I can't seem to locate any links, and I don't remember every detail of the story, but I heard on talk radio yesterday, that Oklahoma City was one of five cities being considered for a manufacturing plant for aircraft or aircraft parts. Two of the other four cities I remember being mentioned were Albuquerque, NM and Columbia, SC. I think the other two cities were in Florida, but I don't want to mislead anyone just in case I'm wrong. The plant will add an estimated 1,500 jobs. Let's hope OKC lands this. I'll keep looking for links, but that's all I know right now.

I can't seem to locate any links, and I don't remember every detail of the story, but I heard on talk radio yesterday, that Oklahoma City was one of five cities being considered for a manufacturing plant for aircraft or aircraft parts. Two of the other four cities I remember being mentioned were Albuquerque, NM and Columbia, SC. I think the other two cities were in Florida, but I don't want to mislead anyone just in case I'm wrong. The plant will add an estimated 1,500 jobs. Let's hope OKC lands this. I'll keep looking for links, but that's all I know right now.

From The Tallahassee Democrat

Aircraft firm eyes Tallahassee for new assembly plant
By Steve Liner
DEMOCRAT BUSINESS EDITOR

A major American aircraft manufacturer is considering Tallahassee as the site of a new assembly plant that could eventually employ 1,500 workers, according to local economic-development leaders.

Tallahassee is one of five cities under consideration, said Sue Dick, president of the Greater Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce and Tallahassee/Leon County Economic Development Council. Other cities include Oklahoma City, Albuquerque, N.M.; Columbia, S.C.; and Vero Beach. The name of the company is not being released.

If the plant locates to Tallahassee and hires at the level expected, the company would be one of Leon County's largest employers, said Michael Wright, assistant city manager for development and transportation.

The plant will produce very light jets, Economic Development Council Chairman Bill Law said.

A site consultant for the manufacturer was in Tallahassee Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. The visit included meetings at the Tallahassee Regional Airport, where the proposed plant would be located, as well as with area business leaders, Dick said.

A series of partnerships was created to attract the plant, Law said. Included in Tallahassee's proposal are three major components: facilities, training and incentives.

Dubbed "Project Osprey," a bid to attract the plant began late last year, Dick said. Major players included the city of Tallahassee, Tallahassee Community College, Workforce Plus and Lively Technical Center. Leon County and others were also included.

The manufacturer asked for new buildings totaling more than 700,000 square feet. Of that space, about 600,000 square feet would be dedicated to the plant and about 100,000 square feet to offices. The Economic Development Council and the city selected the 275-acre site at the airport. Tallahassee would build the facilities and lease them to the company.

"We hope to use this company as an anchor for the airport industrial park," Wright said.

He said the park includes about 500 acres.

"We've got the land. We've got the resources. Now we're busy putting the dominoes in place," Wright said.

TCC, Workforce Plus and Lively Technical Center have a training plan to support hiring for the plant, Law said.

"A plant this size would require more people than we have in Leon County," he said. "We would have to train workers from other counties in the area, taking a regional approach."

TCC has agreed to set aside about 40,000 square feet of space dedicated to training for plant, Law said. He said TCC's Center for Economic and Workforce Development would dedicate a full-time senior training position to the project.

"Our board is highly supportive," he said, adding that training employees would require 18 months to two years.

Financial incentives will be required to recruit the company, Dick, Law and Wright agreed.

"This company has a product that is going to succeed," Wright said. "But we understand (there will be the need for incentives) from a cash-flow perspective."

From this point, it is anticipated that the list of finalists will be narrowed for further visits. The good news, Dick, Law and Wright said, is that making the short list shows Tallahassee is competitive.

"We did a great job," Dick said. "We did everything we needed to do."

-----------------

There it is. Thanks for the link WR!

Let me just comment on the Florida part. Vero Beach is out. My in-laws live there and the there is no way the geezers (not my in-laws) are going to disrupt their retirement village with a manufacturing plant of this size. Everytime a wealthy person flies their personal jet into Vero's airport the letters to the editor start flying. I can only imagine what would happen if the Boeing Frieghter made a regular appearance. Second, Tallahasee is out. They simpy don't have a skilled workforce. They would have to import all 1500 employees.

