January 2002

Thoma Development: An Entrepreneurial Approach To Community Development

Thoma Development Consultants (TDC) is a critical resource for local municipalities and small businesses requiring assistance identifying funding sources, providing community development support and administering public sector business loan programs. While the bulk of the company's work is focused on municipalities, the firm also does work for not-for-profit organizations as well as a private client list.

Thoma Development Consultants is more than a community development resource. It's an entrepreneurial success story in its own right. The company's founder and president, Bernie Thoma, started as a community development consultant for the City of Cortland in the late 1970s. As things evolved, the community development needs of the City seemed better served by a consulting firm, and as a result, Bernie founded Thoma Development in 1980. The City of Cortland was the firm's first customer. Now, TDC also administers community development projects for Cortlandville, Homer, Virgil and Marathon, and works with the Villages of Waterloo, Waverly and Groton, just to name a few of the company's many other customers located throughout Central New York-Southern Tier-Finger Lakes Region.

Thoma Development has partnered on a number of projects with the Cortland County Business Development Corporation (BDC), including the development and submission of a highly competitive Empire Zone application which was approved this past June. The BDC will be working with TDC on subsequent boundary amendments to the Zone. TDC also administers the BDC-IDA Revolving Loan Fund and has played a key role in grant development for the Tioughnioga River Trail project.

Thoma's relationship with the BDC dates back to when the county's economic development organization was formed as an offshoot of the Cortland County Chamber of Commerce in the early 1980s, at a time when Cortland was experiencing severe economic retrenchment resulting in plant closings, downsizing, and skyrocketing unemployment. Thoma credits Cortland County and the City of Cortland with having the vision to realize the importance of economic development and eventually establishing a separate business development organization, funded through sales tax revenues. The result has been a shift in focus. "We now do things instead of waiting for things to happen. We've become proactive instead of passive."

TDC has expanded to 12 employees and expects continued growth. Increased consulting work in the areas of strategic planning and feasibility studies for the company's municipal, not-for-profit, and private customers have provided the company with substantial growth. The fact that Thoma is growing is a good indicator of the health of the region.

For more information on Thoma Development Consultants: (607) 753-1433