Economic agencies boom

"I'm so overwhelmed I can't find anything on my desk," says Ron Weisinger.

"And I'm thrilled about it."

Like other economic development executives in northern Nevada,Weisinger executive director of the Northern Nevada Development Authority is scrambling to keep up with a flood of inquiries from companies interested in moving to the region.

The Carson City-based NNDA is working with about twice as many companies as usual.

The Nevada Commission on Economic Development this week is scheduled to hear requests from at least six companies applying for incentives to locate facilities in the state.

That's about double the usual number and may be a record.

The Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada in Reno estimates its work has created $152 million in new economic activity in the region since June a figure that compares with $132 million in the entirety of its previous fiscal year.

(That figure includes expansion of existing companies as well as new arrivals.) Much of the activity results from the well-documented interest from California companies eager to leave the Golden State many of them because of the effects of sharp increases in workers' compensation rates.

"Workers comp over there is a huge issue," says Stan Thomas, manager of economic development for Sierra Pacific Power.

"It cuts directly into the bottom line."

Then, too,Thomas says companies from elsewhere in the nation that want a West Coast presence have been scared away from California and instead look at northern Nevada for new factories or distribution centers.

At the same time, the improving national economy encourages firms throughout the United States to launch expansion plans.

"It's predominately California, but not exclusively California," says Chuck Alvey, president and chief executive officer of EDAWN.

Economic development officials caution, however, that some of the deals they're pursuing may take 24 to 36 months to come to fruition.

Corporate relocations that occur more quickly taking six months or so are rare.

Weisinger, working with some prospects who might move to the area as late as 2006, says the long sales cycle requires plenty of attention from economic developers.

"You don't just leave them alone," he says.

"You stay in touch.

You send them articles they might find interesting.

You follow up with a phone call.

You create a personal relationship."

Part of the effort, too, attempts to sort out the prospects that are real from those who are just kicking the tires.

Says Alvey, "I sense there are a lot more serious prospects lately." One indication, he says, comes when companies begin investing the time and money to apply for state incentives.

Another indication, he says, comes when they bring planeloads of top executives to visit the region.

Staffs of economic development agencies have scrambled to keep up.

In the past couple of weeks, Alvey says, four major prospects have conducted indepth meetings with EDAWN's staff.

"There were meetings going on everywhere," he says.

Thomas, meanwhile, says the economic development staff at Sierra Pacific Power would be sinking under the workload if not for the cooperation of EDAWN, NNDA and Commission on Economic Development.

"We are so grateful to have a great working relationship with the development authorities," he says.

The staff of the Commission on Economic Development has been working long days including some weekends to stay on top of the requests from relocating companies.

"But you do what you do," says Tim Rubald, its director of business development, "You do it because you like it."