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“In private industry, you have to make investments or your capabilities will degrade,” he said, adding that the same is true for the region's need to invest in preserving its infrastructure. That includes the dams, rivers and reservoirs that reduce the threat of flooding and protect water quality that are critical to the future of the economy for the region. “Many of our towns settled along the rivers, and as a result, if the Dover Dam should fail, a lot of businesses would be lost including ours,” he said. “That would directly affect 100 jobs at Tusco - 100 families that count on Tusco. And the same can be said for a host of other businesses.” For that reason alone, Lauber said he supports the MWCD's assessment, which will provide direct and matching-fund support for flood control and water quality needs. “I'm willing to pay my share to protect what we have,” he said. “When we recruit people here - employees and new businesses - the MWCD helps us sell the quality of life in our region.” Without protection from flooding, Lauber added, the CIC's Tuscarawas County site would have never made the short list in the national search to locate a revolutionary FutureGen energy plant. “That's a billion-dollar project, 100 to 200 high-paying jobs and 1,000 or more construction jobs,” said Lauber. “But if we couldn't control the potential for flooding, our site would have gone off the list immediately.”
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When Mike Lauber talks about the benefits of creating a favorable business climate, he speaks not only as president and CEO of Tusco Display at Gnadenhutten, but also as president of the Tuscarawas County Community Improvement Corp., a driver for economic development in the region.