On Thursday, September 24, the Clinton County Economic Alliance will be hosting a seminar on Defense Contracting. The seminar will be held at Clinton County RESA, 1013 south U.S. 27, starting at 8:00 a.m. and ending at 9:30 a.m. Presenters will be Jeff Cassidy from the Lansing Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) and Judy Kruger from the Defense Contract Coordination Center. As we are all aware, the federal government purchases hundreds of billions of dollars in goods and services a year. With the high demand for innovation and technology, Michigan businesses can be optimistic about the prospects available to them. Beyond military arms and weapons, the federal government buys just about every item that might be found in a household. Tremendous opportunities exist for companies interested in government contracting, including those in industries as diverse as agriculture, construction and professional, scientific and technical services.

 

This seminar will provide Clinton County businesses an opportunity to learn the “ins and outs” of state and federal contracting. There is no cost to attend the seminar. All we ask is that you register by calling the Clinton County Economic Alliance at 517 669-1345 or e-mail us at czarneckij@cceami.org. Let’s learn how to bring our federal tax dollars back to Clinton County.

 

The seminar is sponsored by the Clinton County Chamber of Commerce, the DeWitt Chamber of Commerce and the Clinton County Economic Alliance. Again,

 September 24 from 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at Clinton County RESA in St. Johns.

 

As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), the Internal Revenue Service recently released guidelines regarding Recovery Zone Bonds. ARRA allows for two new bond programs:

 

ARRA allocated volume limitations for each category. The volume cap for Recovery Zone Economic Development bonds is $5.8 million and $8.7 million for Recovery Zone Facility Bonds. These are volume caps - not actual dollars. This is a private transaction between a lender and borrower. The federal government is providing a financial incentive to the lender to entice lenders to make a loan.

 

This is the first time in 20 years that commercial projects are eligible to use private activity bonds. If you are planning to construct or add on to your existing building or planning to purchase new equipment, Recovery Zone Facility Bonds may be the way to go. The project should be over $2 million to make it financially beneficial to go this route.

 

For communities thinking of undertaking an infrastructure project and plan on financing it for 20 years or more, the Recovery Zone Economic Development Bonds may be the way to go.

 

For more information on either program please contact John Czarnecki at 517-669-1345 or czarneckij@cceami.org.

 

The Capital Region International Airport has been granted Foreign Trade Zone status by the federal government. A Foreign Trade Zone is legally considered to be outside of United States Customs territory and allows goods to be brought in to these areas duty free. Products that are duty free help U.S. companies defer, eliminate or reduce custom fees on products, or charge comparable rates on items that are produced abroad.  Foreign Trade Zones give American businesses and companies a stronger competitive edge over similar companies based in other countries. The process of receiving Foreign Trade Zone for the Lansing airport took nearly 12 months to complete and required strong community support from business and industry leaders, and Michigan’s Congressional delegation.

 

“Federal designation of the Capital Region International Airport as a Foreign Trade Zone is a tremendous step forward in our regionally coordinated effort to further enhance the economic value of the airport as an asset for the region and the State of Michigan,” said Robert Selig, Executive Director of the Capital Region Airport Authority. “The Capital Region International Airport is a gateway to Michigan for international trade and travel, and its services and facilities are helping area companies compete in a global marketplace.” 

 

Our new Web site www.clintoncountyeconomicalliance.org has given us a global presence on the Internet.  About half of the visits we receive each week come from referring sites.  To help us drive more traffic to the site, please add a CCEA link to your own Web site.  The more the CCEA Web Site is linked to, the higher it will appear on search engines such as Google.  This helps raise awareness about our county throughout the world.

 

 

To help you save energy, you may want to visit Consumers Energy’s web site at www.consumersenergy.com. Consumers Energy has incentives on energy products that can reduce your ongoing energy use and deliver significant savings on your bill. Businesses of all sizes can realize more affordable initial investment costs through these incentives. 