My guess is that the company is Spirit Aviation. They purchased a lot of Boeing assets about 2 years ago. They have a large facility in Wichita and plants in Tulsa and McAlister. They have been shipping airline piece to Washington state for final assembly but maybe they are looking to move final production closer to the parts. OKC is closer to the parts, already has a large number of Boeing employees in the state, and has one of the highest skilled aviation workforces in the country. Not to mention an airport with more available land then just about anyone.

Good points, Kerry.

Yeah, not trying to sound biased but I think OKC really has the competitive edge out of the finalists. Strange how we haven't heard more on this. I hope the City is working on an incentives package that the company can't refuse. This would be perfect for Will Rogers, and as Kerry said, we have a huge skilled aviation workforce. Not to mention out of the cities listed, we have a better quality of life, except maybe Vero Beach, but that is a small town and as others have said, that is a long shot. But all and all we have more things to offer potential workers to do in their free time, etc.

If they are already in Wichita, Tulsa, and McAlester, it would really make sense to choose OKC.

Wouldn't surprise me at all - if they make airplane parts - if a site weren't found in the Mid-Del area given that big new MRO facility at Tinker (oops, sorry, that's Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul). That's got HUGE long-term implications for Tinker in particular and the aircraft overhaul business in this region of the country in general. You'd have incredible synergies on military aircraft repairs and have great logistics for shipping products out to just about everywhere via rail/truck.

-soonerdave

By Ja’Rena Lunsford
Business Writer
Business and aviation leaders have kept tight-lipped about Oklahoma City possibly becoming home to a large aircraft assembly plant.
But the secret is out now — at least some of it.



Mayor Mick Cornett confirmed Tuesday that Oklahoma City is in the running to welcome a Piper Aircraft plant.

"I can confirm we are a finalist,” Cornett said.

He said he couldn't reveal further details about the possible development. "Anything that is active like that we can't comment on. I just can't get into it.”

Larry Findeiss, executive director of the Oklahoma Aerospace Alliance, said the possible deal has been kept quiet — until now.

"I know it's kind of been a hush, hush thing,” he said.

A Tallahassee newspaper reported the Piper plant would employ up to 1,500 people.

The Vero Beach, Fla.-based aircraft company also is considering Albuquerque, N.M.; Columbia, S.C., Tallahassee, Fla., and Vero Beach for possible plant locations.

Piper Aircraft began producing aircraft in Pennsylvania nearly 80 years ago. The company was originally named Taylor Aircraft Co. and later renamed Piper Aircraft when William T. Piper took it over. He later moved the company to Florida.

Piper's airplanes played a role during World War II when the company redesigned its J-3 for military use. Piper Aircraft's planes were used to train combat pilots. The general aviation manufacturer also produces jets.

The PiperJet starts at $2.2 million. Piper has eight dealers nationally.

Whether Oklahoma City will join the Piper family is yet to be decided. Findeiss said he would like to see Oklahoma City win the race and add more jobs to the state.

"Obviously any aviation job is good,” he said.

Just to piggyback on Kerry's points regarding Florida, a Piper spokesman indicated, in a recently published article, that property insurance costs will likely prevent the company from setting up shop in the the Sunshine State.

"We used to pay about $400,000 a year for property insurance. Now it's nearly $5 million per year and there are other costs as well. We owe it to shareholders and employees to be the most competitive we can be, but that's difficult because of the very high insurance costs."

This may take Columbia out of consideration as well. Now, on to another one of OKC's opposition: Albuquerque, which is already home to an Eclipse Aviation assembly plant, is being considered because of the strong aviation presence in the area. This is definately a plus for Albuquerque. Eclipse Aviation manufactures Very Light Jets, which are the same aircraft Piper is interested in assembling.

