Excerpts from interview
Excerpts from an interview with Jeana Davis, new economic development director for the city.
C-T: What type of businesses do people in New Castle want?
DAVIS: "I think that people want prosperous businesses. I think they the type of businesses that are going to support what are good assets are, which is not limited to this but could include the equine. We have the highest number of registered horses per capita in Henry County, so I think we could support businesses as a community that are in that area."
C-T: What are New Castle's weaknesses when it comes to economic development, besides its current lack of economic development unity?
DAVIS: "Education. Education is a big thing, the skills and educational background we need to diversify the way we want to. I think we're going to work strongly and closely with the Danielson Learning Center and Ivy Tech to help our community in that area."
Craig Mauger, Courier-Times News Editor
A woman who got her first job in economic development through a temp agency will lead New Castle's Economic Development Directorate.
Mayor Jim Small has tapped Jeana Davis, who currently serves as his administrative secretary, to head the new and controversial directorate.
The mayor's decision to pull the $75,000 in funding the city put toward the New Castle-Henry County Economic Development Corp. and start his own directorate has inspired opposition and pushed Davis into the spotlight.
"I know how to pull people together," Davis said on Thursday. "And I think I'm qualified for the job. I think I'm ready for the job. It's unfortunate how it came about for me, but it did, and my name is out there. And I'm not going anywhere."
During a 30-minute interview on Thursday, Davis and Small talked about their plans for the directorate and Davis' qualifications to lead it.
According to a document Davis provided, she worked at Chatsworth Products until 2002 when it closed. Then, through a temporary agency she got a job as office manager of the New Castle-Henry County Economic Development Corp.
There, she worked under former President and CEO Bryan Coats, whose firing in December preceded Small's announcement that he would pull the EDC's funding.
For about a year and a half, Small, then EDC special projects manager, Davis and Coats all worked out of the EDC office on Main Street.
"When the three of us including Bryan were working together, it was sort of our own internal joke that Bryan was the head, Jeana was the heart ... and I was the legs," Small said. "All three of us would chuckle over that many times."
During her time at the EDC, Davis helped lure TS Tech to Henry County. That company announced in March 2007 that it planned to hire 300 people in a new $32.8 million facility.
Also in 2007, Davis got a bachelor's of science degree in organizational leadership from Anderson University.
Soon after, TS Tech offered her a mid-level management job, which Davis took. But during her time at TS Tech, she decided she wanted to get back into public service, she said.
According to Davis, the day she made a call to Small about her desire to get back into public service, Small decided he could no longer go without an administrative secretary. He had gone without one as a cost saving measure.
But in June, Davis began working at the city building, making about $30,000 a year.
"I hired her to do that business development work that I wanted done and couldn't do myself," Small said.
Now, months later, Small says Davis was the natural choice to lead the economic development directorate.
"It was already a forgone conclusion since she had already been doing the work," Small said.
Small says he doesn't know yet if there will be a second city employee working in the directorate or if Davis' pay will come from the money that once funded the EDC. But Small says all of that $75,000 will go toward the directorate.
He says that money will be used for marketing, advertising, a Web site and business leads.
Asked if Davis' pay would be increased, he said yes, but he doesn't know by how much.
"She's going to be in an environment where she's going to be working with counterpart people who are earning six figures," Small said.
"She's working for half price," he added.
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