Dec. 20, 2007

  

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

PRESIDENT'S

MESSAGE
Wishing You a Joyous Holiday and Prosperous New Year

During this season of celebration and gift giving, we wish to express our appreciation and gratitude to our 200-plus partner-investors, who so graciously lend their support to EDCUtah's efforts. Each partner-investor is a valued member of EDCUtah's economic development team.

While we would like to name and thank each partner-investor individually, we dare not for fear of leaving someone out. Nonetheless, we would draw your attention to several initiatives in which EDCUtah has been the beneficiary of tremendous partner-investor support. These include the loaned executive program, our office relocation, the SURE Sites initiative, and video development for our annual meeting provided by the advertising/marketing firm PPBH (Penna Powers Brian Haynes).

We thank Questar Gas and Zions Bank for providing loaned executives to our organization. EDCUtah has always run a lean organization, so having some of our major partner-investors loan us experienced, senior executives has helped absorb some of the workload and provided invaluable training to our staff. Questar Gas has loaned us Brad Baird for three years running, and Brad's 20-plus years of corporate real estate experience proved invaluable in our efforts to win the Proctor and Gamble deal for Utah. Furthermore, Art Franks, our loaned executive from Zions Bank, has helped EDCUtah complete a variety of membership development and structure activities that have been on the burner for a number of years, but could not have been completed without his help.

Many partner-investors came to our aid before, during and after EDCUtah's office relocation, helping us build out the space, donating or subsidizing office furniture, and providing flooring.  Mesa Systems provided for our physical move, while Rocky Mountain Power has generously helped us with our new office space. Our location on the 21st floor is larger, with more meeting space, and provides visiting companies and site selectors with a spectacular view of the Salt Lake Valley and Wasatch Mountains. We are grateful to all who helped make the relocation possible.

We thank Governor's Office of Economic Development (GOED) for their support and Rocky Mountain Power for a substantial Challenge Grant, which provided the financial resources necessary for us to launch the SURE Sites initiative in 2005 and to develop it into a system that now contains more than 50 sites. Through the SURE sites program we have built a set of property evaluation standards from which we can measure a site's economic development readiness, and a sophisticated Web-based geographical information system delivers the site data to interested companies and site selectors across the globe. With a few mouse clicks interested concerns can now evaluate 44 different land sites, 11 industrial buildings, and three office buildings within the Beehive State. The Sure Sites initiative has been a remarkable success that wouldn't have been possible without the support of Rocky Mountain Power and GOED.  

Truly, EDCUtah is successful because of the support it receives from its many wonderful partner-investors. From all of us at EDCUtah, here's wishing each of you a joyous holiday season and a prosperous new year.


Jeff Edwards
Jeff Edwards
President and CEO

CALENDAR


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

 

EDCUTAH PARTNER

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IN THE NEWS

Economic Development Headlines from the Past Week

Utah's business climate grabs top spot

- It doesn't get much better than this for economic developers trying to market Utah as a site for corporate expansion. On consecutive days, two separate organizations have named Utah No. 1 among all states in "economic competitiveness" - a catch-all phrase that measures the quality of a state's business climate. (Salt Lake Tribune)

U. research spins off new firm

- A Utah company that plans to develop biomarker tests to diagnose genetic disease was formally launched Wednesday, with the announcement that it has closed a $5.8 million funding round. (Morning News)

Report: Utah Hunters and Anglers Have Significant Impact on Economy, Spend $696 Million a Year

- Utah's 351,000 hunters and anglers are among the most prominent and influential of all demographic groups, spending more than $696 million a year on hunting and fishing, according to a new report. (Utah Business Magazine)

U of U study: Metro Salt Lake development will next target Oquirrh foothills

- Salt Lake County's east bench won't have the monopoly much longer on mountain-front real estate. Within a half century, the valley's building boom will explode into the Oquirrhs with up to 600,000 people and enough business to generate more than 109,000 new jobs. (Salt Lake Tribune) (Morning News and here, too)

Utah No. 1 in outlook on economy

- Utah tops the nation in a ranking of states' economic outlooks. The rankings released Monday by the American Legislative Exchange Council used 16 state policy variables it says have "a proven impact on the migration of human and investment capital in and out of states." (Morning News) (Salt Lake Tribune)

Housing slump caps jobs

- The downturn in Utah's once-booming residential real estate industry is starting to put a damper on the state's heady rate of job growth, a new report shows. (Salt Lake Tribune)

Aiming for adventure: Officials look to gather Weber tourism dollars

- The Ogden/Weber Convention and Visitors Bureau is moving forward with a marketing plan to brand the area as a premier affordable, accessible and authentic adventure destination. (Standard-Examiner)

Utah job growth strong -- for now

- Utah's job growth continues to be strong, but weaknesses are creeping into the picture. The Utah year-over-year job growth for nonfarm wage and salaried jobs in November was 4 percent ? outpacing the state's long-term average of 33 percent per year since 1950 but slipping 0.3 percent from October's level. (Morning News)

Utah job growth slowing

- National economic woes starting to hit home. A slowdown in housing construction in Utah is taking the edge off the state's once-sizzling job market, according to a report released Tuesday by the state Department of Workforce Services. (Daily Herald)

Ultradent breaks ground for new South Jordan facility

- Ultradent Products Inc. has broken ground on a new 200,000 square foot manufacturing facility at 10135 S. Jordan Gateway, directly across the street from its existing 220,000 square foot headquarters and manufacturing plant. (SL Enterprise)

Semiconductor services firm to open office in Utah County by June

- MEI an Albany, Ore.-based provider of semiconductor services, is looking for 10,000 square feet in the Lehi area in order to expand its presence to the greater Salt Lake City area. (SL Enterprise)

American Apparel makes Utah debut

- American Apparel the largest T-shirt manufacturer in the United States, has opened its first Utah store last in Trolley Square. (SL Enterprise)

Waterfalls, trees and a glass sky bridge planned for downtown Salt Lake

- A mechanized roof patterned after Safeco Field in Seattle. Eight street-facing restaurants - open Sundays - with sidewalk seating and valet. Scores of water features including a stream alongside the food court, and an 18-foot cascading waterfall. And, double the amount of trees downtown. (SL Tribune)

Jet-maker is expanding in Ogden: Adam Aircraft is expected to add 1,255 jobs by '09

- Employment at Adam Aircraft facilities in Ogden will take off in the coming months as the company adds 1,255 full-time jobs over the next two years. Adam Aircraft Industries Inc., based in Colorado, said Friday that it has selected Ogden for an expansion. The announcement came shortly after a state board reworked an economic development incentive to get the jobs to come to Utah. (Morning News) (Utah Business Magazine)

Utah to promote itself in Phoenix

- Phoenix will be targeted, along with annual mainstays Denver and Los Angeles, when the state Office of Tourism launches its $3.2 million summer tourism campaign. (SL Tribune)

Another encore for 'High School Musical'

- The teen heartthrobs of "High School Musical" will dance and sing their way back to Utah to film the third installment of the blockbuster Disney franchise, it was confirmed Friday. (SL Tribune)  (Morning News)

Utah tourism board is thinking spring ? ads

- The temperatures outside hovered in the 20s, but the Utah Board of Tourism Development on Friday was thinking about spring and summer. The board approved a framework for its spring and summer media buys to get the word out about Utah's charms to potential tourists living outside the state and entice them to visit Utah. (Morning News)