This worries me a little. Forbes listed Albuquerque as the #6 "Best Places for Business and Careers", compared to Oklahoma City at #58.
#6 Albuquerque NM - Forbes.com (http://www.forbes.com/lists/2007/1/07bestplaces_Albuquerque-NM_2811.html)

Then, on another list, Albuquerque is listed as #1. I don't know which one to cite, so I'm listing them both. On this list, Oklahoma City makes #13, which is a little more comparable.
Albuquerque NM, Best Places For Business 2006 - Forbes.com (http://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/1/2811.html)



Also, let it be known: I hate typing "Albuquerque". Is it possible to come up with a worse name for spelling/typing?

Gut reaction, if we go off of a liability thing, Albuquerque (ABQ for the aviation people) is the shoe in. Their severe weather days are obviously much lower than us. Florida you have issue of those tropical things wanting to cause trouble every summer...same for South Carolina, but not to the same extreme. OKC you have to consider the amount of hail issues we have here during the spring...summer...errr and fall. LOL Aircraft makers don't like their new planes getting dinged up. HOWEVER, Wichita has the same issues and they have a massive foot print in the aviation industry there.

We'll see. Whether it goes to KTIK or KOKC...will be interesting. Lots of room at Will Rogers...but also that new development attempts at Tinker.

Gut reaction, if we go off of a liability thing, Albuquerque (ABQ for the aviation people) is the shoe in. Their severe weather days are obviously much lower than us. Florida you have issue of those tropical things wanting to cause trouble every summer...same for South Carolina, but not to the same extreme. OKC you have to consider the amount of hail issues we have here during the spring...summer...errr and fall. LOL Aircraft makers don't like their new planes getting dinged up. HOWEVER, Wichita has the same issues and they have a massive foot print in the aviation industry there.

We'll see. Whether it goes to KTIK or KOKC...will be interesting. Lots of room at Will Rogers...but also that new development attempts at Tinker.

I was thinking the same thing, but I think tornadoes are a different animal than hurricanes. I believe the issue is more about insurance costs than severe weather, but then again, I'm not Piper. Everything will be assembled indoors and then shipped off to their final destination, so twisters/hail shouldn't affect the planes too much.

I think Oklahoma City definitely wins if you consider quality of life, being a big city (economy of scale/workforce), and available resources. I hope the city is going all out for this - as it would be a welcome addition to the city and could be JUST THE BEGINNING FOR FUTURE SUCH ANNOUNCEMENTS.

Like I have always said - Oklahoma City has some HUGE unrealized potential, all it will take is some major announcement like this (and the NBA) to get the ball rolling nonstop for a landslide of development/announcements.

One thing tho - I want the plant to be located at PWA - Wiley Post and not OKC-Will Rogers International or TIK; those facilities already have employment/commercial opportunities but Wiley Post has minimal maintenance and it would be a boost to that area of town. I think we need to keep Will Rogers focused on commercial or faa sort of expansion/maintenance opportunities and of course, expansion of commercial service.

But then again, if Piper wants to be at a major commercial airport - then give them Will Rogers, whatever it takes to land this and their 1,500 mfg jobs!!! Definitely a great shot-in-the-arm for OKC!!!

We're one of the final three cities under consideration:

Albuquerque makes Piper Aircraft's final three : Local : Albuquerque Tribune (http://www.abqtrib.com/news/2007/jun/22/duke-city-still-vying-piper-aircraft/)

So what is it going to take for Okc to land this company??

Maybe letting them know of our interest and pointing out some of the positive reasons for relocation here to OK? We could always send them Jbrown84's recent photos.... our city looks beautiful in those shots.

The New Piper Aircraft, Inc.
2926 Piper Drive
Vero Beach, FL 32960
Phone: (772) 567-4361
Fax Numbers:
Customer Service (772) 978-6573
Marketing & New Piper Sales (772) 978-6592
Parts (772) 978-6588

Piper Aircraft, Inc. - Contact Us (http://www.newpiper.com/company/contactus.asp)

It probably wouldn't hurt.

I'm surprised that the DOK didn't announce that OKC was in the final three cities. If you look at what is left of our competition, I'm beginning to feel a sense of optimism that we are going to land this company. I am confused about what type of jobs are possibly coming, though. In the Albuquerque paper, it says the jobs are for a new headquarters??? Maybe it is a combination of both. I think we can all agree that this is good for OKC, as it stands now.:)

I think DOKC probably isnt involved because the hq likely would be at Wiley Post or Will Rogers, not downtown. I am, however, surprised the OKC media and/or OKC Chamber is not all over this tho.

