Commentary: The Las Cruces Chamber of Commerce has a new CEO.
Debbi Moore is a veteran Chamber executive who previously ran the Rio Rancho Regional Chamber, so she is presumably well prepared -- someone with local knowledge and contacts.
She pointed out how, in Las Cruces, the Chamber has a four-star accreditation, along with great people involved in the Chamber and the community.
Those are positive fundamentals that Las Cruces can build on, but even Debbi Moore must know that the Chamber still faces many challenges, just like the community does in general.
The Chamber is a non-profit association whose first responsibility is to support local businesses.
The Chamber is also an economic development advocate, which makes it a force for community development.
By promoting the expansion of the local business base, the Chamber is also helping to create new jobs, add more payrolls and investment to the local economy, and ultimately enhance the quality of life for everyone living here.
So, the Chamber impacts more than just the local business and commercial base.
As upbeat as the Las Cruces and Southwest New Mexico regional economy may appear to be, there are some huge problems to overcome.
New Mexico’s standing as a sparsely populated state with one of the lowest per-capita income rankings in the U.S. has a direct impact on Las Cruces.
Anemic Job Growth
Despite the mix of defense- and aero-space-related government and private sector operations based in and around Las Cruces, these industry groups do not generate as many higher-paying jobs as we might presume.
State economists recently drew attention to job growth by cities around the state, with Albuquerque leading the way -- but only with an anemic 1.2 percent year-over-year increase in new jobs, without a recession.
Las Cruces experienced near-zero growth in net new jobs, by comparison.
One of the drivers of this troubling statistic is the out-migration of young people to cities and communities that create and can offer real careers.
Another driver is a distinct lack of higher-paying jobs, and the corporate and professional services employment base to support true economic expansion.
By contrast, Las Cruces is a great place for people who have ended their careers.
It’s a top-rated retirement center.
US News and World Report ranks Las Cruces among the top 10 best cities in America for retirement.
Unfortunately, for the Chamber and its leadership, that makes us a “one trick pony,” or a “one-horse town.” Lower income for workers means lower costs for retirees, it appears.
As much vitality as the retirement community brings to the local and regional economies, there is a noticeable imbalance in the overall economic mix of Las Cruces.
Stop the Brain Drain
Economic diversification is more than a compelling ideal. Diversification should become the mandate of the Las Cruces Chamber of Commerce.
With the presence of New Mexico State University, there is a huge disconnect dividing talented graduates, many of whom grow up here, and the local economy’s ability to support their careers and livelihoods.
One of the key problems the new Chamber CEO must solve is the brain drain of young talent away from Las Cruces to other cities and states.
One of the causes is likely anti-business sentiment among elected officials, starting with the Las Cruces state legislative delegation.
Another primary role of the Chamber is to promote the conditions for job creation by working with local and state government to provide a healthy environment for business investment.
Looking at the newly published Pro-Jobs/Employment Legislative Scorecard as reported by the Las Cruces Bulletin, the Chamber has a lot of work to do.
The City of Las Cruces scored a dismal 31 percent scorecard ranking, along with Dona Ana County, which scored 33 percent.
This means that overall, only one-third of all legislative actions affecting business have favored business. In the trickle-down world of career seekers, that’s not good news.
It’s not surprising, then, to see that of 12 elected state representatives and senators from Las Cruces, only two received positive scores for supporting the needs of business. Only one of them is 100 percent pro-business.
Time for a House Cleaning?
There are many other factors determining why New Mexico and Las Cruces are not attracting their fair share of new-economy, higher-paying jobs.
Some of them include the quality of early education, proximity to other geographic centers, regional economic cooperation, or workforce readiness.
But none of them counts for anything with a state legislative delegation that doesn’t seem to understand or care about the bigger picture.
Until we can find and elect people with the vision to help make our community more competitive in terms of attracting jobs and investment, don’t expect much to change.
But that’s what the Chamber is there for – to serve as a change agent.
Maybe it’s a good time, Debbi Moore, to launch a pro-business political action committee that will serve notice.
If you’re not representing the interests of business, jobs, investment and young people, you are not representing the best interests for the future of Las Cruces.
We need to clean house, and I can tell you from direct experience, the Chamber is the one community organization best suited to get the job done.
In addition to his work as a political reporter for National Public Radio and WBUR-FM in Boston, Kadzis enjoyed a lengthy career as an executive with leading Chambers of Commerce including Atlanta, Greenville, South Carolina and the State Chamber of South Carolina, as well as CoreNet Global, a related organization for site selection executives. He is a subject matter expert in location strategies, economic development and corporate recruitment.