Palm Beach BDB funding cut - South Florida Business Journal:

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percent of the ’s annual public making the BDB’s missioh to attract and retain businessess amid a sagging economymore difficult. BDB Presidenr and CEO Kelly Smallridge said the nonprofit economifc development organization could make up forthe $55,250 loss throughb more member contributions, but that would take her staff’s time away from encouraginb growth. “We don’t want to be fundraisers. We want to be economif developers. That’s what we are here Smallridge said. “For as small as we are, we do a tremendous amount of fundraising.” Of the $1.9 milliojn in revenue the BDB collectefd in the fiscal yearended Sept.
30, 2007, $1,032,100 came from its contractf withthe county. On Dec. 2, county commissioners lowered the contributionto $976,850o for the three years remaining on the contract. Smallridge said the county cut funding by a similard percentage at all its financialassistance agencies. Like most Floridaq governments, Palm Beach County has seen tax revenuse and investmentincome decline. With a 7.4 percen unemployment rate in October, Palm Beach Countt has been hit harder by the recessionm than mostFlorida counties. It has staked much of its economivc future on two biotechnology powerhouses the BDBhelpes recruit: the and the .
“The BDB will continude its very aggressive recruitment and expansion strategies for Palm Beach County,” Smallridge said. “In these tough times, this is when our countgy and municipalities need economic development morethan ever.” The BDB has been workintg with cities to expedite their public works projects and permitting processesd for developments that would have a positivwe economic impact, she said. It also has severall companies seeking state approval for job growth incentives and workforcdtraining grants.
Smallridge noted that the countgy has 20 buildings with aleasrt 50,000 square feet of vacant space that could serv as a corporate headquarters, but arranginhg financing to support a big move like that has been South Florida’s other economic development organizations face similar business recruitment challengea and their funding has been The absorbed a $271,00 cut from Broward County in but it more than compensatex by raising $1.3 million in private The secured an extra $300,000 in annuakl Miami-Dade County funding in November when it convinces county commissioners to strip that funding from the Metro-Miamii Action Plan.
Louis Laubscher, senior VP of , said the statewidee economic development organization tooka $600,000 cut – 4.8 percent of its budgety – this year, and expects another reduction next year as the state’sz tax revenue fizzles. “Rarely can we totallh overcome the decline in state revenues throughprivate contributions,” he Laubscher said Enterprise Florida will reduce its numbed of trade show appearances and is unsure if it will sponsor an oversea s business mission next year. He expects that the Legislature will fund some existin job growth incentive but doubts they will offer big pots of moneyt tolure companies.