1,500 jobs (probably 200 of which will be high paying management/executive) is nothing to slouch over but would be a HUGE injection of wealth into the city.

So what can OKC do to land the company?

Well, we can play hard-ball for once. Why not tout the positives of Oklahoma City and the negatives of the other locations? OKC is by far the largest city and metro area of the three under consideration, and OKC has by far the biggest access to capital. ABQ might have a slightly larger airline presence and Vero might already by hq, but for a company looking to relocate - you can't do any better than OKC.

OKC is the largest of the newest largest cities in the nation. We have world wide access and our workforce is second to none of the competition. And with the NBA coming to town as well as the other attractions we have as a city - our quality of life is tops to the other cities as well.

Throw in all of the other economic, political, and entertainment sectors: and I repeat, Oklahoma City is second to NONE!!!!!!!!!!

OKC should NOT treat this like we did the southwest relocation effor. I think, if OKC had spoke up and done something, then the hq might not still be at Dallas Love Field but instead would be at Will Rogers World Airport. We need to be proactive about this and not so smug.

All we have to do is remember what happened with United Airlines where Indy beat us (yet OKC clearly had the advantage) to remind us about what "sitting on our laurels" will do. Indy stepped up and told United they were bigger than us and had better quality of life - United listened and opened a mtc facility only 200 miles from their hq, not a good move for an airline - hence why the facility is not being fully utilized.

Let's not make the same mistakes. We have a quality of life now that is better or at least the same as an Indy, so let's market ourselves to the world and grow.

and start by landing this fine aviation company!!!

HOTROD, you hit the nail on the head!!:) I do think that the OKC chamber, as well as the city and state, are all over this. We've been hearing for many months that the state and city are serious about expanding the presence of aerospace in Oklahoma City. I'm wondering if one of the proposed sites is in the MROTC @ Tinker along Douglas Blvd. We have so many options for setting up companies here, it is unreal! I totally agree that OKC is far superior to the other two cities for Piper to eliminate us from the race. Other than the fact that Vero Beach is on a beach and Albuquerque has the mountains nearby, I don't see any other benefits they hold over OKC. Does anyone know if the company's final decision is near?

I'm surprised that the DOK didn't announce that OKC was in the final three cities.

Give it a few days. We have a thread about how our local media sucks in the Arts/Media/Radio forum.

Give it a few days. We have a thread about how our local media sucks in the Arts/Media/Radio forum.


Very good point, after we on Okc talk discuss something it usually makes the news in the DOK, a few days later.

Actually, I saw one article that said Piper did not want to see cities publicizing this decision-making process, and I thought perhaps our mayor and chamber were following the letter of the law. It would be nice to know if we've offered an acceptable compensation package, but it seems that it hasn't hurt us to keep this information out of the news.

Okay my thoughts on this...

1) The United MRO facility in Indianapolis has already been shut down by United and sold off to FedEx. The location being 200 miles from their HQ had no effect on it...O'Hare is a mess and it was the best option for them.

2) People that continue to think that OKC had a shot of getting the Southwest HQ are not tuned in with reality. It was nothing more than a power / PR play.

3) If part of this is moving the company's HQ, then I would worry about it being a ploy to strong arm lower costs out of Florida. If not...then we should be better off.

venture, I agree somewhat.

But I think the hq portion of the Piper package would be rather small compared to the mfg injection that would take part. That being said, I honestly can not remember what the breakout is/was but if memory serves me correct - I think 200 vs. 1300 mfg jobs is the spread. Anyone else remember?

Hmm, so United sold the Indy center? I guess no lost milk after all but it sure did OKC a LOT OF GOOD nonetheless!! Look at us now as a city, and EVER improving!

Oh, and one more thing; uno mas.

I wonder if Piper asked the competitors to be 'hush hush' about the situation, then why did ABQ publish their article. Of course, it did not say much but it did say that all remaining cities had incentive packages that were impressive. No details, but wouldn't that alone violate a request for silence in the media?

