FDI Alliance International Magazine | April 2018

Grambling State University, a historically black public university, is located in Grambling which is five miles from Ruston. Grambling State is best known for their Tiger football team and World Famed Tiger Marching Band. Grambling State University offers 29 undergraduate degree programs, 15 master’s degree programs, and one doctoral degree in education.
Ruston is also home to Louisiana Delta Community College which focuses on accessible learning systems to provide needed skills, certificates, and degrees to address the workforce educational needs of today and of the future. Louisiana Delta Community College offers a number of programs including business office administration, general studies, industrial instrumentation technology, nursing assistant, patient care technician, practical nursing, and welding.
Accessibility
Ruston has a number of assets that increase accessibility to national markets. Logistically, Ruston is easy to access as the city sits at the intersections of Interstate 20 and Highways 167 and 33. Interstate 20 connects Dallas, TX to Atlanta, GA. Highway 167 connects Alexandria, LA to Little Rock, AR, and Highway 33 connects Ruston to the Louisiana/ Arkansas border.
Ruston Regional Airport has a 5,000 foot runway with designs in place to expand the runway to 6,000 feet within the next two years. The Louisiana Tech Aviation Program operates out of a modern Flight Operations Center at the Ruston airfield. In addition, Ruston Regional Airport is home to an air-ambulance helicopter service, multiple corporate aircraft, Louisiana Tech training aircraft, and privately owned aircraft.
Kansas City Southern (KCS) runs through the heart of Ruston and is the primary reason the City of Ruston was established. KCS has a number of rail spurs in Ruston and Lincoln Parish for business and industrial use. In addition, discussions are currently underway to add a passenger rail component to the existing rail line that will ultimately connect Dallas, TX to Atlanta, GA.
The City of Ruston owns an internal fiber network that offers up to 10 Gbps which translates into higher speed, higher capacity, and greater reliability of data access. This system has significant commercial value and is a substantial competitive advantage for businesses in need of high quality data
transfer. This fiber network is offered to commercial businesses throughout Ruston and has significantly and positively impacted their business.
The City of Ruston owns 150 acres of sub-dividable property within the Ruston Industrial Park. The site has been certified by Louisiana Economic Development (LED) as a development ready site. The site is 0.5 miles from US Highway 80, 1.4 miles from Interstate 20 and 2.3 miles from the Ruston Regional Airport. In addition, Kansas City Southern rail line runs adjacent to the site and a rail spur can be built to service the property. All utilities are adjacent to the site, and Ruston also has some of the lowest electrical rates in the State.
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Infrastructure
In 2016, the citizens of Ruston voted to support a three-quarter cent sales tax to fund the Moving Ruston Forward initiative. Moving Ruston Forward will fund over twenty water, sewer, and street projects totaling over $80 million. Currently under construction is a $25 million Interstate 20 interchange which will be Ruston’s fourth interchange, as well as, a 2.5 mile extension of the Interstate Service Road costing $8 million. The Moving Ruston Forward initiative will also construct a new animal control facility, 12 miles of walking/ biking trails, and a $35 million regional sports complex.
Currently under construction, the Ruston Regional Sports Complex is 185+ acres. It will feature 35 fields of artificial turf. The Sports Complex will be capable of hosting six tournaments at once – all ages of baseball, all ages of softball, adult softball, tennis, soccer, and cross country. The Sports Complex is scheduled for completion the first quarter of 2019. In August of 2017, the City of Ruston won the bid to host the Dixie Youth League 2019 World Series. Over the two week tournament, Ruston will host 60 youth baseball teams from eleven states throughout the southern United States. Consultants estimate the Sports Complex will host 100-120 tournaments and bring in 350,000-400,000 people per year.
Industry
Ruston and Lincoln Parish have a diverse economic base and are the home of both domestic and internationally based companies. This diversification helps ensure that regardless of the national economy, our tax base and employment numbers remain relatively stable. Some of major industries and top economic drivers include the following, several of which are the headquarters (HQ) location for the company:
The City of Ruston is always working diligently to recruit new business and industry. Over the past few years, Ruston has recruited Mortgage Contracting Services, Monster Moto, and Weyerhaeuser’s Regional Office. In addition, over the past two years 81 businesses with over 900 employees have opened in Ruston including Walmart Neighborhood Market, Holiday Inn Express, Courtyard Marriott, Best Western Plus, St. Francis Medical Center, Planet Fitness, Newk’s Eatery, Dairy Queen, Jimmy John’s, Flying Burger, Waffle House, Sam’s Southern Eatery, and Chick-fil-A restaurant. There are also 780 new housing units are currently under construction or permitted for construction within the City.
Ruston continues to recruit additional business and industry. While Ruston is extremely open to most business and industry, the target industries for recruitment include Technology, Advanced Manufacturing, and Distribution and Logistics. The City of Ruston has available land, very low electrical rates, and an ability to negotiate incentives on a case-by-case basis. Some of the incentives we have offered in the past include selling City property at a below market value, creating a TIF district for the business, and working with a local contractor to build a building at the company’s specifications to lease back to the company.
• Education – Louisiana Tech University, Grambling State University, Delta Community College – Ruston Campus
• Healthcare – Northern Louisiana Medical Center, Green Clinic, Ruston Specialty Hospital of North Louisiana
• Manufacturing – Ardagh Group, ML Smith Jr, Industrial Insulation Group, Xerium, Franke Consumer Products, Monster Moto
• Engineering – Hunt Guillot & Associates (HQ)
• Financial Services – Origin Bank (HQ), Argent Financial (HQ), Bank of Ruston (HQ)
• Wood Products Manufacturing – Roseburg Forest Products, Hunt Forest Products (HQ), Mid-States Wood Preservers
• Construction – Lincoln Builders (HQ)
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Quality of life
While our people are one of our best assets, there is a quality of life in Ruston and Lincoln Parish that is second to none. Whether you are interested in mountain biking trails, an 18-hole professional golf course, arts and entertainment, hunting and fishing, collegiate sports, museums, or festivals, Lincoln Parish has something for everyone. Some of the amenities include the following:
Squire Creek Country Club is an 18-hole world class golf course designed by Tom Fazio. Squire Creek is north Louisiana’s premier country club.
Rated as one of the best mountain bike trails in the country, Lincoln Parish Park is a tremendous draw for mountain bike lovers and non-cyclists as well. The Park offers a ten mile trail, campground with RV hookups, backpacking, hiking, camping, and swimming.
Ruston’s Rock Island Greenway is a shared-use walking, running, and bicycling path and linear park that will eventually run the lengths of the city, connecting neighborhoods, businesses, educational institutions, and recreational amenities. Phase one of the six phase project is complete and two more phases will begin this year. The Rock Island Greenway will greatly improve quality of life, economic development, and the health of our community.
Ruston is also home to the longest running agricultural festival in the state of Louisiana – the Louisiana Peach Festival. The inaugural festival was held in 1951 as a way to promote the commercial peach orchards located throughout Lincoln Parish. The Peach Festival continues to be held on the fourth weekend of June and is a great economic driver for the community.
Incentives
Ruston does not have a list of standardized incentives, which allows us to be somewhat flexible in our offerings. Ruston leadership will honor the incentives offered by Louisiana Economic Development but determines local incentives based upon the needs of the company. Examples of some incentives offered in the past include selling city owned property at below market value, waiving the City building and permit fees, partnering with private developers to design and build a building to company specifications, and creating a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district to assist the developer with infrastructure improvements.
Ruston, Louisiana is centrally located in northern Louisiana. As the Parish Seat of Lincoln Parish (County), Ruston is large enough to offer many wonderful amenities and small enough to maintain our unique small town charm. As the home of Louisiana Tech University, Ruston has an exciting energy, offers a vibrant entrepreneurial spirit, and maintains a pro-business attitude.
