Fort Walton Beach Council agenda — 08-20-08 special agenda - budget — reading text

Okaloosa County, Florida... leading technology, superior lifestyle, boundless opportunity! Okaloosa County, Florida M Economic Development Council of Okaloosa County 1  Mission Statement Support a quality -of -life community that reflects leading technology diversification, superior lifestyle, and boundless opportunity through existing industry retention and expansion, workforce development, and expansion of key industry clusters. The EDC of Okaloosa County works with start -up, expanding, and relocating businesses to help them with site location, financing coordination, state and federal incentive program applications, and business community awareness. Primary Objective Promote technology -based economic development. Retain, expand and diversify the existing economic base. Promote retention of military resources in Okaloosa County. Enhance community awareness of EDC programs and services. Collaborate with educational institutions to ensure a highly skilled and diversified work force. Primary Target Industries Advanced Technology Aviation and Aerospace Bio- medical Technology Electronics Design, Manufacturing and Communication Engineering Services Machining and Metal Fabrication Elements of Strategy The EDC' s vision embraces a vibrant and diverse economy for both urban and rural components of the county. The strategy includes: Diversification of Okaloosa County's economy, supporting multiple industry clusters. Partner with government to minimize the burden on the local infrastructure while maximizing on the competitive economic strengths that are available throughout the county. Maintain operation of DSI to promote the retention and growth of our military resources. Establish a stronger investment market though an increased export of wealth producing goods and services. Integrate all available assets, including workforce, education, quality of life and infrastructure into a working model that supports the growth and diversification of our economy. Market and promote quality developments that 1) ensures competitive growth without sacrificing the continual growth and development of our existing technical base, 2) provides the development of high wage /high skill jobs and increases the per capita income for the residents of Okaloosa County, and 3) minimizes the burden on our existing infrastructure while maintaining the high quality of life that is provided to all citizens of Okaloosa County. Awareness Communication Vehicles World -class interactive Website. Quarterly newsletter, The Voice of Progress. Participation with local civic, governmental, and commercial organizations Collaboration with local, regional, and state economic development partners. Monthly interview broadcast, The Vision of Progress. Multimedia marketing materials. Monthly TeCMEN Times newsletter. Target industry trade events. Quarterly networking symposiums. This strategy incorporates the EDC' s basic principals of quality growth, retention and expansion of exist - ing industry, and attraction of new industry and entrepreneurship. www.florida -edc. org 1. 800. 995. 7374 2  VISION ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT and THE LOCAL ECONOMY In order for the Economic Development Council ( EDC) to be successful in its efforts to RETAIN and CREATE jobs in the local economy we need the support of the "people" and all local governments. Funding from the public sector needs to be available to pay for an aggressive economic development program, land, training, transportation systems, incentives and all the other issues which influence profit ability. Existing companies need to be encouraged to invest in and create high quality jobs, and new companies likewise, need to be welcomed. How can the EDC help improve the local economy? The primary way the EDC helps improve the local economy is by helping to create jobs which pay a wage higher than the area average ($ 16. 54). High wage jobs help to increase the amount of money flowing within the area and improve the standard of living for the people who live and work in the com- munity. The wages for the workers provide wealth for the community as does all the spending and taxes paid by the companies who provide these jobs. When a community increases the number of high -wage primary industry jobs a " force" pulls up the bot- tom rung of the economic ladder, lifting all through a series of wage and skill steps improving the stan- dard of living for most people. This "force" causes part -time low paying retail and service jobs to fold into full -time jobs at higher wage levels and with fringe benefits. The quality of the economy will continue to rise if the new primary jobs created in the area pay a wage higher than the local economy. How is the EDC helping to strengthen the local economy? The EDC recently contacted and interviewed nearly 100 targeted industries in our area by applying a nationally recognized project entitled The Workforce in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) Initia- tive. This program is offered through the United States Department of Labor and is administered through Florida' s Great