Area Development Magazine Awards 10 States for Excellence in Economic Development

2008-06-06 23:18:29 -

- Area Development Magazine Gerri Gambale, Editor, 516-338-0900 Ext. 211 gerri@areadevelopment.com Area Development, the leading executive magazine covering site selection and relocation, today announced the winners of the 2008 Gold & Silver Shovel Awards. The State of Texas was awarded the Gold Shovel in recognition of projects undertaken in 2007 creating a significant number of high value-added new jobs as

well as investment. Silver Shovels were awarded to Arkansas, Utah, Kansas, Alabama, Indiana, Maryland, Oklahoma, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.

Area Development Magazine's Annual Shovel Awards recognize state economic development agencies that drive significant job creation through innovative policies, infrastructure improvements, processes and promotions that attract new employers and investments in expanded facilities. The Gold Shovel is presented annually to the state that has achieved the most success in terms of job creation and economic impact.

"Texas is honored to be recognized with the Gold Shovel award as a tribute to the hard work of Texas lawmakers and business leaders to build and maintain our strong economy," said Governor Rick Perry. "Our state's reasonable regulatory environment, low tax burden, and economic development incentives are powerful tools to attract the businesses and jobs that make our state one of the best places in the nation to live and work. Opening doors of opportunity and success to our citizens has been and always will be a priority in Texas."

For the Silver Shovel Awards, states were compared only to other states in their tier based on population. Ohio and Pennsylvania were winners in the over 10 million population group. Alabama, Indiana, and Maryland and Oklahoma (tied) were awarded Silver Shovels in the 3 to 10 million population category, and Arkansas, Utah, and Kansas were honored in the under 3 million population category.

Each of the 50 states was invited by Area Development magazine to submit information about their top-10 job creation and investment projects. Only those projects that began to materialize in 2007 were considered. Based on the number of high-valued added jobs per capita, amount of investment, number of new facilities, and industry diversity, Area Development awarded the Gold Shovel to the state with the highest weighted score overall.

"All economic development agencies make significant contributions to their states, but every year there are a few standouts," said Geraldine Gambale, Editor of Area Development. "These 10 states deserve special recognition."

A full review of this year's Gold and Silver Shovel Award winners will be published in the June/July issue of Area Development and posted online at www.areadevelopment.com.

Area Development is published bi-monthly and has more than 45,000 executive subscribers. It also has a very active custom publishing group and maintains several highly visited websites. They can be reached through the main address of www.areadevelopment.com.

2008 Gold & Silver Shovel Awards Celebrate Success in Job Creation
and Positive Economic Impact