THE EG - Enterprise Group · munity. Starting in January 2016, over the following five years...

THE EG

Campaign Development Council

Imagine Jackson 2020

Mark Alyea

Alro Steel Mindy Bradish-Orta

Chamber and Experience Jackson John Crist

CP Federal Credit Union

Dennis DeCosta

Commonwealth Associates

Jim Dunn

Summit Township Brent Ellis

Spring Arbor University

Georgia Fojtasek

Allegiance Health

Pete Jancek

Blackman Charter Township

Dan Phelan

Jackson College

Jason Sanders

Fifth-Third Bank Larry Schultz

Great Lakes Industry Steve Simpson

Baker College

John Waldron

County National Bank

Miles E. Jones

Dawn Food Products Tim Levy

Industrial Steel Treating

Kirk Mercer

R.W. Mercer Co.


Page 1

Message from the Chairman

Jackson County has evolved significantly over the past several years. You will play an im-

portant role in determining if Jackson County will continue to be one of the top communities

and regions in Michigan, or if we are surpassed by other places that have been working to

maximize their competitive advantages.

Involved businesses and community leaders such as yourself, will ultimately shape the future of

Jackson County. Teamwork and partnerships will help The EG engineer the economy we all

want, and will help us maintain our position against hundreds of other communities.

The Enterprise Group of Jackson, through its five-year campaign—Imagine Jackson 2020, is committed to elevating Jackson County’s efforts and approach to economic development and

talent recruitment. This evolving private-public partnership will be built on a solid foundation

of teamwork among key leaders in business, municipal and county government, higher educa-

tion, and regional organizations.

The purpose of Imagine Jackson 2020 is to stimulate economic prosperity. To achieve this ob-

jective, The EG has embarked upon an aggressive, five-year program to invest $2.4 M as an

impetus to creating significant economic gains in Jackson County.

I have agreed to serve as the Chairman of the Imagine Jackson 2020 campaign, and along with

the Campaign Development Council Members, we are helping underwrite the strategic initia-

tives.

We ask you to join us in ensuring the tremendous gains we have made in economic develop-

ment for Jackson County. Working together, we can make certain that our economic future

continues to thrive for generations to come.

With optimism for Jackson County’s future, and with my warmest regards,

Ric Walton

Walton Insurance Group


Page 2

The Mission

The Enterprise Group’s goal is to be the leader in addressing the issues critical to growing the

tax base and creating jobs over the next five years, ensuring the economic vitality of Jackson

County communities and businesses.

The EG will accomplish this by focusing on:

Developing a county-wide site and infrastructure development plan, in conjunction

with public and private decision makers, that creates a competitive environment for new

investment.

Working with community partner organizations to address workforce preparedness

issues impacting employers’ ability to fill critical job openings.

Creating and promoting a positive image of the Jackson area as a community that

welcomes and supports business growth and investment.

The Challenge

Jackson County’s current inventory of available sites and buildings is inadequate to accommo-

date the current and future opportunities that will be seen from companies looking to expand

or relocate. Surrounding and competing communities have available inventory and are devel-

oping more, jeopardizing Jackson’s ability to compete for new projects and keep our own suc-

cessful companies and jobs when they need to expand.

People are the most important resource for any company, and the Jackson County workforce

is a primary factor in determining whether we attract new employers and retain our existing

companies. Jackson has a strong skilled and technical manufacturing workforce, but Jackson must ensure that workers across all business segments have the skills and training required for

21st century jobs and careers.

Workforce and skills issues are the challenges most often cited by businesses as they contem-

plate growth. The Enterprise Group will continue to increase its focus on workforce issues

over the next five years. The Enterprise Group will build on the partnerships that have been

established with local education and community groups in the establishment of the Jackson

Area College and Career Connection Early Middle College program (JAC3=E/MC); provide a

leadership role in the Cradle to Career initiative; and work with the Jackson Area Chamber of

Commerce to implement a targeted effort to engage Jackson County businesses in improving

workforce skills.


Page 3

The Plan

The following economic development plan is designed to attract, retain, and create jobs and

investment, and increase community prosperity by focusing on two key priorities that all com-

panies look for when they decide to relocate, grow, or start up:

People – A community with skilled and educated workforce ready to fill new openings

Place – A community with quality development‐ready sites and buildings that can accommo-

date capital investment in a timely manner

IMAGINE JACKSON 2020 has been created to further solidify Jackson County’s position

at the top by crafting an economic development program that focuses on five Strategic Initia-

tives. These strategies focus on:

Jackson County Site & Infrastructure Development

Retaining, Expanding, and Recruiting Businesses

Workforce Development and Skilled Training

Jackson County Brownfield Redevelopment

Marketing and Communications


Page 4

Strategic Initiative 1

Jackson County Site & Infrastructure Development

Create a partnership between The Enterprise Group (EG), City of Jackson, Jackson Coun-

ty, Townships and other units of local government to address challenges for short- and

long-term site development.

