Of the reported jobs associated with relocating or expanding local companies, 53 percent were in EDC’s target sectors of aerospace, biosciences, data storage, homeland defense, national nonprofits/sports organizations, renewable energy and software. In 2007, the EDC Marketing Team made 125 consultant visits. 157 new prospects were added in 2007 and 43 prospect visits were hosted in Colorado Springs.

The outlook for job creation in 2008 looks promising in spite of a challenging national economy. There are initiatives in other states, such as California and New York that will adversely affect those states' business community. For example, in California, the state legislature passed new greenhouse gas and healthcare initiatives which will dramatically increase the cost of doing business. In New York, business taxes are being raised. EDC anticipates significant out migration from those states, especially in the field of manufacturing. EDC is working on several new key projects that could result in more than 3,000 quality jobs.

The Marketing Team will continue an aggressive campaign to meet with national site location consultants. Almost every other week, EDC will lead a team to various locations around the country to meet with prospects and consultants. EDC is conducting a campaign to target companies in Southern California through advertisements in the Orange County Business Journal, direct mail, and Frontier’s in-flight publication.

EDC’s Local Industry team enhanced its service to primary employers in Colorado Springs in 2007 with the formation of the Council for Local Industry. Consisting solely of representatives of primary employers, the Council for Local Industry has helped shape the vision and direction for the program going forward. Members of the Council include Bob Cutter (Chair), Former VP/GM Vitesse; Barry Baum, President, Western Forge; Chris Hufman, Vice President, T. Rowe Price; Ellen Lary, VP/GM, Xiotech; Kurt Stevens, Partner, Booz Allen Hamilton; Rob Whyley, Vice President, Verizon Business; and Steve Wychulis, Director of Corporate Development, CEA Technologies.

In 2007, nine of the companies for which EDC announced new jobs were expansions by local companies, underscoring the importance of EDC’s Local Industry program. Local Industry continued to conduct Business Retention and Expansion Visitation (BREV) visits to companies, to determine if there were issues with which companies required assistance. 87 personal visits were conducted and the team responded to 183 assistance requests, nearly triple the number of issues addressed in 2006. Over 90 percent of the issues raised by companies in 2007 were successfully resolved.

4,877 additional troops will be added to Fort Carson over the next five years. The U.S. Army has selected Fort Carson to receive an additional brigade combat team (BCT), to supplement the four brigades already assigned to the Mountain Post. The expansion is part of the Army “Grow the Force” Initiative, under which it is standing up six new brigades over the next five years. In an eight year period, 2005 to 2013, Fort Carson will have nearly doubled in size with the expected end state to be nearly 30,000 troops. The BCT will result in a tremendous economic boost for southern Colorado's economy and could infuse more than $50 million annually into the Pikes Peak region and more than $500 million in new construction expenditures. Click here for the Department of the Army Briefing on the "Grow The Force" Initiative.

Health care, health insurance issues, transportation funding, economic development, environmental regulation, K-12 and higher education funding and the state’s budget are the major issues facing the 2008 Colorado General Assembly. Click here for more details on the 2008 Legislative Session in a summary provided by Tomlinson & Associates.

The Colorado Springs Young Professionals, now the largest young professionals group in the state with over 1,500 members, celebrates its fourth anniversary in January. For more information go to www.csyoungprofessionals.com.

Colorado Springs new City Manager, Penelope Culbreth-Graft, will address the Quality Community Group on Tuesday, January 15, 7:30 a.m. at the Doubletree, 1775 East Cheyenne Mountain Boulevard. Please visit www.coloradospringschamber.org for reservations.

Mike Kazmierski, EDC’s President and CEO, will provide a review of 2007 and outlook for local primary job creation at the EDC luncheon, Thursday, January 31, at the Cheyenne Mountain Resort. Click here to make a reservation.