328 replies to this topic

[krazeeboi]

14 acres out of almost 500 really isn't that much at all.

[Captain Worley]

^ No, it really isn't.  Especially when you consider the economic imact.

[krazeeboi]

For the past several months, whenever job gains have been posted for all of the state's MSAs, Columbia has either ranked first or second in terms of the number of jobs created.

August: 4,300 (ranked 1st)
September: 2,300 (1st)
October: 1,800 (2nd)
November: 2,600 (1st)
December: 1,700 (1st)
January: all metro areas experienced job losses
February: 2,500 (2nd)
March: 2,600 (2nd)
April: 2,000 (2nd)

Also, all of the gains have not been in government, either. Many of them have been in the trade and transportation sector.

Source

[Spartan]

Interesting! Thats very consistent job growth. No wonder the NE is booming (and the rest of the metro for that matter)

[krazeeboi]

^Exactly. Also, this partly explains why Columbia has been faring pretty well in just about every economic ranking that's out there. The local economy is really diversifying.

[waccamatt]

If I read that correctly, the Columbia MSA has added 67,000 jobs in the last 9 years. I wonder if the data is consistent in terms of which counties are considered part of the MSA?

Edited by waccamatt, 05 July 2007 - 10:10 PM.

[krazeeboi]

^Assuming that some aren't seasonal.

[krazeeboi]

Google says it won’t build a data center in Blythewood this year but remains very interested in the site for future use, especially now that the property has received an important wetlands permit.

Sounds promising.

[krazeeboi]

Sixteen of 36 S.C. companies featured in Faces of Trade, a recent publication of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s TradeRoots program, are Midlands based. The book highlights the companies' international trade success. TradeRoots is the chamber’s grassroots-level trade education program. “This book shines a spotlight on businesses that are not just involved with international trade but are flourishing because of it.,” said Leslie Schweitzer, the chamber’s senior trade adviser.

So almost half of the SC companies recognized for flourishing due to international trade are in the Greater Columbia area. That's good stuff.

[krazeeboi]

Out of the nation's 75 largest metropolitan areas, Columbia placed 47th for small business growth and vitality according to a new study by Bizjournals. The study's objective was to identify those metros that are most conducive to the creation and development of small businesses. The highest scores went to areas that have prosperous economies, are expanding rapidly, and are densely packed with small businesses. (Bizjournals defines a small business as any private-sector employer with 99 or fewer employees.) The study used statistics from 2005, the most recent available.

Columbia's got some work to do here. Florida's metro areas scored pretty well.

[CorgiMatt]

Hey, guys, check out this new website.  I just heard about it this morning on NPR, on Mike Switzer's "South Carolina Business Review" program.  It's about businesses and business announcements in the Midlands.  There's also demographic info on the site.

http://www.midlandsbiz.com/

[Spartan]

Thats a great website. Those local stats on growth really show how much is concentrated in northeast richland. Lexington has its share too, but its more spread out. Good photos too. Great find Corgi!

[krazeeboi]

Great find indeed.

In other news, apparently income growth in metro Columbia lags the national average. After inflation, average income per person rose 2% in the Columbia area last year, compared with an average of 2.6% among the nation's 363 metropolitan areas. In the six-county Columbia MSA, personal income averaged $32,308 in 2006, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. The state’s per capita income is about 16% less than the U.S. average of $36,307, while the Columbia area’s is 11% less than the national average.

According to Ike McLeese, president of the Greater Columbia Chamber of Commerce, Columbia metro area’s income and growth in income has been weakened by the expansion of the metro area’s definition to include the more rural and less wealthy economies of Calhoun, Fairfield, Kershaw and Saluda. The Columbia metro area ranked higher in previous years when it had been defined as Richland and Lexington counties.

For comparative purposes, Charleston's per capita income rose by 2.2%, Greenville's by 1.8%, Augusta's by 0.7%, and Charlotte's by 1.2%. Columbia has the 2nd highest per capita income average in SC; Charleston's is about $80 higher, and Greenville's stands at $30,809. Augusta's is $29,342, while Charlotte's is $38,223.

[Spartan]

Interesting. If Columbia is being dragged down, then it needs to work more at the regional level to bring the outlying areas up.

[krazeeboi]

Although it didn't rank high (63 of 72), Columbia was the only SC metro to land a spot on Expansion Management's recent "5-Star Business Opportunity Metros" list. This is a “Best of the Best” ranking of metro areas that have achieved solid ratings across the board in the company's numerous studies during the past 12 months.

[krazeeboi]

Saber Corp.,a Portland, Ore.-based company that specializes in software products and services for government, has an $89.2 million contract with the state Department of Social Services to develop the S.C. Child Support Enforcement System and the Family Court Management System, which will create about 180 jobs. Saber will occupy 39,000 square feet in the Browning Business Center, the former Wachovia operations center, on Browning Road in St. Andrews.

[krazeeboi]

SCBT announced yesterday that it is buying Charlotte-based The Scottish Bank in a $43.4 million cash and stock deal. The Scottish Bank will keep its name and operate as a subsidiary of SCBT.

[krazeeboi]

Southeast Frozen Foods, the largest exclusive distributor of frozen food products in the southeastern U.S., recently announced that it will expand its distribution center in Calhoun County. The company plans to invest approximately $3.5 million and create 30 new positions as a result of the expansion.

Calhoun County has been the target of significant investment as of late. That's good, because it spreads the wealth throughout metro Columbia.

[krazeeboi]

The Columbia Office of Economic Development received the Technology-Based Economic Development award from the International Economic Development Council. The city was cited for its collaboration with the USC Columbia Technology Incubator. That's a pretty notable achievement there.

[johnpro318]

i didnt know where to put this but:
news about the future of I-78

http://www.thestate....ory/193892.html