Chamber Directions highlight region’s outlook

The Chamber’s 2016 Directions event covered various topics about the state of the northern Nevada’s economy with the main points of discussion being business growth, outdated infrastructure, revitalizing Downtown Reno, and retaining highly skilled workers.

News anchor for KRNV Joe Hart was the emcee of the event held at the Grand Sierra Resort Thursday and it began with a welcome from chairman of The Chamber Danny DeLaRosa.

“People are excited about coming here and they will be coming here, and when they land here we want to make sure there is an opportunity for them,” DeLaRosa said of potential businesses considering moving to the region. “Attracting and retaining talent, expanding economic opportunity and creating a robust culture of civic engagement are the key drivers for our overall success.”

Dr. Elliot Parker of the University of Nevada presented first during the event and broke down the numbers of northern Nevada’s economy when compared to the Silver State, the nation, and the global economy.

Parker said since 2010, Nevada added more than 140,000 jobs across the state. Nevada’s economy is still being driven by leisure and hospitality followed by professional services and retail. Manufacturing in Nevada is relatively small compared to other job sectors, and the mining industry accounts for a very small slice of Nevada’s workforce.

Taxable retail sales have declined significantly across the state and even more so in Washoe County. However, Parker says that to summarize all of the data he presented at the Directions presentation, the state is going in a good direction.

“Our past engines of growth have petered out and it’s a mistake to think they are going to come back,” Parker said. “Its also a mistake to hope for a miracle engine of growth that pulls Nevada ahead. We need to keep educating our young people and try not to make the same mistakes from the past.”

Parker added that with the construction of the Tesla’s gigafactory ahead of schedule and other firms moving into town, local governments are estimating that the region is going to need 17,000 more households over the next five years in order to keep up with business development.

The Tahoe Reno Industrial Center, was also discussed during the presentation as a large trade area that will help Nevada’s economic future.

Switch, the developer of SUPERNAP data centers is building a 6.4 million square foot fiber optic network connecting Reno, Las Vegas, San Francisco and Los Angeles in what the company is calling a superlooop. Switch is estimated to bring in $3 billion of investment and 400 plus jobs into the region.

Lance Gilman, principal and director of TRIC praised firms like Switch and Tesla for operating in northern Nevada and says that Nevadans are only seeing the tip of the iceberg.

“Tesla and Switch will generate a half billion dollars in payroll alone,” Gilman said. “We have approved 20 new business licenses at the center and Panasonic is already building batteries there.”

The various speakers at the Directions event showed optimism and enthusiasm for the economic future of northern Nevada but also spoke about areas that still need to be improved.

The Chamber collected responses via Twitter using #blueprint to learn about the top concerns of attendees at the event. One of the most discussed tweets sent out was about outdated infrastructure like roads, hospitals, but especially area schools.

Overcrowding, cracks in walls, the need to replace fire alarms and deteriorating plumbing are among the problems facing northern Nevada schools. Currently, there are no plans to build any new schools in 2016 and there hasn’t been a new one built since 2008. Projections estimate that there will be 10,765 new students by 2024 in Washoe County, which will require at least $781 million in funding.

“Lets have a fresh start and renew our communities,” said Shaun Carey, chairman of the Public Schools Overcrowding and Repair Needs Committee for The Chamber. “15 new schools are needed at each level at least to even be competitive.”

Carey added that the burden of building schools and renovating and updating existing school buildings is in the community’s pocket book and not the government’s. Students need the community to provide decent classrooms because they can’t help themselves.

The event ended with Daniel Witt, business and policies manager for Tesla. Witt presented that 17 percent of planned construction for Tesla’s battery factory has been completed which is ahead of schedule. The factory has already hired 270 people to date with 50 of them coming from Nevada System of Higher Education institutions.

The company plans to produce its first cell/batteries by the beginning of next year. He also unveiled that Tesla will install all of the remaining charging stations this year along Highway 95 so Tesla owners can drive from Reno to Las Vegas.

“The community leaders, local municipal government leaders, the state government leaders have already done a great deal in order to see the great economic resuscitations that is underway here,” Witt said. “We’re seeing the tremendous potential for Tesla’s growth and it’s starting right now. But really the best is yet to come.”