The Ruston community is well positioned to take things to the next level and is the ideal place to start, expand, or grow your business. Ruston Mayor Ronny Walker ensures you will find a business friendly atmosphere, infrastructure to support your business, easy access to neighboring markets, access to a top tier university, and a great quality of life. We hope you will be an addition to our list of entities that proudly proclaim “Excellence Made Here”. Come see what Ruston can do for you!
For further information please contact
Kristi M. Lumpkin Economic Development Administrator City of Ruston P.O. Box 2069 Ruston, LA 71273 318-251-8643 office 318-278-9569 cell [email protected] www.ruston.org
Lincoln Parish schools are some of the elite in the state and have received an “A” rating by the Louisiana Department of Education. Lincoln Parish schools are ranked #1 in Louisiana for students entering postsecondary education. Based on its ACT average, Lincoln Parish also ranks 5th among all school systems in Louisiana. Ruston High School, the district’s flagship school, was named among the best high schools in the nation by U.S. News & World Report.
Ruston has been named as Louisiana’s 5th Safest City in 2017 and 2018 by Safehome.org and National Council for Home Safety and Security respectively.
The City of Ruston, and the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, have completed five phases of a nine phase Downtown Revitalization project. This project includes burying the utilities and powerlines, repairing sidewalks, adding landscaping, and improving overall pedestrian access.
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St.MaryParish,La Resiliency in Today's Market
Frank G. Fink
St. Mary Parish, located in South Louisiana between New Orleans and Lafayette in the heart of the oil field, drilling both on the continental shelf and deepwater exploration generally offers a contra- cyclical economy to the rest of the country. The region is rapidly expanding with increasing prices for oil and natural gas. Each time oil prices peak and gasoline prices rise above $3.00 to $4.00/ gallon, happy days are here again. Exploration and production investment is booming, high paying jobs are plentiful and the unemployment dips below 4%. The region is home to some of the largest deepwater exploration support companies including Cameron/Schlumberger, Transco Energy, Baker Hughes, Oceaneering and Intermoor all supporting the majors such as Shell, BP, and Chevron. St. Mary Parish added more than 3,000 new jobs and $750 million in investment in its economy from 2003 through 2014. The shipyards were also booming adding jobs including Bollinger/Chouest and Gulf Craft supplying service vessels to deliver supplies to the oil drilling and production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. Over time, the boom/bust cycle affected St. Mary Parish, as 25% of its economy is dedicated to this industry.
There were other shocks to this oil dominated economy besides pricing and international supply and demand issues. There were hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Ike in the Gulf of Mexico that damaged many rigs. There was the BP Oil spill which impacted regulation and clean-up issues.
Let’s not forget Shale production adding more than 5 million barrels per day of new supply between 2008 and 2017 in the United States. OPEC was losing market share, and the Saudis triggered a price war in 2014, that drove the price of oil to below $30/ bbl from over $100/bbl in 2013. The region lost over 40,000 jobs in less than six (6) months and investment in new equipment was virtually shut down with over $1 trillion in new capital investment postponed. Since that time all oil producing countries suffered greatly. So the OPEC countries placed quotas on supply in 2017 and agreed to a continuation of quotas in 2018. The result was an improvement in the price into the $50/bbl. to $65/ bbl. range as supplies were limited and international demand began to pick up.
Here we are in 2018 at the bottom, but cautiously optimistic for a recovery. Fracking has continued as shale production in the US increases. World demand is expected to increase over the next 20 years, and shale production will not keep up, opening opportunities for renewed drilling offshore. The US is politically the safest of all locations in the worldwide.
The US Government has focused on America becoming Energy Independent as lower taxes and less regulations has created a positive environment for St. Mary Parish and other oil producing and support companies along the Gulf of Mexico. Yes the industry will come back but to what extent? That is the $64,000 dollar question. The new administration has been a godsend to the industry.
Technology is being implemented to expand the production potential in offshore drilling and onshore fracking. This will ultimately lead to greater efficiencies, less employment and lower investments. Less regulation will lead to the ability to implement these new technologies and production more quickly. Worldwide demand is expected to increase for oil and natural gas for some time to come, but the implementation of the renewables cannot be ignored. Faced with the prospect of a recovery that may not be as robust as in the past,
WHERE IS THE PARISH GOING IN THE FUTURE?
What are the strengths we have as a Parish and region? What got us in the oil and gas business in the first place? It was the demand for oil and natural gas and the fact that Morgan City Louisiana was the home of the first offshore well. St. Mary Parish is located in the center of the Gulf of Mexico. St. Mary Parish has the largest capacity to transport Natural Gas with more than 4 billion cu. ft. per day.
The parish has a multi-modal transportation infrastructure including a four lane interstate quality highway US 90 (future I-49), two class one railroads that operate in the parish, the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway and the Atchafalaya River and a municipal airport with the capacity to land a 737 aircraft. The parish is within 1 hour to 1.5 hours of 3 commercial
airports, New Orleans (international), Lafayette and Baton Rouge. The parish offers a competitive logistical transportation network to reach 34 states, Latin and South American countries and deepwater ports for international bulk and containerized products to Asian and European markets.
There is a community and technical college to offer a highly trained workforce for companies expanding from within and companies locating in St. Mary Parish. With the number 1 state sponsored workforce development program in the United States, Fast Start , specialized training will be made available to meet your needs. The parish has one of the more sophisticated workers in the metal fabrication with expertise in steel, and its alloys and aluminum metals. These workers are versatile in the use and maintenance of equipment both mechanical and computer driven. In addition, the parish offers a contingent of process industry workers and is the largest producer of Carbon Black in North America. The parish has an A rated Public School System with dual enrollment allowing students to seek an industrial career out of high school or seek a college degree at many of the fine universities within driving distance including: LSU, University of Louisiana Lafayette, Nicholls State, Tulane, Loyola and the University of New Orleans(UNO).
The parish has numerous shovel ready sights ranging from 10 to over 1000 acres and a one stop shop economic development organization.
WHERE IS ST. MARY PARISH HEADING INTO TOMORROW?
Certainly, the parish will help those industries affected by the downturn get back on their feet. The parish can assist with incentives, infrastructure improvements, marketing leads and assistance in recovering the workforce lost. The Economic Development Department will target markets
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that will extend existing businesses into these new markets. The parish will target new markets where there are formidable strengths leading to interests from the process industries. The abundance of Natural Gas, a competitive logistical system for domestic and international markets, available sites in remote areas offering rail, water and highway transportation and a guaranteed workforce available from day 1 of operation are some of these qualities. In the process industry segment relationships have been developed that provide excellent advantages if you want to build a methanol plant for example:
St. Mary Parish has always been the beneficiary of the Black Gold Economy that has resulted in the fluctuations that has created the boom bust economy that the parish has had to live with. Now it is the time to mix some of the Green Gold into the Black Gold Economy. Where do you start? Nominally some of the homeowners have placed small solar system panels onto their homes for electricity and hot water but this is not what I’m talking about. The Power Companies hold the cards in this area. Recently, CLECO, the local power company and Cabot a Process Chemical Plant have come together to develop the first Clean Power Facility in the region. The fuel is the off gas from the Cabot Plant that is converted into 50mw of electricity, enough to power 17000 homes. CLECO will own the Power Plant and Cabot will interconnect and clean the hot gas. The project will create 20 permanent high paying jobs with an investment of $130 million shared among the companies.
There is a 50mw wind farm on the books for development as soon as the Public Service Commission considers a rule change to allow for the $100 million project to move forward. The wind farm will create 10 new jobs. Why Wind? As it turns out, this location has the highest wind profile of any state on the gulf coast east of Louisiana.
