BizTucson - The Region's Business Magazine

Local business leaders created the Southern Arizona Leadership Council with optimism. They believed the region could enjoy a better economic climate and with that a higher quality of life for all – if top CEOs committed their leadership skills and resources in collaborative efforts toward that goal.

“We are an organization born in 1997 that has grown into the senior leadership group in Southern Arizona,” explained Ron Shoopman, president of SALC. “We have effectively multiplied our impact through building coalitions statewide.”

KEY SALC ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

SALC initiated a dialogue with Gov. Jan Brewer and the state legislature to create a strategic plan that would provide a context for annual financial decisions. Toward that end, SALC co-sponsored an analysis of state finances by McKinsey & Company. The analysis revealed the extent to which the deficit is structural, not cyclical; strongly supported a one-percent sales tax increase for education; insisted the fiscal crisis must be resolved in ways that preserve the state’s critical infrastructure; and urged there be no “sacred cows” in solving the state budget shortfall. It will take a combination of spending reductions, spending deferrals, debt financing, revenue enhancements and other actions to get Arizona’s finances in order.

Transportation

SALC members led the effort to create a Regional Transportation Authority, virtually from inception to its passage by voters in a landmark victory in May 2006. The issue included a half-cent sales tax to fund $2.1 billion in road improvements over 20 years. SALC founding member Si Schorr was on the first board and served as chair of the RTA.

Water

SALC led the opposition against two attempts to restrict the use of Central Arizona Project, one in 1999 and one in 2007. The propositions would have inhibited growth in the region. SALC was instrumental in creating the Tucson Regional Water Council, a coalition of 11 business organizations dedicated to effective management of the region’s water and wastewater resources. And it helped bring about a broad-based effort for engaging the entire region in water issue discussions, a process City Council-woman Karin Uhlich described as “historic.”

Community Leadership 

SALC was the key organizer of the Tucson Regional Town Hall in 2007. The Town Hall brought together 160 local leaders for three and one-half days of discussion regarding critical issues facing the region. Key outcomes: The Town Hall spawned six “Community Conversations” on water, literacy, land-use, arts and culture, early childhood education and public education. New organizations growing from these “conversations” include the Literacy for Life Coalition and Tucson Values Teachers.

Education

Tucson Values Teachers – a major initiative to ensure that the Tucson region attracts, retains and supports top educators – is SALC’s most ambitious education undertaking. As an indicator of the initiative’s importance to SALC and the community, an executive director, Jacquelyn Jackson, was hired to oversee TVT’s major components: incentives for teachers, opportunities for professional development, teacher internships in businesses during the summer and an effort to provide needed supplies to classrooms. In recent months TVT achieved new status when it was spun off as a freestanding not-for-profit organization.

Downtown

SALC was a leader in creating the new Downtown Tucson Partnership, which focuses on revitalizing the core of the city. The action is an example of SALC working to pull together key leaders, focusing always on outcome and ultimately makeing the city a better place.

Environment

Though not an environmental organization, SALC brought together 45 scientists, land managers and government leaders to discuss the growing threat of buffelgrass – “the worst invasive grass in

the world.” According to scientists, the non-native plant out of Africa is known for its ability to suck up moisture faster than native plants of the Sonoran Desert and to catch fire easily, thus being a serious threat to native plants, people and structures, not to mention the impact that such destruction would have on the area’s lifestyle and tourism economy. That forum led to the creation of the Southern Arizona Buffelgrass Coordination Center. SALC board member Sarah Smallhouse is the founding chair of the center’s board of directors.

Science and Innovation

SALC has been the region’s driving force behind coordinating local bioscience efforts. Under the leadership of SALC members Leslie Tolbert and Chris Gleeson, the Bioscience Leadership Council of Southern Arizona was created in 2009 to provide direction and development strategies. Additionally, SALC President Shoopman serves as co-chair of the statewide Bioscience Roadmap steering committee, which guides the state’s bioscience development. Bioscience growth in Arizona since 2002 has increased 32 percent to a total of 90,219 jobs. That’s nearly three times the U.S. growth rate of 11 percent during the time period.

Science Foundation Arizona

In 2006, SALC joined with two similar organizations, Greater Phoenix Leadership and the Flagstaff Forty, in creating the  public-private not-for-profit Science Foundation Arizona. The organization focuses on generating high-technology jobs through business expansion and new startups, as well as retaining and attracting top talent to Arizona. A total of $43.8 million – more than half the total of SFAz grants – has gone to Southern Arizona.

Venture Capital

The creation of the state’s first Fund of Funds – the brainchild of SALC member Harry George – was a landmark accomplishment. George has more than 35 years of experience in founding, operating and investing in successful rapid- growth technology-related companies. There had been a dearth of venture capital funds in Arizona for decades. This new fund has resulted in capturing millions of new investment dollars for Arizona.

Economic Development

Economic development for years had been fragmented in Tucson with more than 40 different organizations involved with economic development. Then SALC led a reorganizing of the area’s economic development efforts into the new public-private operation call Tucson Regional Economic Opportunities, nicknamed TREO. For the first time the private sector, the city and the county are cooperating under the management and leadership of one economic development organization.

Healthcare

The SALC Healthcare Taskforce was instrumental in creating the Hospital Council of Southern Arizona. The partnership between SALC and the HCSA is unique in the nation, making Southern Arizona one of the few places in the country to bring together business and health care. Its major work currently is in developing a health information exchange that will allow health care organizations instant access to a patient’s medical history when patients give consent. Such quick access is expected to positively impact care and allow physicians to more accurately select treatment.

Coalition Building

It is difficult to characterize the 2010 effort to change the city charter as an accomplishment when voters rejected the initiative known as Proposition 401. However, throughout the campaign in favor of the proposition, SALC built a strong coalition of businesses, not-for-profits, environmentalists and political leaders. Never before had such a perse coalition been assembled to support a single goal – that of improving Tucson government. A key consequence of this coalition building is better relationships with other civic-minded organizations and leaders, who will encourage coalition members to work together on other critical issues facing the city.