Podcast 216: Economic Development Isn’t What It Used to Be with Teresa Nortillo
The ecosystem is bigger than your city limits.
Episode 216 of the Econ Dev Show Podcast is out. Listen now.
In this episode, Dane Carlson talks with Teresa Nortillo, President of EcoDevo360, about how economic development has evolved from a deal-focused discipline into a complex, ecosystem-driven practice. They explore how energy constraints, workforce skill gaps, and the need for rapid RFI responses are reshaping site selection, along with the growing importance of childcare, housing, and regional collaboration.
Teresa also introduces the concept of ecosystem-based cost modeling, explains why many communities struggle to implement traditional consulting plans, and shares her mission to make high-quality economic development support accessible to under-resourced communities.
Stop managing sites in a spreadsheet disguised as a map.
Most tools help you store property listings and make them look good online. Sitehunt actually understands your sites. It pulls together infrastructure, utilities, zoning, and regional context from millions of real data sources to build a complete picture automatically. No manual data entry. No guessing. No chasing down answers when a project comes in.
When the RFI hits, speed wins. Sitehunt doesn’t just display your sites, it evaluates them. You can match properties to project requirements, answer detailed questions instantly, and move from “we think this might work” to “here’s exactly why it works” in minutes. While others are still assembling information, you’re already submitting a complete, confident response.
10 Actionable Takeaways for Economic Developers
- Build a system to respond to RFIs within 48 hours or less
- Inventory your community's workforce by skills, not just occupations
- Develop relationships with utilities early, they are now deal drivers
- Map your full economic ecosystem including housing, childcare, and infrastructure
- Create or adopt a cost model to understand true location competitiveness
- Collaborate regionally instead of competing in isolation
- Identify and fill critical data gaps before prospects ask for them
- Prioritize implementation capacity, not just strategic planning documents
- Explore alternative revenue strategies beyond property and sales tax
- Invest in training and mentorship for newer economic development staff
Episode Links
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