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E-NEWS FROM THE LEE'S SUMMIT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL
September 2005. Volume 3, Edition 11 |
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“We’re In the Money:”
Magazine Puts Lee’s Summit in Top 100 Cities |
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Lee’s
Summit ranks right up there with some of the nation’s best cities. That’s the
conclusion of Money Magazine, where we were recently listed among the Top 100
Cities in the U.S. (Click
HERE to go to the article.) We like to think we
had some influence on being included in the rankings. When we were left out last
year, the LSEDC published our own
Lee’s Summit Advantage which compares our city to
nationally-ranked high quality-of-life communities. We also promoted our
advantages through our annual postcard campaign to more than 2,000 area decision
makers, civic leaders and the media. It paid off! The only other communities in
the two-state area to be listed were Ballwin, MO and Overland Park, KS. Not bad!
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UPCOMING EVENTS: |
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Governor Blunt To Speak at a Special LSEDC Investor
Luncheon, November 10 |
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We will vacate
our regular Board and Advisory Board meeting on November 2 to host a special
investor and community leader lunch from noon to 1:15 p.m. on November 10 at
the Pavilion at Longview. We are honored to welcome Governor Matt Blunt
to Lee’s Summit to hear him speak and answer questions important to our
community and state. The
Historic
Longview Mansion, the 100-year-old country estate of R.A. Long, is now the
special event venue of choice in Kansas City. An integral party of the
New Longview
redevelopment, the Historic Longview Mansion adds to this walkable community,
inspired by the classic neighborhoods of Kansas City. Space will be limited, so respond promptly to our upcoming
e-mail invitation. |
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Join us on Wednesday, October 5 from
11:45 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. at the New Summit Technology Campus for a facility tour
and a presentation from members of the Eastern Jackson County Marketing
Alliance.
The topic:
Eastern Jackson County by
the Numbers. The economic development professionals from Independence, Blue
Springs and Lee’s Summit will present the slideshow and panel discussion.
Working together for several years as the Eastern Jackson County Marketing
Alliance, these communities cooperatively package and merchandise to area
brokers, developers and opinion-makers the progress and opportunities in Eastern
Jackson County.
Thanks to our host, Summit
Technology Campus, guests can learn about their leasing successes and plans for
the future. Stay for a guided tour from 1:15 to 2 p.m. and see the
transformation for yourself! |
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Our
area’s beautiful golf courses certainly contribute to our reputation as
a top city. Therefore, the LSEDC is proud to host the annual Eastern
Jackson County Marketing Alliance golf outing on September 16 at Chapel
Ridge Golf Course. Each year a different member of the Alliance hosts
the outing for key brokers, developers, site seekers and opinion makers.
This year, it is our turn. Over 100 leaders in the metro areas’
development community will enjoy the golf course owned by LSEDC investor
Mike Atcheson. Networking, prizes and good food will help showcase Lee’s
Summit and Eastern Jackson County’s attractiveness for new and expanding
business. |
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Just as it’s been a long,
hot summer, interest in build-to-suit projects is heating up, too.
Generally speaking, existing buildings dominate our customers’ requests,
but in July and August we worked with three firms with build-to-suit
projects in the pipeline. Their collective office and manufacturing
needs total over 400,000 sf. In all, they could employ over 900 people
in relatively high-paying jobs. Site tours have been completed. Our
competition: KCMO, Wyandotte County, Independence, Lenexa, and Olathe. .
. of course!
Meanwhile, we have built
excellent relations with our local developers and brokers to identify
available buildings. Our Realtors Roundtable meets monthly to help us
keep a finger on the pulse of the marketplace and emerging offerings.
For backup, we subscribe to COSTAR, a searchable site and building
database, to make sure we have all of Lee’s Summit's offerings in our
merchandising efforts. In the month of July and August, client-driven
build-to-suits are just taking off. |
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Six LSEDC
investors have been key partners in the unique restoration and reuse of the
100-year-old, historic Longview Farm Show Horse Arena into the R-7 district’s
newest elementary school. Gale Communities led the effort with creative ideas
and a compelling argument to reuse the primary structure with an attractive
financing package. The Lee’s Summit R-7 School District was open to the idea and
ensured that programming and design conformed to the high quality of each of the
other Lee’s Summit elementary schools. Hollis and Miller Group spearheaded the
incredible architectural redesign of the interior and the classroom addition;
and A.L. Huber has done a miraculous job of building a school for the future in
an historic landmark by protecting important, historical elements. Blackwell
Sanders handled the legal issues for the Gale team, and Chinnery & Associates
represented the school district. We’ll hear more about the school’s public
dedication ceremonies in the near future, but as the school year commences,
please take time to congratulate these six LSEDC partners for their amazing
contribution to Lee’s Summit and our children. |
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Quality Jobs Program Could Help Your
Company Grow |
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Creativity and cooperation from all
levels of government are critical in the highly-competitive economic development
game. That’s why the Quality Jobs Program legislation signed by Government Blunt
this year is so important. The Missouri Economic Development Council, LSEDC and
other allies pushed hard for this bill to help both existing and new companies.
