“The biggest obstacles between businesses in Island County and a shining pot of money are government regulations, inadequate workforce training and the lure of off-island cities to consumers, local businesspeople say.But help may be coming in the form of new marketing efforts and meetings to hammer out the differences between business needs and governmental policy. A hundred businesses were surveyed for the Island District Economic Development’s Business Retention and Expansion program over the last two years by 50 community volunteers. The final report came out Monday.Tom Shaughnessy, director of the EDC, says the report does more than just identify problems in the county business environment, but comes up with workable solutions.According to the survey, which was funded by $18,000 from Island County, businesses see local governmental agencies as the biggest road block. Specifically, the building permit and community planning processes were identified as low-quality and a hindrance to business.A common complaint, according to the report, is the time it takes to get through the permit process. Three months waiting and still no permit.In addition, businesses rated the availability, stability and quality of the county workforce as low.Yet Shaughnessy said the most important concern cited by businesspeople in the report is the community’s trend of shopping on the mainland. He is very passionate about this point, explaining that shopping locally not only helps local businesses but keeps sales taxes in the county. That means the government needs less money from property taxes and can spend more on projects to boost business.It’s so terribly important that we keep the sales dollars here, he said.To help solve some of these problems, the EDC created an action plan. Here’s a look at the top priorities:1) The EDC will partner with InterWest Bank to create a promotional video of Island County. The EDC will list available industrial and commercial properties on an online database.2) The EDC and chambers of commerce will collectively market the county in order to boost customer confidence, will put advertising on Island Transit buses, and will work with the South Whidbey Market Place to expand that direct mailer publication to include all of Whidbey. 3) The EDC will work with governmental agencies to clear away impediments to business and hold a yearly business forum to discuss issues between government and business. 4) To promote training and education, the EDC will act as a liaison between the business community and Skagit Valley College and other training or educational programs.5) The EDC, the chambers and Worksource Partners will work together to publicize the availability of workers on the north end to all the island, work with the Navy to match businesses to work pools and hold employer seminars on alternative employee incentives and benefits.Shaughnessy said some of the priorities, like the InterWest video, is already underway but other work will need a community buy-in.He said the biggest surprise he found in the report is the lack of communication between the north and south parts of Whidbey Island. He said shoppers on South Whidbey simply aren’t aware of all the retailers and businesses on North Whidbey, and vice versa. South Whidbey has missed out on the labor market on North Whidbey, he added.But even though there are problems, most business people in Island County see a positive future and about half are planning to expand their businesses in the next three years.Businesspeople say the main community strengths are recreational opportunities, police and fire departments, public transportations, the people, the productivity of the workforce, and most of all the quality of life in Island County. You can reach News-Times reporter Jessie Stensland at jstensland@whidbeynewstimes.com or call 675-6611.”