It Takes Hard Work to Make Positive Impressions

By Katie Bass, Project Associate.

“The key is not the age of the institution but its creativity and its persistence. A single game changer, no matter how transformative or creative, does not an economy reshape. Sustaining the gain means engaging in a continuous process of inquiry and investigation, reinvention and renewal, in which one gain leads to another, and then another, and then another. Successful metros, in other words, never stop. They do not rest on their laurels, they build on their successes.”

The Metropolitan Revolution by Bruce Katz and Jennifer Bradley

Often communities we work with say that one of their challenges is combating negative perceptions. Those negative perceptions are typically born out of a personal experience or a story of someone else’s experience – ah, the old adage that perception is reality. Shaping a long-lasting, positive impression on a visitor helps to reverse negative connotations of your community because not only do you make a positive impression on the visitor, that visitor passes on their experiences to their friends, coworkers, and perhaps even their blog followers – the impact of a single experience is multiplied much farther than one realizes.

I thought of this because I was in Denver last weekend for a friend’s wedding, and I must say, I was impressed with the Downtown Denver area. We stayed in the area around the 16th Street Mall – a pedestrian-only street, with the exception of the free mall shuttle that continuously drives from one end of the boulevard to the other. Not only was I impressed with the fact that they had efficient, convenient, and free transportation, the whole environment was spotless and felt surprisingly safe for a downtown in a major city. The is because the Downtown Denver Business Improvement District (BID) has committed to a clean and safe Downtown environment by making it a priority and having a year-round, seven-day-a-week schedule to keep up with the maintenance of the 16th Street Mall and its amenities. In addition to the year-round schedule of maintenance, the BID manages a Downtown Ambassador program that serves as a safe and welcoming presence in the area. The members are the eyes and ears of the place and focus on the quality of life aspects – such as panhandling and graffiti – that could diminish a visitor’s experience.

Over the past couple decades, the people in Denver have been making incredible strides to contribute to the area’s economic development success and aren’t looking to slow down any time soon. As Tami Door, President and CEO of the Downtown Denver Partnership so eloquently put it, “It’s not about the endgame so much as the roadmap. It’s a combination of thousands of tiny goals that project 20 years into the future.” Further making her point, “Some cities look to hit a homerun…we’ve been bunting year and year after year.” The revitalization of the 120-year old Union Station and its recent opening is just another, albeit much larger, project in the long-term commitment to the city’s future. Up next there are plans for rail service to the Denver International Airport within the next few years. The momentum behind these improvements began when the Downtown Denver Partnership, BID, and various other public and private partners, along with the City and County of Denver came together and produced the Denver Downtown Area Plan, which was adopted by the Denver City Council in 2007. Thanks to these and many other collaborations and partnerships, the community has its roadmap and together is continuously making positive changes and working hard to build a better city.

A successful plan for a community requires people that care enough to deliberately and continuously put in the effort to make their community better and that residents and stakeholders all buy-in to the process. Check out an inspiring crowdfunding video from Springfield, MO if you want to see evidence of people who love their community and are intentionally trying to make their home a better place to live. It’s a powerful, honest video and illustrates the pride people have in their community. While you’re on youtube, there’s another video, slightly longer, that I also enjoyed watching recently. This one is a Ted Talk that Jason Roberts did on the Better Block project. The Better Block project is a grassroots effort where caring residents and stakeholders across the U.S. are working together to illustrate the potential that areas in their town have and what they could look like if they were invested in or if ordinances changed to allow for certain businesses. It’s important that economic development efforts successfully leverage such groups, as they are in Denver and many other cities.

It’s all very inspiring, but at the same time, daunting. Economic development efforts are never-ending and require a lot of hard work, but with the right people and vision, a community can make great things happen.

ACCE 2014 Takeaway: Over-the-Rhine is a Revitalization Best Practice

By Alexia Eanes, Operations Manager. 

Last week over 800 people traveled to downtown Cincinnati for the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE) annual convention and centennial celebration. Market Street is proud to be a sponsor of ACCE and we always look forward to spending a week with Chamber leaders celebrating their accomplishments and efforts. The annual convention is held in a different city each year to showcase different offerings and improvements that the hosting city has accomplished. Cincinnati proved to be a perfect location, not only because ACCE was founded within the city 100 years ago but also because of the significant downtown revitalization efforts that have occurred recently such as the Duke Energy Convention Center, the Great American Ballpark, and the Horseshoe Casino among others.

