State business grows

Site Selection magazine announced the results at a news conference in Lansing, attended by Gov. John Engler and other state officials.

The magazine, published in Norcross, Ga., has tracked industry location trends for more than 40 years.

For 1997, Michigan led the nation in new business projects, the magazine said. Michigan received its Governor's Cup award.

"We've watched Michigan's turnaround through our annual rankings," Site Selection Editor Tim Venable said in a news release. "From 23rd just a few years ago, to seventh, then sixth, and now winning the Governor's Cup, it's been an impressive rise to the top."

Doug Rothwell, director of the Michigan Jobs Commission, said pro-business policies enacted during the Republican governor's seven years in office are the primary reasons for the booming investments.

Those policies include a series of 24 tax cuts, changes in unemployment insurance, welfare and worker's compensation and aggressive economic development programs, Rothwell said by telephone from Lansing.

"This is the latest indication of Michigan's renaissance," he said.

Other signs of the state's economic turnaround from the deep recession of the early 1980s has been an unemployment well below that of the nation as a whole, he said.

Comerica Bank has forecast that unemployment in Michigan will average 3.9 percent in 1998, compared with a national rate of 4.9 percent.

The announcement was made on President's Day, when most state offices and many other offices were closed. The Associated Press left messages seeking comments from the Michigan Democratic Party and from the state House and Senate Democratic leadership offices.

New industrial plants and plant expansions are measured by Site Selection magazine. Projects involve at least $1 million in new investor re-investment, 20,000 or more square feet of new construction or at least 50 new jobs. It excluded retail and residential construction.

The 1,285 projects involved projects with at least $17.4 million in new investments. Engler's office said the actual value probably exceeds $20 billion because 24 of the projects did not have reported price tags.

Ohio came in second with 1,202 projects, the magazine said. It was followed by Texas (1,001), California (973), North Carolina (880), New York (811), Florida (526), Illinois (375), Indiana (345) and South Carolina (303). In Michigan, Wayne County led with 233 projects, followed by Kent (167), Oakland (166) and Macomb (128).

Engler's office said the state plans to use the award in its efforts to lure new business investments to Michigan.

02-17-98