Regional Effort Creates Prosperity in The High Ground
Published Aug 07, 2009
Stretching from the northern borders of the Texas panhandle south to the Permian basin, this region of Texas is fertile ground for industry. The workforce is highly educated and employees do their
jobs with an old-school work ethic and hard-nosed discipline.
The High Ground of Texas regional economic development coalition works to maximize this region’s strengths.
High Ground members include economic development corporations, city and county governments, chambers of commerce, workforce groups, utilities, institutions of higher education and industry associations. These various members may compete with each other for projects, but in terms of building economic strength in the region, they work together to get the job done.
“It’s not big against small, it’s not north against south. Everybody is in this together,” says Lorie Vincent, executive director of The High Ground of Texas.
New industries recruited into The High Ground fuel growth in businesses. For example, along with the growing dairy industry came supporting industries such as nationally known Hilmar Cheese.
“They produce about 13 percent of the cheddar and jack cheese in the US market,” says Buzz David, president and CEO of the Amarillo Economic Development Corp. “With the new facility they’ve built in Dalhart, which just announced its first major expansion, they’re going to move that up to 20 percent of the U.S. market.”
That type of success in The High Ground isn’t uncommon.
Nine years ago, Muleshoe had two dairies. Now, within a 14-mile radius, there are 14 dairies. Student populations are up and so is the interest in education, says Janet Claburn, director of economic development in Muleshoe. “Last year, our community passed a $25 million school bond,” Claburn says. “We have made additions and renovations to all four of our campuses.”
Agriculture, aviation manufacturing, food processing, transportation, oil and gas, ethanol production, and wind energy thrive in The High Ground.
“People are so curious as to how we’re able to make an organization that covers such a large geographic area work so well,” Vincent says.
“The answer? Working together.”
“Cooperation is a real key term in doing economic development and in trying to represent this part of the country to the rest of the world,” says Mike Hatley, vice president of economic development in Midland.
“We’re still competitive,” says David Rushing of the Shamrock Economic Development Corp. “If a project comes down between me and a neighboring town, we do the best we can for our community. But, it’s still a regional effort.”
Midland’s Hatley says, “We recognize that if one community benefits in The High Ground, eventually all communities are going to benefit in The High Ground.”
Relationships and a regional attitude are top priorities. These commitments work in favor of the communities and the corporations considering this region.
“By utilizing The High Ground, a company, rather than having to deal with a multitude of cities and communities, deals with one organization that takes the guesswork out of the proposal process and helps them decrease their time and effort needed to evaluate a site,” says Tim Pierce, executive director of South Plains Association of Governments.
For two decades, The High Ground of Texas has positively influenced economic growth in the region.
The success is worth celebrating.
“Twenty years of working together in a spirit of cooperation results in jobs,” says Commissioner Todd Staples of the Texas Department of Agriculture. “It results in capital investment and it lays a bright foundation for the future.”
Story by Joe Morris
Current Weather Conditions In Stratford, TX (79084)
Clear, and 34 ° F. For more details?
Click here...