Downtown Cincinnati, like many other cities, is experiencing a boom in the urban core. People are moving back downtown and things are happening and being built. Close to downtown, a neighborhood that has gone through historical trials and tribulations but is now coming out on top: Over-the-Rhine, or OTR for short. In the mid-19th century OTR experienced substantial German in-migration, hence adopting the main river in Germany in the districts name, the Rhine. OTR was a predominantly German area with German magazines, bakeries, beer halls, and European architecture dominating the quarter. Streets are still lined with historic buildings that create unique character for the area and are a priority for many preservationists. Unfortunately, after World War II, the neighborhood started experiencing a continuous decline transforming it to one of the most distressed neighborhoods in the nation. In the early 2000’s 58 percent of the area’s residents lived at or below the poverty line, 25 percent were unemployed, and the area’s median household income stood at $10,000, and crime was at an all-time high. Things got so bad that in 2006 the National Trust for Historic Preservation listed it as one of the eleven most endangered historic places in the nation.

With these sobering statistics, where does a city even begin to try and make the area more prosperous? In 2003 the City of Cincinnati became involved and enlisted its major corporate leaders to create the Cincinnati City Center Development Corp. (3CDC) to take on the issue. 3CDC is a non-profit, real estate development and finance organization that works primarily in OTR and Cincinnati’s central business district and has overseen much of the revitalization that has occurred over the past couple years. Since its incorporation, 3CDC has restored hundreds of historic buildings creating living units, commercial space, and parking decks to accommodate the area’s new visitors. To date, 3CDC has invested $315 million dollars ($53 million of that is public support) in OTR.

With the time, dedication, and investment in the area, it is now booming. Young professionals are purchasing condos in renovated buildings and restaurants and businesses are moving into the area. Washington Park, a major green space and meeting place in OTR, received a $48 million facelift. The historic Brewery District is even tapping into its German past and holding events such as Bockfest, the OTR Biergarten, and hosting tours on the Brewing Heritage Trail. The ever popular and historically preserved Findlay Market is thriving economically after receiving a major facelift, and brings in diverse crowns from all over the area to shop locally. Things are happening, people are moving in, and there’s a general feeling of place being created.

As national statistics show that more and more people are choosing to move into downtowns and urban areas, cities and city leaders are taking notice. Cincinnati’s focus on OTR and its surrounding business district is a great example, as well as a great best practice, for what can happen when you create a space where people want to be.

Chamber Executives Association Celebrates 100 Years

By Jim Vaughan, Senior Fellow

Early in the 20th century, chambers of commerce were known generally as “commercial organizations” and their executives were called “secretaries.” So when two regional associations met in Cincinnati in 1914 to approve a merger, the name chosen was National Association of Commercial Organization Secretaries.

NACOS became the American Chamber of Commerce Executives in 1948 and the organization has been known as ACCE ever since although the acronym will now stand for Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives.

The titles of the members of the association have also changed—from secretary, to executive secretary, to executive director, to executive vice president, to president—as their roles and responsibilities have been increased.

But one thing hasn’t changed. That is the association’s commitment to assist the executives of local and state chambers of commerce improve the communities they represent.

Mick Fleming, ACCE’s President, calls it an inspiring story of our shared heritage.

“The history of chambers, the growth of the modern economy and the building of viable communities—it’s all one story—a moving tale of courage, imagination, relationships and persistence,” Fleming said.

Chamber of commerce professionals from across North America gather in Cincinnati on August 12-15 to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of ACCE and to begin the organization’s Second Century. As the National Economic Development Sponsor of ACCE, Market Street Services is again presenting programs and serving on panels at the convention:

• Quality of Place as an Economic Driver with Market Street’s Mac Holladay along with panelists David Brown, President and CEO, Greater Omaha Chamber and Brad Lacy, President and CEO, Conway Area Chamber; and

• Tapping the Entrepreneurial Culture featuring Christa Tinsley Spaht together with Sean Kennedy, Greenhouse Manager, St. Petersburg Area Chamber; Michael Dalby, President and CEO, Columbus Chamber; and Penny Lewandowski, Vice President of Entrepreneurship, Edward Lowe Foundation.

Many of our past and present clients are also presenting or serving as panelists at the conference:

• Growing Diverse Businesses with Nika White, Vice President, Diversity and Inclusion, Greenville Chamber alongside Crystal German, Vice President, Economic Inclusion, Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber.

• Put Your Foundation to Work featuring panelist Ralph Schulz, President and CEO, Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce along with fellow panelist Tim Sheehy, President, Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce.

