Apr 8, 2009

Small town’s ‘stimulus plan’ rewards buyersBy Jim SpellmanCNN.com

Lamar, CO — While most of America waits for federal stimulus money to make its way into wallets, one small town on the Colorado plains has taken matters into its own hands by launching its own economic recovery plan.

Ron Stock is the city administrator of Lamar, Colorado, and came up with the town’s “stimulus plan.”

Here’s how it works: Spend $300 in the city of Lamar on anything but groceries, pharmaceuticals, booze or your utility bills, and the city will give you a gift certificate good for $30 at any store in Lamar. Couples can double up and get a $60 gift certificate on a $600 purchase. Shoppers can save up receipts until they have $300 worth of purchases.

The offer runs through the month of April.

Buy a car — new or used — and the city will give you a gift card good for $100 worth of gas at any gas station in Lamar.

“We’re trying to stimulate the economy, we’re trying to build some sales in a time of the year when there’s not a lot of sales going on,” says city administrator Ron Stock, the mastermind behind the plan.

Lamar is a city of about 8,500 people. The economy relies mostly on local farmers who raise corn, wheat and sunflowers for sunflower oil. The shops that line Main Street are mostly mom-and-pops. Several of them sit empty.

“We felt we had to act aggressively because there might be a risk that some of the businesses couldn’t last until June,” says Stock. “It could make a significant difference for many of the stores. It may be the difference between staying in business and going out of business.”

Stock got the idea from a surprising place.

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