Northwest. EDC staff set appointments with local firms involved in Aerospace & Defense, Life Sciences, Information Technology, and Construction Services. Each interview took approximately one hour to conduct using the e- Synchronist format which is utilized to develop training programs necessary to ensure that our workforce is sufficiently skilled to meet the needs of employers with high -skill, high wage employment opportunities. Each interview was conducted in complete confidentiality and the results will help the EDC determine not only the training and employment issues faced by these targeted industries, but the space needs for those who have expressed plans to expand in the next few years. The EDC discovered two critical issues that need to be addressed; 1) that those companies who ex- pressed expansion plans were fearful of the availability of space to allow them to expand locally and 2) that they would not be able to find the talent they would need to grow their firm in our local market. Economic Development Council of Okaloosa County 3 What is the EDC doing to help correct this problem? Realizing that the growth of these key industries is essential to the future of our local economies, the EDC is re- interviewing those firms that have expressed plans to expand. We will help them find the physical space they will need in time for them to allow their expansion to take place. During this follow up interview, the EDC will also determine what specific job skills will be required for these planned ex- pansion firms. We will work with the schools and universities so they can develop the curriculums needed to prepare the students for these new high -skill, high wage jobs. What will these new jobs mean to the local economy? Unlike the State of Florida and the rest of Northwest Florida, Okaloosa County is actually experiencing a growing manufacturing sector. This largely contributed to Eglin and its new missions resulting from the Base Realignment and Closure Commission decisions in 2005; namely establishing the Joint Strike 7th Fighter Integrated Training Center and relocating the U. S. Army's Special Forces Group from Fort Bragg, NC. Let us use an example of 1000 new manufacturing jobs in our community over the next five years, as an economic impact from BRAC. Let us provide an average wage of $45, 000 for each of these new jobs. As a result of these new jobs, about 1, 700 additional spin -off jobs (mostly consumptive) are created; 8, 500, 000 in local taxes collected; $ 130, 000, 000 in taxable retail sales generated; and 2, 100 house- holds are supported each year. Here is how those additional spin -off jobs add up: 180 new Retail jobs 180 new Health Care jobs 250 new Wholesale & Transportation jobs 150 new Finance & Professional jobs 170 new Restaurant & Hotel jobs 400 new Manufacturing jobs 300 plus new Construction and other sector jobs Total additional Spin -Off Jobs created = 1630 to 1700 Manufacturing, Corporate Headquarters, Research and Development, Sophisticated Information or Technical Services, Life Sciences; all of these businesses pay high to medium wages and many involve a large capital investment. Retaining and attracting these types of businesses make sense for our local economies because we have the workforce, the training programs and the quality of life to sustain these businesses in our community. In order to meet the challenges brought about by this growth the Economic Development Council needs your support. Through your generosity, we will continue our mission to carry out these important initia- tives so our communities will continue to prosper. Sincerely, Larry Sassano President 1. 800. 995. 7374 4 www.flon'da- edc.org  EXISTING INDUSTRY SURVEY Letter from the EDC Each year the Economic Development Council ( EDC) surveys its members to determine their job and capital investment growth for the past 12 months. The survey also request average salary and projected job growth. All information is aggregated so that confidential information about particular companies is not disclosed. This year, the EDC asked the University of West Florida' s Haas Center for Business Research and Economic Development to analyze the results of our survey and make statements about the economic contribution of these organizations to the local economy. Please read Dr. Rick Harper's summary letter, page 7, addressing our business members' sur- vey results. think it is interesting to note that while Florida lost 74, 700 jobs over a 12 month period ( this time period coincides with the EDC' s data collection for our local firms), the Okaloosa County firms that we surveyed created 409 new jobs and paid an average salary of $49,220 per em- ployee. This wage is 13.4 percent higher than the average compensation for previous existing employees in Okaloosa County. These expanding firms represent 7 percent of the total em- ployment in Okaloosa County. Larry Sassano EDC President kalooca County and its Communities Whsrs You Can Rsac Your Pis - In - Tha - Skyl Economic Development Council of Okaloosa County 5  EXISTING INDUSTRY SURVEY EDC Members included in the business survey) r 2007 Alpha Data Corporation 2007 ARINC Engineering Services