The Board of County Commissioners of Brevard County, Florida, met in workshop session with the Economic Development Council (EDC) on July 18, 1995, at 3:35 p.m. in the Government Center Multipurpose Room, 2725 St. Johns Street, Melbourne, Florida. Present were: Chairman Nancy Higgs, Commissioners Truman Scarborough, Randy O'Brien, Mark Cook, and Scott Ellis, County Manager Tom Jenkins, and County Attorney Scott Knox.

Members of the Economic Development Council present were: Executive Director Lynda Weatherman, Dan Johnson and Gary Cunningham.

DISCUSSION, RE: ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ISSUES

Chairman Higgs advised there are a number of people who would like to speak; and unless the Board objects, there may be time to allow speakers. Commissioner Cook stated if there is time the Board should allow them to speak. Chairman Higgs advised the EDC would like about 25 minutes for its presentation.

Dan Johnson, Past President of Economic Development Council, advised with the prime contractor layoffs, there will be a loss of about 3,000 jobs, and that does not cover the approximately 100 people who were laid off by Florida Power & Light Company which is down sizing and will be even smaller next year. He advised EDC staff spends about 50% of its time on new business relocation and 50% on existing businesses, helping them to expand and do better; and explained the prospects activities chart as a result of a focused effort. He stated they targeted South Florida and called medium size businesses to see if they wanted to relocate in Brevard County; they attended trade shows and worked with the people; the targeted marketing has been successful; and people know where and who to contact. He stated he has sung the praises of Brevard County at a lot of meetings he attended that it is business friendly and provides for industrial revenue bonds, reduced impact fees, tax abatement, NASA, technology transfers, etc.; he received Friday a lead for business that wants to relocate about 370 jobs; and when he got that lead, he knew where to go, to Lynda Weatherman and not two or three organizations. He stated it is very focused; she will respond to the customer in a timely fashion and Brevard County will have a good chance of winning that business. Mr. Johnson advised overall the economy has improved; they have a focused effort; and they have brought in ten companies with 102 initial jobs which are here and paying taxes.

EDC Executive Director Lynda Weatherman advised of the economic significance of the 102 jobs based on the Bureau of Economics Florida Department of Commerce multipliers, noting ten employees per company, for every dollar invested by Brevard County from the $175,000, came $38 income impact return to the economy through wages; and economic impact of relocation based on multiplier of 1.5, 6.6 million dollars based on the 102 initial jobs. She advised of prospects who did site tours, verbal commitments from companies to the area, and tax impact for every 100 jobs of $245,000 increase in tax revenue of an area. She stated it is competitive to get company relocation; and 50% of their work is helping existing companies which questions are as varied as the type of companies they are. She noted existing business assistance is not as glamorous and harder to measure.

Mr. Johnson advised from April, 1994, 4,400 jobs were created in the County; they are not claiming to have touched all those people or companies that hired them, but they touched a lot of people and organizations. He stated they do a variety of services for existing businesses such as giving technical data, helping them with industrial revenue bonds, small business loans, NASA Outreach, international trade, etc.; and it averages about 80 different people a day looking for information which Ms. Weatherman has been responsive to. He stated it did not start this year; it started in 1992; it does not happen overnight; but they are being successful with those activities. Mr. Johnson advised other counties range from $1.96 to 34 cents per capita spent on economic development; Brevard County spends 41 cents per capita which is meager; and its neighbors are well funded, but they have been successful in getting a good return on the County's investment.

