LEXINGTON ó Site Selection magazine has named the Davidson County Economic Development Commission one of the top 10 economic development groups in the U.S. This is the second time in four years the EDC has attained this ranking. The Davidson County EDC was recognized May 2 at an awards ceremony at the Industrial Asset Management Council conference in Albuquerque, N.M.
ěIf overcoming adversity is the path to success in economic development, then the top groups of 2010 wrote the book on it,î said Ron Starner, general manager of Site Selection. ěThe top-performing economic development organizations in the U.S. rose to the challenge, and more, last year. What these groups have in common is a commitment to the long, arduous task of pursuing the fundamentals of sound economic development, and they are willing to invest considerable resources to get the job done.î
ěThis recognition confirms our performance-based effort and addresses our ability to leverage our assets to attract jobs and capital investment to Davidson County,î said Steve Googe, executive director of the Davidson County EDC. ěIt further demonstrates that the County is striving to create a business friendly location with a great workforce and leaders committed to providing jobs for the citizens of the Countyî.
The rankings are based on four objective criteria: new jobs, new jobs per 10,000 residents, new investment amount and new investment per 10,000 residents; and subjective attributes such as innovation, leadership and customer service.
Among the Top 10 economic development groups, two groups were from North Carolina, the Davidson County EDC and the Charlotte Partnership/Charlotte Chamber.
In March, Site Selection also ranked the Thomasville-Lexington Micropolitan No. 1 in the country in a list detailing the top Micropolitan areas in the U.S. for new and expanded corporate facilities in 2010.
The entire list of Top Groups appears in the May edition of Site Selection and at www.siteselection.com.