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2006 News
The following articles represent SLCEC news coverage.
The articles appear by date in order of most recently published.
 
 
10.00.06 Irish Food Maker to Buy Former Nestle Affton Plant
10.27.06 NorthPark Breaks Ground on $15 Million Vatterott Project
09.26.06 GM Parts Facility Gets a New Life
05.21.06 St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley Rolls Out New Program to Promote Joint Economic Development
05.18.06 Leezer leads new municipal collaborative
 

From the St. Louis Business Journal - 4:09 PM CDT Thursday

Irish food maker to buy former Nestle Affton plant

Ireland's Kerry Group plc said Thursday that it plans to spend $10 million to buy and upgrade the former Nestle facility in Affton, Mo.

In a release, the food and food ingredient manufacturer said it plans to install new equipment and upgrade the facility, which is on New Hampshire Avenue in Affton.

Nestle USA announced in March 2005 that it would close three of its St. Louis-area candy plants, including the Affton facilities.

Tax incentives and permitting assistance provided by St. Louis County and negotiated by the St. Louis County Economic Council (SLCEC) helped the company to set up the manufacturing site in Affton, adding 40 jobs and increasing tax revenue, according to a SLCEC release.

The Kerry Group chose St. Louis County after a nationwide site search. SLCEC collaborated with the St. Louis Regional Chamber & Growth Association (RCGA) and a Chicago consulting firm to attract the Kerry Group.

Kerry Group supplies more than 10,000 food, food ingredients and flavor products to customers in more than 140 countries worldwide.

In April, Kerry bought St. Louis-based Custom Industries, a specialty food ingredient maker, from Royal Cosun of the Netherlands. The buy included production facilities in Ste. Genevive, Mo., and Toronto, Ontario.

The St. Louis County Economic Council offers business development, financing programs, business incubator opportunities, real estate and community development programs, and international expertise through the World Trade Center St. Louis.

From the St. Louis Business Journal - October 27, 2006

NorthPark breaks ground on $15 million Vatterott project
by Lisa R. Brown

Construction is under way at Vatterott College's new $15 million facility in NorthPark. The building is the first to occupy the 550-acre NorthPark development in North St. Louis County that is planned to include nearly 5 million square feet of office, commercial retail and industrial space by 2020.

Vatterott announced earlier this month that it planned to move to NorthPark.

Paric Corp. is the general contractor on Vatterott College's 90,000-square-foot two-story building that replaces a campus in St. Ann. The NorthPark building will house Vatterott College's national headquarters and trades programs, including HVAC, welding, plumbing and electrical, IT/computing and allied health.

Construction is scheduled to be completed by October 2007. NorthPark is located just east of Lambert-St. Louis International Airport and is located in Berkeley, Kinloch and Ferguson.

O'Fallon, Mo.-based Paric Corp. is one of the largest privately held companies in St. Louis with 2004 revenue of $221.7 million.

From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Tuesday, September 26, 2006

GM Parts Facility Gets a New Life
By Christopher Boyce

Duke Realty Corp. said Monday that it has started demolishing the former General Motors Corp. parts facility in Hazelwood to build a 528,000-square-foot industrial distribution center.

Indianapolis-based Duke bought the 25-acre site for $5 million in April from GM, which closed the facility in May.

Construction on the new $30 million building at 5801 North Lindbergh Boulevard is expected to be complete by June 2007, said Jon Hinds, vice president of industrial leasing for Duke.

Hinds said the building could be divided among four tenants but is more likely to attract one or two. The project is being developed without tenants signed, but Hinds said some inquiries from companies have begun.

The one-story building will feature a 32-foot ceiling, trailer docks on two sides of the building and parking for 70 trailers and 160 cars. Hinds said Duke will adjust specifications for trailer docks and other needs per client request.

Hinds was unconcerned about developing the building on a speculative basis, because he said there are no other facilities of the same scale being developed to create competition.

North St. Louis County, he said, "has traditionally been the hub for distribution in the St. Louis metro area," Hinds said. "There are very few Class A modern facilities."

While the Gateway Commerce Center in Madison County has become a popular local choice for distribution centers, Hinds said companies would be attracted to Missouri to draw from its large employee base.

But what may be more important is the location and flexibility of the new facility, said Ik-whan Kwon, director of the Consortium for Supply Chain Management Studies at the Cook School of Business at St. Louis University.

Kwon said the demand exists for a large distribution center as long as it has easy access to interstate highways and adaptability for information technology needs.

The Duke facility is about a mile south of Interstate 270.

"Logistics costs are increasing rapidly due to truck driver shortages and gas prices increasing, so companies are looking for the best locations," said Kwon.

