Broward County

As president and CEO of WorkForce One in Broward, Mason Jackson holds a front-row seat on the economy. First, his good news: Mass layoff notices in Broward are down significantly from last year. Temp hiring is up. “The staffing industry is beginning to say, ‘The phones are ringing again,’ ” Jackson says. The bad news: Healthcare employment has softened a bit, and only government is growing. His agency has 60,000 people registered looking for work with the largest single block being construction laborers.

“The staffing industry is beginning to say, ‘The phones are ringing again.’ ” — Mason Jackson, president and CEO, WorkForce One in Broward [Photo: Eileen Escarda]

With one forecast showing unemployment not getting down to 6.5% for three years, the question, says Bob Swindell, interim president and CEO of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Broward Economic Development Alliance, is how to accelerate job growth. Access to capital and permitting delays stand out as obstructions in the way of hiring.

No one is sitting idly by: The alliance this year makes its carefully planned big push to lure corporate and regional headquarters to Broward. Jackson, meanwhile, sees Broward as the epicenter for clearing and rebuilding Haiti. A cluster of wireless companies in Broward shows “great promise,” Swindell says.

But it’s a step at a time for most businesses. Debbie Hanley, owner of KAM Specialties, which supplies specialty metal parts to aerospace companies, was able to keep her head count at around 11 following a 2008 fire that destroyed her business. She hopes to add a couple of employees when her new facility is completed, even though major customers have cut back and some smaller customers have gone out of business. “We’re holding our own,” she says.

People to Watch

» Now in the fifth year of his third turn as director of Broward’s only deep-water port, Port Everglades, Phil Allen is building a container terminal, renovating four cruise terminals, building a bridge and revamping a petroleum yard, creating hundreds of jobs in construction. Cargo volume is off 20%, but spokeswoman Ellen Kennedy says Allen’s sentiment is “let’s just push forward with the master plan.” All told, 932 construction jobs are being created.

Port Everglades, which has several construction projects under way, is home to the two largest cruise ships in the world.

This year also will see the arrival of Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas, which along with Royal’s Oasis of the Seas is the largest cruise ship in the world. Port Everglades built a $75-million terminal last year that will serve as homeport for the two ships, which can accommodate 5,400 passengers each.

» Bergeron Land Development owners Ron M. Bergeron and son J.R. Bergeron, through their Fort Lauderdale-based Bergeron Emergency Services, have been laying out their plan to clear and rebuild Haiti. The firm can carry projects from site-clearing to design and construction. Meanwhile, it has a $100-million contract to widen four miles of I-595 through central Broward that will mean hiring 50 to 60. The company has started building a 15-acre recycling center to handle Broward County construction, demolition and plant debris.

Business to Watch

» Spherion is a bellwether for the employment outlook. The Fort Lauderdale-based staffing company reports that employers are calling for more temps and increasing worker hours, two precursors to full-time job growth. Employers remain cautious about adding workers, but “the employment picture definitely looks brighter in 2010,” says Spherion Staffing Services branch manager Paula Franco.

The company’s monthly survey of Florida workers also finds rising confidence in the economy, the ability to find a job and in the viability of employers.

Who’s Hiring

West Palm Beach/Palm Beach County

Palm Beach County has the taxpayer-subsidized life sciences sector, aviation-related companies, healthcare and growing headquarters and regional offices as companies acquire and consolidate. The macro: Education, health services and government employment posted the only growth above 1% in 2009. But the 2,600 added jobs were swamped by construction job losses alone, a drop of 19.5%, or 6,500 jobs. Tourism, retail and wholesale trade, manufacturing and financial all lost substantial numbers of jobs, too. Groups such as the Business Development Board and the Economic Council are working on job-creating solutions. “Jump-starting the economy is foremost on the minds of everyone,” says Economic Council President Mike Jones. The lightly populated Glades area in the western county remains in a depression, with unemployment in December ranging from an estimated 27% in Belle Glade to 48% in Canal Point.

Businesses aren’t forecasting a rapid turnaround, though some young companies have big plans. Delray Beach-based Celsius, the maker of a calorie-burning drink and powders, forecasts $25 million in revenue, up from $6 million in 2009, says Chief Operating Officer Jeff Perlman, a former Delray mayor. Perlman expects the 32-employee company to hire several people this year. “We’re in rapid growth mode,” he says. “We are really making a play to become a national brand.”

Tourism good news: The Port of Palm Beach, which has only had day-cruise casino ships since 1996, in February signed a five-year deal with Celebration Cruise Line to serve as homeport for a multiday cruise to Grand Bahama.

In construction, single-family housing starts in the fourth quarter hit 227 after bottoming in the first quarter at 93, according to analysis firm Metrostudy.

