Mayor Dave Cieslewicz addressed a crowd Tuesday morning at Monona Terrace, putting forward his future vision for the city of Madison. His Economic Development Summit focused on the future of biomedicine, health care, local foods, the arts, fitness, neighborhoods, green construction and transportation within the city. Over 300 people attended the summit from areas in the business sectors, as well as members from the City Council and the larger community.

“The mayor’s new ‘healthy city’ initiative will promote Madison for who we really are as a city,” Cieslewicz’s spokesperson, Melanie Conklin, said. “We’re at a time of globalization and economic change and now, more than ever, we need to work with the private sectors.”

To work with the private sectors, the mayor’s new vision contains 110 action proposals including a food policy council, a regional biomedical partnership, a user-friendly, nationally recognized medical center district, a dedication to Madison arts and a north-south rail transit system, according to the summit report.

“I believe that good economic development policy comes from blending the ingredients of many economic development theories with the existing and potential assets of our community,” Cieslewicz said in his report.

The six focal points of his “model healthy city” plan include focus on the growing economies for long-term stability by strengthening “the roots of our locally-owned businesses … [to keep] Madison as a pro-business city.”

The second portion of his plan focuses on a healthy city with clean air, water and regional food with resident and employee health.

The mayor’s third point focuses on an urban city infrastructure connected through a rail transit system, following with his fourth point to increase efforts for available employment opportunities at all levels.

Cieslewicz is also concentrating on Madison’s involvement with regional players at the city and state level, and finished with his sixth point to “create a public/private partnership and environment that fosters small business, new business.”

Ald. Austin King, District 8, attended the summit and said he agreed with the direction Cieslewicz is hoping to take the city.

“It is not a good strategy to ignore the basic service and private sectors,” King said. “And the mayor recognizes the need to improve and develop those areas like biotechnology.”

Conklin said the mayor’s recognition for the need to develop the private sector in areas like biotechnology and agriculture will help to prime Madison for economic growth, especially with such strong connections to research at the University of Wisconsin.

“Over 20 million people surround Madison; the circle around Minnesota, Milwaukee and Chicago sets up Madison as a center for agricultural land and a growing population,” Conklin said.

Some doubt the direction of the mayor’s “healthy city initiative” because of his support for low-cost housing projects as well as his support behind the smoking ban in bars and restaurants and his backing for the increased city minimum wage.

But King said he nonetheless supports the mayor’s new initiatives.

“The mayor should be applauded for his work. Something like this [plan] has not been done in the past two decades,” King said.

Conklin, too, is hopeful for the progressive direction Madison will be embarking on.

“Madison is a place visitors come to; we have a world-class university and we need to grow that,” Conklin said. “We have a really good quality of life and we need to keep that here and protect it.”