 

 

So exactly what is Michigan MarketMaker. It is an interactive mapping system that locates businesses and markets of agricultural products in Michigan, providing an important link between producers and consumers. In Michigan you can access MarketMaker by going to the Product Center web site www.productcenter.msu.edu. MarketMaker is rich with demographic and business data. If you are a producer looking for customers, a consumer looking for locally produced food, or a business owner looking for a local supplier, MarketMaker can help you. One of the key points is that there are no fees or charges for using MarketMaker. Registration and use are free. If you are dealing with agricultural products in any way, check out MarketMaker.

 

July unemployment numbers again showed Clinton County rate to be among the lowest in the state at 11.1 percent. That is an increase over the June number of 10.7 percent.   We continue to be well below the state rate of 15.4 percent and slightly above the U.S. unemployment rate of 9.7 percent. 

Efforts to expand Michigan Milk Producers Association’s Ovid manufacturing plant are well underway, and so far the estimated completion goal of early 2010 is still on track.

Construction has steadily progressed since the cooperative broke ground on the project in late June 2008. The expansion will increase the amount of milk processed at the manufacturing facility by 2 million pounds a day. The dairy manufacturing operation is currently capable of processing 3 million pounds a day. Sales from the Ovid plant were nearly $200 million in 2008.

           
 “Investing in the Ovid manufacturing facility helps ensure our members a market for their milk and jobs for our employees,” says MMPA General Manager John Dilland. “Milk processing facilities are currently at their capacity in Michigan. Milk production in excess of our manufacturing capacity is being transported out of state at a cost to our members. Expanding our Ovid facility ensures a local market for our members’ milk and also strengthens the vitality of the Ovid community and the dairy industry.”

 

Products made at the Ovid facility include cream, condensed milk, butter and powdered milk, which are sold as dairy ingredients to a wide variety of food manufacturers.

“You don’t see the MMPA label in the store, but when you eat pudding, yogurt, cookies, ice cream and many other foods, chances are you are enjoying ingredients made at MMPA manufacturing facilities,” Dilland comments.

 

The expansion project will improve throughput and efficiency at the plant allowing MMPA and its dairy farmer members to remain competitive and viable in the marketplace. MMPA management worked closely with local, county and state government to acquire railroad property for the expansion and easements around the development for the Rails-to-Trails project. Also, through the assistance of local, county and state governmental departments and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, an Agricultural Processing Renaissance Zone was designated in the area of new construction. This designation provided the cost incentive to keep the expansion project centered in Ovid.

 

According to a study completed by the MSU Product Center, the Ovid expansion project could have an economic impact of over $183 million to the state of Michigan. The project retains the 86 current full-time positions and will add 10 new positions directly to the Ovid plant.

 

The MMPA Ovid manufacturing plant is owned and operated by Michigan Milk Producers Association, a milk marketing cooperative owned by approximately 2,300 dairy farmer members throughout Michigan, Indiana, Ohio and Wisconsin. Headquartered in Novi, Michigan, MMPA employs about 200 people. MMPA has another manufacturing facility in Constantine. In 2008, MMPA marketed approximately 3.8 billion pounds of milk.

o   Meeting will adjourn at 11:45 for a joint meeting with the Clinton County Chamber of Commerce open to all members and guests.  You must RSVP the Chamber at 989-224-7248 for their luncheon meeting.   Clinton County RESA Office, 1013 S. U.S. 27, St. Johns. 

o   Charles Ballard, MSU Economist, will be the lunch speaker

o   Learn about the many opportunities available in the defense industry. Clinton County RESA Office, 1013 S. U.S. 27, St. Johns.  Register at 517-669-1345 or lehmank@cceami.org

 

o   A discussion regarding state and federal programs that can assist small businesses in securing loans. Clinton County RESA Office, 1013 S. U.S. 27, St. Johns.  Register at 517-669-1345 or lehmank@cceami.org

 

o   Interactive discussion with moderator Chris Holman and a panel of business leaders and entrepreneurs (Mary Ellen Sheets, “Biggby Bob” Fish, Rob Fowler, Linda Hundt, Gordon Ferguson, and Chad Paalman). During the “meet and greet” session, share and discuss ideas and information. Clinton County RESA Office, 1013 S. U.S. 27, St. Johns.  Register online at www.misbtdc.org/training. Attendees who wish to showcase concepts and business materials, can reserve space by calling

517-669-1345.