On Friday, November 30, 2012, Director Tracey Nichols served on a panel at the National League of Cities Conference in Boston Massachussetts. The presentation was titled "Moving Past the Smokestack: A Discussion on Business Attraction." Joining Director Nichols were Greg LeRoy of Good Jobs First and Susan Liberty of McGuireWoods Consulting. Business attraction has been and continues to be a primary economic development focus for many communities. Yet, it can also be the most controversial, especially as the public calls for greater transparency and accountability with public funds. This workshop will discuss the trends and challenges and opportunities of business attraction, and explore strategies and accountability measures that can help your city. Director Nichols’ discussion includes information on using cost benefit analysis to determine the incentive for a company bringing jobs and incentives to your area, availability of shovel ready sites and working with partners to attract businesses.

1. The City of Cleveland
Department of Economic Development
Moving Past the
Smokestack: A
Discussion on
Business Attraction
November 30, 2012
A Presentation to
National League of
Cities:
Congress of Cities
and Exposition

2. Smokestack Industries
Cleveland still welcomes manufacturing and has a
presence in the steel and metals industries for
auto parts, aerospace and durable goods - to
name a few
• Manufacturing jobs pay higher wages on average
• There is a multiplier effect for parts suppliers and end
users - manufacturing brings other businesses
• These businesses are no longer polluters

3. What’s the first step to
attraction?
 Develop your strategy
 Cluster analysis
– Workforce
– Existing Businesses
– Suppliers
– Strategic Advantages
 Helps determine who you can attract
 Use a professional firm that site selectors
recognize

4. Partners
Who can help you with attraction?
• Business owners - Who can give real life stories of why
your community is a good place to do business
• Local leaders - Businesses want to know they will have
access to local leaders should they need some
assistance
• Funding partners - Your county, state, development
authority, port authority, local foundations, etc.

5. Incentives
 Decide in advance what these might be
 Get legislative approval for programs to
streamline the application process
 Make sure your incentives are rooted in a cost-
benefit analysis that is defensible
 Are there high priority industries or locations for
which you have special incentives? A Corridor or
Industrial Park?

6. Work Together
 If a company is looking at your region, it will
likely have more than one site to consider
 Negative comments about neighboring
communities often backfire
 Promote your region first, your community
second, to be successful
 Plan your tours to highlight the BEST of your
community - not the fastest route

7. Attraction Strategy:
Health Tech Corridor

8. Health Tech Corridor
 Anchor strategy to attract health technology
companies
 Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals, Case
Western Reserve University and Cleveland
Foundation are partners
 There are 6 health technology incubators - but
incubated companies moved to the suburbs
 We built a 128,000 sf. speculative space to
attract new companies and for post-incubator
space

9. Midtown Technology Center
• 113,000 sf. leased in 18 months (128,000 sf)
• Building 2 - All 50,000 sf leased in 12 months
• Building 3 under construction -16,000 sf leased of 64,000 sf
• Xx New Jobs to the City

10. Midtown Technology Center
• $10,700,000 HUD 108 (EZ)
•$ 240,000 City of Cleveland Vacant
Property Forgivable Loan
• $ 4,153,500 New Market Tax Credit Equity
• $ 1,600,000 Equity
• $16,693,500 Total Project
• Debt reserve funded by HUD 108 for HUD 108
is $321,000
• Spec Building - no bank funding available!!!

11. City of Cleveland
Tracey Nichols
Director
Dept. of Economic Development
(216) 664-3611
tnichols2@city.cleveland.oh.us
Flats East Bank Project - $272 million