BELFAST – Mayor Michael Hurley will host a two-part Belfast Leadership and Action Summit later this month aimed at finding ways to expand the city’s economy.

The summit will take place 6:30-9 p.m. Monday, March 26, at the University of Maine Hutchinson Center and at the same time Thursday, March 29 at the Boathouse at Steamboat Landing. Refreshments will be provided to participants on both evenings.

Over the past several years, business, government and community leaders and a wide range of city residents have been talking about finding the best way to move the local economy forward, Hurley said.

He said the summit would give them a chance to run their ideas by each other.

“We’re primarily interested in economic and social development,” Hurley said Thursday. “Everybody talks about different things that need to be done, but we’ve never really gotten together to listen to each other’s ideas. There’s been quite a bit of lively discussion and debate about a lot of things and many groups have been engaged in the process.”

In November, the city received the final draft of the Belfast Vibrancy Report prepared by Crane Associates, of Burlington, Vt. The report detailed a series of recommendations for the city to consider that could help ensure that Belfast maintains a thriving and sustainable economy.

In addition to the Vibrancy Report, a number of other significant studies were completed over the past few months that are now available to communities across Maine, he said.

Two of the reports to be considered, along with the recommendations of the Vibrancy Report, are The Brooking Institution Report, Charting Maine’s Future: An Action Plan for Promoting Sustainable Prosperity and Quality Places, and The Maine Creative Economy Council Report.

With those resources available, Hurley said that city leaders felt the time was right to bring together a working summit composed of representatives from various groups, agencies and constituencies throughout the city.

“We kept talking about stuff but we couldn’t figure out what was the next step. We decided on a summit,” Hurley said. “It’s basically business and arts and what we can all play to bring it together.”

Hurley said representatives from numerous groups, agencies and constituencies dealing with development issues have been invited to take part in the summit.

He said the goal of the summit was to develop a short list of consensus-based goals and plans that all participants can agree on.

The City Council as well as representatives from most city boards and committees are expected to take part in the summit. In addition, members of the Belfast Area Chamber of Commerce, the Downtown Business Association, Belfast Arts, and other individual business and groups important to the city’s economy also will be attending the meetings, he said.

Both sessions will be conducted by facilitators Chris Shrum, Director of the Eastern Maine Development Corp.’s Community Development Division, and Alan Hinsey, Economic Development Specialist and staff to Knox-Waldo Regional Economic Development Council.

The first evening will focus on creating a common understanding of resources and information available to use for developing economic strategy.

The second evening will require participants to establish consensus-based plans for the city. The results will be summarized and submitted in the form of recommendations to the council and other relevant groups.

“One thing that has been pointed out in all this is that people are running around doing things but they’re not working together,” Hurley said. “We hope to get 10 things to do – not screw around – and then go and do them. To get all of us to agree what we’re going to do.”

The event is being funded by Unity-based Unitek Co.