DEPARTMENT: Economic Development
DEPARTMENT HEAD: Alejandra Lopez
COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: City-wide
SUBJECT:
Update on the San Antonio Economic Development Foundation (SAEDF) 2019 Business Plan and the process and preliminary findings of the 2020 regional economic development strategic plan.
SUMMARY:
SAEDF President and CEO, Jenna Saucedo-Herrera, will provide a briefing on the 2019 SAEDF Business Plan and the process and preliminary findings of the 2020 regional economic development strategic plan.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
The City’s economic development policy decisions are largely driven by the Jobs and Economic Competitiveness section of the SA Tomorrow Comprehensive Plan. The Economic Development Department (EDD) partners with local organizations and administers incentive programs to carry out the goals of SA Tomorrow in the areas of global target industry recruitment; industry retention and expansion; and entrepreneurial and workforce development. The SAEDF Economic Development Services Agreement was developed in partnership with the City to secure 21st-century high-wage jobs through leveraging existing competitive advantages and creating public/private alignment towards this long-term goal. The partnership between the City and SAEDF is guided by the Forefront SA Action Plan (Forefront SA), which is the five-year strategic plan for economic development that SAEDF leads.
SAEDF is currently engaged in an update to the Forefront San Antonio Strategic Plan that was adopted in 2015 and active until 2020. SAEDF has contracted Market St., an economic development consultancy, to develop a new regional economic development strategic plan. The 5-phase planning process began in May 2019 and will extend through December 2019. The City’s annual investment in economic development services will described in the SAEDF “business plan,” which will enact tactics congruent with the new 3-5 year strategic plan. Both will be brought before for City Council consideration in January/February 2020.
Since 2017, SAEDF has secured 54 projects resulting in 15,062 jobs and more than $1B in new capital investment. In the same timeframe, SAEDF has provided assistance to 207 companies for business retention and expansion efforts and coordinated more than 14,000 work-based learning opportunities.
ALTERNATIVES:
This is a briefing item only.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is a briefing item only.
RECOMMENDATION:
There is a briefing item only and requires no action.