Commercial Solar Power has an interesting application in public buildings, i.e. Courthouses, Schools, jails,...A company will install and lease the plant back to the public body for 25 years. The lease rate is substantially below the electricity bills, so the public entity leases the service and saves a substantial amount of money on their energy bills. The public body owns the solar plant after 25 years or they can enter into a lease extension. Finally, for those parishes that have brownfield sites located near a transmission line, that site can be placed in service with a solar plant generating electricity and selling the power to the utility at avoided cost. There are incentives to bring brownfield sites back into service and by the way the parish
gains as the property will go onto the tax roles as an industrial site. In the case of the solar leasing and the brownfield site conversion, there is still a few jobs added , but those are green jobs and may attract the millennials to the parish and give them an opportunity to develop new businesses in the green space.
This strategy will have an impact on the parish long term, but the oil service companies, shipyards, and process industries will continue to be the economic drivers. The message remains,
TAKE CARE OF THOSE COMPANIES THAT HAVE GROWN THE ECONOMY
IN THE PAST. ASSISTING THEM IN DEVELOPING NEW MARKETS, EXTENDING THEIR PRODUCT LINES AND MAINTAING A TOP NOTCH WORK FORCE.
Diversification by bringing new businesses into the parish may dampen the swings in the local economic cycle but not today.
insure there is a trained workforce in these areas of expertise.
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•byTthebpalalanntcoewonfetrh/eopfienrantocirn.gwouldbe ThperroevaidredsebvyetrhaelspiltaenstinowStn.Mera/orpyePrartioshr.that •ofTfehre4re0-a1r0e0s0eavcerreasl wsiitehsaicnceSsts. tMo aCrlyass 1 RaPialroisahdst,hTaht eofGfeurlf4I0n-t1ra0c0o0asatcarleWs watiethrway,
anadcc4e-lsasnteohCiglhaswsa1y.Railroads, The Gulf ThInettreachonaisctallaWndatceormwmayu,naitnydc4o-llaenge will prhoivgihdwe tarya.ining to operators and maintenance
•peTrhseontencehl.nical and community college Thweilpl apriosvhiwdeilltroafifneirnignctoenotpiveersatforsparnodperty tamxeasintaenndanjoceb pcerresaotninoenl.. Other process
•inTduhsetrpieasrwisihll bweilelnocfofueraignecdeantdivmeasyfboerable toptraokpeeardtyvatanxtaegseanodftjohbecsrpeactiaiolnin.cOetnhteivres. process industries will be encouraged
and may be able to take advantage of the special incentives.
For further information please contact:
Frank G. Fink
Director of Economic Development 500 Main Street, 5th Floor Franklin, LA 70538
P: 337-828-4100 ext. 340
C: 985-518-5885
There will be focus on the manufacturing and services segments. Specialty Services and Advance Manufacturing opportunities will provide for high paying jobs and the expanding workforce. The parish just completed a new marine campus and training center. The technical college ranks among the top 3 schools in commercial diving and underwater welding. It offers more than 30 Coast Guard Certifications for navigation and safety requirements. There is also a $750,000 navigational simulator that trains Captains and Mates under various weather and waterway conditions (rivers, lakes, and oceans) around the world with a wide variety of vessels. The parish has just received funding to build a new campus that will concentrate on Aluminum fabrication and process industries to
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ST MARY PARISH & THE BAYOU REGION
St. Mary Parish is part of the Bayou Region (Assumption, Lafourche and Terrebonne Parishes) in South Louisiana. The Bayou Region has more than 280,000 residents providing the trained workforce for the oil and gas, shipbuilding and chemical industries and agricultural markets including seafood and sugarcane.
Success Without Compromise is what St Mary Parish is all about. The center of the Gulf industrial complex, it is also the center of one of the most idylic ecologies in the world. Our strengths include the ability to draw on a workforce of 400,000, lower capital and operating costs, multi-model infrastructure (interstate highway, rail and water) and an educated workforce.
St. Mary is focussed on the 4 E’s of success: economy, education, entrepreneurship and ecology.
Entrepreneurship
Innovation, reinvention, creativity and ambition are born and nurtured here. Major economic drivers were founded in St. Mary Parish, including: Oceaneering ,Swiftships, Hi-Tech Steel and Conrad Industries. Served by an economic development group, Chamber of Commerce, neraby universities (Louisiana State University, University of Louisiana at Lafayette and Southern University) and robust training for entrepreneurs, St. Mary Parish is a natural place to stay and build your business.
Ecology
St. Mary Parish is home to sustainable technologies in the United States. It will feature advanced energy, purified and recycled water systems and smart house technologies. The Parish offers sport fishing, birding, nature trails and wildlife habitats for your enjoyment, while successfully supporting a diverse industrial base and high-quality living.
Economy
It serves as the hub for the oild and gass industry, fabrication and heavy equipment manufacturing and is a leader in emerging high-tech fileds such as robotics, machining and sustainable technologies. The cost of living id 70% of the national average and it’s work ethic and performance is exceptional.
Education
St. Mary Parish is the headquarters of Region III South Central Louisiana Technical College System, serving the major industrial complexes. Industry-responsive programs offered to ensure a highly trained workforce for manufacturing, maritime training in commercial diving and Coast Guard Certification are national leaders.
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Whenitcomesto servicingthedemanding environment of oil and gas and maritime industries of the Gulf of Mexico, no one has more to offer than St. Mary Parish, Louisiana.
Located right on the Gulf of Mexico with two inland ports and direct access to the US 49 corridor, St. Mary makes it easy to move goods and services to locations around the world.
To learn more about all that St. Mary Parish has to offer, visit:
stmaryparishdevelopment.com
or call
(337) 828-4100 ext 340
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Tennessee was named 2014 and 2013 “State of the Year” for economic development by Business Facilities magazine. The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development’s mission is to develop strategies which help make Tennessee the No. 1 location in the Southeast for high quality jobs. The department seeks to attract new corporate investment in Tennessee and works with Tennessee companies to facilitate expansion and economic growth.
Tennessee businesses enjoy access to fast and efficient railroad service. Six Class 1 railroads (out of seven in the U.S.) operate in Tennessee, creating 2,177 miles of rail. Railroads include BNSF, Canadian National/Illinois Central Railroad, CSX Transportation, Kansas City Southern, Norfolk Southern, and Union Pacific. Eighteen shortline railroads provide an additional 842 miles of rail.
Competitive tax incentives make Tennessee a smart choice for doing business. They have one
of the country’s lowest per capita tax burdens, no income tax on wages, and no state property tax.
Tennessee boasts some of the lowest housing prices in the United States, and your dollar will stretch further here than almost anywhere else in the country
Tennessee is legendary for breathtaking landscapes, from lush forests and crystal-clear rivers to rolling hills and awe-inspiring mountain vistas.
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Texas combines its wide horizons and accommodating climate, its diverse population and healthy markets and a stubborn pursuit to create an excellent environment for business. Between 2009 and 2013, 475 foreign companies announced more than 600 separate business openings or expansions in Texas. When all of these projects are fully operational, they are forecast to generate 59,000 jobs and $43 billion in combined capital investment.
Like the U.S. as a whole, more than half of Texas’ FDI projects during this timeframe originated from Western Europe, where major economies like the UK and Germany drove investment. Comparing U.S. states, Texas ranked No. 3 after only California and New York for total new FDI projects. However, in certain industries, like energy and chemicals, Texas led the nation in attracting foreign projects.
Within Texas, the Houston metro area was the top destination for inward foreign investment, landing
44% of the state’s FDI projects over the past five years. Next in line was Dallas-Fort Worth with 24%, followed by Austin and San Antonio with 9% and 5% respectively. The remainder of projects were distributed amongst more than two dozen other Texas metro areas and rural communities. IT and electronics is Texas’ No. 1 industry for attracting foreign investment projects. Between 2009 and 2013, 114 unique investments in this industry were recorded, representing about 19% of the state’s total FDI projects during this period. Texas is truly a global trade powerhouse.
