses, the organization is working with a national consulting firm to help draft a five-year strategic plan, O’Brien said.
The plan will not only show the organization what needs to be done to “maximize opportunities for business vitality,” but it will also include data and indicators to measure the organization’s progress, holding it accountable, she said.
While the Midwest in general “has been slipping for far too long,” the Chicago region is one of the largest contributors to the nation’s economy, and Aurora stands as “a bright spot,” according to O’Brien. The local economy is resilient, as both the city and the region recovered jobs lost during the Great Recession and during the COVID-19 pandemic at higher rates than the state and the Chicago region, she said.
However, technology can lead to job displacement and require both workers and businesses to adapt, even as it is a driver of economic growth, according to O’Brien. She said that’s where the Aurora Regional Economic Alliance comes in, to work with businesses on facing the challenges ahead.
The alliance’s five-year plan, expected to be published in August and rolled out in September, is set to ask and answer questions about which industries power the region’s economy, or have the potential to; what the local business community’s greatest needs are; if Aurora’s workforce is ready to meet industry demands; which industries may be impacted the most by new technologies; and what is needed to make Aurora more competitive, among others, O’Brien said.
“We are committed to being one of the communities the nation turns to when wanting to understand how to do things right,” she said.
According to O’Brien, who has worked in economic development positions around the nation, including at the federal level, the Aurora Regional Economic Alliance is already setting itself apart by coming together so quickly. Typically, such mergers take years, she said during her speech.
“The fact that Aurora’s business community came together in one calendar year is so remarkable, and it truly is a story that we are going to tell on the national stage,” O’Brien said.
Around this time last year, six business organizations came together with the city of Aurora to talk about each of the organization’s goals, strengths and weaknesses, and to look at other growing metro areas’ business organizations, according to O’Brien. A study was published in June that recommended these organizations consolidate their efforts, she said.
In the second half of last year, the boards of the four organizations that make up the Aurora Regional Economic Alliance voted to consolidate, so a lawyer was hired and bylaws were drafted, then adopted and became effective in December, O’Brien said.
The city of Aurora also approved $3 million for the new organization in October, according to past reporting. The organization may get another $2 million from the city once its more developed, has a budget and can show what the original $3 million was spent on.
Those city funds come from part of a settlement the city received from Cyrus One for building its new data center campus on land near the Eola Road interchange with Interstate 88, an area once seen as a place for economic development for the city, past reporting shows.
Now that the four organizations have formerly merged their economic development efforts, the alliance is looking to start a number of initiatives throughout this year to speed up Aurora’s transformation into an innovation hub, according to a news release about the launch event.
These initiatives are planned to attract venture capital, encourage technological innovation, develop an advanced workforce and help businesses of all sizes thrive in the digital economy, the release said.
Since the Aurora Regional Economic Alliance combines the efforts of those four merged organizations, it cuts out repeat functions and shares resources between the groups to improve service to its members and focus efforts to create impactful programs, according to a Frequently Asked Questions page about the new alliance.
The big difference between the chambers’ previous roles and the new alliance is that the formerly separate chambers were mostly focused on events, networking and business education, the FAQ page said.
While the alliance will still do these things, it will also be responsible for business attraction, retention and expansion efforts; the attraction of investment and new talent; business advocacy, data and research; support and education for minority- and women-owned businesses; and the promotion of downtown Aurora.
Membership dues will be increasing, and existing members will see a small increase for 2025 renewals, with dues ranging from a minimum of $500 to $25,000 or more, according to the FAQ sheet. In 2026, a standardized dues and benefits structure is set to be in place.
The higher dues will support the alliance’s initiatives and the increased staffing needed to support the greater number of services for members, the sheet said.
The Aurora Regional Economic Alliance’s Board of Directors is made up of board members from the four organizations that merged to create it in addition to representatives from businesses annually giving $10,000 or more to the organization, according to the FAQ sheet. This board meets quarterly, and an executive committee of 13 members meets monthly, the sheet said.
O’Brien encouraged businesses to get involved by serving on the Board of Directors or on a committee, attending the organization’s upcoming events, being a part of the upcoming initiatives and connecting with those working to create the five-year strategic plan.
“There are a number of opportunities to have your voice heard,” she said.
More information about the organization, as well as contact information for businesses looking to get involved, can be found at: auroraregionaleconomicalliance.org
rsmith@chicagotribune.com
