Site location & economic development
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Site Location & Economic Development
The theory and practice of site location for business purposes is an ancient trade and craft. Every since man first initiated networking and trade with others the location of their prime habitats and centers of commerce has been a deeply influenced decision based upon location amentities. We built cities and villages near rivers, harbors and other natural transportation friendly amenities. We fortified our passes and agricultural areas with castles and forts. This process places a prime value on real estate that can improve the value of the inhabitants and owners. You have heard it referred to as "Location, Location, Location."
Today the economic development industry (public and quasi/public officials) are dedicated to achieving a competitive edge for their communities in this site location craft so that their constituents can prosper economically from the attraction of a new and/or expanding or relocating business enterprise. Businesses seek places for such investments where the cost of doing business is the most competitive so they can create their own competitive advantages in the global marketplace.
Businesses employ professionals many times called Site Location Consultants to perfrom complex searches for just the right location. They use measurable variables to eliminate communities and regions that are less competitive and rank those that are. Economic developers try to keep their own communities in the running by responding to such inquiries with exact information and supporting materials to demonstrate their prowess for being the finalist and prime location for consideration. Economic developers create in cooperation with the local jurisdictions and state governments, local incentives to differentiate them from other competitors. These incentives are highly sought after by businesses and can level the playing field in many cases for communities to stay in the hunt for the deal. It can also be the deciding factor in many cases for the selection of a community over others. These incentives vary from state to state and localities, but are very controversial in many cases. None the less, communities that do not respond with some form of incentives find they may not be competitive.
As the world wide web has come of age it has exponentially increased the demand for real time and relevant local information and data. There has been much progress in deploying electronic community profiles (statistical models of the socio-economic conditions of a community) and the availability of buildings and sites for rapid consideration. The communication and question and answer process as been rapidly increased due to email. All of this if done correctly can land a community the coveted "Site Visit" by the site location professionals. This face to face visit is critical to further determining if there is a good fit between a community and the prospective business. It is used to determine political support for the endeavor, factual analysis of the due diligence information provided and as an initial review of potential physical buildings and sites for further consideration. If the community passes the inspection and becomes a finalist (when it is narrowed down to just a few communities) they can expect to commence some form of negotiations for an eventual binding agreement between the business and the community if they are the chosen community.
This entire process can take 6-9 months in most cases or longer. It can start out at the global level or national level and narrow down to just one community. It is like seeking the proverbial needle in the haystack. As you can imagine the competition is enormous and rigorous modeling and decision support complex processes are used to get down to the final location.
There are several sources for further information. The International Economic Development Council, IEDC is considered the foremost leader in this information.
