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Coweta County Workforce Analysis

Just a 30-minute drive south of downtown Atlanta, Coweta County’s location, available properties, and quality of life are attractive to companies looking to expand or relocate their operations. When deciding where to locate, companies also consider the availability of a skilled workforce as an important factor. Recognizing this importance, the Coweta County Development Authority, City of Newnan Business Development Department, and the Newnan-Coweta Chamber of Commerce launched a joint initiative to better understand the quality and quantity of Coweta County’s available workforce. As an initial step, the Coweta County Development Authority submitted a successful application to the Economic Development Research Program (EDRP) for an analysis of their workforce. The Center for Economic Development Research (CEDR) at Georgia Tech’s Enterprise Innovation Institute (EI²) assisted the Coweta County Development Authority by conducting research and analysis through the EDA University Center grant program.

CEDR’s analysis built a broad-based assessment of Coweta County and the surrounding community. This provided a framework to understand the region’s evolving demographics and economy. Using this framework, CEDR measured both supply and demand of the workforce, identified driver industries and their occupations, and took a more in-depth look at office and professional jobs.

Photo from the University of West Georgia, College of Business

Based upon the demographic and economic data analyzed, the supply and demand of workforce, and the occupational analysis, CEDR developed a list of next steps for the Coweta County Development Authority and its local partners to consider. These recommendations addressed four broad areas, including: 1) industry engagement; 2) developing a strategy to retain local workforce; 3) working with local educational institutions to track student placement data; and 4) confirming and/or refining target industries.

For project-related questions, contact:
Candice McKie
Phone: 404-385-2053| Fax: 404-410-6910
Email: ude.hcetag.etavonninull@eikcm.ecidnac

Fiscal Impact of the Proposed City of St. Simons/Sea Island on Glynn County, Georgia

This report examined the fiscal impact that the proposed City of St. Simons/Sea Island would have on Glynn County. The report answers several key questions not addressed by previous studies, including:

To what extent will the county loose revenues that currently fund countywide services?
To what extent will the county be able to reduce service costs due to the creation of the new city?
If lost revenues exceed lost expenses, how much of a millage rate increase will be needed to make up the difference.

The final report played a key role in informing decision makers about the complete fiscal impact of new city creation on ALL Glynn County taxpayers.

US Department of Commerce Secretary Pritzker Visits Northwest Georgia

On May 6, 2016, US Department of Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker and Deputy Secretary Jay Williams visited Northwest Georgia, touring Engineered Floors and the Northwest Georgia College and Career Academy. They participated in a round table discussion with the Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership (IMCP) Consortium, Floor360, and Communities That Work Partnership (CTWP) leaders from industry, workforce development and the Northwest Georgia College and Career Academy. The discussion centered on development of a skilled curriculum for the next generation working in a highly automated manufacturing environment, both the engagement of parents and teachers to redefine manufacturing and to develop skilled pathways to manufacturing employment using apprenticeships, and launching of the new Advanced Manufacturing and Business Academy (AMBA) at the College and Career Academy.

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From left to right: Asst. Sec. Jay Williams (USDOC), Dr. Kathryn Hornsby (TCSG), Barbara Ward (Dalton Utilities), Louis Fordham (J+J Industries), Sec. Penny Pritzker (USDOC), Jason Reynolds, (Plant Manager, Engineered Floors), Deana Perry (NWGRC), and Leigh Hopkins (Georgia Tech).

The IMCP program is one of the US Department of Commerce’s main initiatives to support job creation and accelerate manufacturing growth to make communities more globally competitive by transforming their industrial ecosystems into globally-competitive manufacturing hubs. The Northwest Georgia region has been designated an IMCP “Manufacturing Community” by the US Department of Commerce (Economic Development Administration) since 2014. This designation gives organizations that support the industry via the Northwest Georgia’s Advanced Manufacturing Strategy elevated status for certain federally-aligned grant programs. Throughout the IMCP initiative, the region has placed particular focus on workforce development issues. As an outgrowth of IMCP, Northwest Georgia was selected to participate in the CTWP, a one-year joint project between EDA and the Aspen Institute. Each partnership/cohort consists of 3-4 individuals from organizations within their regions who are in a position to accelerate change to benefit businesses and workers through industry-led workforce development strategies, one of whom represents the voice of business. The goal of CTWP is to accelerate and document promising, evidence-based best practices in regional collaboration for talent development that promotes growth and opportunity in the regional economy.

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Photo courtesy of the Department of Commerce.

For questions, contact:
Leigh Hopkins, AICP
Phone: 404-894-0933 | Fax: 404-410-6910
Email: ude.hcetag.etavonninull@snikpoh.hgiel

2016 EDA National Conference Report

Representatives from Georgia Tech’s Enterprise Innovation Institute descended upon Washington DC for the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) 2016 National Conference, April 7^th – 8^th. After an opening keynote by Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development, Jay Williams, panel sessions that followed included the role of universities in economic development (a discussion on the EDA University Center program), scaling a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship, and attracting young professionals to cities, and bridging the gap between economic development and workforce.