Ms. Weatherman advised EDC is happening in 67 counties in the State of Florida; a traditional economic development budget is also funded by cities which they do not have at this time; and it puts them at a disadvantage because competition is severe, but they are doing a lot with less. She stated they looked at options for funding; one is the General Fund which has been doing it in the past; the other is occupational license tax reform bill passed in 1994 which says counties may dedicate all or part of the portion of the license tax for overseeing and implementing a comprehensive economic development strategy for advertising, promotional activities and other marketing techniques; and suggested the County use money it collects from businesses for business development. She stated they did an analysis based on assumptions; 9,000 licenses in the unincorporated areas at $28.00 each would give $252,000; they requested $250,000; the majority of occupational licenses is about $30.00, and some companies will have a decrease; and to be more competitive and aggressive, and to do more with marketing techniques takes funding. She stated they can use joint venturing with Department of Commerce; a lot of trade shows reflect the County's industrial base; and they have been able to participate in a few, but very few because of the funding situation. Ms. Weatherman advised $56 per license would give $504,000, $39 would give $351,000 and $28 would give $252,000; with those funds they could help existing industrial programs, purchase marketing materials to enhance the industrial capabilities of the area and the quality of life which is a major decision maker for companies considering relocation, marketing outreach to let people know Brevard County is here and has adequately trained labor base, is cost effective, has competitive utility rates, select advertising in travel and stop, etc; and they would be able to have communications with the 1,000 companies the State gave her. She stated the $250,000 is $75,000 above what the Board is funding now; it could result in 285 direct jobs; $350,000 could result in 400 direct jobs and $500,000 could result in 575 direct jobs; and she has a list of Florida Economic Development Councils which she will share with the Board. She stated the County has everything it takes to prosper; it has an atmosphere to employ people let go by McDonnell Douglas and Harris; but it does not just happen because other counties with less attributes are out there selling aggressively.

Mr. Johnson advised the $175,000 is base money they use to operate; that is what they built on for the $140,000 from the private sector and $30,000 in-kind which almost matches that $175,000; Ms. Weatherman applied for an $800,000 block grant to help deal with defense industry downsizing; he is a $10,000 member to the EDC and would not do it if it was not effective. He stated 900 jobs, $23,000,000 payroll, and increase in taxes of $245,000 compare well with other EDC's; the County gets a lot of value for the money; and they are not looking for a handout, but for a partnership between the public and private sectors. Mr. Johnson advised the inquiry he received Friday has a potential of 370 jobs; they want to know about state financial and training packages, skilled labor, competitive labor rates, industrial revenue bonds, grants, etc.; and he knows Ms. Weatherman will respond. He stated EDC is on a roll, and it would be good if the County will continue funding it or increasing the funding and be a major player.

Commissioner Ellis advised Sarasota and Manatee Counties have disaster impact fees; they can spend a ton of money bringing businesses into their Counties, but when they find out what the fees are going to be, they are taking a tremendous hit; and in Brevard County, the County is taking a large hit by dropping impact fees which is a valuable selling point. He stated the Board also provided the ad valorem tax abatement program which will also be a hit; and the presentation missed the positive side of what the Board has done to encourage people to come here. Commissioner Ellis stated the charts show the EDC funding, but it does not have the expenditures; the Chambers say they support EDC, but they take money from it; and if the Chambers supported the EDC, they should be putting money into it instead of taking money out.

Ms. Weatherman advised the impact fees make a difference and provides a good situation, and she agrees with the statement about Chambers. She stated when she became the Executive Director, she looked at cost effectiveness, how money was being spent, and the Chambers' contracts; and they made a presentation to the Cocoa Beach Area Chamber of Commerce which adopted a resolution to support EDC and not receive money from it, so that contract has ceased. She advised Melbourne Chamber will have discussions on it and will look at it seriously; so they have taken a major step in resolving that issue. She stated the Chambers have a role in economic development and there is a lot of work to go around.

Gary Cunningham, 935 John Rodes Boulevard, West Melbourne, advised the Chambers stopped taking membership dollars in order to unite; he has no problem with Commissioner O'Brien's assessment about the office costs; but the assessment that the job is not getting done is totally erroneous. He asked the Board to read his letter which has the history of economic development in Brevard County. He stated 14 years ago the County had an economic person and had more money going out than it does now; for the first time in 14 years the County has one entity that any firm, corporation, or individual can look to and get answers; a lot of people worked hard to bring EDC to where it is now; and it is working for the first time.