And if ABQ can post this, why couldn't Oklahoma City - a MUCH bigger city and region? This was my point, why we don't always act like a big city when it comes to many things. We sit and let small time places out-shine us or beat us to the punch (please change this folks).

On the other hand, if ABQ gets 'disqualified' for the news story then - hey! We only have Vero to beat - which should be extremely easy unless Venture is right.

Thoughts?

Yeah, I wonder why Albuquerque published this story when they know that the people from Piper would come across the article at some point. I don't recall hearing a word about Dell until it was announced a couple of years ago. Our chamber is probably taking the tight-lipped approach until the final word is out who will land this company. Logic says OKC is the most centrally located city and has the best infrastructure available to land any aerospace company. All I know about Albuquerque is the cluster of high tech companies that are based there, but I haven't heard a thing about them having aerospace industries. My gut tells me that OKC is a shoe-in.

Perhaps they are being cautious after what happened with MG/Nanjing.

Give it a few days.

NewsOK: Piper Aircraft ponders city base<br/><span class='hl2'>Company narrows hunt for new HQ to 3 spots</span> (http://newsok.com/article/3070549)

:)

Perhaps they are being cautious after what happened with MG/Nanjing.

What ended up happening? Did they never come to Ardmore?

That seems to have fallen apart. The official word was that it's still happening, but a lower level employee leaked in an interview that the deal was off.

News re the Piper plant from Florida:

TCPalm: Local News (http://www1.tcpalm.com/tcp/local_news/article/0,2545,TCP_16736_5623590,00.html)


Indian River County to vote on Piper on Oct. 9

By HENRY A. STEPHENS
henry.stephens@scripps.com
July 11, 2007

INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Voters will get to decide Oct. 9 whether the county should issue $40 million in bonds as part of an incentive package to convince Piper Aircraft Inc. to stay in Vero Beach.

In a 5-0 vote Tuesday, county commissioners agreed to that date for a referendum, even though Supervisor of Elections Kay Clem said she would only need two months to arrange a special election.

The referendum comes as Piper is considering whether to keep its current plant in Vero Beach and build a new facility here for the PiperJet — a new, light jet — or move to Albuquerque, N.M., or Oklahoma City. The company recently rejected bids from Columbia, S.C., and Tallahassee.

At stake are the aircraft maker's 1,050 existing jobs and about 500 people who would be hired to manufacture the PiperJet.

Late last month, both the Vero Beach City Council and the Indian River County Commission voted unanimously in favor of a $76.5 million package of incentives to keep the company flying here. The bulk of the package would be $40 million from the city and county to buy the existing facilities at $23 million and build the jet plant at $17 million.

The city and county would then lease the facility back to Piper for eight years before charging rent.

The bonds would be repaid by property taxes for 30 years, if voters agree. County Administrator Joe Baird said the county needs voter approval because the Legislature's mandate for tax cuts doesn't leave room for the project in the regular budget.

At one point Tuesday, Indian River Shores retiree Ted Robinson chastised the commission for working with Vero Beach and the Chamber of Commerce to help Piper "for reasons not in the overall public interest." He said the city-county incentive would only help people connected to Piper.

Vero Beach resident Dennis Drake said the county should join in the Piper offer, for instance, by selling off property and giving the proceeds toward the project.

"If the county wants Piper here, you'd better look in your own closet and clean that out before you come to me," he said.

Vero Beach resident Jens Tripson said he isn't connected to the company, but said Piper helps the county by being a "big part of the economy," adding the housing slump has shown development can't carry it.

After the meeting, Baird said the referendum would authorize — but not require — the county to sell the bonds.

"The bonds would not be issued without a firm deal with Piper and a signed agreement they won't leave," he said.

So far, however, chamber Executive Director Penny Chandler said Piper hasn't given any guarantee it would stay if the referendum passes. Commissioner Joe Flescher compared that to a gamble.

"We're asking voters to go to the polls without proof of any benefit," he said. "Either way, it's a gamble with $100,000 to $120,000 on a hope."

And that hope is to keep the company's annual $518 million impact on the local economy, Chandler said.

