Economic Collaborative of Northern Arizona (ECoNA) — 2023 Recap, Plus Remembering Amanda and Dennis

Good afternoon,

This year has been pivotal for the Economic Collaborative of Northern Arizona not only for what was accomplished, but also for the roadmap we are developing for the future.

Our top story for 2023 was the creation of our 5-year Strategic Plan (which you can download here) as we contemplated the most critical issues we must address to ensure continued economic vitality for our region.

One of the important aspects for our economic health is trade, and we were pleased to host the Consul General of Mexico, Jorge Mendoza Yescas, and Glenn Williamson, the founder and CEO of the Canada Arizona Business Council in Flagstaff. We opened up our Advisory Council meeting to the entire business community so everyone could benefit from the insights of these two representatives of Arizona’s largest two trading partners.

We also hosted a whirlwind tour of all that northern Arizona has to offer to the business development team from the Arizona Commerce Authority that included sites in Flagstaff, Winslow, Sedona, and Camp Verde. A few weeks later we joined the ACA at its booth for the 2023 SelectUSA Investment Summit in Washington, D.C. SelectUSA is the highest-profile event in the U.S. dedicated to promoting foreign direct investment. That was one of several trade shows and events where we represented northern Arizona.

As part of our celebration of Manufacturing Month, the ECoNA Business Retention and Expansion team organized a tour of three local manufacturers for 17 juniors and seniors from Flagstaff and Coconino high schools to show the rewarding work (and excellent pay) available in the sector. The students visited Nestle Purina, W.L. Gore & Associates, and UACJ Automotive Whitehall Industries, Inc.

During the year, ECoNA fielded 65 inquiries from businesses interested in the northern Arizona area, and wrote more than 10 letters in support of projects that supported economic development in our region, including infrastructure grants and the Building Resilient Economies in Coal Communities application for Coconino, Navajo and Apache counties.

Unfortunately, 2023 also was the year we lost two of the biggest cheerleaders for economic development in our community.

Amanda Kristinat became the Chief Financial Officer and Operations Manager of the Northern Arizona Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology in 2017. In that role she helped transform NACET into Moonshot, and was a tireless supporter of new, innovative businesses and the entrepreneurs who create them. Dennis Kelly had a unique understanding of the property markets in our region through his three decades of experience in real estate. Most of his career was focused on the development, sales, and leasing of commercial property, and his insights were invaluable to our work. Both will be deeply missed.

We thank all of you who have lent your support, leadership, advocacy, and more to ensuring that our region continues to thrive, and we look forward to working with you in the coming year.