The Quality Jobs Program allows qualifying firms to retain, rather than remit to
the state, 100% of the withholding tax on their employees and/or up to 6% of
their gross payroll for a period of 3 - 5 years. In addition, there is no limit
in the number of times a company can participate! Teresa Evans, Director of
Investor and Community Relations for LSEDC, will be working with all new and
existing companies in Lee’s Summit to make sure they know about this great new
law and help them qualify for these remarkable incentives. Click
HERE to link to
the program description, or contact Teresa at
tdevans@leessummit.org, or (816)
525-6617. |
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National Poll of Economic Developers Findings |
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Prospect
activity in Lee’s Summit is improving, and a national poll shows similar
feelings across the country:
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Overall business attraction activity was up, with more lead and
prospect activity reported. This indicates a larger project pipeline
in the months to come.
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Despite these increases, announcement activity fell in the first
quarter, and the quality and size indicators of announcement
projects were down across the board.
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Respondents are increasingly optimistic about the state of the
national economy, but uncertainty regarding higher fuel prices, the
war in Iraq, and outsourcing remain a concern.
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ICMA Poll Cites Barriers to Economic Development |
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There are
concerns that are negatively affecting economic development. According
to the International City/County Management Association’s (ICMA)
2004-2005 Economic Development Survey, the most frequently cited
barriers to economic development were availability, cost of land, and
building availability.
This is
the same conclusion I made after reviewing our deal flows for the last
several years. The real challenge is how to increase the supply of sites
and buildings. For further information on our
Community Target Industry
Attraction efforts, click
HERE to download. |
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Commercial Realtors from Independence and Lee’s
Summit to Meet |
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If you
list commercial properties in Independence and/or Lee’s Summit, come
join us for the first Combined Commercial Realtors Exchange hosted by
the Independence and Lee’s Summit Economic Development Councils!
This
Commercial Realtors Exchange will be held on October 19, 2005 at 7:45
a.m., at the Independence Chamber of Commerce - Board Room (210 W.
Truman Road, Independence, MO 64050).
Our
special guest presenters from Aquila will be Lisa Franklin, Manager,
Economic Development-LocationOne; and Mark Dawson, Manager, Economic
Development-Missouri South. Lisa and Mark will provide an actual online
presentation on a new feature of LocationOne Information System (LOIS)
which will benefit both area realtors and local economic organizations.
This will be a powerhouse presentation for your business.
LOIS is
an online searchable economic development database that provides
detailed information on buildings, sites, and locations throughout a
12-state area for businesses looking to expand, relocate, or start-up.
The site now offers realtors the opportunity to use this database as an
on-line listing service, or for supporting local economic development
organizations. There are over 11,000 buildings and sites listed in this
innovative system.
A light
continental breakfast will be provided. Please RSVP to Teresa Evans by
Friday, Oct. 14, 2005, at 525-6617, or by e-mail at
tdevans@leessummit.org. |
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Knowledge Based Industries Lead Corporate
Locations |
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The days
of “chasing smokestacks” are over, if one looks at an article by Peter Julias of the Whitaker Report, Conway Data Scoreboard. Julias shows that
a significant majority of the 1,651 businesses that relocated their
headquarters to brand-new facilities from 1999 - 2005 (first quarter) were
in the high tech or service sectors. The table below provides a list of
the top ten industry sectors establishing new headquarter facilities
between 1999 and the first quarter of 2005. All announcements in the
table represent an investment of at least $1 million, 50 employees, or
20,000 square feet. Most of the activity has occurred in service-and
knowledge-based industries. Only four of the industries in the table are
manufacturing-based.
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NAICS |
NAICS Code Description |
# of
Announcements |
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541 |
Professional & Scientific
Services |
277 |
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334 |
Computer & Electronic
Product Mfg. |
104 |
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336 |
Transportation Equip.
Mfg. |
68 |
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325 |
Chemical Mfg.
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64 |
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524 |
Insurance Carriers &
Related Activities |
56 |
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514 |
Information Services and
Data Processing Services |
52 |
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513 |
Broadcasting and
Telecommunications |
51 |
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333 |
Machinery Mfg.
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49 |
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522 |
Credit Intermediate &
Related Activities |
49 |
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523 |
Securities Contracts &
Investments |
41 |
These findings only
emphasize Lee’s Summit’s need to provide quality office park locations
for the knowledge industries of today and the future. As you can see
from the industry types above, they have several underlying
requirements: smart, creative, technical people who seek high
quality-of-life communities and lifelong learning opportunities. |
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Customers Like LSEDC’S Service and Can-Do
Attitude |
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In
addition to our
Annual Report’s survey of Board and Customer
Satisfaction, LSEDC regularly polls people and companies assisted in the
previous quarter. Below are a few comments from the last quarter
returns:
“The
Lee’s Summit Economic Development Council does a fantastic job of
bringing investors into the loop about prospective projects – and we
appreciate it!”
“I
needed to meet more people in Lee’s Summit. I appreciate what the LSEDC
has done….”
“Everyone has been great.”
And to the person who said, “I have recently started a relationship with
LSEDC, so I do not know yet,” we say: we look forward to meeting or
exceeding your expectations!
We are
proud to say that 100% of the respondents stated that we met or exceeded
their expectations! |
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Any Comments? |
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This is our third newsletter of
2005. If you like it pass it along. Our goal is to provide you with
useful information in a useful format. Have we succeeded? Do you have suggestions? Do you want to be dropped from our
distribution list? Please let me know at
jdevine@leessummit.org. That’s it for now. |
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© Copyright Lee's Summit Economic Development Council. All Rights Reserved. | www.leessummit.org |
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