REDI Cincinnati Celebrates Big 2017 Wins at Annual Meeting
On April 19, REDI Cincinnati hosted its 2017 annual meeting at the newly renovated Music Hall in Over-the-Rhine, joined by a crowd of more than 200 local elected officials, investors and business leaders.
Brian Hodgett, REDI Cincinnati Executive Committee Chair and P&G Director of Ohio Government & Community Affairs, opened the meeting and was joined on stage by REDI President and CEO Johnna Reeder to recognize outgoing executive committee members Jim Henning, Ben Russert, and Scott Robertson.
“On behalf of all of us at REDI Cincinnati, thank you for bringing our mission to life,” said Hodgett. “Our outgoing members have generously given their time and resources to ensure our success. We have a winning model for regional economic development and I couldn’t be prouder of the professionals from across the region who lend their expertise and resources to advance our purpose.”
The annual meeting capped off a strong 2017 performance that included REDI Cincinnati’s completion of 201 business retention and expansion visits, as well as the following wins for Ohio:
- 4,202 New Jobs Created
- 4,302 Jobs Retained
- $363.85M in Capital Investment
- $179.95M in New Payroll
As well as the reported accomplishments for the Greater Cincinnati region as a whole:
- 66 Wins
- 8,287 New Jobs Created
- $2.1B in Capital Investment
- $342.9M in New Payroll
Johnna Reeder applauded REDI Cincinnati’s recent hosting of the 2018 Site Selectors Guild annual conference, a highly influential economic development summit that attracted more than 400 premier site selection consultants and economic developers for a series of star-studded welcome events, programs, and networking opportunities.
“We’re going to be reaping the dividends from our efforts to showcase the Greater Cincinnati region for a long time,” Reeder said. “We shared our soul and now we are working hard to market our sites and region for their next projects.’”
2017 was also a year of unprecedented recognition for Greater Cincinnati, said Reeder. Site Selection Magazine named the region the No. 1 Metro for Sustainability and No. 4 Metro for New and Expanded Facilities. For the third straight year, the publication also ranked the Greater Cincinnati MSA region, including our 15 counties in Northern Kentucky and Southeastern Indiana, the No. 6 Metro with populations over one million for projects and capital investment.
To read more results from REDI Cincinnati’s 2017 Annual Report, click here.
Celebrating milestones
REDI VP of Business Development & Project Management Kimm Lauterbach took the stage to highlight Q Laboratories, Maxim Crane Works, trustaff, and Amazon.com as this year’s recipients of the James. A Wuenker Growth Awards. REDI created the award in 2016 to honor the Cincinnatian who spearheaded high-profile projects that continue to impact our business community today.
“We continue to be proud and pay tribute to Jim and his economic development legacy with this award named in his honor,” said Lauterbach. “Jim created the gold standard, the embodiment of regionalism and he is an icon who turned economic development into a profession.”
To be considered for a Growth Award, companies must have made a commitment to expand or locate in Greater Cincinnati in 2017 and must be nominated by their local economic developers for economic impact in their community. These four winners were selected out of the nearly 90 submitted for 2017. (Follow REDI on LinkedIn for more on this year’s Growth Award winners.)
Upward and Onward
Reeder saved REDI’s highest honor for last, announcing this year’s recipient of the William T. “Bill” Robinson III Upward & Onward Award: Candace McGraw, CEO of the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky. International Airport (CVG).
Named in honor of one of REDI Cincinnati’s founders, the award is given to recipients that portray the qualities of regionalism, advocacy, passion and optimism. Under the leadership of Candace McGraw, CVG has been transformed through the attraction of domestic and international low-cost carriers, like Southwest, WOW, Frontier, allegiant, and other creating a nearly 30 percent increase in annual economic impact across our region. She led these initiatives by collaborating tirelessly on both sides of the Ohio River, gaining business and community support to ensure CVG can be a top-ranked airport.
“Even though I know how much he traveled and how hard he worked, I never once heard Bill Robinson complain about being tired,” said McGraw upon accepting the award. “When I think about complaining, I buck up and think of Bill instead.”
Reeder concluded the evening by underscoring the value of REDI partnerships in furthering economic development in the region.
“Our work isn’t transactional, it’s transformational — thanks to our partners. Your investment makes us all champions of our region’s growth and we’re not done yet,” Reeder said. “This entire team shares in our region’s success, as well as our investors who make it all possible.”
Scroll down to see more pictures from the annual meeting.