Many international firms base facilities such as warehousing, distribution, and manufacturing in Texas to take advantage of its excellent access to global markets. Texas takes the initiative to invest in the future by offering competitive incentives to companies who create jobs and drive innovation as they do business in our state and its communities. This section summarizes some of the most commonly
utilized state offerings. Texas cities, counties and communities often offer local incentives and tax abatements. For local incentives, please contact the local economic development representative. Ask any Texas Wide Open for Business® representative to help you find a contact in the community that interests you. Whether you live in a major metro area or in a small town, Texas is a great place to do business and build a home. The state is one of the most business-friendly in the United States, with low taxes, a low cost of housing and a high quality of education. Texas is home to the largest medical center in the nation and the #2 cancer center; 3 of the most affordable cities are in Texas. Four of our cities rank in the top 10 big cities for home ownership; Texas’ six largest cities have a cost of living below the national average of 100. There are few states that can match the Lone Star State’s current job opportunities, growth and residential quality of life. It’s no wonder Texas continues to reign as the nation’s top ‘domestic migration destination’.
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est. 1873
Bridgeport Economic Development
HANDSHAKES &
BIG BUSINESS in rural TEXAS.
BRIDGEPORT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IS A LEADER IN IMPROVING QUALITY OF LIFE AND EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES FOR
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The Bridgeport EDC administers the "4A" sales tax as its primary source of funding for coordinating economic assistance and incentive agreements
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DAYTON SMOOTHS THE PATH FOR DEVELOPMENT. HOW IT WORKS
My role as the economic developer, for the City of Dayton Texas, is to create a vibrant community by attracting quality developments with the right locations. We are focused on development of new housing, industrial/manufacturing, offices, and retail. Dayton knows what site selectors and businesses require in determining the correct location to place a business.
We’re working to create an environment in which residents can shop and work where they live. They won’t be forced to travel to other places to find a living wage job, or buy the products and services they need, or spend hours a day sitting in their cars trying to get to their jobs.
The more industrial, manufacturing, offices, stores, and shops we can build, the better it will be for local residents to shop and work locally.
We work on behalf of developers at every opportunity. City staff and I attempt to ensure that they get their permits in a timely fashion so they can expedite their business’ opening.
There are only three major steps in any project, which consists of getting the permits, hiring a contractor, and then putting up the buildings.
In our efforts to eliminate one of the major steps is to expedite the commercial/industrial permits to a two week process once the business submits their completed plans. Some developers show up at the front desk, in other cities, thinking that project planning will take a month only to discover that it might require a year, or more. Acquiring permits
in many cities can become a long and sometimes- frustrating process so we are doing what we can to eliminate this hindrance.
“I want a permit,” they might say. “Can I pay my fees and get my approvals?” It isn’t that simple. They may need a variance or another form of waiver. This is not a rubber stamp process; the answer can come back “no” or “yes,” depending upon how the planning commission assesses the situation.
Agencies outside the city, such as the Texas Commission of Environment Quality (TCEQ), get involved at this point, depending upon the nature of the business. Some impatient developers tend to think the worst of the people behind the pre- approval process I’m describing.
Dayton City planners are good people who are faced with difficult, complicated tasks. They remain as fair and unbiased as possible as they try to identify the connections between all the parts of the picture. City development is a Jigsaw puzzle with a lot of pieces.
This business never gets any easier. The standards change and adjustment of regulations take effect that impact both commercial and residential developments. It would be theoretically possible to do a development in two months from ground up, but pushing the necessary pile of paperwork through the process slows the wheels of development when problems arise. Given the complexity of what needs to be done, problems always arise. Some problems with an application can be anticipated and smoothed out in a pre-application meeting, which is held between me, city, county, utility companies and
sometime state representatives on one hand, and site representative or developer with his architect on the other.
The meeting is usually initiated by me getting a phone call. Someone wishing to develop property at Gulf Inland Logistic Park, for example, requests a pre-application meeting. The developer asks questions, “What’s the process?” “What am I missing?” Evaluations and site plans are submitted. “Does this look good?” “Will sufficient parking be made available?”
Each representative during the course of the pre- application meeting must clarify what the developer can do for approvals.
The process continues as the developer finalizes his application, which includes such things as a site plan and building permit submittal, all involving paperwork that must be filled out completely.
The application forms are then turned over to the City’s planning department, which takes about 10 days to respond. The planners are our organization’s top dog in working with you and helping you obtain your approvals. Eventually they review the applications, and then make a determination if it is complete. Most of the time it isn’t. An application is very seldom clean in the first submission. Areas are identified that require clarification.
The design review for most projects must also go through the Planning Commission for platting approval, which is a citizen review board composed of residents, selected by the City Council providing
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an additional level of checks and balances for development projects. The commission does a very fine job!
To expedite the process, we try to keep the Conditional Use Permit moving through channels at the same time. The Conditional Use Permit is an additional request to the Planning Commission that they give approval for the type of use the developer is requesting for a certain property: a gas station, for example, or steel manufacturing plant.
A whole separate set of hurdles is created if environmental issues begin to creep into the mix. If the city hires a consultant to do an environmental impact report for a project, the final report might take weeks, or even months. A project involving an MND (Mitigated Negative Declaration) might take eight months. Even worse, a full-blown EIR (Environmental Impact Report) might take a year. So far we have been successful in not requiring an EIR or MND as we want businesses now.
The planner has to complete all these steps before the first spade of dirt can be turned. Sometimes roads have to be created and named. Signs must be changed. Traffic patterns altered. Lot numbers must be assigned. The whole process can get sticky and complicated. With that in mind, we get the engineering processes going simultaneous with the design and planning activities to expedite the process.
The fact is, Dayton is speeding the process up, not slowing it down. Developers who are novices to the process underestimate the amount of planning
work city development requires, and the number of steps the planners are forced to go through. This becomes especially true if a project involves environmental review.
The process is complex to the point that normal people, like me, can’t get our minds around the complexities. It is elaborate to the point that I have to use a spreadsheet myself to keep the required steps straight in my own mind.
I’m helping the city become proactive in trying to locate firms that we want to move into our area. For example, we’re trying to get department stores to look at us. We assist them with marketing analysis so they will know that their business will be successful here. We show them the demographics that we’ve compiled. We answer the question, “Why should we locate here?” “Are there incentives?”
We’re also providing information to Commercial Brokers and Site Selectors so they can attract businesses that should locate here. We hold meetings with real estate people and members from the business community giving them information about locations they could move into.
We share ideas with them. Depending upon the scope of their projects we will drive them around and show them suitable locations. We help them by not wasting their time. Nothing succeeds like success, they say. It’s certainly true about economic development. Dayton is breaking through some economic and population thresholds that made our city suddenly pop up on the radar screens in a lot of corporate headquarters.
Even though the rate of growth will begin slowly, five years from now we’ll have a lot more population once State Route 99 (Grand Parkway) is complete as this attracts large scale development. As an example the River Ranch development is a 7000 acre housing development of which phase one of 1300 homes has started. SR-99 is part of the third loop around Houston. A lot more industrial and commercial development will be completed on Highway 146 and US-90. Our downtown is in the process of being revitalized with the first step being the creation of a Downtown Redevelopment Plan followed by a TIRZ (Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone). Five years from now more people will be climbing into their cars at 8:40 a.m. to get to their 9 a.m. jobs than now. In the evenings those same people will also be leaving at 5:00 p.m. to get to a 5:20 p.m. dinner or entertainment engagement.
I’m doing everything I can to make this happen. The changes will ultimately be good for everyone.
You will find lots of information on the official City or Dayton Community Development Corporation web sites, go to - www.cityofdaytontx.com or www.daytontx.com.
Courtland Holman
Executive Director
Dayton Community Development Corporation 801 S.Cleveland Suite B
Dayton, TX 77535
t: 936-257-0055
www.daytontx.com
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tomball, tx tomball, tx
Tomball is where the best of business, lifestyle, education and transportation converge. Those who experience the Tomball community instantly recognize
its uniqueness. A strong history blends with innovation; a sense of community combines with a thriving business environment; and local partnerships have
global impacts.
