The Seacoast Economic Development Stakeholders (SEDS) is a collective entity of economic development stakeholders from Strafford and Rockingham Counties who meet regularly to collaborate, share information and resources, and work together to promote the economic vitality of our communities and region. SRPC convened the group in March 2020 to increase awareness and improve information sharing on the fast-changing state and local regulations brought by the pandemic. SEDS members include municipal economic development managers, chamber of commerce directors, staff from SPRC and Rockingham Planning Commission, staff from the Rockingham Economic Development Center, and representatives from allied organizations that play a key role in economic development. SEDS members serve as a critical voice to help develop local and regional priorities and projects to be incorporated into the Strafford EDD’s Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy by acting as our Strategy Committee.

The NH Department of Business and Economic Affairs (NH BEA) recognized the success of the SEDS model, which served as inspiration for the Collaborative Economic Development Regions (CEDRs) proposed in NH BEA’s 2021 Economic Recovery and Expansion Strategy. NH BEA has recognized the Seacoast Economic Development Stakeholders as the CEDR for the greater seacoast region and has sought to replicate its success through the creation of new CEDRs throughout the state.

Over the past 2 years, SEDS used their platform to advance conversations about key issues affecting the region, such as Housing, Business Operations, Child Care, Human Resources, Real Estate, and Health Care.

SEDS, through SRPC and RPC, was also awarded funds from NH BEA to support local economic development initiatives with microgrants, awarding scholarships to local students, and creation of an Employer Toolkit. The microgrants summary and Employer Toolkit information can be found below. Enjoy!

SEDS now meets once a month to address issues that are impacting our communities on the Seacoast. In August 2023, the SEDS began meeting once a quarter in person to tour a business or project that is of regional economic significance. Here is a list of SEDS tours in FY2024:

August 2023: John Olson Advanced Manufacturing Center at the University of New Hampshire
November 2023: JEMS by Pensole, Somersworth, NH
March 2024 (scheduled): Foss Manufacturing Facility (aka, AJ Nonwovens), Hampton, NH
June 2024: TBD

For more information or to learn how to join a SEDS meeting, please contact Angela Cleveland, AICP: acleveland@strafford.org.

SEDS Microgrants

In April 2023, the SEDS began accepting applications for microgrants to fund community initiatives and small projects that met at least one of the following priorities:

1. Foster a sustainable workforce environment,
2. Create affordable and quality housing options,
3. Facilitate infrastructure improvements, or
4. Promote quality of life in the greater seacoast.

Applications were accepted on a rolling basis throughout the month of May and a total of $5,100 was awarded to the following grantees:

• City of Dover Social Media Marketing Pilot
• NH Theatre Project’s Elephant in the Room Series Resource Listing
• Town of Exeter Vibe Summer Music Series
• Hampton Area Chamber of Commerce Native American Workforce Summer Employment Program
• Greater Dover Chamber of Commerce Student Workforce Signing Days

For more information about the full project, please see below under Projects.

Employer Toolkit

In 2023, the SEDS selected SoHo Creative Studios to create an Employer Toolkit to help businesses on the Seacoast and beyond address their workforce challenges. As the toolkit was being created, it was discovered that businesses are struggling with three things: attracting, developing and retaining talent. The Employer Toolkit takes a unique approach to exploring these three challenges through the actual toolkit, interviews with Seacoast employers who have or are overcoming these challenges, and through social media posts over a three-month period. The posts will be updated weekly on the Employer Toolkit Project page and included on SRPC’s Facebook and LinkedIn pages. In the meantime, check out the Employer Toolkit now!