COOS BAY - Sandra Geiser Messerle helped an Indiana town revitalize its historic district and now she is aiming to aid this area in rekindling Coos County's economy.

"Some philosophies carry over," said the 55-year-old Messerle, the new South Coast Development Council director.

The regional organization, supported with public and private money, is charged with attracting new businesses and creating opportunity for growth. As its director, one of Messerle's jobs is to find and develop relationships with prospective businesses.

"You plant a ton of seeds. You tend them very carefully," Messerle said. "Eventually some things are going to grow and it could be huge, but it's going to take some time."

Messerle knows from experience there's no one "silver bullet" solution, but she's hoping to bring change in small incremental successes.

In Elkhart, Ind., as the Elkhart Centre's executive director for almost 20 years, Messerle led the way for rehabilitation of the downtown, including relocation of the Indiana University Elkhart campus there, said Karen Gadson, Elkhart Centre's former marketing communications director.

At the not-for-profit certified by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Messerle implemented her own concepts for encouraging the community to restore dilapidated historic buildings on an entire block scheduled to reopen in 2011.

Gadson said Messerle jumped in, by being involved in just about everything downtown, from fundraisers to community initiatives.

"She was the heart," Gadson said.

In the two years since Messerle made Coos County her home, she's been studying this area. She realizes she is a newcomer and welcomes advice of longtime residents and SCDC members, but she's focused on making changes.

Instead of holding monthly SCDC meetings, she has reorganized the group into committees that meet monthly and report to her quarterly. Committees will focus on governance, funding, the Southern Coos County Leadership Forum, public relations and special projects, including business recruitment, retention and expansions.

Attendance had been dropping, and Messerle hopes the new system will encourage member interest.

"The organization has struggled to keep the momentum going," Messerle said. "The economy hasn't been a big help either."

SCDC's 2009-10 budget is $150,000, as compared to $180,000 last year. It is funded through public-private partnerships and service contracts with agencies, such as the International Port of Coos Bay, the city of Coos Bay and Southwest Oregon Regional Airport. It also is funded through grants. Messerle hopes to research more grant opportunities as well as expand the group's donor base. About one-third of the funding pays for the executive director's salary, and the rest is spent on marketing and advertising for recruitment of companies.

Messerle said there's a misconception that SCDC is designed to only bring in big business, such as liquified natural gas or chromite mining. It looks for businesses - big and small - and determines what's needed in the community.

"That involves everything from taking a look at the community or the county aesthetically, taking a look at the community economically, taking a look at the community demographically," Messerle said.

There are different issues here than in Indiana, such as environmentalism vs. development and paying attention to the needs of both retired residents and young people.

"You try to find a compromise," she said.

One reason SCDC members chose Messerle over several other candidates was her background with the Elkhart Centre, which grew from a $80,000 budget with 35 volunteers in 1989 to $600,000 and 200 volunteers today. Over 20 years, she helped develop a RiverWalk project and expansion of downtown housing through rehabilitation of upper-story apartments for all income levels. She also was the producer of the Elkhart Jazz Festival, leading it from a small community celebration into a huge event, producing more than $3.4 million annually with 500 volunteers.

As a single mom, Messerle raised seven boys on her family's farm in Goshen, Ind. Two were her natural sons and five were children's friends who needed a place to live.

She eventually met her husband, Fred Messerle, on eHarmony. They developed an online friendship which became a long-distance romance that lasted for three years. Eventually they married and Messerle moved here, leaving Elkhart sad to see her go.

"There was nobody who was more passionate about downtown Elkhart than Sandy," Gadson said. "You're lucky."