• You’re Certifiable presented by Ben Haskew, President and CEO, Greenville Chamber of Commerce together with Robert L. Quick, President and CEO, Commerce Lexington Inc.

• Cultivating Diverse Leaders with Valerie Patton, Vice President, Economic Inclusion, St. Louis Regional Chamber and Harold Boone Sr., Vice President, Minority Business Development, Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce. They will be joined by Sonya Hughes, Vice President, Inclusion and Community Leadership, Grand Rapids Area Chamber.

• And more!

Market Street is proud to support ACCE at the convention and throughout the year and we appreciate the business relationships we enjoy with so many ACCE-member chambers.

If you’re attending the convention, come see us at booth #206 to see how we can help you help your community.

50 years after Freedom Summer, where are we?

By Ranada Robinson, Research Manager. 

Summer is winding down, and it’s been a huge season for remembering the tumultuous Civil Rights Era. This year marked the 50th anniversary of Freedom Summer, during which hundreds of civil rights workers and students from across the nation traveled to Mississippi to help local civil rights workers and volunteers attempt to register black voters and set up Freedom Schools and community centers to help black citizens. At that time, it was extremely difficult and dangerous for blacks in Mississippi to register to vote. Additionally, it was a rough time in the South due to Jim Crow laws that mandated racial segregation in all public facilities, including schools and public transportation. These laws also ensured employment and educational discrimination and other economic disadvantages that have had long lasting effects. Freedom Summer brought together volunteers from various backgrounds to try to make a difference. It became a pivotal moment of history for the Civil Rights Movement, with many sad stories of sacrifices made for the hope for racial equality.

Earlier this summer, I had the pleasure of hosting a mini-film screening at my alma mater, Tougaloo College, which was instrumental during the Civil Rights Movement and during Freedom Summer. The film, An Ordinary Hero: The True Story of Joan Trumpauer Mulholland, highlights the life of a Civil Rights hero—a young white woman—who

Image Source: Jackson Daily News

participated in over three dozen sit-ins and protests by the time she turned 19 years old. It was a perfect time for this event because Joan was on campus celebrating her golden graduation anniversary along with several of her classmates, all with amazing stories. The film is a must-see and really shines a light on many infamous moments during the Civil Rights Movement as well as Joan’s memories of well-known people, including Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Medgar Evers, and Stokely Carmichael. We heard the full account of events leading up to and during the violent Jackson, MS Woolworth sit-in that involved four Tougaloo students (including Joan) and a Tougaloo professor. We heard personal accounts of what happened to three Civil Rights workers James Earl Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner, who were brutally murdered during Freedom Summer. The audience was captivated by the film and by Joan’s story-telling during the Q&A portion of the event. The magnitude of terror that citizens endured and the dedication of the ordinary people who fought for change are astounding and heartrending.

Fifty years later, clear progress has been achieved, but there’s still a ways to go on the quest for racial equality. The efforts of those who come before us cannot be forgotten. Here are some startling national statistics that are even more troubling in some local communities across the country.
 

• According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the June 2014 unemployment rate for all Americans aged 16 and over is 6.1 percent. That figure for white Americans is 5.3 percent, compared to 10.7 percent for blacks.

• During the Great Recession (December 2007 to June 2009), the national unemployment rate reached 9.5 percent. The highest level of unemployment that black Americans experienced was 15 percent, compared to 8.7 percent for whites. Over the last five years, the unemployment rate for blacks peaked at 16.5 percent in April 2011. The peak for whites was 9.2 percent in October 2009. Blacks were not only hit harder by the recession but for a longer period of time.

• Of the 27.1 million firms in the U.S. in 2007[1], 83.4 percent were white-owned, compared to 7.1 percent that were black-owned. Of all black-owned firms, 1.6 percent have sales or receipts of $500,000 and over. Five percent of all white-owned firms have achieved this level of sales. While there was substantial growth in black-owned firms between 2002 and 2007 (60.5 percent compared to 13.5 percent for white-owned firms), much more is needed to reach a distribution that more closely resembles population distribution (13 percent of the population identify as black).

• According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the 2012 median household income of black Americans is $33,764, compared to $56,565 for white households. The 2012 poverty rate for black Americans is 28.1 percent, compared to 11 percent for white Americans.

• In terms of educational attainment, in 2012, 18.7 percent of black Americans aged 25 and over hold a bachelor’s or graduate degree, compared to 32.5 percent of white Americans. The gap in associate degree attainment is much narrower—7.7 percent of black adults have associate degrees compared to 8.5 percent of white adults. The percentage of black adults without a high school education is 16.8 percent, compared to only 8.5 percent of white adults.