"Piper wouldn't be spending millions of dollars to have their consulting firm draw up paperwork...if they thought they were simply going to be staying here," she said.

There is one thing for sure, Commissioner Wesley Davis noted.

"We're positive that if we don't do this, we are going to lose those jobs," he said.

I would think a city that small would do whatever they can to keep a major employer like that. Hard to say whether these incentives are what Piper is really looking for, though.

Venture79 may have been right all along. I don't know if this is what Piper is looking for, but this doesn't look so good for OKC. I believe Oklahoma City can easily top that offer, but Piper may not have been interested in moving at all and was just wanting to get a significant package of incentives from Vero Beach.

Boeing put out the 787 assembly facility for bid. At least one city in every state bid for it. They did the whole..."nailing it down" to 12 cities, then 6, then 3....in every one Renton was always there. Today the 787 is made in the same building as the other Boeing widebodies.

^ right, in Everett! (not renton).

I feel used. :(

My bad...Renton is the 737 plant. Shame on me. :)

Semantics.

no prob venture, its all in the Seattle metro area,

Renton = South (small planes); Everett = North (big ones). Everett is the biggest but Renton is significantly more busy!

Let's not make the same mistakes. We have a quality of life now that is better or at least the same as an Indy, so let's market ourselves to the world and grow.

Interesting you should say that. I can give some first hand knowledge on this comparison having just moved from Indianapolis to OKC last year. After spending some time here and seeing some of the improvements that have been made in OKC in the last 10 years I would be inclined to agree that it is equal to if not better here now. The city really reminds me ALOT of where Indy was 15 years ago very progressive with a lot of revitilization in the downtown area new construction everywhere, lots of new housing units in the then dead downtown (sound familiar?). It has all of this done now and there is nothing new on the horizon and as the auto manufacturing jobs leave the area there is nothing new coming to replace that revenue. When that hub was awarded the nod would have gone to Indy but the pendulum has swung and it is a city that is on the decline IMO and OKC is 180 out of the Indianapolis of today. I look forward to watching OKC grow and absorbing all that it has to offer past,present and future.

dalelakin, interesting post. That's really encouraging to hear.

Piper Aircraft Inc. declines incentive package


By NADIA VANDERHOOF
nadia.vanderhoof@scripps.com

TCPalm: Business (http://www.tcpalm.com/tcp/business/article/0,2541,TCP_998_5634922,00.html)

Posted at 6:22 p.m.
Updated at 6:23 p.m.
July 18, 2007
VERO BEACH — Piper Aircraft Inc. has declined the city and county's financing for an incentive package stating that it's best not to move forward with a package tied to a countywide referendum.
The region's $76.5 million incentive package was offered in June to keep the company's headquarters and the planned PiperJet manufacturing plant in Vero Beach. A countywide vote is scheduled for Oct. 9.

"The referendum issue is causing public conflict, divisiveness, and unwarranted speculation in the local community, which was never our intention," company management wrote in a full page advertisement in Thursday's Vero Beach Press Journal.
"We do not wish to subject the employees of Piper to the uncertainty of a highly controversial public political process related to the overall economic development efforts in Vero Beach and Indian River County," the ad reads.

"Moreover, our decision to reject the proposed referendum is also because it is not financially compelling in that it requires Piper to payback more than $100 million dollars in rent over a 30 year period in exchange for $23 million in incentives for properties that Piper currently owns," the ad reads.

Very good news betts

Looking good for us or that crappy state to the west of us

I mean they aren't even on the list of potential NBA cities :drunk:

woot woot!

(sorry, vero beach :( )

Attempting to stay negative here since I never get what I want...

This doesn't mean Vero Beach is out...simply that they don't want to get into a political fight with local citizens.

It seems a little like Piper is just posturing for a better deal, almost like they're putting on their poker face and waiting for Vero Beach to go all-in. I hope I'm wrong.

GENERAL NEWS Council considers economic impact in Piper incentive decisionby Brian Brus
The Journal Record July 24, 2007

The Journal Record - Article (http://www.journalrecord.com/article.cfm?recid=80309)


OKLAHOMA CITY – When the Oklahoma City Council discussed potential incentives to land a Piper Aircraft manufacturing center last month, the package was kept under wraps to keep competing cities from gaining an upper hand.

