Everyone thinks they know all about Economic Development . It ’ s the big announcements of companies moving in to the area , making a big splash , ground-breakings , shiny shovels , television cameras , right ? Maybe , kinda , sorta . But it ’ s not all about that . Texas is a series of economic islands , the Dallas metroplex , Houston , El Paso , etc . Islands , with great distances of not much population between them and the next “ island ” except San Antonio to Austin which is becoming one big island . The Corpus Christi metro area can be thought of as an island . Everyone in the region is on the island , at least economically .
Think about where you live , where you shop , where you work , where you play . You may live in one part of the area , you may shop 20 minutes away , you may work 30 minutes away . You move within the “ island ” every day , every week . Occasionally you go to other “ islands ” – like Houston for business , or San Antonio to shop but almost all of your daily and weekly spending is within this island .
Let ’ s talk about what we do at the CCREDC . We try to bring in what are called “ primary jobs ” – jobs that bring in wealth from outside of the area – onto our island - , through outside customers , shipping product out , collecting money in . Even if you don ’ t realize it , these primary jobs and investment project impact you . You may be a retailer , own a store , work in a car dealership , be an accountant or lawyer , your customers or clients are probably employed by a primary sector company , or in turn rely on primary employers themselves . If we don ’ t have these jobs , we go into economic recession . If another restaurant opens there will not be more economic wealth created . People will go to other restaurants less . Or , think of it as another car dealership opening , will there be more Camry ’ s sold here because of it , or will the existing dealerships just sell fewer ? The pie remains the same size . By bringing primary jobs we receive money from outside of the region that increases our wealth within the region .
It ’ s also an interconnected system . For every project with any kind of tax agreement , incentive , or performance metric , CCREDC will go in to the company , examine the books for compliance . We know , for example , that a large percentage of the people working downtown , or at the plants on the Inner Harbor , live on the South Side , or in Portland . We know , for example , that more than half of the people who work at the companies on the La Quinta Channel in San Patricio County , live in the City of Corpus Christi .
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