On January 23, the Winter Haven City Commission considered a proposal from IAMC member company CSX Corp. to purchase land for a 1,250-acre intermodal logistics center. "This is an ideal location to serve the rapidly growing Florida market," said Clarence Gooden, CSX chief commercial officer. "We are committed to integrating our facility plan with Winter

CSX intermodal facility, Jacksonville, Fla.

Several of the dozens of economic development agencies that count themselves as IAMC members now have something new to count: their shares of 13 regional work force grants of $15 million each announced on Feb. 1 by U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao as part of President Bush’s Competitiveness Agenda announced in his State of the Union Address. The Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development initiative (WIRED) is geared toward long-term strategic plans for work force improvement. "We are launching the WIRED initiative to encourage regional communities to partner together and leverage their collective public and private sector assets and resources to develop a more highly skilled workforce that can act as the linchpin to attract new economic development and employers," said Secretary Chao. Among the recipients of the three-year grants are 190 counties, including 36 in Western Alabama and Eastern Mississippi. Eighteen counties in the greater Kansas City region also received a grant, which the National Association of Manufacturers attributed in part to the pilot manufacturing careers and economic development campaign called "Dream It. Do It." that NAM helped launch a year ago. Tim Cowden, senior vice president of business development for the Kansas City Area Development Council is an IAMC member.

IAMC member company Sara Lee Food & Beverage announced in late January it would invest $24 million in a 214,000-sq.-ft. distribution facility in Macon, Ga., the company’s first DC in the state. "We appreciate the assistance we have received from the State and from the Macon Economic Development Commission, which has demonstrated the many benefits that make Macon the ideal new home for Sara Lee," said Larry Rogers, vice president of integrated logistics, Sara Lee Food & Beverage. Kevin Dollhopf, vice president, real estate, for Sara Lee Bakery Group, is an IAMC member, as are Pat Topping, senior vice president of the Macon Economic Development Commission, and Chris Clark, deputy commissioner of the Georgia Dept. of Economic Development.

A collection of resources on the impact of Wal-Mart on the U.S. economy has been posted by Global Insight, the firm commissioned by the company to put together its own study for a symposium held on the topic in Washington, D.C., in November 2005. Global Insight issued a call for research papers from the academic and business community on the economic impact of Wal-Mart. The selection of studies was not dependent upon either positive or negative findings but on academic rigor, methodology, and overall quality of analysis.

IAMC member organizations Angelou Economics and the Mike Barnes Group have been hired to create a strategic economic development action plan for Orange County, Texas, as it looks to recover from Hurricane Rita through continued focus on the I-10 corridor. "Our firm is honored not only to be involved in this collaborative effort, but to be a part of laying the foundation for this resilient county," said Barnes. Bobby Fillyaw, executive director of the Orange Co. Economic Development Corp., said the fast pace of growth demands such an approach: "Many investments are being made by local and non local companies," he said. "New construction is taking place and thousands of jobs are being created. Such rapid growth can sometimes be difficult to handle. Now is the time for us to position ourselves to meet the demands of such a future and the only way to do that is with a comprehensive economic development strategic plan."

Johannson L. Yap

Johannson L. Yap, chief investment officer for IAMC member company First Industrial Realty Trust has received a 2005 Commercial Real Estate Excellence Award from the Illinois Real Estate Journal. Among Yap's achievements in 2005 was the co-direction of two joint ventures worth nearly $2 billion with the California State Teachers Retirement System. The company also saw record acquisition activity in 2005, acquiring more than 450 properties through 100 separate transactions for First Industrial and its joint ventures.

According to a report in the January 10, 2006, edition of the Indianapolis Star, IAMC member firm FedEx Corp. is looking at expanding big-time in Indianapolis, home to fellow IAMC member organization The Indy Partnership. The 5,000-worker operation there is second only to Memphis in size, and was last expanded with a $256-million investment in 1999. The way has literally been cleared for the expansion by a $170-million upgrade of I-70 that was designed in part to allow FedEx more room to operate at Indianapolis International Airport.

IAMC member company Unisys Corp. has been awarded a Dept. of Homeland Security "bridge" contract worth up to $750 million.

Sikorsky, a unit of IAMC member company United Technologies, is adding 50 engineers, logisticians and program managers to a staff of 10 at its Huntsville, Ala., technical center. The center will relocated to a 14,000-sq.-ft. facility by late summer 2006.

BASF is introducing a new worldwide teenage exchange program for its employees’ children during summer or winter vacation periods. "This year, 100 children between the ages of 14 and 19 can take part in ‘BASF Global Family," said the company in a release, whereby they will visit each other’s homes for two weeks each. BASF sites in Antwerp (Belgium), Florham Park (USA), Guaratinguetá (Brazil), Ludwigshafen (Germany), Santiago (Chile), Singapore, Shanghai (China) and Toronto (Canada), will take part in this year’s pilot phase. While the company will foot the bill for travel costs and take care of visa applications, vaccinations, health and accident insurance, and provide local support, "the families will pay for the food, accommodation, and the leisure activities of the guest."

IAMC member Jeff Adelson, development project manager for Boeing Realty Corp., was recently featured in the cover story of the company magazine depicting work that goes on across Boeing’s entire organization after the sun goes down. In this case, Adelson is pictured attending a nighttime public hearing regarding future use of Boeing property in Renton, Wash.

Thirty-year manufacturing and finance veteran John Schuetz has been hired by IAMC member organization Location Management Services as executive vice president. "John Schuetz is an international leader in tax negotiations and compliance," said Jim Renzas, company president. "We are excited to have him and he is an insightful addition to the LMS team." Schuetz began his career at Ford Motor Co., and held senior management positions at Kia Motors America and Daewoo Motor America.

IAMC member company Alcoa announced in October that its Closure Systems International unit is closing its plastic injection facility in Shreveport and investing $8 million in a consolidation expansion at its plant in Kilgore, Texas. Most of the 98 employees in Shreveport were offered positions at the Kilgore plant, located about an hour west of Shreveport.