Hinds said Duke has also been keeping watch on the Ford facility in Hazelwood, as are many developers, since it closed in March. Like those developers, Hinds said Duke is waiting to hear what Ford will do with the plant.

cboyce@post-dispatch.com | 314-340-8345

From St. Louis Front Page, Sunday, May 21,2006

St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley Rolls Out New Program
to Promote Joint Economic Development

ST. LOUIS, (SLFP.com), May 19, 2006 - St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley has announced the formation of the St. Louis County Economic Development Collaborative.

At a press conference, following the 2006 Annual Meeting of the St. Louis County Economic Council (SLCEC) at the Ritz in Clayton, Dooley outlined how the St. Louis County Economic Development Collaborative will improve communication and cooperation among the county's 91 municipalities and unincorporated areas. Dooley said the new program will lead to enhanced job attraction, retention, creation and expansion.

"This collaborative will create a unified strategic vision that respects the individual communities, yet enhances the county as well," said Dooley. "It's a forward-thinking effort dedicated to improving the quality of life for everyone who works or lives in the county, and we need input and collaboration from all our municipalities and communities to achieve that goal."

Leezer, formerly with St. Charles County, plans to meet with municipal and chamber leadership in St. Louis County to introduce the Collaborative during the first 90 days of his tenure, which began May 15. He will work to market the major assets of St. Louis County, including those within and created by municipalities, and establish regular communications among the County and the municipalities on economic development opportunities and activities.

Leezer stated, "This collaborative's strategic plan will be based on each leader's input. My goal in meeting with each leader individually is to gain the perspective of each community and help mold that into a winning plan for the entire county."

Earlier at the breakfast meeting in the ballroom, Dooley told a packed house in the ballroom that he was pleased to report that the news is very, very good. "It is fair to say that in St. Louis County, business is booming," he said proudly. "It's a team effort to provide quality service in St. Louis County. We are all about customer satisfaction. There are innumerable facts and figures that support our contention that St. Louis County is as business-friendly as any county in the United States," stated Dooley.

Among the highlights presented in the meeting:

  • St. Louis County is fifth among American suburban counties in number of jobs;
  • The county is ninth among American suburban counties in annual payroll;
  • More than $2 billion was invested in St. Louis County in 2005;
  • Over 25,000 jobs were attracted or retained in the county;
  • St. Louis County accounts for nearly a quarter of the entire state of Missouri's sales tax revenue and one-third of the state's household income tax revenue; and
  • The number of new businesses started in St. Louis County totaled 2,600, more than 1,000 more than the next closest county.

At the meeting, several local businesses were presented with awards for their dedication to St. Louis County economic development including:

  • Outstanding Entrepreneur: Suzanne Magee Joyce, CEO of TechGuard Security;
  • Dr. William D. Phillips Technology Advancement Award: Robert J. Calcaterra, president and CEO of Nidus Center for Scientific Advancement;
  • Business Expansion Award: Express Scripts, with new corporate headquarters on the campus of University of Missouri-St. Louis;
  • Buzz Westfall Regional Cooperation Award: NorthPark Partners, consisting of Clayco, McEagle and TRiSTAR, set to create the largest reinvestment project in St. Louis County history; and
  • Community Partnership Award: Pinnacle Entertainment, building the $375 million River City casino, hotel and entertainment complex in Lemay.

"The St. Louis County Economic Council is successful because of the entrepreneurial spirit in St. Louis County," said SLCEC President and CEO Denny Coleman. "From the leadership of County Executive Charlie Dooley, through each staff person at the Economic Council, we work every day to enhance the quality of life for everyone who lives and works in St. Louis County, especially through strong leadership and economic development."

http://www.slfp.com/stl-news.htm

From the May 18, 2006 print edition of the St. Louis Business Journal

Leezer leads new municipal collaborative

The formation of the St. Louis County Economic Development Collaborative was announced Thursday by St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley. David Leezer, the former director of business development for St. Charles County, was named to lead the new group.

The new collaborative is funded by $100,000 in seed money, according to a release.

The St. Louis County Economic Development Collaborative will bring together the mayors of all county municipalities, as well as the leaders of all chambers representing areas of unincorporated St. Louis County, to enhance and promote the county's economic development dominance in the region and state.

Leezer plans to meet with municipal and chamber leadership in St. Louis County to introduce the collaborative during the first 90 days of his tenure, according to a release.

Leezer said in a statement, "This collaborative's strategic plan will be based on each leader's input. My goal in meeting with each leader individually is to gain the perspective of each community and help mold that into a winning plan for the entire county."

Dooley and Leezer expect the first meeting of the collaborative to take place as soon as possible after Leezer meets individually with each mayor and chamber leader. Leezer officially began work at the SLCEC May 15.

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