Compiled by Lauri Johnson
The St. Louis region and its companies make the national news.
SITE SELECTION MAGAZINE RANKS
RCGA IN TOP 4 METRO ECONOMIC DEVELOPERS
Progressive,
growing regions all have at least one key component in common—
a committed group of strong business, political and community
leaders who devote their civic energies and financial resources
to grow the region and enhance its economic development competitiveness.
The St. Louis region is very fortunate to have such a group of
leaders who, in our Economic Develop-ment Campaign Investors,
along with our partners comprising the Greater St. Louis Economic
Development Network, have enabled our region to once again be
ranked—for the second straight year—one of Site Selection
magazine's "Top 4 Major Metro Economic Development Organizations'
and "Top 10 Economic Development Organi-zations Overall in
North America," in their annual ranking published in May.
Site Selection
is the official publication of the Industrial Asset Management
Council (IAMC), the world's leading association of corporate real
estate executives. Site Selection is the leading magazine
of corporate real estate, facility planning, location analysis
and site selection. The circulation includes more than 44,000
manufacturing and corporate real estate directors, and decision
makers from more than 800 of the Fortune 1000 companies. RCGA
Vice President for Business Recruitment Jim Alexander serves on
the Board of Directors of IAMC.
Economic development
groups were first ranked according to four objective categories:
new jobs; new jobs per 10,000 residents; new investment amount;
and new investment per 10,000 residents. They were then scrutinized
for more subjective attributes—among them: innovation, leadership,
and customer service.
Site Selection
reporter Ron Starner writes, "The River City welcomes visitors
who want to pass through the famed Arch on the Mississippi and
catch a glimpse of America's expansionist past. But the people
and businesses of St. Louis are equally focused on the city's
growth-marked future. That focus is spearheaded by the St. Louis
Regional Chamber & Growth Association, which in 2007 put up
eye-popping numbers in corporate projects, jobs and capital investment.
With 95 facility deals, St. Louis ranked third in the nation.
The projects totaled $1.517 billion in investment and accounted
for 3,555 new jobs throughout the bi-state region."
The economic
development future for the St. Louis region looks promising, even
in the midst of a national economic downturn. A recent addition
is the significant interest that the bi-state region has attracted
from China, for St. Louis becoming a Midwestern commercial hub
for the fastest-growing economy in the world. In fact, overall
deal flow has nearly tripled since the "St. Louis, Perfectly
Centered, Remarkably Connected" brand was launched in first
quarter 2006. We now have some 89 deals today in which St. Louis
is on the "short list," and those deals collectively
have a potential of generating nearly 16,000 jobs, and over $4
billion in new capital investment in the region.
While the
St. Louis region is home to many long-established headquarters
of major international corporations—with Brown Shoe Co. announcing
a major expansion of its Fortune 500 St. Louis HQ, the regionÊis
also becoming a thriving entrepreneurial community. We are the
hometown of 21 Fortune 1000 headquarters while at the same time
support a vibrant, emerging entrepreneurial sector.
The Top 4
Metropolitan Areas in this year's ranking are the
RCGA; World Business Chicago; the Cincinnati USA Partnership;
and the Pittsburgh Regional Alliance.
St. Louis ranked ahead of other Major Metros, which rounded out the Top 20 ranking, including: the Greater Dallas Chamber of Commerce; the Greater Houston Partnership; the Memphis Regional Chamber of Commerce; and the Greater Omaha Economic Development Partnership, each of whom received honorable mentions. Site Selection did not rank organizations named within the Top 10.
TRAVEL
+ LEISURE MAGAZINE NAMES THE RITZ-CARLTON, ST. LOUIS ONE OF
THE WORLDÕS BEST HOTELS
The Ritz-Carlton,
St. Louis has been named one of the 500 best hotels in the world
for 2008 by Travel + Leisure magazine. The magazine's global
team of reporters and editors culled the 500 highest-rated hotels
from its World's Best survey to create the T+L 500.
Travel
+ Leisure also selected the Ritz-Carlton as the best business
hotel in St. Louis for its 2007 World's Best Awards.
GREG PRESTEMON RECEIVES
2008 HONORS AWARD
AS NONPROFIT
EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR
Greg Prestemon,
president and CEO of the Economic Development Center of St. Charles
County, was recognized as the 2008 Non-Profit Executive of the
Year by Saint Charles Business Magazine at the 3rd Annual
Honors Program.
Prestemon was honored for his 15 successful years at the helm of the EDC, which is also celebrating the 15-year anniversary of its small business incubator facility in St. Peters. More than 50 executives, board and staff members, donors and volunteers from local nonprofits were among the nominees at the event.
Prestemon's
nomination highlighted some of the ways St. Charles County has
grown and prospered through his work at the EDC and Partners for
Progress, including more than $100 million in business financing,
the creation and retention of nearly 5,300 jobs, and more than
150 business graduates and 500 jobs from the EDC incubation program.
HASTINGS
AND CHIVETTA DESIGNS TRUMAN STATE RENOVATION PROJECT
When Truman
State University in Kirksville, Mo., decided to renovate the Pershing
Building, an old academic facility that needed repairs and modernization,
it hired St. Louis-based architectural firm Hastings and Chivetta
to design the transformation. News reporter Caitlin Dean profiled
the firm's early role in the project for an article called "Architects
begin Pershing research" in an issue of the Index,
the university's student-produced newspaper.
Hastings and Chivetta architects launched the project by touring
the building and collecting input from faculty members and academic
groups to determine how the building's space should be designed
to suit everyone's needs, according to the article. The firm's
collaborative, thoughtful approach is one reason why Sam Minner,
dean of the university's school of health sciences and education,
recommended it for the job.
The firm's
previous experience with similar projects also influenced the
university's selection. In the article, Minner noted that Hastings
and Chivetta has "cultivated a specialty in the design, renovation
and construction of academic buildings that house health and health-related
programs and services."
The renovation is expected to start in March 2009.
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