Larry Wuensch, 1002 Springfield Court, Rockledge, advised there are about 6,000 economic development agencies across the United States; since the 1950's, once an economic development program gave assistance to a business or industry, companies began to expect it; but now they expect more than simple assistance and demand inducements. He stated in 1990 he brought the issue of dropping impact fees to the Board, because one of the reasons they were not successful was that impact fees were higher than surrounding communities; Florida is one of the few states that has impact fees; Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, and South Carolina, do not have any; and they will give up sewer and water connection fees and ad valorem taxes plus pay direct cash to industries to relocate in their states. He stated it is an incredibly competitive environment; EDC cannot say it has everything, it has to demonstrate it in almost every aspect; and having a strong economic development group with continuity, leadership, and staff is important. He stated that was one thing Brevard County lacked; it re-invented several times; and it is at the point where it will lose everything accomplished to date if it tries to re-invent again. Mr. Wuensch advised finding out which companies are interested in expanding or relocating is a difficult aspect of economic development; there are reasons why they do not let anyone know they are looking; there are issues of business competitiveness, union problems, stock pricing, etc.; so they keep it secret when looking for new locations. He stated they do not send someone out to spread the word; it is a process that takes a long time; it does not happen over night; and he started working with a small company in New York since 1989, and six years later it is still trying to relocate in Brevard County. He noted Fortune 500 companies with 40 to 50 million dollars to spend on a new site is long gone; when they decide to do that, every state and community goes all out to woo them; Mercedes Benz located in Alabama, and the State lost potential economic development because it gave too much incentive; so what they are dealing with is a very complex process. Mr. Wuensch stated he is very pleased with the way EDC has progressed since he left; the County has an excellent Executive Director and Board of Directors made up of business people in the community who are trying to make something positive happen; and if the Board wants to re-invent economic development for the fifth time in eight years, it will continue to lag behind other communities in Florida.

Senator Patsy Kurth advised she came to support the Board continuing to find financing vehicles for EDC to continue the efforts that have been made and to give a statewide perspective on economic development. She stated for too many years Florida has taken its economy for granted; it had a wonderful economy, sunshine, beaches, inexpensive places to come to in cars, etc.; as time went on, North Carolina, Texas, and Georgia, states they were driving through to get to Florida, saw what a good deal it was, and started advertising to get the tourists and looking at industry and making attractive deals; so about four years ago the State took a look at this and said it had to do something different. She stated the Secretary of Commerce said the State is either going to have a Department of Commerce that means something or not have one at all; what they ended up with was a new model which is a private/public partnership; and from that came Enterprise Florida, a partnership between the State and private industry. Senator Kurth advised they worked for a long time and tried to figure out what the State should be doing so that Florida is once again an attractive place to do business; it focused on three areas; one was venture capital because it is one of the biggest problems in Florida; companies that need to expand and start-up companies do not have access to venture capital; it is going somewhere else even though there is a lot of money in the banks here; and it is not available for venture capital. She stated another item was technology transfers; companies that were here deserve to get the technology developed in Florida universities; many times they have been manufactured in the east or California, or some place other than Florida; so the State is working on ways that the technology can be available to Florida companies that are here and create jobs in Florida. She advised the third issue is the need for a skilled work force; and a plan was made through the Department of Labor and community colleges to have very quick training of the work force to accommodate a company thinking of relocating here. She stated they also realize an important part of making Florida a good place to do business again and having the economy strong and not just with service jobs, was to attract value-added jobs, manufacturing jobs, jobs that add to the community, pays people, and has benefits; and local EDC's were the key to that. She stated the State needs to give them the major tools they could not get on their own, but when it comes to working with the companies and bringing them in that is where the local EDC's are vital to any effort the State would make; and that is really the model that has been set up. Senator Kurth congratulated the Board on its actions regarding the impact fees and tax abatement program; and stated if the message does not get out, it is not going to do any good. She stated the EDC gets that information to other companies in Florida and those who want to come here for the quality of life and what Florida can offer; it is vital to have the private/public partnership; things are changing more than at any time that she can remember; the emphasis is on reducing the deficit; and Florida knows it will be receiving federal dollars in block grants and needs to do welfare reform. She stated it is committed to doing that because it can no longer afford to send checks to people who have fallen through the cracks; and one of the most vital parts of that are jobs. She stated the State cannot say it is doing welfare reform and two years they are off with no jobs available; jobs are the things that glue communities together, offer children opportunities, fight crime because when they have jobs they are part of the community and contribute to the community; and there is nothing more important for government to do than work with the private sector to do what is needed to create jobs in the communities. She pledged to the Board she will work with it to further its efforts in any way she can through the State.

