Greenville, South Carolina Announces Record Job Additions in 2011

April 19, 2012 - PRLog -- GREENVILLE COUNTY, SC – The Greenville Area Development Corporation, charged with promoting and enhancing quality of life in Greenville County by facilitating job growth and investment, announced a record 3,092 new jobs in 2011, strong capital investment, and a 7-to-1 return in county revenues for each dollar invested at their annual Investor Appreciation luncheon Thursday.

GADC President & CEO Jerry Howard and Board Chairman Chris Riley also honored Tony Allen, senior project manager for the South Carolina Department of Commerce, with the Greenville Area Development Corporation’s eighth annual William D. Workman III Buffalo Hunter Award, presented since 2004 to an individual or organization that has had a major impact on the local economy.  Howard also recognized Larry Jackson, chairman of Jackson Marketing Group and longtime supporter and advocate of economic development in the region, who was named as Greenville County’s Economic
Development Ambassador for 2011 earlier in the week by Governor Nikki Haley.

David J. Posek, a member of the Board of Directors of the South Carolina State Ports Authority, served as keynote speaker for the event, saluting the historical job- and investment-producing accomplishments of the GADC and its partners in economic development, and stressing the continuing importance of deepening the Port of Charleston and improving other statewide infrastructure as key to continued growth.

In reporting to a standing-room-only gathering of private and public sector leaders, Mr. Riley noted that in 2011 the GADC worked with relocating and existing companies to create a record-setting 3,092 new jobs and attract new capital investment of $290.6 million.  Since inception in mid-2001, the GADC has announced in excess of 15,000 new jobs and $2.6 billion in capital investment in the county for projects they have managed.

Greenville County revenues from fee-in-lieu-of-tax (FILOT) agreements generated by GADC-assisted companies continue to grow, producing a 7:1 return on investment for public dollars invested in the organization since the GADC's inception.

Mr. Allen coordinated the efforts of the South Carolina Department of Commerce and the Governor’s Office in helping to secure the November 2011 expansion announcement by Bosch Rexroth, which created the company’s primary facility for mobile hydraulics and its largest facility in the Americas. The expansion added 160 new jobs to more than 600 already in place at the facility.  Since joining Commerce, Mr. Allen has facilitated over 20 economic development projects statewide, including local announcements for Scio Diamond Technology and Bosch Rexroth.

A graduate of the University of Toledo, Mr. Allen joined the South Carolina Department of Commerce in 2007 from the Ohio Department of Development as regional economic development representative for a nine-county region.  Prior to that, he had served as executive director of both the Fostoria (OH) Economic Development Corporation and the Waupaca (WI) County Economic Development Corporation.

As project manager at Commerce, Mr. Allen works with business clients from around the world to identify sites in South Carolina for relocation or expansion of facilities, and is an active participant in Commerce’s sales missions, trade shows, consultant referral programs and collaborative events with economic development representatives, business leaders, and state and local government representatives.  

“Throughout his professional career, Mr. Allen has gone above and beyond the call of duty in helping ensure that positive economic growth – and the hundreds of good jobs and millions of dollars in economic contribution and taxes that go with them – are situated right here in Greenville,” said Howard in making the presentation.

Past award honorees have included Nancy Whitworth, economic development director for the City of Greenville in 2010; Morgan Harrell, former Project Manager at the South Carolina Department of Commerce in 2009; Duke Energy’s grant-making AdvanceSC  in 2008; Willson “Will” Williams of the South Carolina Department of Commerce in 2007; Alan “Daniel” Young of the Department of Commerce in 2006; Dr. Wayne Bennett of the Clemson University Foundation in 2005; and Bob Marriott of the South Carolina Department of Commerce in 2004.

The award is named for former Greenville mayor and South Carolina economic development advocate Bill Workman, and has been presented annually to an individual who is a champion of economic development, and a standard bearer for public/private collaboration in marketing the Greenville community.

In other comments, GADC Vice Chair Bob Howard noted that private sector support of the organization is near an all-time high, thanking attendees from the more than 140 investor organizations now contributing to the GADC’s success.

“Without all of our investor companies, the Greenville Area Development Corporation’s ability to produce such great returns for the people of Greenville County – in quality jobs, increasing tax revenues and a robust and vital economy – would be severely restricted,” said Howard.  “Every penny our investors provide goes to our marketing budget, and every penny you invest is working hard and producing better jobs and a brighter future for our community.”

The Greenville Area Development Corporation is a non-profit organization established by Greenville County Council to promote and enhance the economic growth and development of Greenville County.  Since its founding in 2001, GADC efforts have resulted in the creation of more than 15,000 new jobs and more than $2.6 billion in capital investment in Greenville County, SC.  To learn more, visit www.goGADC.com or call (864) 235-2008.