March/April 2008 | Trade and Industry Development

March/April 2008

Trade & Industry Development Magazine

CiCi Awards – 3rd Year!
 
We’re celebrating the 3rd anniversary for The Corporate Investment and Community Impact (CiCi) Awards and we are as excited this year as we were the first…or even more so.  Everyone likes to be recognized for a “job well done” – and corporations, states and communities are no different. 
 
After receiving over 1,000 submissions from across the nation, we had the grueling task of narrowing the list down to the Top 16 Corporate Investment projects and the Top 15 Community Impact projects. 
 There may be plenty of excitement in our CiCi Awards, but don’t overlook our feature articles:  Dennis Donovan’s “Nearshoring: A Competitive Advantage in a Global Economy;” Ed McCallum’s “Community Commitment & Corporate Responsibility;” and Jane Mather’s “Site Selection Portfolios: Optimal Today but What About Tomorrow?”  These articles are bursting with insightful words and important information from these three professionals.  And speaking of professionals, don’t miss Richard Kadzis’ Industry Outlook article from CoreNet Global.

In this issue

Coastal Gateway: Alabama's Coastal Gateway to Opportunity

BY: Andrea Johnson

If you’re looking to be surrounded by impressive opportunity, look to Alabama’s Coastal Gateway.   Thispristine region of Alabama, with abundant natural beauty and quaint, yet unusually cosmopolitan towns, is located less than an hour from Mobile and Pensacola, within three hours of Birmingham, and under five hours from Atlanta and New Orleans. Transportation is easy thanks to Interstate 65, which stretches from Mobile to Chicago; and the Tombigbee Waterway, which links the Port of Mobile to the Tennessee River and, ultimately, the Mississippi River. Several regional airports also service the area as part of the region’s “aviation triangle.” Coastal Gateway is situated in the middle of the South Alabama Aviation Triangle, located between Dothan, Mobile and Montgomery, and features an impressive concentration of aviation manufacturers.   The Coastal Gateway counties of Clarke, Choctaw, Conecuh, Escambia and Monroe are optimally positioned to make the most of Alabama’s burgeoning economic... more....