Bruce Ingram, 4356-B Fortune Place, West Melbourne, advised he is happy with what the County has; he wanted a private/public partnership in 1985, and now it has one; and he is pleased and most pleased with Lynda Weatherman. He stated he had the experience of seeing her work firsthand with a prospect and knows what he would have given the prospect, but she gave him two and a half times more than he would have given; he had her job once, but she is better than he is; and she is a fantastic person and does good work and an asset that needs to be retained. He stated the program needs more cash; private sector needs to stand up more than it has; there was turnover of directors; Gary Cunningham was interim director; and it is hard to build a good organization when it changes leadership annually. He stated Lynda Weatherman has been here ten months; the world class organization that Orlando has took 12 years to develop; and he would like to see the County keep Ms. Weatherman who is the best person to run the organization he has seen since l977. He stated great things take time; layoffs happen fast; and there is a lot of competition to get high-quality jobs. He noted it takes a long time to get good payrolls; the Board needs to support Ms. Weatherman; over time the dollars will come from the private sector; and he is happy to have the program now as opposed to what they used to have.

Urban Cloran, 380 Gus Hipp Boulevard, Rockledge, advised a central economic development group working with the County and other resources available within the County is the best possible way to pursue new businesses and expansion of existing businesses, hold on to what is here, and secure value-added jobs. He stated it needs to be a fast response organization that can describe the advantages rapidly and be a single source of distribution; and the County has that now. He stated the data suggests the County is on the threshold of a successful program; there are some things that can be improved, but having 17 viable leads or opportunities requires continuity; and continuity requires funding and participation from the County. He advised they participated significantly ten years ago, but did not feel involved or that they were part of the program; Ms. Weatherman, with minimal staff, developed the potential for the program to really fly; and they have re-entered the program and put their resources in it again, confident it will bear fruit. Mr. Cloran advised he received a letter from Commissioner O'Brien referencing participation by the private sector; nothing causes funds to flow or support in terms of financial investment like success; and the program is on the verge of success. He stated as it expands and the number of viable opportunities expand for employment to attract new industry, the Board will see increased participation from the private sector; that will correct itself once the program is underway; right now it is on the threshold of where it is needed more now than ever; ten years ago it was funded to a greater degree than it is now; and it had a fragmented effort. He stated to return to the fragmented effort and internal competition, and an organization constrained without the ability to be free wheeling, imaginative, and respond to incoming potential business would be a terrible mistake; and if the Board is pulling the plug now, it will pull the plug on the verge of success.

Larry Nye, 2000 S. Washington Avenue, Titusville, Interim Director of the Space Coast Development Commission, advised 17 qualified prospects is only a small part of the picture; four live prospects, real companies with real negotiations going on, for the McDonnell Douglas plant would not come here if it was not for the EDC working with the Development Commission; the fact that Ms. Weatherman was at the Paris Air Show is very significant; they are aircraft manufacturers or related to the aviation business; and they are trying to offset the loss of 1,200 jobs through McDonnell Douglas' loss of the contract to Hughes Aircraft. Mr. Nye stated if the message that comes from the County is a lack of support of EDC, it will send messages to prospects that there is no coalition or joint venture mindset among the County, private industry, and academia; economic development has to be perceived as a uniform force with a one-stop contact; he has worked with all sorts of economic development organizations, and this is one of the best; and the sure kiss of death is if a prospect perceives there is fragmentation within the organization and location bias is politicized and not in the best business interest. He stated the County will fundamentally lose ground against the prospect's perceived means; however, it will send a vote of confidence if the Board supports EDC. Mr. Nye advised it had only 11 months with the present tenure; it is not the time to change strategies; the reason timing is crucial is the County cannot compete with other states financially; and most important element it has to offer in competition with other states is a highly talented specialized work force. He stated they have specific strategies in mind of how that work force can be kept and employed even better than in the defense industry.

