With one vote in opposition, the Pima County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a contract with the economic development organization Sun Corridor Inc.
Supervisor Ally Miller cast the only vote against the contract for economic-development services with the group formerly known as TREO, or Tucson Regional Economic Opportunities, saying she didnโt think it had produced enough results.
โHave we seen the results?โ Miller asked in an interview after the vote. โQuite frankly, Mr. Snell (Joe Snell, Sun Corridor president and CEO) has not delivered for 10 years.โ
The contract reaffirms the boardโs approval of $441,000 in funding for the current fiscal year and includes an additional $210,000 for assistance in locating companies interested in purchasing or leasing county-owned land.
โIn order to continue funding an organization, I need to see something happening,โ Miller told fellow board members in discussing her vote.
Among other board members voting in favor of the contract, Supervisor Ray Carroll said he was confident Sun Corridor would deliver.
โTheyโve really refocused on our core employers,โ Carroll said.
He noted the organization changed its name from TREO in 2014 and has since redoubled its efforts to attract defense, aerospace, logistics and export-related businesses.
โIโve seen the type of work theyโve done to make this region even stronger,โ Carroll said.
Sun Corridor and its predecessor TREO have helped with the relocation and expansion of more than 100 companies to the region, including Accelerate Diagnostics, HomeGoods, Arizona Canning Co., Comcast and Ventana Medical Systems.
There also have been less-well-paying employers operating call centers and now-shuttered solar-technology-based companies that also are counted among the successes.
Sun Corridor board members speaking at the meeting โ including Dennis Minano, a former executive at General Motors, and Guy Gunther, vice president operations for Arizona at CenturyLink โ said the organization has been able to parlay each dollar of government funding into $3 in private investment.
โOur No. 1 goal is to increase export-based employment in our economy,โ County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry said, adding that seeking more retail or housing are not part of the economic development goals of the county.
County officials have hinted in the past few weeks that an announcement would be made soon that shows Sun Corridor, working in partnership with the county and others, stands on the verge of finalizing a deal that would bring in a new employer and nearly 500 jobs to an area near the airport.
Huckelberry said a second major employer also has an interest in an opening in the same area.
Miller, however, said the millions of dollars the county has poured into economic-development contracts with Sun Corridor and its predecessor have not been fruitful.
Instead, she said the county should look north to Marana to see a successful model of economic development.
โI certainly would like to use Marana as a best-practices blueprint,โ she said.
Miller referred to the recent opening of an outlet mall in the town, Ventana Medical Systemsโ plan to build a distribution center and the expansion of Sergeant Aerospace and Defense, which expanded its footprint in Marana in 2010.
Carroll said the primarily retail-based development Marana has sought canโt be compared to primary job-providing industries the county has courted.
โThatโs just hyperbole,โ he said. โSupervisor Miller is continuing to be an obstacle when it comes to the representation of the county and its ability to retain new employers.โ