There are myriad reasons underlying each of these statistics, and closing these gaps will continue to be complex endeavors. It is important to remember that racial inequality is a longstanding issue and that what is sometimes considered “black history” is American history—it’s a past that belongs to all of us, and we have to all learn from it. We should be proud of the progress that we’ve made, but we can’t get complacent. As a result of Freedom Summer, many of the barriers to voting were eventually removed and important legislation ,such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, was passed, and Mississippi now has more black elected officials than any other state in the nation. However, there are still very hefty and disturbing gaps in economic indicators and educational outcomes not only in Mississippi, but across the U.S., that need to be closed. We have to press on, understanding that as opportunities are opened and taken advantage of by minorities, it has a positive effect on everyone. 

An Ordinary Hero: The True Story of Joan Trumpauer Mulholland
(Trailer)

 

Source: Taylor Street Films

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[1] The 2007 Economic Census provides the latest data available. The 2012 Economic Census will be published later this year.

Non-Compete Clauses Makes Us Non-Competitive

By Evan Robertson, Senior Project Associate.

If there is one hot button economic development issue I hold dear, it is my complete disdain for non-compete clauses in employment contracts. These clauses allow a particular company to place future restrictions on what types of businesses or jobs a worker can migrate to upon leaving the company voluntarily. Anecdotally, I've seen, first-hand, non-compete clauses limit entrepreneurship.

A few years ago my friend decided to enter the cell phone repair business, which it turns out is a fairly lucrative endeavor or at least was at the time. He decided to join a cell phone repair shop to learn the ropes before he ventured out into his own business. Upon his hiring, the company had him sign a non-compete clause with some unbelievable restrictions regarding what he could and couldn’t do after he left. The non-compete clause was so stringent – admittedly probably wouldn’t have held up in court at the time, although some state’s like Georgia are passing stricter non-compete legislation to the detriment of the state’s entrepreneurs – that he was effectively barred from competing with the company within the state in which he lived. Simply put, in order for him to start businesses he would need to leave the state he’s called home for so many years.

Everyone loses out on non-compete clauses, local economies (through loss of experienced professionals branching out to start their own businesses), companies (through a restricted labor market that limits information sharing), and the worker (who must either hold off on career transitions or professional advancement). To me, non-compete clauses are the antithesis of economic mobility and, ultimately, economic development. And yesterday, I was happy to discover, it’s not just me.

The Kauffman Foundation’s Rethinking Non-Competes: Unlock Talent to Seed Growth is a short, but compelling read on the subject. My favorite line, and perhaps the foundational argument against non-compete clauses, the Foundation states “The free movement of individuals in and out of jobs is a crucial component of an entrepreneur-driven economy, in which those with good ideas can easily leave employment to start new businesses.” Labor mobility, as the policy brief correctly identifies, is limited by these contracts.

So, what is the impact? The Kauffman Foundation identified a number of adverse economic impacts caused by these clauses, the list includes; lower compensation, skill atrophy, degradation of professional networks, expensive legal battles, lower rates of return on venture capital investment in state’s that enforce non-compete clauses, brain drain, increased income inequality, and fewer workers changing jobs.

On the upshot, state’s that strictly enforce non-compete clauses tend to invest more in workforce training and companies within these states are more likely to engage in long-term R&D processes that could potentially transform their market.

Kauffman recommends a number of key policy changes including limiting the duration of the non-compete clause, narrowing their scope, and ensuring that potential employees know that they will need to sign a non-compete agreement long before they accept the job offer.

And, I’d take it one step further, because this is a blog and I’m allowed to go a little crazy. Employees leaving a firm to create their own business or joining a startup, should be given complete amnesty from their non-compete clause. To prevent abuse, these employees would be unable to be hired by a firm aged one year or older within their industry for one-year, but are free to pursue their own business idea. This has the potential to support entrepreneurship, ensure that the state’s best and brightest remain, and ensure these employees don’t lose their vital skills.

Growth and Replacement, A Look At Employment Projections

By Katie Bass, Project Associate. 

In community and economic development, we are constantly trying to look into our crystal ball to prepare communities for changes in consumer preferences, technological advances, and business practices or organizational structures. We try to see what industries are growing and which are declining so that communities can best prepare their workforce through educational attainment and workforce training. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) publishes ten-year employment projections every two years to aid policy makers, career advisers, economic developers, and educational stakeholders in order to appropriately adjust recruitment efforts of companies and training program development.

