HUNTINGTON -- It's been a busy month for the Huntington Area Development Council.
The organization's accreditation from the International Economic Development Council was renewed, it is remodeling and expanding its offices, and recently made a couple big announcements.
One is that 10 local banks have agreed to double its loan pool to $20 million, and the second is that it's planning construction of its fifth and largest shell building to attract a new business to Huntington.
Accreditation renewal is required every four years.
"We're one of 27 in the entire nation (certified by the international council)," HADCO President Jerry McDonald said. "We received recertification based on their review of our programs, our success and commitment by the private sector."
HADCO has three paid employees and a volunteer executive committee, and is largely funded through the private sector. It has helped bring more than 11,000 new jobs and 38 new companies to the Tri-State since its inception in 1992, the council reports. It has leased, sold or built upward of 3.6 million square feet of space, McDonald said.
The past few years have been exciting, highlighting some of the ways that bringing jobs to the Tri-State has changed since the early '90s, he said.
"Early on, I couldn't spell the word 'biotechnology,' and the second word I couldn't spell was 'globalization,' " he said. "I know how to spell them now because our new economy is going to be directly affected by both of these things."
In some ways, it already is.
HADCO has joined with Marshall University in forming the Biotechnology Alliance to encourage biotechnology research and turning discoveries into commercial enterprises. Three have already have come to fruition -- Vandalia Research Corp., Progenesis Technologies and MIST.
When it comes to attracting new companies, nationally and internationally, HADCO has become increasingly aggressive. One technique it's using is constructing shell buildings -- new, vacant buildings that ease the startup for businesses that locate here.
"Over 85 percent of the companies we see want to be in production very quickly," McDonald said. "Having these is a tremendous marketing tool for us. Within a four-month period, once a shell building is complete, they can be up and running. Time is money to companies, and this allows them to get into production very quickly."
McDonald announced the construction of the fifth shell building that HADCO has been involved with. It will be along Frazier Lane off W.Va. 2, east of Huntington, and will have 100,000 square feet, the largest shell building constructed to date. The $1.7 million structure is being constructed with funds from HADCO's loan pool, used to finance the capital needs of companies that are considering new facilities in the Huntington area.
Four other shell buildings in Cabell and Wayne counties are now home to plants for Harbor Steel, based in Michigan; Allevard Springs of France; Okuno International of Japan; and Caprewest Inc. of Spain.
HADCO has proposed a sixth shell building near Tri-State Airport, and the airport authority gave HADCO permission to move forward with the early steps of planning.
That building would be 25,000 to 30,000 square feet. A likely candidate to inhabit it might be involved with reverse logistics, an industry that involves the movement and management of products and resources after a sale and delivery to the customer. It includes product returns for repair and/or credit, and has been a successful business in the Louisville, Ky., area, McDonald said.
"We have some people looking at the 100,000-square-foot facility and some people looking at the airport facility," McDonald said. "Nothing is signed and sealed as of today."
Putting up the shells is an aggressive program, said David Graley, chairman of the HADCO executive committee for the past three years. Folks are willing to pay the money up front without guaranteed results.
"That's betting on the future of Huntington and the Huntington area," Graley said. "Given the dedication of the executive committee and the community as a whole and the excellent workforce we have, HADCO does not consider those to be speculative at all. We will fill them with local area companies expanding or new companies to the area."
Graley, Huntington area president at J.P.Morgan Chase Bank, said one of HADCO's biggest accomplishments over the past 15 years has been giving the community focus.
"Huntington had lost thousands and thousands of jobs, and the community came back and said, 'We need focus,' " he said.
"Over the years, HADCO has helped bring thousands of jobs to the Cabell and Wayne county areas," he said. "I've never been on any entity that (the board or executive committee) has been so dedicated. It's been more rewarding for most of us than almost anything we've been involved with. There's no feeling in the world like seeing someone who's able to provide for their family, have health care and benefits and a chance to stay home."
Two blessings of the group, McDonald said, are that they have a small, focused staff of just three and that it's run through the private sector, rather than government.
The small staff consists of McDonald, Marketing Director Sharon Shaw and Administrative Assistant Donna Vineyard. They've all been with the organization for years, and can focus on the mission of creating jobs rather than distractions involved with managing a larger staff, McDonald said.
"I call them nimble and stealthy," Graley said. "They are outstanding. They each know their jobs and are outstanding at what they do and have been there almost since the inception of HADCO."
McDonald, who is from Washington, D.C., was brought in for the job in 1993 from Dutchess County, N.Y., and has an extensive background in economic development in other parts of the country. The region has been fortunate to have him, Graley said.
Being driven by the private sector, rather than government, has helped HADCO maintain flexibility and avoid the complications of red tape, McDonald said.
Graley agreed, but added there's the benefit that the private sector, by nature, demands results. HADCO gets a lot of support from Cabell and Wayne counties, but the private sector really makes things happen.
"The private sector brings more than flexibility," Graley said. "The private sector also demands results for its investments. You can look around the table of our group and see that it's private sector and it's sort of the 'Who's Who' of business in Huntington, in a sense, and they demand a return on their investment. And the return we expect is jobs."
HADCO is efficient and remains focused on its primary mission of getting jobs and does not worry about fiscal restraints and budgets, he said.
"We all love it," he said. "It's a neat organization to look around the table and see that everyone there, they only have the community's best interest at heart. There's no self dealing. There's no conflict around the table. There's lively discussion, but no conflict because we're all focused on the same result -- our top 10 goals: Jobs, jobs, jobs ..."
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Recognition for HADCO
The Huntington Area Development Council is accredited by the International Economic Development Council, making it the only fully accredited agency in the state and one of 27 nationally, President Jerry McDonald says.
In 2006, HADCO was recognized by the Southern Economic Development Council, which represents 17 states, as the top economic development organization in the South among cities with populations between 40,000 and 100,000.
McDonald was recognized by The Herald-Dispatch as the 2000 Business Innovator of the Year.
HADCO has received numerous awards from the state and international development councils for the design of its marketing materials and Web site.
