Renton seems well-positioned to take advantage of the inevitable time when the economy turns around and business can rebound.

That’s because Renton is well-known as a city that has removed the financial and bureaucratic entanglements that make some cities less business-friendly.

In that respect, Renton fulfills two of the requirements for success given Wednesday by a regional player in economic development who said cities need to focus on cost and ease, especially in the planning and permitting process, to attract new businesses to town.

Thomas Flavin, president of enterpriseSeattle, spoke to a packed crowd at the annual Economic Forecast Luncheon, put on by the Renton Chamber of Commerce and presented by First Savings Bank Northwest.

Flavin wondered, in a question-and-answer period, whether that focus on cost and ease of doing business is what happens at Renton City Hall.

The answer came from local businessman and City Council member King Parker.

“We make it happen, sir,” Parker said.

Renton recently started offering online permits for simple mechanical, plumbing and electrical work at MyBuildingPermit.com.

Flavin had several messages for the crowd of community and business leaders. One that resonates is what local governments should do when forced to trim their budgets in tough economic times.

The answer isn’t to cut services or raise taxes, both a tough sell to the community, according to Flavin, but to grow the local revenue-generating tax base by attracting new businesses.

The idea of streamlining the city’s permit process has been around long enough that other cities have copied Renton’s model and are now catching up, according to Alex Pietsch, the administrator of the city’s Department of Community and Economic Development.

“Truly, Renton has been a real leader in local economic development and business recruitment over the past 15 years,” said Pietsch. The city has made much progress

developing its economic base, he said, and the city still has “a lot of opportunities.”

But at the same time other cities in the region “have caught up with us,” he said, with their own improved permitting system.

“Our competitive edge may not be as strong as it has been,” he said. While progress was made, “we can’t rest on our laurels,” Pietsch said.

Working to Renton’s advantage is its “strategic location” in the region and its relative affordability, according to Pietsch. Land prices and lease rates are less than those in Seattle or Bellevue; but on the other hand, Renton doesn’t have the amenities of those cities, he said.

Renton’s image is still rooted in its blue-collar, industrial heritage. But because Renton is more affordable than elsewhere, it’s well-positioned to attract businesses that want their employees to be able to live close to work, he said.

The luncheon came at a time when many city officials and business leaders are reflecting on the death of Sue Carlson, the city’s first economic development director.

A memorial service for Carlson is at 2 p.m. Monday at St. Matthews Lutheran Church, 1700 Edmonds Ave. N.E.

Carlson was the city’s first economic development director – hired by Mayor Jesse Tanner – and the administrator of Economic Development, Neighborhoods and Strategic Planning from 1993-2002.

In those roles, Carlson is credited with helping to lay the foundation for much of the city’s economic growth in the last two decades.

Carlson hired Pietsch as her deputy.

Today, the city’s economic development director is Suzanne Dale Estey. She and Pietsch have sealed deals on a number of economic advancements in the city.

Mayor Denis Law said Carlson brought a sense of how to provide good customer services to businesses. She had been the owner of a small business.

“She had a perspective on how cities could be much more user-friendly to the business community,” Law said.

Government practices become fairly entrenched, Law said, but Carlson was able to bring a “fresh approach” to the way the city served business.

Flavin, the luncheon speaker, pointed to several of Renton’s economic achievements. Those include a long-standing commitment to The Boeing Co., the development of The Landing, the revitalization of downtown Renton and a commitment to major infrastructure improvements.

He said the Puget Sound region is home to a number of important “job clusters.” The top five in the region are aerospace, information technology, international trade, life sciences and clean technology.

“One of our challenges as a region and as a state is to sharpen our competitive profile to ensure that we are a place where these companies and clusters are able to be successful over the long term,” he said.