There are two key indicators that, together, offer insight into growing professions. One, clearly, is the growth rate of the occupation which estimates how many jobs are going to be created or lost in a certain field over the next ten years. A number of factors can influence demand for certain occupations. Changing demographics and consumer preferences can increase the demand for certain services, while a technological change can create demand for a new service or product and conversely cause the decline in demand for another product. The changing demographics of the population as the percentage of older Americans grows, affects demand for health care services. As we saw during the recession, health care was one of the few sectors to post positive annual growth rates. Other changes, such as technological advances, can create rapid changes in the labor market. Look simply at the devastating effect that technology had on the job market in the postal industry. The number of postal service mail carriers is projected to decline by 26.8 percent by 2022. Similarly, my co-worker, Evan, blogged about the change in employment at businesses related to photography and how it impacted consumer preference as technology advanced, from one-hour photos to Facebook photo albums and cell phone cameras.

The other key indicator – job openings due to growth and replacement needs – measures the number of job openings from retirements and/or people leaving the occupation, in addition to the number of jobs created. This estimate reveals areas of potential weakness in a community due to the impending retirement of baby boomers that may be overlooked if you only examine the growth rate. It also includes those occupations that are typically short-term and “stepping-stones” as employees move along their career path. Occupations such as bartenders and waiters/waitresses are popular for college students because of their flexible schedules; however, once they graduate, they leave that occupation (hopefully) never to return. Tellers potentially act as an entry-level position for finance careers. As the employee gets their degree and moves up the corporate ladder, they vacate that teller position permanently. Regardless of whether the employee is a retiree or simply moving to a new position, between 2012 and 2022, replacement needs are expected to account for 67.2 percent of job openings, or roughly 34 million of the projected 50.6 million job openings.

Take for example, air traffic controllers. Employment as an air traffic controller is expected to increase by only 1.4 percent, or 400 jobs. However, over the next ten years there will be nearly 12,000 job openings as air traffic controllers retire (approximately one-third of total employment in the occupation). Recall the 1981 illegal federal strike by air traffic controllers and Reagan’s unprecedented firing of around 11,000 strikers – at the time there were roughly 17,500 total air traffic controllers working for the FAA. Reagan further placed a life time ban on the strikers from ever working as controllers for the FAA again, and as a result, thousands of new employees were hired and trained to be air traffic controllers. The FAA has an age distribution unlike many occupations causing a vicious cycle of large numbers of air traffic controllers retiring at the same time and subsequently large training classes to fill the imminent need for new employees. Roughly one-fifth of air traffic controllers are over the age of 55 and will need to be replaced in the coming years.

Occupations that require post-secondary education or long-term training are the most disconcerting with regards to workforce sustainability. They require the most amount of time to train and educate and can lead to potential skills gaps or strains on the market. The number of registered nurses, for example, is projected to increase by 19.4 percent, which translates to just over half a million jobs. However, there will be nearly an equal number of job openings that stem from replacement needs as older registered nurses retire. As such, there has been an increased effort in training registered nurses nationwide to fill both newly created jobs and those soon-to-be vacated jobs.

The Wall Street Journal recently published an article highlighting the shortage of truck drivers in the United States. A prolonged shortage of truck drivers would affect multiple industries and cause strains on the market. In the past a person could enter this career at 18, however requirements have changed and currently a person must be at least 21 years old to have an interstate commercial driver’s license. Further, some insurance companies are placing even higher age requirements to then insure a driver. The lack of interest in the career for those old enough to work as a truck driver and competition from employers in construction or energy businesses has contributed to fewer people entering the career, which causes a concern for those companies that don’t have a pool of applicants to replace the impending retirees.

Understanding and preparing for growth and replacement needs or a change in requirements, consumer preferences, or technological advances is crucial to having a sustainable workforce. Communities across the country are stepping up and implementing programs to best prepare their local workforce for careers in occupations where they will be able to find a job.

The growing need for a stronger local workforce and a national demand for technically trained employees led the community in Grand Island, Nebraska and the Grand Island Public Schools (GIPS) to come together to create a state-of-the-art career and technical training center – the Career Pathways Institute (CPI). Working with Central Community College, freshman and sophomore high school students can take introductory courses at CPI without charge and then apply their junior and senior years to earn college credits towards an associate’s degree. The programs offered range from welding to business and look promising to help fill the community’s need for trained workers by sparking the students’ interest in the career early on and providing the resources to get the training and education in it.