One figure helps put the value of those incentives in perspective: $518 million. That’s Piper’s expected regional economic impact, officials said – officials in Florida, that is. It’s difficult to find an estimate of Piper’s effect in Oklahoma City.Article Tools Printer friendly edition E-mail this to a friend RSS Feed Digg this history Add to Del.icio.us Kristy Yager said the Piper incentive package was discussed in executive session during a normal City Council meeting, which protects specific details from being revealed. As for the figures that the mayor and council members may have used to weigh those incentives, she referred to the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber. The chamber produces most of City Hall’s economic impact figures, she said.
And chamber spokeswoman Cynthia Reid said the organization won’t discuss the number of employees that might be moving with the plant.
So Oklahoma City residents won’t be given any details of the deal until after it’s hashed out by city leaders. “Since it’s still a prospect, we are not really at a place where we have anything that’s releasable,” she said. “While we’re working with them (Piper representatives), in terms of what they’re looking at doing here, it’s still private, confidential client information.”

(story continues)

This would be a great coup to get.

Here's the full article. For those of you who ask why you haven't heard more about OKC in the headlines and what we're offering, this will answer your questions.



Council considers economic impact in Piper incentive decision

July 24, 2007

OKLAHOMA CITY – When the Oklahoma City Council discussed potential incentives to land a Piper Aircraft manufacturing center last month, the package was kept under wraps to keep competing cities from gaining an upper hand.One figure helps put the value of those incentives in perspective: $518 million. That’s Piper’s expected regional economic impact, officials said – officials in Florida, that is. It’s difficult to find an estimate of Piper’s effect in Oklahoma City.Kristy Yager said the Piper incentive package was discussed in executive session during a normal City Council meeting, which protects specific details from being revealed. As for the figures that the mayor and council members may have used to weigh those incentives, she referred to the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber. The chamber produces most of City Hall’s economic impact figures, she said.And chamber spokeswoman Cynthia Reid said the organization won’t discuss the number of employees that might be moving with the plant. So Oklahoma City residents won’t be given any details of the deal until after it’s hashed out by city leaders. “Since it’s still a prospect, we are not really at a place where we have anything that’s releasable,” she said. “While we’re working with them (Piper representatives), in terms of what they’re looking at doing here, it’s still private, confidential client information.”Impact figures are fairly easily calculated by economists all the time, said Robert C. Dauffenbach, director of the University of Oklahoma’s Center for Economic and Management Research. The numbers reflect how much new money is feeding into the local economy, which in turn can be dispersed to some degree through the market via the purchase of goods and services and supporting other jobs. In the simplest equation, the most important variables needed are either a company’s gross sales or employment.Some of those figures are already known. Piper announced many months ago it is planning to build a manufacturing facility for its new, single-engine PiperJet aircraft and possibly relocate corporate headquarters from Vero Beach, Fla. The municipal government in Florida has revealed that the new plant itself is expected to employ about 1,500 people. The company currently employs about 1,000, and the average salary of a Piper employee is about $39,000. Economists there have calculated the plant is worth $518 million annually to their local economy.Oklahoma City is in direct competition with Vero Beach. The third finalist for Piper’s decision is Albuquerque, N.M.Economic impact numbers are usually used to clarify something’s importance, Dauffenbach said. For example, he is involved in a big study every year to find the university’s economic impact on the Norman community.When the General Motors assembly plant in Oklahoma City closed in 2005, city officials estimated it had an annual economic impact of $1.2 billion. And when Dell announced intent to open a customer contact center south of the Oklahoma River in 2005, City Hall’s online document – which has not been updated or removed – projected an impact of $246.5 million by this September and a cumulative impact of $764.7 million by the fourth year. The former provided reason to fight for the plant’s continuation; the latter showed why Dell would be a valuable, new resident. In both cases, financial incentive packages were proffered. GM turned down a proposal from Gov. Brad Henry that would have led to a $200 million bond issue to help retool the plant. The City Council offer to Dell involved 62 acres of land, up to $11.25 million in improvements and as much as $5.5 million in job-creation grants.Dauffenbach said it’s important to keep economic impact figures in perspective – the area of effect must be identified, for example, as well as the counter-balancing investment expenses. In other words, is it cost-effective to pay for a company to relocate?“There’s also a lot of lying that goes on about impacts,” Dauffenbach said of hypothetical development projects in general. “A lot of times there’s an attempt to show only the gross side (positive impact) and not the net value.”Dauffenbach cited as an example a recent economic review he was involved in: “We came across a Texas study where they were trying to figure out the economic impact of retirement beneficiaries living there. But they didn’t look at the negative side, the money being paid in by Texas citizens to support retirement,” he said.“So you have to watch things in that kind of sense,” he said. “Typically you have to do a lot of checking to make sure you have good numbers.”Reid and Yager said Piper has not set any deadlines yet as to when the company might make its decision.

