Dec. 12, 2007

  

A Publication of the Economic Development Corporation of Utah
CEO Jeff Edwards

PRESIDENT'S

MESSAGE
Economic Development Team Serves Mayor-Elect in Transition to Office

Mayor-elect Ralph Becker is talking to Salt Lake City's leaders, city workers, volunteers and those who helped to get him elected as he prepares to take office this January. During this transitional period he has sought out help on how to handle the City's most challenging appointments and issues, including economic development, public works, education, minority affairs, public safety and justice. Today's article features an overview of Becker's economic development transition team and provides an overview of the priorities presented to the Mayor-elect.

Today's Economic Review also includes links to many of the ED-related news stories from the past week. As always, if you have comments, suggestions or topics you'd like to see in the Economic Review, please contact us by clicking the ?Comments? link on the bottom of this page.

Enjoy!


Jeff Edwards
Jeff Edwards
President and CEO


FEATURE

Salt Lake Mayor-Elect Ralph Becker Seeks Economic Development Priorities from Biz Community


Soon after winning Salt Lake City's mayoral race in November, Mayor-Elect Ralph Becker reached out to area agencies to form an economic development transition team that could advise him regarding issues of importance to the capital city's business community.

Natalie Gochnour, vice president of policy and communications for the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce, lead the team, which included a few of the state's other high profile economic developers:

Becker asked the team to review the structure, leadership, and priorities for economic development within the city and region. ?The scope of our review was fairly broad,? Gochnour adds. ?We looked at key city functions that affect the business climate, including economic development, community development, planning and zoning, transportation, business licenses, redevelopment, property management and the Salt Lake International Airport.?

By reaching out to the Salt Lake Chamber, Gochnour says the mayor-elect has made a positive signal that he's interested in working with the business community. ?This is a really good sign,? she adds. Gochnour can't speak to the economic development priorities of the new administration, but through her involvement with the economic development transition team she says it has become clear that the mayor-elect is a careful listener, that he's process-oriented, and that he's making a deliberate effort to ?do it right.?

What's more, Gochnour says the economic development transition team's review reaffirmed the optimism and energy felt by Salt Lake's business community, because of the strong economy, the unprecedented investment in the central business district, and the freshness of new leadership in the mayor's office, all of which has created the opportunity for substantive progress.

That economic development transition team will complete its work this week by outlining key issues of importance to the business community within the city and region. In fulfilling its role, Gochnour says the transition team ?heard loud and clear? from the city and regional business community and is thus recommending to Mayor-Elect Becker that he make economic development a much larger priority in city government. ?Job retention, recruitment and creation are in everybody's interest and every city employee must make economic development part of their job,? she says. Among others, the transition team is recommending that  economic development priorities include the following focus:
  1. Building upon the Downtown Rising platform and include development of a performing arts center, World Trade Center, permanent public market, and an explicit partnership with the University of Utah.
  2. Expansion of the Salt Lake International Airport.
  3. Balanced development of the northwest quadrant of Salt Lake City.
  4. Reactivation of Salt Lake's Foreign Trade Zone.
?Within these priorities, we anticipate that the mayor-elect will place substantial emphasis on sustainability: Job growth that will serve us well over the long term, planning and zoning decisions that will take the long view, active participation in transportation issues and decisions, energy conservation, and environmental and resource development,? says Gochnour.

EDCUtah Holiday Open House Dec. 19, 2007. RSVP to tstanley@EDCUtah.org by Dec. 12

CALENDAR


Dec. 19:  EDCUtah Holiday Open House, RSVP by Dec. 12 to tstanley@EDCUtah.org

Jan. 9:  "What's Up Down South?" Economic Summit at the Dixie Center in St. George. Contact Information: Scott Hirschi, c/o Dixie College, 225 South 700 East, St. George, UT 84770  (435) 652-7750 www.whatsupdownsouth.com

 

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IN THE NEWS

Economic Development Headlines from the Past Week

Utah is a nurturer of new businesses

- Utah is near the top in a couple of rankings about business creation, according to a report issued this week by the research organization The Fraser Institute. The report ranks Utah third, behind Nevada and Florida, in "encouraging entrepreneurs and the creation of new businesses." (Morning News)