People to Watch

Ricky Wade

» Jamaica native and former McDonald’s corporate employee Ricky Wade bought seven McDonald’s franchise restaurants in 2001 in Palm Beach County and since then has added three. His restaurants have themes — African-America history in Mangonia Park, marine life in Juno Beach, rhythm and blues in Riviera Beach and golf in Palm Beach Gardens. He’s active in the community helping youth, was invited to the White House by former President Bush in 2007 and holds a business leader award from the Black Chamber of Commerce of Palm Beach County. Wade, 48, employs 390. “I’m never satisfied. My goal is to continue to grow and continue to build my business. 2010 is going to be a very challenging year.”

» Paul Emmett, co-owner of Palm Beach Gardens-based Duffy’s Sports Grill, a 20-restaurant chain with locations from Fort Lauderdale to Melbourne that employs 1,500, says he’ll add two locations this year. “We’re pleased we’re not down dramatically. We’re not up,” Emmett says. Same-store sales in 2009 were down 1.4%, but salary freezes and other cost-cutting measures left the bottom line even. He projects a flat first half with modest gains later in the year. At an average check of $18, “We have benefited from customers trading down, and we have lost some customers who have traded down from us.”

Businesses to Watch

» Palm Beach Gardens-based Cross Match Technologies, a biometric ID company, is adding 20 jobs over two years. It employs 162. “They will come from mostly lower-income households in Palm Beach County,” says human resources Vice President Thomas H. Miller. “Many are without substantial manufacturing skills.” The workers will be trained through the Florida Manufacturing Extension Partnership before going to Cross Match for on-the-job training. Depending on the recovery’s progress, Cross Match will be able to hire more workers in science and engineering to develop products, Miller says.

» When the state Public Service Commission shot down Florida Power & Light’s $1.3-billion rate hike request, the utility suspended work on $10 billion in projects ranging from nuclear reactors to changing a coal-fired plant in Riviera Beach to natural gas. It said it would make a final decision later this year on whether and when to proceed.

» Pending City Council approval, International Harbor at Riviera Beach, a joint venture of Viking Developers and Rybovich Boat Co., wants to bring a megayacht service facility to Riviera Beach’s marina, creating 30 to 35 jobs.

Boca Raton

Boca Raton largely missed the overbuilding boom and bust. It also has a powerhouse business lineup, from startups to large employers in tech (IBM, Siemens), finance (Sun Capital) and headquarters (Office Depot, National Enquirer-owner American Media, appliance maker Jarden Consumer Solutions, Tyco, ADT and Sensormatic). But it’s not immune to trouble. Irving, Texas-based Nokia Siemens Networks will shutter its Boca site by year-end, eliminating 300 jobs, as it restructures its internet-based phone services business.

Business to Watch

» Florida Atlantic University wants to open the state’s newest med school in 2011, replacing a 5-year-old program under which students earn University of Miami med degrees through classes held at FAU. Students also will be able to go for a joint M.D.-Ph.D. program offered with Scripps Florida. Meanwhile, FAU has a new president, Mary Jane Saunders, former provost at Cleveland State University, replacing Frank Brogan, who became chancellor of the state university system.

Person to Watch

» Ken Schwartz, 43, plans to add between 80 and 100 employees by year-end to the current workforce of 42 at CityTwist, his company that sends electronic direct mail advertising targeted by ZIP codes.

Who’s Hiring

» Jobs
MSA	Jan. 2009	Jan. 2010	% Change	Jobless Rate
Fort Lauderdale/Pompano/ Deerfield Beach	909,841	872,484	-4.1%	10.8%
West Palm/Boca Raton/Boynton Beach	565,861	536,695	-5.2%	12.5%
Source: Agency for Workforce Innovation
» Homes Single-family, existing-home sales by Realtors
MSA	Jan. 2010 Sales	1-Year Change	Jan. 2010 Price	1-Year Change
Fort Lauderdale	492	+5%	$180,000	-6%
West Palm Beach/Boca Raton	546	+48%	$238,600	-30%
Source: Florida Association of Realtors

 

» Population Totals
2.4% or higher    1.0%-2.4%    1.0% or less
		Average Annual Growth
County	2010	2006-2010	Trend
Broward	1,800,962	0.51%
Palm Beach	1,323,838	1.22
Florida	18,910,672	1.21%

 

» Population by Age
	Years of Age (2010)
County	0-14	15-19	20-39	40-64	65+	Total
Broward	18.7%	6.4%	24.1%	36.1%	14.6%	1,800,962
Palm Beach	17.0	5.7	22.6	32.5	22.1	1,323,838
Florida	17.9%	6.1%	25.4%	32.9%	17.6%	18,910,672

 

» Per Capita Income
		Source of Income
County	Per Capita Income 2010	Labor	Property	Transfer
Broward	$42,852	70.4%	22.1%	7.5%
Palm Beach	60,730	49.5	43.4	7.1
Florida	$39,927	62.2%	26.5%	11.3%