From corner stores to Fortune 500 companies, Tomball is focused on business! A skilled workforce, low property taxes, and a well-connected transportation system provide an ideal backdrop for your business to prosper. The Tomball Economic Development Corporation promotes job creation by encouraging
attraction, expansion and retention of businesses through: assisting with site selection; identifying incentives; connecting to workforce resources; and
providing business and industry data.
EXPaND • relocate • improve
•• Relocation & Expansion Incentives •• Tax Incentives/Abatements
• •
• •
Business Improvement Grant Program • • Rental Assistance Program
Infrastructure Grants
• •
Site Selection & Permitting Assistance
29201 Quinn Road, Suite B Tomball, TX 77375
(281) 401-4086
tomballtxedc.org
FDI ALLIANCE | APRIL ISSUE 2018 65


Located in North Central Texas, Seymour is perfectly situated to be your prime business location destination poised to meet your shipping/receiving, logistical, transportation and warehouse distribution needs. Seymour is a primary hub with a network of five major highways converging on Seymour’s roadway system, allowing your product to connect with your customers quickly and efficiently. The Texas Department of Transportation has invested heavily in the regions infrastructure by making significant improvements from both a safety and efficiency perspective, clearly indicating that the State of Texas as a whole sees significant value in Seymour. Within easy reach of Seymour’s 600 mile radius, your business can access nine other states and Mexico in a single transportation day. Additionally, during peak periods when traffic congestion can negatively impact shipping efficiency, Seymour boasts a manageable Average Daily Traffic Count which will ensure your product will be moved expeditiously and safely. Seymour is ready for you to make us your new business location with land incentives in the Seymour Industrial Park, conveniently located within city limits and with frontage road options along US HWY 277 as well.
Efficient Transportation
connects Texas to Kansas.
Seymour in Your Future.
n immediate region with US HWY 277 connecting directly to I-10 and I-20 in Texas and I-35, I-40 and I-44 in Oklahoma. US HWY 183 will connect you to South Dakota via Austin, Texas and US HWY 283
The Seymour Industrial Park is governed by the
Five major highways are located conveniently in
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Seymour Community Development Corporation, a local non-profit, and has incentive packages available with options ranging from free land, low-interest rate loans, and comparable land leases for your new business. Other incentives can be entertained as well and are employee, capital investment, an
th
he
Land Incentives
City of Seymour, Texas
Lauren Bush - Economic Development Director
These two major roadways have junctions with interstates I-10, I-20, I-35, I-40, I-70, I-80, and I-90. US HWY 82’s New Mexico to Georgia route has 11 interstate junctions across the southern United States. State HWY 114 can move your product efficiently from the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex area into West Texas and New Mexico with two major interstate junctions. In addition to our well-maintained highways, Seymour’s average daily traffic counts of 6,000 to 9,000 vehicles will help insure your trucks aren’t fighting for road space, allowing you to easily transport in all directions without the hassle of heavy traffic. Interior intersections are accommodating and FM 422 provides a recently widened road, making connections to US HWY 277, US HWY 82 and the Seymour Industrial Park.
longevity based. The Seymour Industrial Park is located along US Hwy 277 with frontage road options, within the corporate limits of the City of Seymour.
Labor Force
Seymour offers a large blue collar work force that is ready, willing, and able to work for you. A lower cost of living will allow your company to offer competitive wages without breaking the bank. 25% of our high school seniors enter the workforce immediately and we have a growing group of young professionals who are seriously looking to Seymour as a place to raise their family because of our safe community. Surrounding populations within a 35 mile radius are also available to provide an additional labor force if needed. Because Seymour is relatively crime free,
clean, and offers extensive healthcare and educational options, our community is an attractive location for families to live and work.
Housing Market Accessibility
Seymour has a wide variety of housing options ranging from cul-de-sac additions to available land for new builds. Most single family housing ranges from $45K to $75K, with much larger housing options from $100K to $500K. Seymour has many contractors, remodelers, and service companies that can help make your new house in Seymour a home.
The City of Seymour will also entertain the possible coordination of apartment contractors in conjunction with your new business. Seymour also has a healthy renters market that will help facilitate employee community transitions.


Health, Education, & Necessities
Seymour, Texas is a vibrant community with a state recognized hospital system and two school campuses. The Seymour Hospital provides care through their central facility providing services in Rehabilitation, Pulmonary Rehabilitation, Obstetrics, Urgent Care, Physical Therapy, Surgery and an Allergy Clinic in addition to the Seymour Rural Health Clinic, Seymour Fitness Center, Seymour Home Health Care, Seymour/Baylor Co. E.M.S., Randal Wellness Center, , and the Seymour Pharmacy. We also have the recent addition of a visiting Ophthalmologist. Other visiting doctors cover Urology, Cardiology, and Orthopedic Surgery.
The on-site medical professionals include Family Medicine, Women’s Health, OBGYN, Pediatrician, Emergency Medicine, and General Surgery. With all of these healthcare services available locally, your employees will be healthy and happy in Seymour.
Never leave town again to get what you need because Seymour offers a fantastic newly opened United Supermarket as well as one of the largest Dollar General Stores in the state! Fresh produce, a large selection of healthy food choices, interesting and new options, and prices that are affordable makes for healthy and happy families and employees.
Seymour also has their own butcher/meat services where you can purchase grass fed beef or select a wide selection of other options with Baycos Meat Processing. Local shopping is available through boutiques, antique shops and a fine jewelry store. Seymour also has a wide array of service related businesses ranging from dry cleaning to automotive repair, plumbing, electrical, and HVAC services with local contractors available for remodeling.
The Seymour Independent School District offers PreK through 12th grade education with appropriately sized classrooms and up-to-date technology. Recently, the district has turfed the football field and built a new Auditorium. The music program in Seymour has experienced an explosion of talented students as we see more of our young graduates receive college music scholarships than ever before. Vocational CNA Classes offer students a boost into the medical field of their choice and all of our young students have secondary educational options available to help advance their college careers. Seymour ISD has chosen to participate as a District of Innovation and will offer more vocational classes in the near future.
Quality of Life
Enjoy the outdoors in our 26 acre City Park that includes an 18-hole disc golf course, walking track, abundant playground equipment, dog stations, an olympic-sized City Pool, and is home to Seymour Creek and rentable activity locations. The Seymour Sound Garden offers a new kind of experience through the availability of outdoor musical equipment including lateral xylophones, a set of 8 ft. high chimes, one vertical xylophone, and hand drums. Located just across the street from the Sound Garden is the nationally recognized Whiteside Museum of Natural History, showcasing local dinosaur discoveries that occur on a daily basis in our famous Texas Redbeds. Patrons of the Whiteside Museum and community members alike enjoy this interesting downtown location. The Salt Fork River Estates Golf Complex offers a 9-hole professionally designed course that is maintained by the City of Seymour. Also, located on the premises is a meeting hall, an outdoor venue area, kitchen, tennis courts, and ample parking.
The City Hall Cinema and the Whiteside Center of the Performing Arts are housed on the second floor in our beautifully restored 1924 auditorium located inside Seymour City Hall. Here, the community comes together to watch free movies on the second and fourth weekend of every month. Stage performances that include theater, musical events, magic and local talent shows are also available. Located across the street from the Whiteside Museum of Natural History, the cinema also provides educational movies in conjunction with school tours.
Seymour Texas is located in Baylor County and has 2 lakes within a short twenty minute drive. Lake Kemp has a surface area of 15,000+ acres located on the largest ranch under one fence line, the Waggnor Ranch. There are 3 access points and cabins are available for purchase with a land leases. Millers Creek Reservoir has a surface area of 2000+ acres and is open to the public year round with primitive camping, a boat ramp, and ample parking. Hunting is also a large recreational activity within the 900 square mile county. Game includes doves, ducks, geese, white-tailed deer, javelina, wild hogs, and various other animals.
