"We cannot let the existing climate create survivalist thinking or paralysis." — Jacksonville Mayor John Peyton
Jacksonville /Duval County
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Shielded in the early months of Florida’s economic downturn by a diversified industrial base and robust exports, Jacksonville this year is suffering along with the rest of the region and the state. At 8.8%, unemployment has caught up to the statewide rate. A financial services hub, Jacksonville could lose additional mortgage-related jobs in the coming year if loan volumes don’t rise. Even its port in the storm, Jaxport, saw a drop in cargo tonnage of 9.2% between 2006 and 2008.
While Jacksonville is in a down cycle, says Mayor John Peyton, “We cannot let the existing climate create survivalist thinking or paralysis.” Instead, business leaders are thinking about the long-term future, and it’s bright: Jaxport continues work on two new container terminals that will open up direct trade with Asia. U.S. Navy officials have chosen the Naval Station at Mayport as the future homeport of a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier that will bring in 3,000 jobs. And Cecil Commerce Center is finally beginning to see commercial development, with Alenia North America choosing the former military base for its assembly and delivery center for the
C-27J Spartan cargo plane, a $100-million project. Peyton and other officials see Cecil as a key future air-cargo connection with Jaxport for domestic and international companies alike.
People to Watch
Steve Kowkabany, owner of Neptune Fire Protection Engineering, is the incoming chairman of the young professionals network group called IMPACTJax, an effort by the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce to engage young professionals. Kowkabany has built relationships with other fire-protection engineers around Florida to team up on large jobs, which has kept him busy even during the downturn. “We get more work than any of us would have had on our own,” he says. >> Maxine McBride, president of Clockwork Marketing in Ponte Vedra Beach, came up with an initiative called “Network Your Way to New Business” to help businesses deal with the economic downturn. When Florida’s economy was going gangbusters, she says, some young entrepreneurs never had to learn the art of networking as a business-development tool — and some older businesspeople lost it. McBride’s program outlines ways to research, prepare for and follow up on events as a way to build good will and a client base in hard times.
Mayor John Peyton says it’s important to stay focused on long-term goals, including the conversion of Cecil Field into a commercial development and growth at the
city’s port. [Photo: Kelly LaDuke] |
Business to Watch
David Moorefield and Kathy Shoff launched their consulting firm DAK Resources a little more than a year ago and have a brisk business hiring engineers, project managers and other staffers for positions locally and around the world. DAK goes after federal, state and local government contracts. Its recent long list of help-wanted ads runs the gamut from security officers in the West Bank in the Middle East to wastewater engineers in Jacksonville. Moorefield, a former Marine officer, wanted to focus his company on helping former servicemen and women make the transition from military to private sector. “I made a promise to my Marines that I would never forget them,” says Moorefield. “This business is me keeping my promise.”
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