Granbury-Hood County Economic Development Joey Grisham, Director Lake Granbury Area EDC 2012 Annual Economic Outlook Conference

 Population growth outpaced Texas and U.S. —Grew by 25% from while U.S. was 9.7% and Texas was 21%  Largest growth in the 55 and older cohort  Lost population in Age category  Median age is 46 in Hood County; Texas is 33.6; and U.S. is 37.2 Hood County Snapshot

 Hood County Median Household Incomes are higher: 2010 Hood County $54,882 Texas$49,646 U.S.$51,914  Hood County ranks 15 th in Texas in Per Capita Income  Hood County has 12 th highest median travel time to work-32 minutes Hood County Snapshot

 Access to 3 Class One Rail Carriers  Quality of life  Proximity to DFW  Strong growth pattern Hood County Strengths

 Loss of over half of labor force each day—takes away dollars and customers  Hood County leaks out nearly $650 million annually in retail sales  Lack of primary jobs  Lack of large available industrial sites with adequate water, sewer, and natural gas capabilities  Aging workforce (national trend) Hood County Challenges

 Fastest growing state in U.S.  Continues to be one of the hottest economies  Very Pro-Business: Right to Work State, No income tax, and competitive incentives  Adds about 500,000 new people per year  Always last state to go into recession and first to come out Texas Positive Trends

 Many of the new jobs created are lower wage  Texas ranks 35 th in college graduation rates at 4-year institutions; 33 rd in Act Avg. Composite scores  Ranks 35 th in % of citizens with Graduate or professional degree  High dropout rates and only 1 other state has a higher percentage of citizens without a high school diploma- Mississippi Texas Negative Trends

 Less focus on landing the “big one”  More focus on start-up firms and small business  More interaction with existing companies—building synergies and clusters (economies of scale)  Economic Gardening  Rifle approach vs. Shotgun approach  Regionalism  Incentives playing bigger role—creates an Economic War between states and communities Economic Development Trends

DFW-13 cities with 100,000 or more Houston has 2

 Air EVAC  STOL Aircraft Assembly plant  Working with FWWR on 3 potential projects: 1 project is $70 million; 1 is $30 million; and 1 is $10 million  Just completed target industry report  EPA/Clean Air Coalition  Airport expansion is important—5200 foot runway  Retail—Michael’s coming in March, as well as Fuzzy’s Taco, Farina’s, and Linda’s Kitchen. DQ is looking. Projects

New Weatherford College Building at Main Campus Wouldn’t it be great to see one of these in Hood County?

 Tell the World about Hood County: Aggressive marketing and targeted trade shows  Strategic planning retreat  More private sector interaction  Explore funding mechanisms—we are behind our competitors

“Everyone wants to go to heaven but no one wants to die.” Albert King Quote

Questions???