“Seymour” in Your Future
We are excited to become the location for your next business enterprise! Our logistical opportunities will make warehousing and transportation swift and easy. Seymour’s land incentives are second to none in comparison with the prime prices offered locally through private land owners. Our labor force is ready to begin working for you and our housing market is open for Seymour to become the community your employees call home. The Seymour Hospital healthcare facilities and Seymour Independent School District are ready to take care of your employees and their families through health and education. Our quality of life is brimming with parks, outdoor recreational opportunities, and community endeavors. Seymour, Texas eagerly awaits your business opportunities. “See More” in your future with us in Seymour Texas.
for further information please contact: Lauren Bush Economic Development Director City of Seymour Texas Office: 940-889-3148
Cell: 940-256-0017 [email protected] www.cityofseymour.org


Totally texas, all american
Made in Texas.......Gainesville, Texas
Manufacturing is the cornerstone of the Texas economy, producing over $218 billion in goods for export each year. Texas accounted for almost 40% of the total US expansion in manufacturing employment last year and no other state comes close. According to the Tax Foundation, Texas has the nations’ fifth-lowest state and local tax burden.
The same is true in Gainesville, Texas, located 60 miles north of the Dallas Fort Worth Airport. Over 20% of the population is employed in manufacturing. The Manufacturing Consortium is making sure we have the current talent and the pipeline for future talent.
Why Gainesville
• Located on Interstate 35, the NAFTA highway, and US Highway 82 just 60 miles north of DFW airport
• More than 1 million people within a 50 mile radius
• Manufacturing Consortium partnership with North Central Texas
College for talent development
• Gateway Industrial Park – 126 acres shovel ready just off Interstate 35
• Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad (BNSF) providing daily service
• New Market Tax Credit designation
Gateway Industrial Park
Our third and newest industrial park is ready for your new location. This 126 acre development is located 1⁄2 mile off I-35, runs parallel to the BSNF Railroad and recently designated for New Market Tax Credits.


TOTALLY TEXAS, ALL BUSINESS
Select Energy Services - Award winning water solutions
Industrial Aerospace Plastics
The Economy
Gainesville is located on Interstate 35, which stretches from South Texas to Minnesota. We are just south of the Red River, on the Texas and Oklahoma line with a population of 17,000 and over 1 million people in driving distance. Our manufacturing base works in the oil and gas industry, aerospace, plastics and agriculture. National and International companies call Gainesville home.
• Zodiac Seats US, LLC – world’s largest manufacturer of commercial airline seats
• GAF – largest manufacturer of commercial and residential roofing Expanding
• Select Energy Services – Corporate headquarters, award winning water solutions technology company
• Dura-line – leading international manufacturer of communication and energy poly pipes and conduits Expanding
• Circuit Breaker Sales –manufacturer and supplier of world’s largest inventory of low and medium voltage circuit breakers
• Molded Fiber Glass-Texas – pioneer and leader in reinforced plastics and composite manufacturing Expanding
• Orteq Energy Technologies – one of the top designers and manufacturers of oilfield equipment in the US.
Totally Texas, All Fun
Gainesville is a charming historic town with lots of intriguing history. The downtown square and renovated courthouse are landmarks that anchor the many Victorian homes, restaurants and shops in the Historic District. New housing includes Black Hill Farm, a master planned agri-hood with community garden, working farm and more. There are an abundance of housing options to live at the New Liberty Loft luxury apartments, on a lake, a farm, a horse ranch or in town. Mix in our Leonard Park with playgrounds, aquatic center, Frankie Schmitz Train and Frank Buck Zoo for families with the many fabulous wineries and WinStar with concerts and spa just 10 miles up the road for adults plus the big city amenities less than an hour away and you have a quality lifestyle filled with choices.
Expanding
Arleene Loyd
Executive Director
Gainesville EDC
311 S.Weaver Gainesville, TX 76240 t: (940) 665-5241
e: [email protected]
w: GainesvilleEDC.com


Ready, Willing & Able
Jacksboro - Texas
Home to over 26 million people, Texas is one of the most populated and diverse states in the country. Movies and popular culture have long portrayed Texas’ ties to the cattle industry, oil, and Southwestern culture more prominently than other notable characteristics of the state. The truth is that you can have it all, international business entities, vibrant multicultural community and abundant opportunities, with a little slice of small town living only 55 miles from the metroplex, Jacksboro. Our location guarantees Jack County is ready to welcome new business, both retail and industrial. We are diversifying from our long-time major businesses in the oil and gas industry during this latest downturn in the cost of oil and gas and increasing wind energy in the county. Jacksboro is a community with historic significance and an eye to the future. Growth while keeping the friendly, helpful dynamic of this emerging edge community.
Jacksboro EDC prepared for the recruitment of retail by purchasing 32 acres on Highway 281/199 and developing the infrastructure. This Lumar Development is now home to two banks, a restaurant, three retail stores, wellness workout facility, and a newly completed hospital. Five lots are available
to complete this area. JEDC ownership enables negotiations with prospective new businesses. Also available at this time are several vacant buildings and other lots zoned thoroughfare commercial throughout our community. Retail analytics and locational intelligence have been utilized to assess our local needs and the leakage of our tax dollars to other locations. We are prepared to recruit retailers based on our needs. Jacksboro Economic Development Corporation and the City of Jacksboro are ready to discuss incentives and the many reasons Jacksboro is the perfect place to do business.
Recognizing the growth of business and industry in Texas and the lack of affordable space and workforce in the metroplex area, JEDC is developing a 177 acre business park on Highway 59 adjacent to beautiful Twin Lakes. We are actively pursuing logistics, plastics and metal fabrications, food preparation, and oil and gas related companies and are anxious to discuss the many opportunities Jacksboro has to offer. Jacksboro’s tax rate is competitive with our neighboring towns, and our land selection at reasonable cost is an added bonus. Wage scales are very competitive and generally lower than those in metropolitan areas due to our reasonable cost of living in a smaller community. We are a New Market
Tax Credit designated area. Our governmental entities are here to help you accomplish your business goals.
Jacksboro’s utility infrastructure meets the needs of either new or expanding industries. No matter what your business requires, an existing building, a build-to-suit structure, or acreage ready for a commercial pad site, we can easily accommodate your needs.
Jacksboro’s proximity to the DFW Metroplex and both Alliance and DFW International Airports is a huge asset for our relevance in the world. You can have it all – safe, friendly, small town family lifestyle with all the amenities of urban life only an hour away. You have a choice. Live the life you’ve always dreamed of while doing business in a location that is good for your bottom line. Let the Jacksboro Economic Development Corporation and the City of Jacksboro assist you and your business. We are here to help.


Vision without action is merely a dream. Action without vision just passes time.
Vision with action can change our community.
Properties ready for development
• Lumar – five lots available for retail development
• 30 acre lot available for multiuse housing development
• 177 acres in process of engineering and platting for business park development
Location
• US Highways 281 and 380
• State Highways 199, 59, 148, and 114
• 55 miles north is Interstate 44 and 35 miles south is Interstate 20
• Easy access to Alliance and DFW airports
Neoretroism is a natural way of development for Jacksboro. Our core has been in place since Ft. Richardson was an active army fort with everything we need to sustain our small town, friendly atmosphere.
New elementary, middle, and high school campuses have state of the art technology with distance learning for dual credit courses. University level education is nearby with Weatherford College, Midwestern University, Vernon College, and North Texas State Technical College
all in easy driving distance.
With a workforce ready for training and employment, affordable housing and project-ready industrial sites, Jacksboro is Ready, Willing, and Able.
