A.V. PROJECT SEEKS TO BURNISH AREA'S BUSINESS IMAGE.

Byline: Jim Skeen Daily News Staff Writer

Government and business leaders started work Monday on a new economic game plan for the Antelope Valley, a plan that will focus on attracting manufacturing jobs.

The project has three legs: an update of a 4-year-old work force study, an update of a 3-year-old industrial space and capabilities study, and the development of a new strategy for how best to lure in new businesses and new jobs.

``We're focusing on manufacturing because that is the lifeblood of the economy,'' said Vern Lawson Jr., who is managing the project for the Antelope Valley Regional Partnership.

In a gathering Monday at the Palmdale Holiday Inn, more than 100 government officials and business people were given an overview of the plans for revamping the valley's 4-year-old strategy for attracting jobs.

Funded by federal and state grants, developing the new strategy is expected to cost $195,000 and take six to eight months.

The project is sponsored by the Antelope Valley Regional Partnership, whose members represent Lancaster and Palmdale city governments, county government, private industry and education.

The work will be carried out by consultants and committees of government officials and business people, including an aerospace task force comprising representatives of the major defense contractors, Edwards Air Force Base, the Antelope Valley Board of Trade and other organizations.

The previous economic plan, based on a 1993 report by Chicago-based PHH Fantus, focused on diversifying the Antelope Valley's economy away from aerospace.

That study led to the formation of the Regional Partnership board to coordinate economic development efforts and to the offering by Palmdale and Lancaster of city subsidies of $2,000 per job to new manufacturing and service businesses.

The Regional Partnership board has coordinated efforts to earn the valley state economic development zone status, to secede from the South Coast Air Quality Management District and to create a film liaison office in Lancaster.

But recent contract awards, notably contracts won by Lockheed Martin to develop a new spacecraft and to build a prototype of a new fighter, have civic leaders wanting to take a hard look at bolstering aerospace.

Committees representing the aerospace industry, human resource departments, large manufacturing firms and small manufacturing companies will be formed to look at problems in attracting jobs.

The industrial space and labor market studies will be conducted by Al Gobar, a Placentia consultant who has conducted previous Antelope Valley studies.

The economic strategy will be developed by Celeste & Sabety, an Ohio-based consulting firm that recently completed a similar project for Shasta County.

Celeste & Sabety will look at how other regions dealt with similar issues and bring back suggestions.

The project is also expected to include a study to determine how much money is needed to promote economic growth, where that money would come from and recommendations as to how it should be spent.

John Griffin, a partner in Celeste & Sabety, said the Antelope Valley's strengths in attracting jobs include its abundance of land and labor; the region's enterprise zone status, which provides state tax credits; its aerospace manufacturing capabilities.

STRATEGIC VISION

WHAT: A new strategy will be drafted on how best to lure new businesses and new jobs - particularly in manufacturing - to the Antelope Valley.

HOW: The plan will be developed by consultants and committees of government and business people, including an aerospace task force comprising representatives of the major defense contractors, Edwards Air Force Base, the Antelope Valley Board of Trade and other organizations.

WHO: The effort will be coordinated by the Antelope Valley Regional Partnership, whose members represent Lancaster and Palmdale city government, county government, private industry and education.

WHEN: The strategy is expected to be ready in six to eight months.

CAPTION(S):

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Box: STRATEGIC VISION (see text)