Susan Cossey, 200 S. Banana River Boulevard, Cocoa Beach, advised she sits on the Board of Directors for the Brevard County Manufacturers Association and wants to say the entire Association is behind the efforts that Lynda Weatherman and her staff has put forth with EDC and ECF; it has been very responsive to the needs and requests asked of them; and the Association would like to see them continue.

Dennis Basile, 7370 Cabot Court, Melbourne, advised the Cocoa Beach Area Chamber of Commerce adopted a resolution to support EDC and waive all fees in the contract, but still have a seat on the board and be involved; but at the same time, he does not want the Board to think the money from EDC was not used for economic development purposes. He stated it was used to assist small businesses and industry in growing; and the Chamber did not want the Board to stop funding EDC enough to relieve the funding it received from EDC. He stated they always talk about dollars when talking about private participation; the volunteer expenses of private citizens putting in their time, going to shows and meetings and doing things that need to be done cannot be ignored; it is important to look at the time the corporate leaders are giving to the County; and maybe not keeping track of their hours was a mistake.

Commissioner O'Brien congratulated the Cocoa Beach Area Chamber of Commerce for doing the right thing; and noted he hopes the others will follow soon.

Bob Stuhlmiller advised he and Bruce Ingram have a mission in life to build buildings; they were very excited when the EDC program was put in place to help them build those buildings; and requested the Board not fire the program manager who is doing a good job.

Commissioner Scarborough advised the Board should fully fund the Economic Development Council function; it has justification to go to occupational licenses; and it has full justification going with General Fund revenue. He stated recently Wal-Mart expanded in Titusville about a mile from where the McDonnell Douglas plant is closing; the average pay for a manufacturing worker was $10,700 and for retail $3,200; so while something is opening up, they are not the same type of value. He stated value added job is the job that does not have to be produced here; those are hard to get; the average person in Brevard County needs to understand whether the industry comes to Palm Bay or Titusville, it helps everyone with the tax bill;19.7% of the tax base is commercial and industrial; and losing the McDonnell Douglas plant will cause a loss of $2,000,000 in taxes. He stated not once did the Sheriff or Fire Department respond to the plant; it caused no additional cost to the County and was a constant flow of $2,000,000; and that meant a high quality of living and low taxes to residents. Commissioner Scarborough advised taxpayers want long time benefits of that type; they can live in a community with low ad valorem taxes and have the best parks and schools, etc.; in Titusville they receive fairly decent wages from the Space Center, but it never did tax the Space Center and spend their money in Orlando shopping and dining. He stated Brevard County will never die; the Apollo Program could have killed it, but it just moved from a younger to an older population; and it will continue because what makes it unique is the capacity to bring in manufacturing and high-tech jobs. He stated just dealing with impact fees is not enough; making EDC work is important; if it can take those dollars and transition them, it will guarantee the community the possibility of being the premier community in Florida; and if it fails, it will be just another community living on retirees and tourism. He indicated the tourist person in Kissimmee area folds laundry, makes French fries, etc.; the person in Brevard County working for Harris or a new corporation has a high-tech job; the County has to have that type of institution; Polk County has one million dollars while Brevard County has Ms. Weatherman and others spending half of their efforts trying to bring in outside private dollars to make it work; and they have to compromise themselves and worry about one project rather than bringing in new industry. He stated if the Board wants to do the right thing for the taxpayers of Brevard County it will fully fund EDC; if it is funded at $400,000 that would be a dollar a person for the possibility of sustained economic growth and reduced taxes; it would be the best quality of life investment the Board can make; and he has no problem taking General Funds to make it work.

