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Ponca City Development Authority WEEKLY UPDATE
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January 16, 2015
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IS IT JANUARY 16TH ALREADY???...the year is really flying by, isn't it? Time for PCDA to report in, at least on this week. Today, PCDA and our partners at OESC (aka Workforce Oklahoma) are holding a lunch meeting with several local employers on interesting and important stuff. Clear enough? We were also in Dallas last night at a reception sponsored by the Oklahoma Governor's Economic Development Team, meeting with site consultants and companies who, unfortunately for them, are in Dallas. Yesterday, we toured a couple of the state's economic development staff members through Ponca City while we were at the same time, showing the Chamber's Community Development Committee more stuff about what we are planning for workforce. There was a lot of preparation for meetings next week which we'll tell you all about next week. Meetings were held this week with five Ponca City companies, including a job fair Dorada held on Tuesday looking for people to staff their expansion. We were in the state's capitol meeting with other Oklahoma communities and the Secretary of Energy to get his thoughts on the oil markets. All in all a fast start to the year.
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UPCOMING......
Sat, Jan 17: Kaw Lake Ultimate Eagle Watch at Kaw City Community Cntr. http://on.fb.me/1sdHci5
Mon, Jan 19: Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Ponca City Schools closed in observance.
Mon. January 26th: PCDA briefs the City Commission. Good seats still available!
Thurs, Jan 29: Ponca City Chamber Banquet.
Get your tickets now in the Chamber office.
Thurs, Feb. 12: PCDA Regular Board Meeting, 7:30 am in the Chamber Conference Room.
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SITE CONSULTANTS, ODOC AND OTHER MYSTERIOUS CREATURES...you will hear us mention the term "site consultants" or Department of Commerce staffers (that's the Oklahoma Department of Commerce or ODOC) and you may be overwhelmed with a sense of wonder, or just a big "so what?" Site consultants are people who are hired by companies to either find them the best place to expand, relocate, etc. or to evaluate places for the same thing. They tend to be clustered in big cities. We go see them from time to time for two reasons. The first is that they do nothing but talk to companies about what they need. This helps us, wait for it, understand what companies need. The second thing is that by staying in front of them (and this means seeing them frequently) they have Ponca City on the mind when they get a project that is interested in non-urban areas. ODOC staff people are important because a) all lives matter; and b) ODOC is often the front door to the state. Companies who are interested in a Mid America location but do not have a specific city in mind will often call ODOC and say "What do you have?" Keeping them in the loop is important so that they are ready to say "funny you should ask..."
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SYKES BUILDING UPDATE...so let us give you an example of conversations with site consultants. We talked with a bunch of them last night and last year about the Sykes building. The almost universal response was "So Sykes moved their employees out because they could not find workforce, right? What makes silly ole PCDA think that another company won't have the same issue?" They then break into song or stern looks to tell us that companies are telling them to "Show me the workforce!" before they consider any community. As result, we do not have many lookie-lous at Sykes as we try and reimagine what else the building could be used for that would have a significant economic benefit to Ponca City. Keep in mind as well that the building is owned by a private, for-profit company that wants to sell it. While we would like them to try and sell it to someone who would offer high wage jobs, their national real estate firm, with connections everywhere, are running into the same feedback PCDA is getting. The owner, of course, has the final say on the asking price and what will happen to the building.
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This week in the world of PoncaWorks has been rather exciting! PoncaWorks Manager, Sarah, got to attend the Dorada job fair held Tuesday, January 13th, put on by the Oklahoma Workforce Office at Pioneer Technology Center. There was a great turnout for the event and we are confident Dorada got some great employees from the day! Sarah got to meet County officials and tour some County properties with her Ponca City Leadership class on Wednesday. Thursday she spoke with Newkirk seniors about job opportunities, smart college majors and job skills, and ended the week lunching and learning with a few local employers. Phew! We hope you had an exciting week as well, and as always- Ponca City has jobs. Now we just need you!
Ponca City has jobs. Now we just need you.
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In Ponca City this week......
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PCDA Staff this week.....
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Construction continues in the AIP and around town. New construction is a great sign of company investment for future growth in Ponca City. Stay tuned for new housing construction pictures from the new development on Highland.
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PCDA staff showed off the Airport Industrial Park, Log 10's new building (formerly Connie Lou) and all our other businesses in the AIP to a visiting sustainable building architect. This ductwork is so space age tech looking we just had to share.
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Ponca City Development Authority
Office Phone: 580-765-7070
Fax: 580-765-0969
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