Greetings! I hope everyone had a great holiday season and you are looking forward to a prosperous 2015.
Last year there was a great deal of positive momentum and clear signs of a rebound as the region took steps to reinvent Flint & Genesee.
Business retention/expansion and attraction is on the upswing with success stories such as:
- Downtown Flint Health and Wellness District, a $30 million investment that includes:
- The expanded Farmers’ Market, MSU College of Human Medicine facility and the Genesys PACE Center, representing 130 new jobs.
- The 180,000 sq. ft. American SpiralWeld Pipe manufacturing facility where the pipeline for KWA will be made. The company invested $14 million and created 60 new jobs.
- Karegnondi Water Authority 67-mile pipeline is under construction. This is a $267 million investment with 1,100 jobs at peak.
- GM Flint Assembly and Flint Engine plants expanded their facilities investing $800 million combined, and 150 new jobs.
In 2014 we experienced an increase in employment, and there are more opportunities including over 1,800 jobs currently posted in MiTalent.org by employers located within 25 miles of Flint. The positions range from entry level to high paying/skilled. With more workers entering the labor market, Genesee County’s 2014 unemployment rate dropped to 5.7 percent in November.
As we work to position Flint & Genesee as a destination, there’s good news regarding tourism. Overall hotel revenue was up 3 percent year-to-date through November. In the past two months the CVB booked additional business for 2014-2015 that will generate nearly 1,500 room nights.
Key fundamentals are in place for continued economic growth in in 2015 for both the state and Flint & Genesee. Jobs, gas prices, and auto sales are all good news for our region.
Working together, we can keep the positive momentum going!
Tim