b'OPPORTUNITY LIVES HEREWorkforce Opportunities in High Growth SectorsIncreasing Targeted ManufacturingRecommendation 2.5: Support Niche Light/Medium ManufacturingAction: Through updating zoning regulations, pairing manufacturing with other high-growth sectors, and creating customized workforce development program, the District can continue to support manufacturing in a highly industrial area while narrowing the focus of potential industries and sectors that align with the trajectory of the District.Rationale: Much of the District is already zoned for industrial use, presenting an opportunity for a thriving manufacturing sector and the creation of local jobs for residents. The District has a favorable location for light industrial use and can easily expand its economy by tapping into niche industries.Impact: Light manufacturing, loosely defined as manufacturing activity that uses moderate amounts of partially processed materials to produce items of relatively high value per unit weight has a strong economic multiplier effect and has created low-skill living wage jobs in local economies throughout the country. Light manufacturers will find a workforce with readily transferrable skills honed in other industries in the District.Components Timeline1.Develop relationships with the property owners of the opportunity sites in the Districts industrial areas.2.Develop marketing material for the opportunity sites in the industrial areas that can be used by real estate brokers.3.Revise zoning codes to ensure the City of Wilmington, City of New Castle, and New Castle Countys zoning regulations work together to support desired types (and deter undesired types) of manufacturing in the area.4.Maintain and expand the public infrastructure that businesses need to thrive.5.Find opportunities to pair manufacturing with other key industries in the District (such as fintech or biosciences) to continue to grow these industries, while capitalizing on existing industrial land.6.Create a database of industrially zoned parcels to help market these parcels to light manufacturing companies who might move to or expand in the District. 7.Create a workforce development program that targets hard-to-employ individuals (i.e. individuals who face barriers to employment due to either a lack of work experience, gaps in employment, or legal issues) and train them for high-paying manufacturing jobs.8.Design and offer incentives to existing industrial businesses for expansions and improvements. Delaware Three Rivers Area Economic Development Master Plan 134'