Sorenson to open relay center in Price

- Sorenson Communications has been providing help for the deaf and hard-of-hearing for several years. The Salt Lake City-based company said Wednesday that it will open a new communications relay center in Price in a few weeks, bringing 50 jobs to a temporary site in an operation that will have 100 employees, both full and part time, by summer in a permanent location there. (Morning News) (Utah Business Magazine) 

800 Utah County acres poised for new development

- Approximately 800 acres straddling Mapleton and Spanish Fork in Utah County are poised for development on property owned by the Ensign-Bickford Co. slated to become a mixed-use community with more than 1.4 million square feet of office space and 2,000 residential units. (SL Enterprise)

Work to begin on commercial phase of Northgate Village

- Northgate Village, a 65-acre mixed use residential and commercial community located on one of the largest undeveloped land parcels in the Provo/Orem area, is ready to break ground on the commercial phase of the project. (SL Enterprise)

Dallas restaurant chain to open minimum of eight Utah outlets

- Corner Bakery Cafe, a Dallas-based chain of approximately 103 fast-casual restaurants, has signed an agreement with Cornerstone Foods LLC, to open at least eight locations in Utah during the next four years. (SL Enterprise)

Boise-based home-tending firm enters Salt Lake area market

- Designer HomeTending, a Boise-based firm that operates a temporary occupant service for owners of vacant homes, has entered the Utah market and plans to have a Salt Lake City area office open by February. (SL Enterprise)

AlphaGraphics' parent company launches new firm in SLC

- Pindar, the London-based parent company of Salt Lake City-based AlphaGraphics, has launched a new firm in Salt Lake City called Pindar Fuse, which offers a comprehensive set of online tools and marketing services designed to help companies better integrate technology into their business processes. (SL Enterprise)

Maker of modest girls, women's clothing opens brick-and-mortar stores

- Shade Clothing is expanding its retail offerings from small kiosks located within several Utah malls to brick and mortar stores. (SL Enterprise)

First spadefuls promise new gateway to NSL

- By next spring, Eaglewood Village will be growing along with the flowers. Yesterday, Dec. 5, was the official groundbreaking for North Salt Lake's Eaglewood Village, a mixed-use, walkable development that will serve as the new gateway into the city. (Clipper Today) (SL Enterprise)

Davis County economy ?remains strong ?

- When the Davis Chamber Board of Directors chose ?Defying Gravity? as their slogan for 2007, they felt certain they could raise the number of Chamber members and elevate the status of Chamber events. The addition of 135 new businesses to the Chamber in 2007 indicates that they were successful in that goal. (Clipper Today)

Rebirth of the River

- California businessman Gadi Leshem hopes to have master plans completed next year for the cleanup of a 2-mile downtown section of the Ogden River and construction of a trendy 200-unit development featuring lofts, restaurants and boutiques. (Standard Examiner) (Utah Business Magazine)

Davis Leaders Prepare Wish List

- Davis business and government leaders are checking their wish list and marking it twice preparing for the upcoming legislative session. The Davis Chamber of Commerce's legislative committee has been meeting once a month since the last session ended and will go into high gear in January. Economic development tops the list, said John Pitt, president of the Davis chamber. (Standard Examiner)

Kaysville OKs commercial rezoning for west side

- Residents of the city's rapidly growing west side won't always have to head east for city services and shopping. The City Council has unanimously approved rezoning another 6.87 acres of land from agricultural to general commercial on the city's west side. This means there are approximately 30 acres of commercial land in the area of 155 N. Angel St. that will one day be a commercial hub for the area. (Morning News)

A melting pot mall

- Jorge Rivadeneira and Ut Nguyen are helping to write a new chapter of West Valley City's commercial saga. Defying steep odds, the two immigrants have established stores alongside dozens of other ethnic businesses clustered near 3500 South and Redwood Road. (SL Tribune)

Experts Discuss Renewable Energy

- A panel of experts from across the nation met at the governor's office last Friday to discuss the potential benefits of harnessing renewable energy in the state of Utah. The Utah Energy Forum, which began in 2005, is conducted throughout the year and provides an opportunity for energy leaders to aid in the development of Utah's energy policy. (BYU Newsnet)

Businesses ask Huntsman to fight EPA's ozone plan

- The Utah Manufacturers Association and other members of the state's business community are urging Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. to join their battle against proposed new Environmental Protection Agency ozone standards. (Morning News)