And about that research park idea....

So we have an article in todays Gazette about this research park idea....

In LR tax vote, business aim sticky 

By Kristin Netterstrom

Our Position

Opponents have questioned the wisdom of taxing Little Rock shoppers during tough economic times to pay for expanding the Little RockPort, creating a fund to match state incentives and helping build a research park that opponents say will initially create high-paying jobs for people with graduate-level degrees or business transplants from outside the city.

Some other interesting points.....

Only 12.7 percent of Arkansas residents over 25 hold bachelor’s degrees and 6.1 percent have graduate or professional degrees, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2009 American Community Survey.

In other words....no one living here is going to get one of these high paying "futuristic" jobs they claim they will produce.

But acquiring land, building interior roads and the first 100,000-square-foot office and laboratory space will cost an estimated $50 million, according to updated estimates provided by the chamber. Consultants in 2009 estimated the park would need an annual operating budget of $650,000 to $900,000.

and

Chancellors for both universities said they’re not sure what their institutions’ financial contributions will be other than renting space at the park. Both schools’ on-campus research facilities are near capacity.

In other words they want access and control over the facility but will not be obligated to provide ANY of the funding!!!!

UAMS’ BioVentures has housed 47 companies since 1998, creating 532 jobs with a payroll of $26.5 million.

A research park off campus would provide more laboratory space, Cornett said, and office space for smaller startups that can’t afford much overhead.

UALR’s smaller operation also has run out of room after discoveries by faculty led to the creation of seven startup companies that employ 16 full-time workers and 17 part-time employees.

In other words ~14 jobs a year...likely to people who do not live here!!!

I made more extended comments in the post of this story at the Arkansas Times blog....

more on the jump...

Max...an addendum to that last point about the article in the Gazette over research parks HUGE success

1st - the present industrial adaptation departments, Bioventures (started 1998) and UALR's office, basically say they have generated a total of 556 "FT jobs" in that 14 years. Thus for MILLIONS of dollars expenditures they have produced 40 "jobs each year, with a likely average annual salary of about $40 or $50 K. Here is another issue someone should ask (I have experience in this area)...that is "jobs" not new jobs for new individual workers. In other words those jobs came from a source of funding that expires at some point and that job is eliminated, then new funding starts and the "same" employee is payed out of a new funding source for a "new" job. So, my question that I would want to ask is this "How many permanent jobs have been generated over those 14 years??? Meaning how many jobs have been started over that 14 years that were started at some point and are still in place to the present??? My suspicion is that is would be far less than their meager 550 they claim. Also, a side question....how many of the individuals hired for those jobs were drawn first from the Little Rock market and secondly...even from the local region workforce (likely not many)???? Another question, what are the local business services do these companies call on for their day to day operations (these are VERY specialized operations that most often draw their resources from specialized providers from out of state, often who do no charge of pay ANY AR sales taxes)!!!

2nd...As you have pointed out the article makes it very clear that the local institutions of higher ed will be drawing heavily from this resource...but NONE OF THEM will commit to ANY funding for the endeavor. Only thing is this, they all clearly state that their wet lab and IT lab facilities are full (having decades of experience with these kinds of institutions, let me inform you that that is code language for 'Oh Boy....lots of new space for our academic researchers, not entrepreneurs). To support this hypothesis they state their will obviously be "some - OFFICE" space in the facility for budding new business types. To see how this works, go look up that A&M research park review after 20 years, that I cited in an earlier post. They found the institution just used it for an overflow resource for their "academic" activities...NOT private company generators.

3rd...Just looking at this analysis....it should make someone wonder....IF this was such a good idea, why hasn't some private entity come in and taken up the cause??

My answer, they would need private capital, like from a bank, and if you were a banker and looked at this offer...it would be, basically we need 22 million to build a facility that will cost 100 million to build and then 1 million each year after that to operate, please loan us the money.

Then me...so let's get this straight, if we look at the normal business plan on the first 5 years and 5 years after...you will need 110 to 120 million. Now you want me to give you 22 million on the "hope" that you can get more investors to come into the deal. You hope because you have been unable to get any investors to come into this "Great Idea" of a deal up this point (after trying for 5 or so years). Your track record for your colleages in the small scale operation is,,,cost millions and produces a few permanent "highly specialized" jobs over 14 years.

You Know guy....I think we will pass on this offer at this time. But please come back and talk to us when you get some more "money" players in your offer...