 

Career Pathways Institute Classroom
Image Source: Market Street Services

New York City partnered with IBM to create Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) with a “9-14 School model.” Students attend up to grade 14, and upon graduation obtain both a high school degree and an associate’s degree in applied science in either computer systems technology or electromechanical engineering technology, in addition to gaining experience. IBM, for its part, will benefit with having a qualified pool of talent for its future workforce.

The growing, newly created jobs and those that are needed for replacement of retirees are two important components when analyzing the sustainability of a workforce. Going beyond the growth rate and numbers and understanding your local communities’ demands and national trends is necessary to prepare your residents and future residents with the most opportunities for an improved quality of life. Whether it’s the welders and agribusiness professionals in Grand Island or the engineering technicians and software specialists in New York, increasing the wealth of your community by identifying problems early, giving residents the tools to succeed, and getting them qualified for the future supply of employment opportunities is what makes the job for those of us working in economic and community development so rewarding.

The Good Stuff

By Alexia Eanes, Operations Manager.

As I rehash memories from the recent Independence Day holiday I start to think about the fireworks that were viewed, the food that was consumed, our freedom (of course), and beer. Why beer? Beer has long been the national choice of alcoholic beverage consumed on Independence Day. It’s the epitome of summer, relaxation, and gatherings so it’s no wonder why it’s highly consumed during this time of year.

When beer is mentioned it’s really hard to not think about the craft beer boom that’s happening right now. The Census just released a statement (right before Independence Day, mind you) stating that U.S. breweries more than doubled between 2007 and 2012 and shipments increased more than 33.6%! It’s hard not to notice this upsurge in the craft beer/microbrewery movement. Now you’re increasingly likely to see a craft brew from in-state or a neighboring state being gulped in a restaurant or bar rather than just beer distributed from Anheuser-Busch. There’s no data supporting evidence of the reasons behind this switch but one can assume that it has to do with flavor, first and foremost. Another reason could be that consumers and craft brewers alike are devoted to local identity. They want to create or consume something unique that identifies with a specific location – not something that tastes the same all over the world.

According to the Brewers Association, to be classified as a “craft brewery” you must not distribute more than 6 million barrels of beer each year, more than 25% of your company cannot be owned by one of the major beer suppliers (Anheuser-Busch, Miller-Coors, etc.), and you must have a traditional or innovative way to brew your beer – circling back to local identity. The Brewers Association has a great tool on their website that analyzes each state’s economic impact and numbers of breweries. It also allows you to search breweries by state and look up state laws for those who want to open their own brewery. California takes the top spot with 381 breweries and an economic impact of $4.7 billion per year in the state and, in last place, Mississippi which has 4 breweries with a shockingly moderate economic impact of $149.5 million per year.

I’m excited to report that local cities and counties are taking notice and jumping in on the opportunity as well. Of course in “Beer City” A.K.A. Asheville, N.C., the Asheville-Buncombe County Economic Development Coalition fully embraces the fact that Asheville has more breweries per capita than any other city. They point out their distinct qualities geared toward the brewing process such as clean water, booming downtown, and its progressiveness. All of these are important aspects for relocating or growing your brewing business. These factors won over New Belgium Brewing Company who just started a second brewery in Asheville. What’s more enticing about this, the company worked with the state of North Carolina to put their brewery in a brownfield that needed remediating and may act as a catalyst for other business to build up the area.

On the other coast where wine dominates, the Economic Development Board in Sonoma County has developed an in-depth mapping system to navigate the County’s growing craft beer production. In Sonoma County alone there are 21 breweries that generate around $123 million per year. Even my home city in Pinellas County, Florida has experienced a boom in the craft beer movement – which is thoroughly exciting for me to witness the positive changes happening there. The St. Petersburg-Clearwater CVB has created a craft beer trail to point out all the craft breweries in the county – this will be happening in my near future.

To help sustain this positive sector growth, universities are jumping in and developing courses to educate those that are interested in learning and making a career in the industry. In 2013 Portland State University created an online course called “Business of Craft Brewing” which focuses on the vital business skills required to run a successful brewery. This is important for the mere fact that if you have a passion for the craft and want to start a business, obtaining a niche business education would increase your chances of success. Another college jumping in to handle demand and compete with Portland, Clark College in Vancouver, Canada is hoping to open the Clark College Center for Restaurant and Fermentation Sciences which will train students in the growing restaurant and brewing industry.

It’s refreshing to see cities and counties take advantage of what’s being offered even if, for now, it seems a little unconventional. It’s new and exciting to the consumer and is only trending upward.