It’s not often that the words “Fairhope” and “industry” are used together in the same sentence, but the Fairhope Economic Development Board is working hard to change that.
Board member Bob Clark has served on the board for more than 20 years and says he used to joke that the board’s job was “to keep industry out of Fairhope.” However, he insists that was never really true, noting that Rohr and other smaller companies operated in Fairhope for years. “A lot of people thought Fairhope didn’t need industry, but the Board has always worked to get the right type of industry,” he said.
According to figures provided by the Baldwin County Economic Development Alliance (BCEDA), increased efforts by the board over the past four years have resulted in 117 new jobs for Fairhope and $3.25 million in investments, including new businesses or expansions at Balloons Everywhere, Sunbelt Fire, Precision IBC, and Air, Inc.
Board member Gary Moore says the board has benefited from coaching and by studying other cities that have successfully gone after clean industry. “We’ve learned a lot about going beyond the traditional way of approaching businesses,” he said. “Potential employers look at things such as the stability of local government, the quality of education, the support they would receive from local leaders, the potential work force, affordable housing, and transportation. Companies do a lot of economic and demographic studies before deciding where to locate.”
Economic Development Board Chairman Bill Payne, who recently was named Alabama’s “Volunteer of the Year” for his work on the Industrial Board, says the City is looking for “Fairhope friendly” jobs. “We hope to attract clean, non-polluting, high tech jobs that have higher wages so people can afford to live and work here,” he said. Added Moore, “We wouldn’t mind a business with a couple of hundred employees, but we don’t want one so large that if we lost it, it would ruin the community. That’s an important consideration.”
Mayor Tim Kant says young people shouldn’t have to leave Fairhope just to get a good job. “I want to see industries here that offer good paying jobs for talented college graduates. We want Fairhope to be an attractive place for people of all ages to live, and we need good jobs to accomplish that.”
Over the past four years, the Board has developed a list of guiding principles and strategic goals as well as a mission statement that seeks to facilitate, in part, “environmentally sound economic diversification.”
The Board has established a volunteer team of local experts who can speak knowledgeably about Fairhope’s assets and is working closely with other entities, such as the Airport Board. “Having a quality airport is a great attraction for a corporate headquarters,” said Clark. “Imagine an executive being able to fly in on the corporate jet and then get to the office or home in five minutes.”
Recently, with the help of the BCEDA, an area near the airport was designated as a General Purpose Foreign-Trade Zone (FTZ). U.S.-based businesses located within an FTZ can save on duties and tariffs and thereby enhance their competitiveness in the world market. The designation includes a total of 1,139 acres in Baldwin County.
In addition to Payne, Clark, and Moore, the Fairhope Economic Development Board also includes Lonnie Pardue, Louis Mapp, Rusty Winfree, and Charlie Bassett.
For additional information, call 990-4748.