Copyright © 2007 The Journal Record

Piper is also said/rumored to be "up for sale". See Piper Aircraft may be up for sale -- South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com (http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/sfl-83piper,0,7743508.story) . Whether so or not is apparently unsubstantiated. The article also says this:


In 2003, American Capital paid $34 million for Piper's $57 million in bank debt. At the time, together with its $20 million investment in Piper in 1998, American Capital officials said they owned 94 percent of Piper.

Piper Aircraft is currently considering the offers of Vero Beach, Albuquerque, N.M., and Oklahoma City for its future headquarters and PiperJet manufacturing plant.

The company recently said it would not accept the public financing of an incentive package from Vero Beach and Indian River County, stating it's best for the community not to move forward with a proposal tied to a countywide referendum. The region's $76.5 million incentive package was offered in June to keep the company's headquarters and the planned PiperJet operations in Vero Beach.

Separately, Piper sold 61 aircraft and revenues reached an estimated $46.4 million in the quarter ending June 30 according to a new report from the General Aviation Manufacturers Association. During the first quarter of 2007, Piper sold 43 aircraft and revenues reached $32.5 million.

I sure hope they pick OKC and move before they sell.

I wonder how, if at all, (1) the FAA center here and (2) Wiley Post being former home of Aero Commander / Gulfstream might fit into the mix?

^ that's exactly what I was thinking Doug. I know Wiley Post already has facilities!!! Perfect fit!! and jobs/aviation activity desparately needed at that airport.

The FAA Center probably has zero impact on this...i think the big thing will be existing facilities on an air field they can ramp up quick or is cheap, or where construction of new facilities will be subsidized or done (cost) at a lower than average rate.

I occasionally google to see what's going on with this ... fwiw, I found this snippet just now in a 10/11/07 article at Russ Lemmon: Dodgers' slow pace frustrating : Indian River County : TCPalm (http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2007/oct/11/30dodgers-slow-pace-frustrating/) , a newspaper in the Vero Beach area, I guess.


Meanwhile, Piper spokesman Mark Miller said the process cannot move forward until the final offers — which would include terms and conditions — from Albuquerque, N.M., Oklahoma City and Vero Beach have been received. (Vero Beach's offer of $36 million includes $20 million from the state.)

"Until we have something specific, we can't really act," he said.

Miller said after the final offers are reviewed, Piper's board of directors — which includes members of the board of directors of Piper's parent company, American Capital Strategies — will meet and decide where to build the PiperJet manufacturing plant.
So, if not already done, it may be that behind the scenes that Okc is putting together its "final" offer ... but that's just me musing about that which I do not know!

Anybody heard anything at all on this? I've heard ZERO lately.

Piper is staying in Vero Beach. The city offered about $12 million in incentives.

This is was a done deal in January. Again...it was nothing more than Piper playing Vero Beach against OKC and ABQ to get a better deal. Exactly what Boeing did for the 787 production line.

And we couldn't beat their $12 million in incentives? We just passed a $75 million bond for economic development incentives.

You are missing the point. It was never OKC's to get...or ABQ. The whole bidding process was nothing but to get Vero Beach's numbers right and to a level Piper wanted. They weren't going to pick up and move.

Bummer.