Economic master plan to provide a trove of data
When the city of Cape Coral finally puts together its Economic Development Master plan, it will have a cornucopia of data to decipher.
Planner Chad Boyko gave a presentation Wednesday to city council during its monthly workshop at the Nicholas Annex on Wednesday, loaded with information the city will need to decide how the city will move on with its economic future moving forward.
The purpose of the plan is to achieve a balance between the residential and commercial entities of the city, provide jobs and places to work, lay groundwork for future economic growth and find programs and plans that can achieve economic sustainability, Boyko said in his presentation.
Cape Coral, has a population of more than 175,000 people. Its highest percentage of workforce population is between 45 and 54 years old (15.1 percent). The second highest is between 35 and 44 (12.3 percent). Nearly 45 percent of the population would be considered too young or retired.
Boyko said one of the most telling data points is that while 90 percent of city residents have high school diplomas, only 21 percent have college degrees, as opposed to 29 percent nationally.
Of the 29,252 jobs in the city, many of them are in education, retail, professional and hospitality, with most of them located either downtown or in the industrial district. Currently, the city has a split of land that is 88 percent residential and 12 percent commercial. An 80-20 split has been the goal and the Cape has crept slowly toward that mark.
As for the master plan itself, it focuses on six initiatives; a focus on key areas, retention and expansion of businesses, attracting key and emerging sectors, developing a competitive workforce, enhancing and revitalizing infrastructure and encouraging an entrepreneurial culture.
One of the interesting things came from Councilmember Rick Williams, who said that many people have started working from home and he did so himself when he lived in Connecticut.
Dana Brunett, economic development director, said 60 percent of businesses are home based. Many of them are trades such as plumbing and electrical work.
Mayor Marni Sawicki is among those who works from home. She said the difference is that many people you do business with won’t conduct it home.
From here, council will make recommendations, the report will be finalized and shared, with implementation set for the beginning of the year.
Councilmember Jim Burch was very excited about the economic development map and that the report was spot on.
“We’ve been wanting to do this for years and they nailed it. It will be understood when all this data gets put unto the overlay map because the visual tells the other half of the story,” Burch said. “When you see an interactive map like this, it shows how everything relates to one another.”
In other business, JoAnne Killion talked with council about taking part in a sister city project with China as a way to expand their cities and leverage these partnerships into economic development.
Killion came up with four potential cities; Jilin, which is in the northeastern part of the country, Hainan, an island resort town, Guangxi, on the south central coast, and Xinjang, to the west. She said those cities have populations and circumstances that are similar to the Cape.
Cape Coral has done sister city programs in the past. Councilmember Marilyn Stout remembered doing one with France some 15 years ago.
Councilmember Rana Erbrick had some concerns regarding if this would be a back door move behind the formal Sister City program, but agreed that it’s a good idea, having traveled to China in the past.
“It’s a great opportunity for children and their elders. Travel packages can be made available. It’s a beautiful country,” Killion said.