The numbers are staggering.
In its just over 30 years of existence, the Greater Phoenix Economic Council (GPEC) has helped more than 800 companies set up business in Arizona, helped bring more than 144,000 jobs to the state, and attracted more than $16.1 billion in capital investment to the region.
By Michael Gossie for AZBusiness
“(GPEC President and CEO) Chris Camacho and his team consistently lead the nation in net absorption and retention figures due to their strategy, consistency and tenacity in identifying and targeting domestic and international end users to choose the Valley of the Sun as a place to select for their business destination,” says James Murphy, president and CEO of Willmeng Construction and long-standing GPEC member. “GPEC represents Arizona at the highest level to make the business case that Arizona is the right choice for the long-term success of the prospect. This business case spans from the cost of the KW-hour for power, the availability of water, pipeline of qualified labor, ability to expand, distribution logistics, incentives, and multiple tiers of a comprehensive tax discussion.”
With GPEC’s success in attracting and growing companies has come explosive growth — both economically and in the sheer number of people. From July 2017 to July 2018, Greater Phoenix welcomed 62,000 new residents, the most of any metropolitan area in the United States during those 12 months.
Image caption: Arizona State University Downtown Phoenix campus, looking south. Credit: David Ramirez, City of Phoenix