For further information please contact:
Lynda Pack - Economic Development Director
Jacksboro Economic Development Corporation
T: 940.567.3151 C: 940.229.9881 email: [email protected] www.jacksboroedc.com
Incentives
• Competitive tax rate •
• Low cost land selection •
• Competitive wage scales •
• Reasonable cost of living •
Expanding Workforce Excellent logistics routes Retail and Industrial ready sites Tax Credit Designated area


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When faced with the prospect of crossing a nearby lake to deliver ice cream to his girlfriend, Ole Evinrude, a Wisconsinite, invented the outboard boat motor in 1907. Similarly, Les Paul, a Wisconsinite, solved the challenge of his acoustic guitar not being heard by drive-in restaurant diners by inventing the electric guitar in 1928. Wisconsin’s long history of innovation continues to this day, with more than $1 billion worth of annual research at the state’s flagship university producing new discoveries that are improving lives around the world.
Global leaders such as Harley Davidson, Kohler, Trek, GE Healthcare, Johnson Controls, Rockwell Automation, Milwaukee Tool, Briggs & Stratton, Epic Systems Corp., SC Johnson, Northwestern Mutual and American Family Insurance contribute to and benefit from Wisconsin’s strong business climate and deep talent pool, building upon a culture of collaboration and industry advancement to create prosperity.
Wisconsin’s central location and robust infrastructure give companies operating in the state one-day access to major markets throughout the U.S. and beyond. Wisconsin’s roads, railways and ports provide seamless, convenient access to the world’s busiest multimodal transportation hub located just 55 miles south of the state’s border. Eight commercial airports serve major industrial and metropolitan areas statewide. Wisconsin is also situated between the nation’s greatest waterways and ships 39 million tons of product annually from 13 commercial ports
located along Lake Michigan, Lake Superior and the Mississippi River.
Wisconsin offers companies operating within the state the advantage of a shared commitment to longstanding and emerging industries among the private sector, state and local governments, and academia. For example, in partnership with manufacturers across the state, the University of Wisconsin System has achieved Center-of-Excellence status for more than 100 programs geared toward maximizing the state’s manufacturing capabilities—from developing new technologies to improving logistics efficiency and response time.
Wisconsin builds things. And it’s good at it. The state established its manufacturing strength in the industrial age and its leadership continues today, drawing upon an integrated, versatile and responsive supply chain that keeps production lines humming not only in the state but across the globe.
Wisconsin is well known for its industrious, Midwestern work ethic, and its educational system is universally admired. Wisconsin’s high school graduation rate is the third-highest in the nation, and the University of Wisconsin System is consistently ranked as one of the top public university systems in size and quality.
WalletHub ranked Wisconsin as having the fifth best school system in the U.S. in 2016, and the
Brookings Institution recently ranked Madison, Wisconsin, as the number-one metro in the U.S. for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) college graduates. The University of Wisconsin-Madison also awarded the fourth-highest number of doctorate degrees in the country in 2014.
Wisconsin’s university system, anchored by the University of Wisconsin-Madison, supports the researchers, companies and policy makers across the state that are working together to develop new, innovative products to fulfill market needs. Approximately 240,000 students in 51 public and private universities and colleges are preparing to make strong contributions to Wisconsin’s economy.
Wisconsin was the first state to develop a technical colleges system, giving the state more than 100 years’ experience training its workforce to fulfill ever-changing industry demands. Today, the state’s highly rated technical college system helps ensure that its 340,000 students are ready to meet current and future job requirements.
Wisconsin’s unique blend of public-private partnerships helps schools of all types and at all levels throughout the state develop a workforce with the skills needed for companies and their employees to succeed. The state provides tax credits and demand-driven worker training grants to companies that need help fulfilling specialized training needed to fill critical positions.


That’s one way to describe how Wisconsin approaches businesses that break ground here. With a network of resources and partners across the state, we’re innovative in our support for new, ambitious businesses. Our fully-funded pension system, right-to-work policy and low taxes are catching the attention of companies near and far. Is your business one of them? To discover how well your business fits In Wisconsin®, call 855-INWIBIZ (toll free) or visit InWisconsin.com.
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GROUNDBREAKING
THINK•MAKE•HAPPEN IN WISCONSIN


Economic vitality is critical to our community. That economic vitality can be turned on its head in a heartbeat when a business faces a crisis. We’ve been blessed in our community to avert those crises, partly due to our diverse businesses and entrepreneurial climate.
When businesses make decisions on where to locate their business, location and local employment data are key elements. With both of those, it is what it is. We can’t move our community yet we are doing everything we can to impact demographic data. We are the pre-eminent leader in economic development and growth.
Here is how the Portage County Business Council (PCBC) is leading the effort to enhance our economic vitality:
There is no one organization, business or government entity equipped to deal with any one of these, much less all of them. It truly takes our entire community. When business, education, government and the community work together and look out for each other, we all win. Reach out to that business next door, across the street, in another neighborhood or community and share best practices.
I’ve seen glimmers of hope that we can come together and take actionable steps to achieve these. Some will take more effort and time than others. Some people may say these goals are too lofty to accomplish and that statement will only fuel our energy to get more done.
A good centering point towards actionable steps was “New ERA Workshop 2.0”. Held in March on the two year anniversary of the first workshop, this community-based conversation helped focus us on those initiatives that would make change. Since that first one, we have made progress.
PCBC has lead the effort on developing a community marketing website allowing for improved and enhanced talent retention and attraction. CREATE and the IDEA Center have greatly expanded the culture of entrepreneurship in our community.
Those are just two examples.
A New Era
By Todd Kuckkahn
Executive Director
Portage County Business Council
• Develop a consortium of accountable community leaders to affect change, thereby averting a potentially damaging crisis negatively impacting our economic vitality
• Initiate talent development action plans to grow the workforce for our region
• Through the use of business retention and expansion discussions, develop priorities along with immediate action, for business, government, education and the community
• Attract and retain businesses and employees through a brand focused on our strategic strengths and combined resources, including our exceptional quality of life
• Bring transformational value rather than transactional activity to business engagement through the chamber
• Connect our businesses to resources, markets and supply chains regionally in order to enhance their growth and prosperity
• Partner to grow the culture of entrepreneurship
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Some people accuse our community of being “simple”. We are rural in nature but suburban in practice.
I recently had lunch with a young professional and he shared that “simpleness” is what he likes about our community and brought him here from Milwaukee. As he went into a deeper dive into what he meant, it was clear he was spot on with his simple word to define our area.
I want to make it clear that he was NOT referring to our mental capabilities. Far from it! His use of the term “simple” was to compare us to other communities in the country.
For example, take shopping or getting to work or even the ability to get things off the “to do” list. Those of us who have lived here for a while take it for granted that it takes ten minutes to get just about anywhere to get anything done. Or maybe fifteen minutes to a unique business or maybe thirty minutes to another recreational feature. The same goes for the work commute. With some local commutes travel time may take thirty minutes, but that is only if you choose to ride your bike to work, which many do here twelve months out of the year. You can get home from work and out to fun in thirty minutes if you want to.
As I was driving back from taking my grandson to the Milwaukee Zoo (although there is one in nearby Marshfield), I saw people enjoying some Friday afternoon beverages on the patios of local establishments. Of course, there were three lanes of rush hour traffic both directions, fumes from the engines, and enough noise to make you want to run and hide. Plus, they probably had a minimum of forty-five minutes for their commute home.
Go to our website www.portagecountybiz.com and check out our member directory under restaurants, food and beverage to find some places with no traffic whizzing by, fumes only from the planted flowers, and scary quiet (might even hear the birds).
My millennial lunch mate also had recently purchased a new home. His dollar went much farther than the communities we are competing with for talent like Milwaukee, Austin, Madison and Denver.
That positive cost-of-living also correlates to daily purchases like food, entertainment and eating out. And add in that less time in the car, means less gas consumption or do what many do, ride your bike.