Commissioner O'Brien stated that is absolutely right, but what bothers him is no participation by the cities, and membership has fallen which means 60% of the people who were members before have lost confidence in EDC. He stated Port Canaveral does not support EDC; Viera is cutting back on its support; the Cocoa Beach Chamber has done the right thing; but from the $175,000 the County gives EDC, $68,000 have gone to the Chambers and $30,000 for rent leaving $85,000; and he has a problem with that. He stated he has nothing personal against Ms. Weatherman; however, if the Board does not look at other options that means the status quo is correct and it is not. He inquired how can it be afraid of new ideas and new ways of doing things. Commissioner O'Brien advised of 85 faxes he received, 80 were from Melbourne and Palm Bay; the EDC is getting parochial because it has an office in Melbourne and jobs coming in are placed in that area when Titusville has taken the biggest high with no help whatsoever; and Port Canaveral has no help from EDC. He stated economic development must and has to work; Polk County spends $1.96 per capita and generate $786,000 a year for economic development; every person on that EDC is a government employee; it is getting a lion's share of manufacturing jobs; and it is run by the government very successfully. He stated there is nothing wrong with keeping EDC and funding the County's EDC such as Mr. Lugar's office; and there are firms that do similar services such as Fantas in Chicago where companies come to it when trying to find a place to go, Semantic Company of Florida which specializes in industrial site locations and developing and advertising, and PPI Communications of Coral Springs. He stated he has no problem spending a million dollars on economic development because every dollar spent gets $3.00 back eventually; but he has a problem with the present format, especially the leadership of EDC, not Ms. Weatherman, but the Board of Directors. He stated there is something wrong with EDC when the County funds it with tax dollars and the real decisions are made by the executive committee from which the County is excluded. Commissioner O'Brien advised Ms. Weatherman said she wanted to attend the Florida Department of Commerce meeting but could not afford to do that; if the office space costs $10,000 she would have $20,000 to make the trip; she has to have money to get on a plane to see prospects because letters and brochures will not do it; and EDC knew about the Orlando show but did not rent a booth and asked for volunteers to help them man it. He stated Ms. Weatherman is paid $63,000 a year and should stay on her toes; a friend wanted to tour the McDonnell Douglas plant and was told it was inconceivable for a nonemployee to tour the facility at this time; four days later he toured it; so there was miscommunication there as well. Commissioner O'Brien stated the profit and loss statement for April do not match; there are problems with accounting principals; making adjustments after the bill is put out is not a good idea; and IRS will take them to task for that. He stated a hospitality suite runs about $350 a night; the County gave Ms. Weatherman $175,000; and she could not afford $350. He stated it is not the time to be cheap; perhaps her Board is leading her down a primrose path the wrong way; this is not a personal attack, but to show the flaws in the system; and there can be friends lined up to say how great someone is, but it does not solve the problems. He stated money is not the object, survival of the County's economy is; and 41 cents is too cheap.

Commissioner Ellis advised he has voted against EDC funding every year because he wants EDC to operate totally independent of government and not have the County interfere with what EDC is doing; if it is successful, it will generate private dollars; and if it is not, it will not be able to generate that. He stated when the County went through the issue of McDonnell Douglas closing its plant, they were going to raise $500,000; the County was asked to put up $250,000; Titusville put up $25,000 and Florida Power & Light Company put up $25,000; however, nobody else put up any money; and his point is once government kicks in, everybody else says government is taking care of it and they will not kick in; so the best thing the County can do for EDC is pull out and make it totally self-sufficient by marketing itself and getting money from the community. He noted it could put people on commission to generate EDC membership because as long as the County puts money in, it will hurt EDC in raising funds privately, and it will have to deal with political influences. He stated the Board set up Mr. Lugar's office as a liaison to help EDC overcome County problems; the best thing EDC can do is operate totally independent of the County; and if funding is cut off, it will be forced to succeed or fail on its own merit and no one on this Board will be able to question those merits. Commissioner Ellis stated he would prefer to have no EDC than to have the County run it; but a good point in Commissioner O'Brien's letter is to have the Executive Director's salary tied to incentives; the private sector needs to fund it and let it be run without interference or it will be an ongoing political issue; and if it wants to be strong, it needs to get away from government.

