Development authority looks to hold down jobs

When Walter Sprouse gets his new project manager, he's already got work waiting: industrial retention.

The project manager vacancy at the Development Authority of Richmond County could be filled within the next two months, said Mr. Sprouse, the executive director.

"That person's priority is going to be existing industry," Mr. Sprouse said. "We've had a lot of successes. The one area that I don't feel as good about is the existing industry. We need to do more."

The Augusta metro area lost 2,200 manufacturing jobs between August 2008 and August 2009, according to the Georgia Department of Labor.

But concentrating on industrial retention is more than trying to stop the recession-led erosion.

The economic development rule of thumb is that 80 percent of a community's job growth comes from existing local businesses; the rest is from start-ups or relocation.

Richmond County isn't the only development authority with plans of injecting more energy into its retention efforts.

"One of the things we're interested in doing this fall is going around to select firms and doing a needs assessment," said Troy Post, executive director of Columbia County's development authority.

"One of the reasons for doing the needs assessment is to see red flags," he explained.

Some of those red flags would be complaints about utility costs or a lack of space.

The concern in the county now is how many jobs will remain at Greenfield, formerly known as Kennametal, which has announced that much of the Martinez plant's employment and production are headed to Clemson, S.C.

"There certainly have been many rumors about what the future of the facility will be," Mr. Post said. "We're here if they would like to call upon us. It is an excellent industrial facility and I'm hoping that there may still be a presence for that company in this area."

As work moves inside the new Knology customer service center on Wheeler Road, it represents more than just another construction project. It is an example of retention efforts gone well for county economic developers.

Knology was contemplating moving its customer service center out of Augusta.

The cable company planned for two years on an expansion of its customer service center, which was in Augusta, but could have been relocated. There were five other states in the running for the center, said Bret McCants, Knology's senior vice president of operations.

"We thought it was logical for them to do it here," Mr. Sprouse said. "Then they came in with the news that they'd bought a communications company in South Dakota. They were talking to us really hard about doing (the expansion) there. They were sincere, not trying to play us off each other. Our job was to work with them and make sure we did everything we could to make it happen."

What cinched the deal to remain in Augusta was land available next to Knology's main office and $85,000 in tax money for a sewer line to make that property viable.

"When we started this project was the time that banks were collapsing, so every bit of funding mattered. Our developer was having some funding issues. Anytime you have assistance, it makes it a lot easier," Mr. McCants said.

The center will mean 120 additional employees. It will be ready by the end of the year.

Mr. Sprouse said the development authority has tracked new jobs for Augusta through expansions by Goodwill Industries, Sitel, International Paper and Kellogg's. Combined with Knology, it represents 745 new jobs.

Local business and industry is not only the greatest source of new jobs, it is also a tool for attracting new companies.

"If you could have somebody, a customer or a supplier, next door to your plant, who would that be?" Mr. Sprouse said that is one of the questions he asks during retention visits. The party named is then called and the sales pitch made.

That's trying to use retention to be proactive on the recruitment side, but the main reason for the visits to existing companies is to make them aware of local and state benefits, such as tax credits for hiring additional people.

Georgia gives tax credits of $4,000 per job per year if a business expands by at least five people, Mr. Sprouse explained. That's a minimum of $20,000 annually.

Mr. Sprouse said the authority makes regular calls to industry to make sure its data is up to date. Tours and face-to-face meetings are more difficult to arrange because of plant managers' busy schedules.

"I'll never be satisfied with what we're doing. It is that important to us."

Reach Tim Rausch at (706) 823-3352 or timothy.rausch@augustachronicle.com.