Economic news -- UPDATE
Gov. Mike Beebe's office announces that he and Dassault Falcon officials will make an announcement Tuesday at 10:00 a.m. "regarding the company’s future in Little Rock. Arkansas Economic Development Commission and Little Rock city officials will also be on hand."
Presumably, you wouldn't bring in the AEDC to announce a loss of jobs. Perhaps we're about to see the first unlimbering of the $200 million corporate incentives pool created in 2004. Or perhaps Dassault is so happy with Little Rock already that it's just doing a major expansion here on its own, without any taxpayer assistance.
Officials have been touting some coming major economic announcements in recent days. And AEDC people have been talking about the size of the existing aircraft modification market in Arkansas. If I heard it right on the radio, it's the biggest private economic component in the state after agriculture. When a shell plane gets outfitted here, it takes the value way up.
UPDATE: Talk Business reports the announcement will be a $30 million expansion that should bring 200 more jobs.
Comments
yes, send more hott french guys to little rock!
Posted by: whit![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/arkansasblog/nav-commenters.gif)
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June 11, 2007 04:53 PM
REAL jobs with benefits- BUT they need folks w/ reading and math skills. That more than Roy Brooks or incentive pay is the real story for LR- School Board take note.
Posted by: Diogenes![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/arkansasblog/nav-commenters.gif)
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June 11, 2007 08:46 PM
Actually, according to the state, aerospace surpassed agriculture as Arkansas'(s) number one export in '06.
Also, there's a free training class starting soon at Pulaski Tech that will give recent high school graduates 9 weeks of training in aircraft construction trades.
Both of the big aerospace employers in the city are dying for more locally grown employees. They're having problems keeping out-of-staters here after they've spent the money to train them.
Posted by: snippy![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/arkansasblog/nav-commenters.gif)
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June 12, 2007 01:05 AM
Actually, according to the state, aerospace surpassed agriculture as Arkansas'(s) number one export in '06.
Also, there's a free training class starting soon at Pulaski Tech that will give recent high school graduates 9 weeks of training in aircraft construction trades.
Both of the big aerospace employers in the city are dying for more locally grown employees. They're having problems keeping out-of-staters here after they've spent the money to train them.
ARK. BLOG: Thanks for the additional info. I'd like to see how these numbers are compiled. Heck, the government alone spends hundreds of millions on crop subsidies alone. Is an agricultural product an export if it is, for example, slaughtered and turned into McNuggets in Arkansas? Anyway, I knew the number on aircrtaft modification was big.
But here's my question: Why do people leave here if we have more jobs than workers? What is it about life elsewhere that makes it more attractive? Wages? Taxes? Cost of living? Quality of life? This suggests, again, that we aren't looking at the whole picture when we pass out government assistance for economic development.
Posted by: snippy![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/arkansasblog/nav-commenters.gif)
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June 12, 2007 01:06 AM
Good information snippy but I suspect our biggest export remains college graduates. This is especially true if one computes the long-term future value of their earnings and tax contributions.
Posted by: Knoc Knock![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/arkansasblog/nav-commenters.gif)
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June 12, 2007 02:14 AM