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CEDR’s Leigh Hopkins presented on a panel that discussed “Partnerships that Drive Results in Advanced Manufacturing”. Representing the northwest Georgia region, Hopkins, along with panelists from EDA-designated Investing in Manufacturing Community Partnership (IMCP) communities from Maine, Minnesota, Connecticut, Oregon, and Pennsylvania described the challenges and lessons learned – from getting industry competitors around the same table to discuss issues important to their industry, making changes in technical education, elevating a traditional industry sector in the state, to organizing rural communities to apply for federal funding assistance. It was evident at the conference that EDA is focusing its efforts moving forward on creating regional partnerships, understanding best practices for innovation, and creating workforce development strategies for a new generation of workers in manufacturing and other key industries that will help companies fill the gap in their knowledge and talent pipelines, now and as the pool of retired workers swells in the next five to ten years.

For questions, contact:
Leigh Hopkins, AICP
Phone: 404-894-0933 | Fax: 404-410-6910
Email: ude.hcetag.etavonninull@snikpoh.hgiel

Clinch County EDRP Study Underway

The Clinch County Development Authority applied for and won a research grant through Georgia Tech’s Economic Development Research Program (EDRP). The EDRP research will be conducted this spring and summer.

Researchers from Georgia Tech’s Center for Economic Development Research will be in the community, meeting with the county’s industry leaders, community leaders, stakeholders, and state partners. They will assess county trends and previous planning efforts. Their goal will be to identify industries within the county that align with its strengths and assets. This will give county leaders a better understanding of how to strategically position Clinch County for quality economic growth in the coming decades.Project Highlights: Researchers at Georgia Tech have developed an 8-step process to help Clinch County facilitate economic growth as effectively as possible. These steps include:

Project Kickoff
Community assessment and review
Baseline analysis
Community interviews
State partner interviews
Target industry analysis
Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis
Recommendations and final report

The project is expected to be completed by the end of August 2016.

For project-related questions, contact:
Candice McKie
Phone: 404-385-2053| Fax: 404-410-6910
Email: ude.hcetag.etavonninull@eikcm.ecidnac

IEDC Workforce Development, Registration Underway

About the Course: Skilled workers are the backbone of a productive and efficient economy, and a critical decision point in today’s business location decisions. This versatile course explains the essential relationship between economic and workforce development through case studies, practical examples, and current research. Course participants will learn what programs currently leverage federal, state/provincial, and local financial resources to support workforce development. Learn about what you can do through collaborative programs to build the workforce pipeline and upgrade the skills of your community’s existing workforce. Other topics will include: the emerging demand-driven model in workforce development, sector strategies for targeted industry clusters, K-12 development and integration, occupational analysis, talent attraction, and more.

Register Here: https://pe.gatech.edu/courses/iedc-workforce-development

Course ID: EDEV 1027P

CRN	Start date	End date	Registration Deadline	Location
16470	May 12, 2016	May 13, 2016	May 12, 2016	Atlanta, GA

Register early to save!

For course-related questions, contact:
Leigh Hopkins, AICP
Phone: 404-894-0933 | Fax: 404-410-6910
Email: ude.hcetag.etavonninull@snikpoh.hgiel

Forsyth County – Fiscal Impact of Sharon Springs

At the request of Forsyth County Board of Commissioners the Center for Economic Development Research (CEDR) at Georgia Tech examined the fiscal impact that the proposed City of Sharon Springs would have on Forsyth County. In 2015, House Bill 660 was introduced to provide for the incorporation of a significant portion of south Forsyth County into the City of Sharon Springs. By population, the proposed City of Sharon Springs would be the 17^th largest city in Georgia — falling just behind Valdosta, Smyrna, and Brookhaven — and would be nearly 10 times larger than Cumming, the only other city in Forsyth County and the county seat.

A report examining the fiscal feasibility of this new city was published in February 2015. While this report met the requirements of the rules set forth by the House of Representatives Governmental Affairs Committee of the Georgia General Assembly, there were many important questions that the Georgia General Assembly did not ask regarding the fiscal impact that the municipal incorporation of Sharon Springs would have on the county. For example, will the county lose revenues that currently fund services that will still need to be provided county-wide? If so, how much of a millage rate increase to ALL county residents will be needed to make up the difference? To what extent will the county be able to reduce service costs due to the creation of the city? How will capital expenditures be impacted if the new city does not collect the county impact fee? These are just a few of the questions that needed to be answered in order to get a complete picture of the true fiscal impact of creating Sharon Springs.

It turns out that the creation of the City of Sharon Springs would lower county operating revenue by approximately $6.2 million. The primary revenue losses would have been in alcohol licenses and excise taxes, business licenses and occupation tax, cable franchise fees, planning and zoning permits and fees, and insurance premium taxes. On the other side of the equation, the county would save nearly $770,000 in operating expenses in both code enforcement and the planning and development departments. These savings are primarily due to the reduction of 13-15 positions with the associated salaries, benefits, and other related expenses. Because the revenue loss is significantly more than the cost savings, the county would have been left with a revenue gap of approximately $5.4 million. Given the size of the Forsyth County net tax digest, it would require an additional 0.623 mills to recover that amount of revenue. That is equivalent to a property tax increase of 12.9 percent for ALL Forsyth County property owners.

Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Economic and Fiscal Impact Study

Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (Children’s) engaged the Center for Economic Development Research at Georgia Tech to assess their economic and fiscal impact on the State of Georgia. Children’s is the state’s 15^th largest employer, and ranks 20^th with respect to total payroll. Below is a quick summary of the economic and fiscal impact study.

The economic impact of Children’s represents the difference in the Georgia economy between having and not having Children’s. The focus here is on resources that would likely not exist in the state were it not for Children’s. This includes 1) resources that Children’s brings in from outside the state, and 2) resources that are already in Georgia, but would leave the state if Children’s did not exist. Obviously, many of the services provided by Children’s are available from other providers who would be able to fill in the gap left by Children’s. However, some services are not available from other providers, and some, though available, would not be able to capture all of the demand. A detailed analysis of the services Children’s provides and the alternative providers in Georgia allowed for an estimate of the extent to which Children’s patients would likely seek treatment outside of Georgia if Children’s did not exist. Based on the structure of the Georgia economy, the economic impact of Children’s is $1.5 billion in economic output across the state and the employment of nearly 12,300 people earning more than $700 million in wages, salaries, and benefits.

Fiscal impact analysis takes the above results and estimates how those levels of economic activity influence both the expenditures made by government and the revenues that will accrue to government. When state revenues exceed expenditures, the result is positive net revenue, which is analogous to what the private sector would call “profit.” Using a proprietary state fiscal impact model developed by the Center for Economic Development Research at Georgia Tech, it is estimated that the economic impact of Children’s generates about $75.6 million in revenue for the State of Georgia, and $37.5 million in new expenses. Therefore, the net fiscal impact of Children’s on the State of Georgia is a positive $38.1 million.

The Basic Economic Development Course Begins Tomorrow!

Tomorrow, Tuesday March 8, 2016, is the first day of the Basic Economic Development Course!

In 1967, Georgia Tech offered the first Basic Economic Development Course in the country and continues today to provide innovative education in both fundamentals and new concepts in economic development. In 2016, our Basic Economic Development Course will celebrate 49 years of being one of the first steps in the career of more than 3,000 economic developers.
Join us this year as we welcome Vicki Horton, a nationally-recognized site selection consultant who will kick-off the course, centered around Disruptive Technologies and their impact on economic development. Companies like Amazon, Uber, Zifty, Spotify, and Airbnb have revolutionized the way companies and communities do business. Over the duration of the course, we’ll discuss the impact that Disruptive Technologies hold for regional economies, as well as explore core economic development topics and current trends that are transforming the economic development profession and the businesses and communities you support.

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Check out other courses offered in the International Economic Development Council (IEDC) series!

For more information, contact:
Leigh Hopkins
404-894-0933
ude.hcetag.etavonninull@snikpoh.hgiel

Investing in Manufacturing Communities in Northwest Georgia

The Center for Economic Development Research at Georgia Tech’s Enterprise Innovation Institute (EI2) continues to play a critical role in the Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership (IMCP) initiative in northwest Georgia.

Northwest Georgia is home to the largest concentration of floor covering manufacturers in the world, and boasts production of more than 70 percent of the world’s total floor covering output, valued at over $9 billion. In September 2013, EI2 and the Northwest Georgia Regional Commission (NWGRC) were awarded an $85,000 challenge grant through the U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration’s (EDA) IMCP initiative to develop a comprehensive strategy focused on advanced manufacturing in the floor covering industry in the 15-county northwest Georgia region.

IMCP is a White House administration-wide initiative that is designed to accelerate the resurgence of manufacturing and help cultivate an environment for businesses to create well-paying manufacturing jobs in regions across the country. IMCP supports the President Obama’s Advanced Manufacturing Partnership, launched in 2011, and is a critical component of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s “Open for Business Agenda,” which prioritizes trade and investment.

EI2 led the creation of an “Advanced Manufacturing Strategy” for the 15-county Northwest Georgia region, as well as the successful application to become an EDA-designated Manufacturing Community during EDA’s first round of designations in 2014. Since 2014, EI2 has continued to provide implementation services under the Manufacturing Community designation in partnership with the NWGRC that have led to such notable results including the creation of an Advanced Manufacturing Academy at the Northwest Georgia College and Career Academy (part of the Technical College System of Georgia), selection into the Aspen Institute’s “Communities That Work Partnership” workforce development program, a statewide apprenticeship program with the U.S. Department of Labor, a new regional inland port in Murray County with the Georgia Ports Authority, a post-consumer carpet recycling technology pilot program in Dalton, and a veteran’s hiring program for transitioning military through Georgia Tech’s VET2 program.

Visit the initiative’s website: www.floor360.org.

For more information, contact:

Leigh Hopkins, AICP
Sr. Project Manager
ude.hcetagnull@snikpoh.hgiel
404-894-0933

Center for Economic Development Research

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