It's hard to believe that 2007 is drawing to a close and all of the "New Year's resolutions" and plans that we made are either being completed, extended or forgotten.

How did you do this year? I will admit that not every plan I made in January was accomplished, however, many things the San Diego North Economic Development Council set out to do, were achieved.

The first thing I want to mention that was actually started in 2000 and is not completed as of today, is the desalination project in Carlsbad. In my last column, I asked for the community to speak out about how they felt regarding this project. The response was overwhelming -- literally.

I received such a large number of e-mails that my server went down and I was only able to retrieve about 100 of them of which I presented to the Lands Commission Board and the Coastal Commission Board. Your voice made a difference and the commissioners were keenly aware that the you, the public, support this new drought-resistant source of clean water. Thank you!

A second project that was launched in 2006 and came to fruition in 2007, is the San Diego North Economic Outlook. The magazine-style publication was created to highlight the major business clusters located in North County as a means to attract new businesses and recruit new employees who work in these business sectors. This project was submitted for award consideration to the California Association for Local Economic Development and the SDNEDC was selected as an Award of Merit winner in 2007, the first professional award in our young history.

A third plan made for 2007 was to have a television program that would focus on economic development issues in the North County called the Economic Roundtable. This project, a partnership between the council and JDS productions, a full service production company became a reality.

The first program showcased a real estate development in North County, specifically the Merriam Mountains Community, located on 2,327 acres west of Interstate 15 and north of Deer Springs Road. It is situated near North County employment centers and is close to The San Marcos Town Center, Cal State San Marcos, Palomar College and Sprinter Stations. The program aired in September on KOCT, Cox and Time-Warner beginning and was seen in more than 500,000 homes.

Overall, I think we had a good, productive year; hope you did, too.

Gary E. Knight is president and chief executive officer of the San Diego North Economic Development Council. He can be reached at gary@northedc.com.