Boeing deal big news for Beaufort, Jasper counties

Probably the most common question I've received since Boeing announced its decision to build the Dreamliner in North Charleston is: "What does that mean for us?"

To begin with, it means thousands of jobs are going to be created within 60 miles of where some of us live. That's nothing to overlook, especially in today's economy.

But when you take a closer look, you can see that the Boeing deal can be the spark that will drive the growth of the aeronautics/defense sector that we're pushing here in the Lowcountry, a sector that's set to explode along the U.S. 17 corridor from Jasper to Charleston.

For the past year, we've touted the aeronautics/defense sector as one of the region's four focus groups for economic development. We've talked about positioning the Beaufort Commerce Park and its 150 acres for the arrival of the F-35B at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort and the ancillary businesses that will follow.

In the few shorts weeks since the Boeing announcement, we've already received several calls from local, state and federal officials asking us what companies in the Lowcountry touch Boeing, how does Boeing correlate with the F-35 and what assistance can they offer to connect these dots?

Seems we're on the right track.

So where do we go from here?

Well, we have to be proactive. We have to understand that Boeing's influence doesn't end in Charleston but that it will indeed stretch down to us.

To that end, we have to continue our cultivation of suppliers that touch Boeing, Gulfstream and the other major players.

We also have to look toward our educational partners to see what they're working on and how that correlates with the economic development efforts. From the computational math program at the University of South Carolina Beaufort to Georgia Tech Savannah's offering of in-state tuition to South Carolina residents, it all ties in together.

We -- at the local, state and federal levels -- also have to become innovative when considering the research and development opportunities that can follow Boeing. BMW's arrival in the Upstate spawned the Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research; can we duplicate that model in this region?

This is a very exciting time for our state and region, and we look forward to continuing to share the story of all that the Lowcountry offers, with Boeing now as the next chapter.

As always, thank you for helping us spread the word.

Kim Statler is executive director of the Lowcountry Economic Network, a public-private nonprofit that serves as the economic development arm of Beaufort County. Read Kim's blog online at lowcountrynet.org/sc-economic-blog