Commissioner Scarborough advised he understands what Commissioner Ellis is saying, but if Viera funds EDC they would have to spend time doing what Viera wants; there is no municipality supporting EDC; and what needs to be done is pulling all those entities together to protect the future of Brevard County. He stated he does not care if the industrial development is in Palm Bay because it adds to the tax base and the people in Mims will have lower taxes; one thing the Board has to consider is the quality of life in Brevard County that it can achieve or will not achieve; it is at a critical point; and if there is too much division in the County fighting against it rather than bringing it together to make it work, it will never come about, and the future people of Brevard County will pay the prices because this Board did not put out a little money from the immense budget it has. He noted it could be something that would substantially affect the quality of life in Brevard County. Commissioner Ellis stated the County has put money into economic development for years; with Commissioner Scarborough responding it has not put in sufficient funds; it has to go beyond the threshold so that Ms. Weatherman can send everyone a letter once a year whether they want to be members or not. He stated if the County fully funds EDC, she would not spend time talking to Viera and others and could be on a plane to Los Angeles or somewhere bringing prospects in; and if she is talking to people in Brevard County, then she does not understand her job description. Commissioner Ellis stated the more money the County puts in, the less money EDC will get from the private sector; with Commissioner Scarborough responding it may be a good thing, and when it is successful, they will get involved. Commissioner Ellis reiterated the scenario about the McDonnell Douglas issue, and repeated that no effort will be made to get private funds if the County funds EDC.

Commissioner O'Brien suggested a matching system whereby every dollar raised from the private sector will be matched by the County with 75 cents. Commissioner Ellis stated the problem is with every government dollar there is a measure of government control; and if EDC takes money from the County, it will have to deal with County control. He stated the private sector is better able to work with people coming in than the County.

Chairman Higgs stated this is the same movie she came to when she first took office; the Board was fighting about whether it was going to have north, central and south, who was going to come together, etc.; and one comment she wants to make is Titusville made a decision to be on its own when EDC consolidated. She stated she is closer to Commissioner Scarborough's position than any other; the County must have a united effort; private sector cannot do it by itself; and she would rather the County be more involved than less involved because it becomes a more pure economic development effort as opposed to a fill someone's space effort. She stated it should be a private/public partnership. Chairman Higgs advised last year when the Board reviewed the Contract, it included performance criteria; it could have a stronger contract this year, with a certain amount of dollars for certain services; and if the Board does not get the performance, then it can discontinue funding, but it should not back off now. She stated she is comfortable with pursuing the occupational license scenario; she agrees with a change to the executive committee to include a Commissioner; that could be a condition of any funding; and the County funding puts the Board in a unique position to be the force behind EDC. She stated it needs criteria for accountability; that is what the Board should do with every contract; and it should fund only those activities and get the outcomes. She stated the County has to have stability in economic development; it has a core organization it should stick with at this point; so she is ready to go with some changes, but agree with keeping EDC.

Commissioner O'Brien advised other counties have been successful and have not used private economic development councils; the government was the EDC; and that has been cost effective and successful. He stated the Board has not looked at other avenues which frightens him; he is not saying EDC is not good, but there may be better ways of doing it; and if there are, it would behoove the rest of the County to look at other options. Chairman Higgs advised they have looked at it every year for the two and a half years she has been on the Board; the first year it was consolidation, the second year change directors, and the third year change directors and provide performance measures; and it is moving in the right direction. She stated she does not want to accept status quo, but to totally change at his point in the juncture the County is in would be a serious error.

Commissioner Ellis inquired how does the Board know other counties were successful; all it knows is that they spend more money than Brevard County; and when Manatee County calls him because it has major problems bringing business in, but they spend $1.38 per capita to Brevard County's 41 cents, clearly there is a lot more to how much money is spent to measure effectiveness. Commissioner O'Brien inquired if there is an answer to that; with Mr. Lugar responding the only concrete answer is real jobs.

Chairman Higgs inquired if there were any businesses Polk County took from Brevard County; with Mr. Lugar responding Polk County's Economic Development Agency is different; its employees are County employees; it has $841,000; however, they work for 501(c)6, not-for-profit corporations. He stated it is very unique, and based on information from individuals in Tallahassee, Polk County has obtained 30% of the manufacturing jobs that come into the state simply because it has more aggressive programs.