Develop criteria to prioritize sites for further investigation.

Investigate the feasibility of a public/private fund for preliminary engineering and environ-

mental reviews for sites meeting criteria for development.

Document costs and time needed to develop sites for “shovel readiness”.

Develop flow charts that detail steps, responsible parties, and time required to complete

site plan reviews and building permits.

Document any unique attributes or resources of sites in the system such as ultra-pure wa-

ter, etc.


Retaining, Expanding, and Recruiting Businesses Provide continued focus on existing business entities in the County through an ongoing

retention call program designed to address opportunities and threats to business growth.

Help local businesses access local, state, and federal assistance, resources and permits; and

leverage these dollars to benefit the local economy.

Continue as staff to the Economic Development Corporation of Jackson County (EDC) to

market and administer the Revolving Loan Fund to eligible retail, service, commercial and

industrial clients.

Participate in outbound and inbound prospecting events with Greater Ann Arbor Region

(GAAR), Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), and others.

Serve as the lead organization in responding to MEDC and site location Requests for In-

formation (RFIs) including proposal preparation and response, coordination of resources

from community partners and hosting of client visits.

Develop a program to meet with key Midwest economic development contacts; including

foreign consuls, site selection consultants and others, to make them aware of Jackson

County assets and EG services.

Continue to staff local government development organizations, (Jackson County Brown-

field Redevelopment Authority; The Economic Development Corporation of Jackson

County; Blackman Township Local Development Finance Authority (LDFA) and Down-

town Development Authority (DDA); and the Parma-Sandstone LDFA to provide the

technical resources to encourage business growth and achieve their development goals.


Page 5


Workforce Development and Skilled Training

Partner with the Chamber of Commerce to collaborate with local school districts and the

Jackson County Intermediate School District (JCISD) to establish a program for high

school seniors for improving the soft skills needed to be successful employees. The EG/

Chamber will convene business leaders and educators to establish a common, identifiable

metric of criteria to be used to develop and improve soft skills and commitment to work.

The program will be modeled after existing programs that have shown proven results.

Continue to support partnerships with Jackson College, Baker College, JCISD, the Jackson

Area Manufacturers Association (JAMA), all local school districts and the Jackson business

community by enhancing the Early Middle College model to include education and work

experience opportunities for identified programs/students at the Jackson Area Career

Center.

Promote the offerings of local training and education service providers including Jackson

College, Baker College, South Central Michigan Works and the Academy for Manufactur-

ing Careers, through its ongoing retention calls to over 100 local employers annually.

Continue to serve in a leadership role in the Cradle to Career K‐12 Pipeline Initiative to

ensure that business interests and concerns are represented as the Jackson community ad-

dresses the education and workforce challenges of the 21st century.


Jackson County Brownfield Redevelopment

Utilize the recently awarded $400,000 EPA Assessment Grant to continue to provide busi-

nesses a resource in the re‐use/redevelopment of underutilized sites and buildings in Jack-

son County as staff to the Jackson County Brownfield Redevelopment Authority (JCBRA). Investigate/develop a strategy for the disposition of The EG’s property holdings in the Ar-

mory Arts area, based upon the process used to successfully sell the ACME/Zoerman

Clark properties. The effort will include the development of a task force of investors, local

government, consultants and community partners.


Page 6


Marketing and Communications

Partner with the Chamber of Commerce and Experience Jackson to develop a compre-

hensive marketing and public relations strategy to promote Jackson’s positive attributes to

both internal and external audiences.

Maintain The EG website as a resource for accurate, relevant data, and timely information

about Jackson County sites and buildings; workforce and training resources; financing and

incentive programs; utilities and transportation, and links to other community assets and

partners.

Continue to focus on community outreach to provide educators, local governments, busi-

ness interests and community groups, insights into the role The EG plays in enhancing the local economy.

Utilize social media venues to distribute information and data on a timely basis to inves-

tors, community partners and business decision makers. Develop/update print and digital

marketing materials.

Serve as the recognized resource for data related to business retention, expansion and

new location decision makers. Gather and disseminate national and regional data, and pro-

vide customized local data related to the local labor market.

