Laserfiche WebLink
34 <br /> <br /> <br /> Chairman Cecil asked Mr. John Lovorn to speak regarding the <br /> Flexible Incentive Plan. Mr. Lovorn asked the board members to <br /> look at the Flexible Incentive Plan. He said when they first <br /> developed this proposal they felt this was important, but once <br /> it was put together they would.only recommend some guidelines. <br /> He said each industry that is considering expansion here <br /> locally, and each company that is considering a location here <br /> needs to be weighed on its own merit. Every corporate location <br /> project is different. He said they have come up with the best <br /> flexible guidelines and cost benefit analysis they could based <br /> on comparisons of what other cities have done in Texas, and on <br /> their experience working with companies around the country and <br /> their experience in dealing with local industry. He said that <br /> any type of company that applies for any type grants or loans <br /> should fill out the recommended forms. Mr. Lovorn covered the <br /> information reflected in the Flexible Incentive Plan. He <br /> stated once an individual is hired full time by the Chamber of <br /> Commerce they will recommend a software package that can track <br /> the prospects. <br /> <br />Mr. Lovorn stated the next time any of the board members are in <br />Austin they strongly recommend going to see Lynn Brooks <br />Director of the Texas Leverage Fund Department at the Texas <br />Department of Commerce. He said she is very important for <br />projects be it first position or second position on a loan. He <br />stated she recently gave four million dollars to McKinney, <br />Texas. He said she has some good rates on loans and is <br />probably the most important person in Austin right now insofar <br />as expansions. <br /> <br />Mr. Lovorn stated they could not locate any type Flexible <br />Incentive Plan with any guidelines written in the State of <br />Texas at the present time. He said these are general <br />guidelines to help when a company requests loans or grants in <br />order to help the community can make intelligent decisions <br />based on facts. He advised in this plan to make sure all the <br />commitments are in writing to avoid misunderstanding and <br />establishing a time frame of six months. Mr. Lovorn stated in <br />this plan, once a loan or grant is made to announce it through <br />the Paris Economic Development Corporation, the City and the <br />Chamber of Commerce and make it a total community effort. <br /> <br />Chairman Cecil called for questions on the Flexible Incentive <br />Plan as it was presented by Dr. Lovorn. He said they will come <br />back and act on it later in the meeting. <br /> <br />Mr. Lovorn said Dr. Schull is going to speak regarding the <br />Business Retention Survey. He stated they interviewed twenty <br />firms. Dr. Schull said some of the information in the survey <br />is confidential and must be off the record. She said she <br />would defer to Chairman Cecil's Judgment as far as anything off <br />the record. She said in talking to the businesses in Paris she <br />found they are very happy and complimentary about their <br />relationship with the City and the City's responsiveness. She <br />stated a rule of thumb for economic development is to start <br />from the bottom which means mining possibilities, agricultural <br />possibilities, and then use manufacturing as a base and then go <br />to service and tourism. She said you make sure you have the <br />strong manufacturing base and then service and tourism follows <br />for your maximum dollars. She stated Paris has a strong <br />manufacturing base, better than Texas and also better than the <br />national average. She stated research has shown that most <br />expansions take place at existing locations. She stated she <br /> <br /> <br />