Commissioner Ellis stated Polk County's Comprehensive Plan may not be as stringent and costly as Brevard County's Plan; and the prospects may not have to jump through the same hoops they would have to in Brevard County. Mr. Lugar stated he has not done a comparative analysis of that.

Commissioner Cook advised the Board's commitment to producing jobs has been strong; it eliminated impact fees and provided a tax abatement program to benefit the County; it has tools that should be beneficial to any company; and EDC got off on some issues it should not have, but that has been corrected. He stated he wrote a letter to EDC and expressed his opinion that it should stick to economic growth and stay out of other areas that were not appropriate; he wants it to be successful and it is important that the Board allow it to be successful; and ten months for Ms. Weatherman is not long enough to get an idea of whether she is going to do a good, bad, or average job. Commissioner Cook stated he supports funding some level by some mechanism whether it is match or some other type of function; it is important to bring business to the County and create good paying jobs; and he would like the letter from Commissioner O'Brien checked out by the County Attorney regarding the sunshine law issue. He stated $30,000 for rent should be looked at; EDC should ask to be on the Agenda of every city because it is unconscionable that the cities are not participating in this effort; and that should be addressed. He stated the Board needs to address the appointment to the executive committee; that was the intent of having a Commissioner on the Board of Directors; and if Commissioner O'Brien is correct, the Board he sits on has no real input. He inquired if Ms. Weatherman does a survey after every corporation is brought in asking what input they received, what level of support, and why they moved here; with Ms. Weatherman responding they keep in contact and she has a booklet of background data that highlights the roles they played. Commissioner Cook stated he would like something in writing from the companies that relocate to Brevard County saying this is why they came, this is the support they received, this is what they think is important. He stated the Board should support EDC and demand levels of performance for the money it puts in; and hopefully it can come up with a mechanism to do that.

Ms. Weatherman advised she agrees with city participation; Palm Bay's Economic Task Force has agreed to give $10,000 in its budget; but they have to go through the City Council. She stated she made presentations to Rockledge and its Economic Development Subcommittee has made a motion to go to the City Council to see if there can be participation through contributions; the same happened with Cocoa City Council; she spoke to the City Manager and he has concerns about the Chamber contracts also; and the same with Cape Canaveral. She stated she needs to have the cities participate and would like to have a Commissioner go with her and talk to the Cities. Ms. Weatherman advised a report from the Council of Economic Opportunity in Gainesville shows the analysis of the percent of salary spent for economic development as 43% in Gainesville, 56% in Marina County, 49% in Pensacola, 55% in Broward, 42% in Mid-Florida Development Commission, 70% in Polk County; so maybe it takes labor to get the job done. She stated they do not have anything more than Brevard County; they are not exceptional or brighter; in fact Brevard County has more; but they have a commitment from the County. She stated as for going to prospects, she would prefer to give them the plane ticket and have them come here; and regarding private sector contributions, they are down 27% because McDonnell Douglas closing deletes $5,000, Southern Bell cut back to $5,000 and Viera has reduced its contribution; so three companies at the same time will show a significant reduction in terms of percentage. She stated the membership is the same as last year with 150 members; and Canaveral Port Authority has an agreement with the EDC for $10,000 match and advertising in the Port Canaveral Journal. She stated they can split the cost of advertising in Living in Brevard.

Chairman Higgs advised Ms. Weatherman can tell her key supporters that the Board is entertaining these issues and is ready to look at it and wants to see interest and commitment from others; and other issues need to be resolved. Commissioner O'Brien stated he could not help but notice Ms. Weatherman has three ladies working in her office and the reason he brought it up is because he hates reverse discrimination, and because when dealing with anyone in Mexico, China, or Russia, they will not work with women and will not even talk to them. He stated he got a call from a company in Russia and they will not deal with a woman; and he is not saying that is right or wrong, but it is their culture. Ms. Weatherman stated some prefer to hire women because they fundamentally work harder.

Upon motion and vote the workshop adjourned at 5:20 p.m.

ATTEST:

SANDY CRAWFORD, CLERK

(S E A L)

NANCY N. HIGGS, CHAIRMAN

BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA