Economic Development and Developers in the News #114

Good morning and welcome to the 114th weekly edition of Economic Development and Developers in the News. I hope that your evening was filled with sparklers, friends, and families.

It's a light news week. Today's issue only contains news from 46 economic development executives and organizations in 17 states and Canada.

If this is your first time reading: Welcome!

The Econ Dev Show is a podcast and weekday email newsletter of actionable strategies, fresh news, insights, and ideas from the economic development community and your host, Dane Carlson. On Wednesdays, we share news from the economic development community.

As always, if you want to submit something for next week, or if you spot an error, please email me.

Alabama

An Australian helicopter firm, McDermott Aviation, and its US-based business partner, Isolair Inc., have set up operations at South Alabama Regional Airport in Covington County. The expansion brought 26 jobs to the area, with plans to add more, according to Rick Clifton, president and CEO of Covington County Economic Development Commission.

California

The Economic Development Corporation of San Benito County obtained funding through grants, including an $80,000 grant from the Economic Development Administration and a $5,000 sponsorship from the City of San Juan Bautista, to update the county's Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy for 2023-2027. The strategy promotes regional collaboration and identifies areas of improvement in resources or expertise to facilitate economic development in the county. (Renee Wells, EDC Executive Director)

Jim Damian, former CEO of Stria, was appointed as the new Chief Economic Development Officer of Kern County, effective from July 31, 2023