Along the same lines as “simple”, I had an interesting conversation with someone at our monthly Business After Hours event. We talked about that as a business owner and entrepreneur, it is easier to get noticed in our community. While there is plenty of competition here, when you do a good job and are engaged with other businesses and the community, you get noticed. As we work on enhancing our culture of entrepreneurship, it is also easier to raise yourself up and get noticed for your innovation. That isn’t new to our region; it is a way of life. If you want to get engaged and noticed, there are countless opportunities through the Portage County Business Council.
Maybe what we are lacking is enough “other” people knowing about our community. We are humble, hard-working, polite people who tend not to brag. We can certainly change that, which is why we are nearing completion of the community marketing website, everything points here. When we posted an exciting story about Stevens Point (i.e. our county and region) ranking number one in medium-sized communities, we had over 10,000 hits on social media.
Finally, while we can’t move our location, yet our residents are excited about the four seasons. Imagine biking or skiing or fishing twelve months out of the year. Just about when one season might wear you out, the next one comes along.
While data drives decisions, quality is becoming another critical indicator.
Portage County Business Council
For further information please contact:
Todd Kuckkahn
Executive Director
Where Economic Vitality Meets Quality of Life
Portage County Business Council Inc. www.PortageCountyBiz.com
5501 Vern Holmes Drive
Stevens Point, WI 54482
P: 715-344-1940 | C: 715-498-4979 [email protected]
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Amandia Reese Craig
Most people go through life never realizing their purpose of living. Luckily, after 29 years, I finally know mine. I am Amandia Reese Craig and I change people’s lives with beauty. Beauty is what we make it out to be and my intentions are to provoke individuals throughout the world to look at beauty as more than just a physical attribute, but more of a perspective.
The concept of Change Your Life with Beauty was started when I was a little girl. My mother has always been a master stylist for as long as I can remember. She worked at chain salons like JCPenny’s in my younger years and then moved to privately owned beauty shops in Alabama. I spent most Saturdays in the beauty shop sweeping the floor and shampooing hair, and listening to the many conversations starting at the age of 11. Observing the conversations through the salon was always intriguing allowing me to come up with my own conclusions of what I though the ladies should do in their various situations. Back then the seed was planted that I would be in the beauty industry in some way. Moving forward I graduated high school, went to local community college for two years then, moved to Florida where I studied fashion design and marketing and received my Bachelors of Fine Arts from the International Academy of Design and Technology in Tampa. I learned quite a bit in my two years attending art school but gained more through my volunteerism and activism throughout the community at large or via the fashion connections inthecityofTampaIbuiltavastoflifeskills,business gifts, and overall experience by being involved. As soon as I graduated I began an internship at Home
Shopping Network where I was hired on as a full time fashion stylist to host, personalities and celebrities who sold on the network. I learned here as well, however, discovered that working in the cooperate world was not for me long term. I came to the conclusion that I would be an entrepreneur.
Also,fewmonthsaftermovingtoTampa,
I met my husband who was running a
chain of beauty schools owned by his
father. The schools were posted in Jacksonville, Tampa, and Orlando. We
stepped away from the company after his father passed away. In order to keep the legacy and vision his father started, we decided to open Glensford Beauty Academy, the school or cosmetology.
Glensford Beauty Academy is a privately owned vocational institution with the objective to reach as many at risk young adults as possible in Tampa, Florida to strengthen economic status, social welfare, and entrepreneurism. Most of our students come from all walks of life: from lack of education, to early pregnancies, domestic violence, language barriers, previous involvement with the courts, and learning disabilities. Here at Glensford Beauty Academy, we not only educate students of cosmetology but give them the tools they need to become successful. We encourage positive thinking, provide health awareness, provoke leadership skills, increase knowledge of technology, and build confidence.
Demographically, East Tampa has high rates of
unemployment with a decrease of job employment at 32% since 2000. The crime rate is at an all-time high and households have a median income of roughly $35K annually. East Tampa’s at risk young adults are in need of positive reinforcement, job training programs, and community support. Cosmetology training and preparation at Glensford Beauty Academy improves stability of these at risk adult youth through mentoring, career training, and education.
Glensford Beauty Academy, The School of Cosmetology, has a mission to develop beauty professionals to meet the growing beauty industry by educating students to obtain licensure in the field of cosmetology with an emphasis on business and entrepreneurship. At Glensford Beauty Academy, we present formal instructions of cosmetology as the primary source of education with thirty percent of our course focused on enterprise. Within our course we have a scheduled curriculum that can


last from ten to fourteen months, depending on the student’s commitment of a full or part time schedule. The students are taught by instructors qualified by state and national standards with industry experience. Students have theory, practical, and business portions of the curriculum. In theory, students learn terminology, practices, and history of cosmetology as well as trend forecast for future methods and technologies. For practical, students perform services on mannequins and live clients so that real world experience allows them to gain confidence in their talents. The business portion of our course teaches business practices such as resume building, business plans, marketing strategies, investor selections, financial structure, and customer service. The formula of theory, practical and business is the recipe for self-reliant, empowered individuals ready to build a lasting, healthy, prosperous life.
We work from a standard cosmetology book which provides the history and basic knowhow of cosmetology. We introduce self-help books like “Who Moved My Cheese”, “7 Habits of Highly Effective People”, and “Think and Grow Rich” to provoke personal awareness. Industry professionals visit our campus on a monthly basis to show students the potential in entrepreneurship. We also stress the knowledge of technology by introducing creative research projects and learning artistic programs such as Adobe Design Standards, Microsoft Office Suites, and web design.
Education is the first step towards success. Glensford Beauty Academy goals are to enable at
risk youth with circumstantial issues to succeed by way of education through cosmetology. We want to help them obtain licensure by state and national standards, build confidence and intellectual standards, and give them the tools to start small businesses.
The owners of Glensford Beauty Academy have over fifteen years of experience educating vocational students. At previous establishments, Glensford Beauty Academy’s administrators has graduated over 2500 students in the state of Florida, with an eight-five percent passing rate for state licensure, and 30% of small business owners or 1099 contractors. Our goals are to multiply our educational institution across the United States in areas where growth and expansion are needed most. We are also looking forward to assisting the Tampa Bay area efforts to strengthen economic status and leadership among minorities through economic welfare and social responsibility. We wish to eliminate barriers that students might face while giving them a quality education. We will do this by providing vouchers for child care, health and wellness opportunities, tuition assistance, transportation options, access to mentorships, internships, job placement, and start of new business incentives.
Change Your life with Beauty came alive was after putting together a gorilla marketing plan for Glensford Beauty Academy to build more awareness in the community so that we may gain more students and clients. I read a voiceover copy for our commercial to be played on a local radio station which had a call to action for the audience to “change
your life with beauty!” From there, I was nudged to start a pre-recorded radio show and named it Change Your Life with Beauty.
Because I grew up around the beauty industry and had a trade in fashion design and marketing Change Your Life with Beauty has been both personal and global. For me, beauty is not just about physical attributes. It is also about perspective. And so, on the Change Your Life with Beauty Show, I not only give tips on cosmetology, but also speak on politics, spirituality, relationships, authorship, entrepreneurship, self-love and care, health and wellness, and finding the beauty in most things. The topics are on subjects that we can connect to day to day. If the show impacts the viewers or listeners in some way then I have completed my purpose for the episode. I bring empowering guest on to showcase the world in a positive light. I stay in the realm of “positive vibes only” and I always encourage loving one’s self and each other.
The Change Your Life with Beauty Show has been a platform for me to speak with teen girls, women groups, and in corporate settings encouraging them to find the beauty within themselves. I also host events as the “beaute” of the party. Impacting the community is being an example of growth. I have expanded to other businesses like the Senior Image Salons,LLC and Mandi Mane Extensions, LLC. The show is more than a Facebook Live, radio show, a blog, or a title, it has become a movement. I have been on a mission to finding my formula for the last few years and I finally know now that the equation of my life is to change lives with beauty.
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