"City aldermen were singing the praises of the Manchester Economic Development Office following a presentation on its recent successes after being shuttered for 2 ½ years.

Jodie Nazaka, director of the Manchester Economic Development Office (MEDO), said the presentation was designed to help get the city excited about what’s ahead in 2023 “and the years after,” plus highlighted all the office has achieved over the past 11 months.

“I’m excited to be part of the change we would like to see in the city, and move us into the future,” said Nazaka, a Manchester native born and raised in the Queen City. “And become a city that is full of community pride and enthusiasm. Not that we aren’t now, but we can do better.”

The presentation highlighted several topics including:

• Build Back Better Regional Challenge Winner — The award is $43,999,995 in federal funding from the EDA. The funding aims to make Manchester the epicenter of the biofabrication industry and builds on previous federal investments in ARMI/BioFab USA. As the manufacturing base in biofabrication grows, a significant portion of the jobs created will be for non degreed, biofabrication, and quality technicians. The coalition’s efforts are estimated to create 7,000 direct jobs and 37,250 jobs across Southern New Hampshire over the next 7 years."