Lubbock Economic Development Alliance (TX) – Economic Development Strategic Plan

Challenge

“Imagine Lubbock Together” was a visioning process coordinated by the Lubbock Chamber of Commerce to define the values and goals of the community. A central theme that emerged from this process was the need to design an ambitious plan to diversify and grow the Lubbock economy, which had traditionally been driven by agriculture, education, and healthcare.

Response

The Lubbock Economic Development Alliance (LEDA) engaged TIP Strategies to assist in developing a holistic economic development strategy that would leverage existing and emerging assets to propel the Lubbock economy forward. The planning process built on a 2013 study TIP compiled for LEDA, which included an economic assessment, industry analysis, and occupational analysis. For the strategic plan, TIP improved upon the quantitative findings of the industry cluster analysis to explore specific opportunities that would lead to a more dynamic economy. This work involved extensive discussions with employers, education and workforce development professionals, and elected leaders around issues of downtown revitalization, university R&D, technology commercialization and transfer, entrepreneurship, and talent recruitment. The plan recommended five priority projects LEDA should play a key role in pursuing: (1) establishing downtown Lubbock as a destination for investment and employment; (2) launching a talent management system; (3) attracting federal and private R&D catalyst projects; (4) leveraging the expansion of technology research, development, transfer, and commercialization efforts at the Texas Tech University System; and (5) establishing a new community college campus in the city. Since the plan’s completion in 2014, LEDA has successfully implemented most of the recommendations. Areas where the organization has made substantial progress include tapping into the research and innovation assets at Texas Tech University; expanding South Plains College’s Lubbock footprint (with the opening of a career and technical center and a downtown campus); and transforming downtown into a destination for new commercial, cultural, and residential development.