Pursue local, regional, and national media to highlight Jackson County businesses, success

stories, and opportunities.


Page 7

The Goals

The goals and objectives of Imagine Jackson 2020 are measurable and attainable and will set

the standard for demonstrating return on investment for the Jackson County business com-

munity. Starting in January 2016, over the following five years Imagine Jackson 2020 will

facilitate:

Creation of 1500 new direct jobs in Jackson County

An increase of consumer expenditures in Jackson County by $122.5 Million annually

A return on investment from the Private sector $24.55 to $1.00 invested

A return on investment from the Public sector $9.93 to $1.00 invested

The Cost—$2.4 Million

Retaining, Expanding & Recruiting

Site & Infrastructure Development

Workforce Development & Skilled Training

Brownfield Redevelopment

Marketing & Communications


Page 8

The Benefits

Economic Impact and Return On Investment*

New Jobs Created 1,500

New Jobs Multiply to 2,709

Jobs Multiplier 1.81

New annual output $540,627,186

New annual profits for local businesses $43,250,175

Private investment $1,762,045

Return on private investment $24.55: $1.00

Based on 8% avg. profit on $540.6 M in new annual output.

Public investment $637,955

Return on public Investment $9.93: $1.00

Based on $6.3 M in new annual property taxes.

The Enterprise Group of Jackson, Inc. contracted with National Community De-velopment Services, Inc. (NCDS), a profes-sional fundraising company, through 2016 to solicit funds for a $2.4 million fundraising initiative. The Enterprise Group is a 501(c) (6) non-charitable not-for-profit organization as recognized by the IRS. Investments in The Enterprise Group’s program may be deductible as a necessary business expense pursuant to Section 162 of the Internal Revenue Code. Please consult your tax advisor for specif-ic reporting requirements. The Enterprise Group and NCDS are reg-istered under the CHARITABLE ORGANI-ZATIONS AND SOLICITATIONS ACT 169 of 1975, State of Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, PO Box 30004, Lansing, MI. Phone: 517 373-1820.

*Analysis Source: NCDS—IMPLAN Input/

Output model for Jackson County. Available

upon request.

EG Investors


Jackson College

Jackson Community Ambulance

Jackson County

Jackson County Brownfield Redevelopment Authority

Jackson County Chamber of Commerce

JTV, Inc.

*Klavon’s Pizzeria & Pub

Lally Group, PC

Liberty Township

*Local Logic Media

Lomar Machine & Tool Company

Marcoux, Allen, Schomer, Bower, Nichols & Kendall, &

Lindsey, P.C.

Michigan Automotive Compressor, Inc. (MACI)

Michigan International Speedway (MIS)

Northstar Capital, LLC.

O’Harrow Construction Company

*Orbitform

OSB Community Bank

Parma Local Development Finance Authority

Parma Township

*Peak Manufacturing

Petty Machine & Tool, Inc.

Phil & Pat Willis

Pioneer Foundry Co., Inc.

*Richmond Brothers

R.W. Mercer Company, Inc.

*Salco Engineering & Manufacturing

Smith Group JJR

Spring Arbor University

Summit Township

*Technique, Inc.

*TransPharm Preclinical Solutions

Walton Insurance Group

*New EG Investor.

Current as of March 31, 2016

Page 9

Airmaster Fan

Allegiance Health

Alro Steel Corporation

Ann Arbor State Bank

*Arbor North Living Center

Art Moehn Chevrolet

Baker College

Blackman Charter Township

Blackman Downtown Development Authority

Blackman Local Development Finance Authority

Caster Concepts

Comerica Bank

Commonwealth Associates, Inc.

*Commonwealth Commerce Center

Consumers Energy

County National Bank

CP Federal Credit Union

Dawn Food Products

*Dickinson Wright, PLLC.

Diversified Precision Products

Economic Development Corporation of Jackson County

*ELCo Enterprises, Inc.

*Elm Plating Company

*Emmons Service, Inc.

Englewood Electrical Supply

Experience Jackson

Fifth Third Bank

First Merit Bank

Flagstar Bank

*Gerdau Special Steel N.A.

Great Lakes Industry, Inc.

Hanover Township

Industrial Steel Treating

Jackson Area Association of Realtors (JAAR)

THE EG 100 E. Michigan Avenue

Suite 1100

Jackson, Michigan 49201

www.enterprisegroup.org

517.788.4455

THE EG - Enterprise Group · munity. Starting in January 2016, over the following five years...

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