Existing Industry Appreciation Night in Round Rock

Thanks to Charley Ayres and the rest of the folks at the Round Rock Chamber of Commerce for inviting us to speak last night at their annual Existing Industry Appreciation Night. Judging from the number of people in the room, it's clear that economic development efforts in Round Rock have strong support from both the private and public sectors.

A few highlights from the brief presentation we did:

• Round Rock has grown by approximately 41,500 residents since 2000--roughly the equivalent of adding an entire Pflugerville.
• Round Rock's jobs to housing ratio, a key metric for understanding the balance between community development and economic development, is 1.6 jobs per housing unit. That exceeds the U.S. average of 1.4 and is only slightly behind Austin at 1.9.
• Round Rock is clearly tied to the regional economy. Nearly 80% of Round Rock residents cross a county boundary for work. At the same time, companies in Round Rock employ more Austin residents (22%) than Round Rock residents (20%).
• Taxable retail sales per capita in Round Rock exceeded $10,000 in 2008, one of the highest figures in the region.
• Companies in Round Rock produced $8 billion in total gross sales last year.
• Sales in 2008 were down for many industries, but Round Rock's creative class was a bright spot. Creative class companies--professional, scientific, and technical services--achieved 39% growth in sales last year compared to 2007.

Here's a link to download the full presentation on Round Rock economic development.