Real-Life Communication
One of the jobs of economic development officers is to promote their
area in the most positive, upbeat light possible. One move can
mean the difference between economic boom or bust.
You are on the urban
economic planning committee for Ashville. With a population of 751,000, it
is a city on the move. Just last month, Sweet Tooth Ice Cream International,
one of the world's biggest ice cream makers, announced its intentions to move
one of its major plants to either Ashville, Tuscon or Las Vegas.
"I
rely heavily on communication," says Lisa Brown, an economic services director
from Oakland, California. "Another staff member spends quite a bit of his
time creating reports based on economic data, so he will use both his math
to figure things out and his communicative skills to give his points a human
touch. This is essential in economic development."
In preparing your
city's sales pitch to Sweet Tooth International, you've been given the job
of putting into words a lease, land and construction cost comparison. Here
are the figures you have to work with:
| City | A | B | C | D |
| Las Vegas | $3.74 | $33.10 | $2.58 | $1.72 |
| Tuscon | $4.03 | $29.56 | $5.01 | $3.50 |
| Ashville | $3.02 | $26.04 | $1.74 | $1.15 |
KEY:
- Lease price per square foot for warehouse or industrial buildings 20,000
to 40,000 square feet
- Construction cost per square foot for warehouse or industrial buildings
20,000 to 40,000 square feet
- Land cost per square foot for improved industrial sites over 10 acres
- Land cost per square foot for unimproved industrial sites over 10 acres
You must take these figures and write a short letter to J. F. Hogg,
president of the ice cream company. In it, you will give him a couple of economic
reasons why he should choose Ashville instead of Tuscon or Las Vegas. Simply
state your case and sign off.