4A Wichita Falls Economic Development Minutes - 11/17/2022 MINUTES OF THE
WICHITA FALLS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
November 17,2022
Present:
Leo Lane,President § WFEDC Members
David Toogood,Vice President §
Darron Leiker §
Brent Hillery §
Stephen Santellana,Mayor § Mayor&Council
Paul Menzies,Assistant City Manager § City Administration
Blake Jurecek,Assistant City Manager §
Kinley Hegglund, City Attorney §
Stephen Calvert, Senior Budget Analyst §
Chris Horgen,Public Information Officer §
Paige Lessor,Recording Secretary §
Richard Gordon, Interim President/CEO § Wichita Falls Chamber of Commerce
Taylor Davis, Dir of Bus Retention&Expansion §
Ryan McGowan, Director of Bus Intelligence §
Matt Anderson § Sherrill&Gibson,PLLC
Absent
Phyllis Cowling, Secretary-Treasurer § WFEDC Member
1. Call to Order
Mr. Leo Lane called the meeting to order at 2:30 p.m.
2. Consent Agenda
a.Approval of Minutes (October 20, 2022)
Mr. Leiker moved to approve the minutes. Seconded by Mr. Toogood,the motion carried
4-0.
b. Financial Report
Mr. Menzies addressed the Board and said that sales tax closed out for fiscal year 2022.
Revenue came in slightly higher than anticipated, at about$5.2 million.Revenue finished slightly
ahead of inflation numbers for the year.The available cash was reduced by the amount of the Pratt
and Whitney project, which Council approved. Mr. Lane noted that the unrestricted fund balance
is $11 million. There were no other questions or comments from the Board.
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3. Discussion and update on local workforce and labor market demographics in Wichita
Falls.
Mr. Ryan McGowan addressed the Board and presented a PowerPoint presentation to
review some labor force numbers.Wichita Falls has about 105,000 people, and the MSA has about
151,000 people.These numbers are based on the American Community Survey five-year study by
the Census Bureau. The 2021 numbers will come out in December. It is higher than our Census,
but it is a five-year rolling average. The civilian labor force is made up of about 64,000 people.
The Sheppard AFB total direct employment is 8,500. That number is down about 10%, but the
dependents (spouses and children) are up about 40%. The labor force participation for 16 years
old and up is about 70,000. The prime age (25-54) labor force rate is 76.1%, which equals about
41,000 people. The unemployment rate is 3.5%.
Mr. Lane noted that the participation rate was low. Mr. McGowan said it is a little low for
the US average,but it's not far behind.That number has gone down pretty dramatically since 2000.
It was about 70% to 75% for the entire United States, but that number has plummeted. After
COVID, it went down, back up, and then started going back down again. This number is pretty
average. It takes into consideration 16-year-olds and a retirement age of 55.
Mr. McGowan then discussed the level of education of the labor force population. He
explained the numbers on the slide add up to 100%. Ten percent of the population ages 25 to 64
have no high school diploma. That number is about average for the United States and better than
the average for Texas, which is 14.6%. The percentage of people with only a high school degree
between 25 and 64 is 32.4%,higher than in Texas and the United States.Wichita Falls has a higher
than average rate of people with only some college education. The City also has a higher than
Texas average of people with only an associate's degree but similar to the U.S. average. The rate
of people with only a bachelor's degree is about 16%. That number is below the Texas and U.S.
average by 5 to 6 points. The rate of people with a postgraduate degree is below the Texas and
National average by three to five points.
Mr. McGowan then began discussing average income from quarters one and two of 2022.
Between Q 1 and Q2,the average wage increased by 1.5%or about$800.Manufacturing increased
by about$2,000. It will vary from industry to industry and quarter to quarter. Mr.Lane asked how
these numbers compared to other communities and the state. Mr. McGowan also noted that the
average wages for the state are between$50,000 and$60,000.This study reports the average wages
per person, not per household. Mr. Toogood clarified that this number indicates the average as to
the number of people who have jobs. Mr.McGowan confirmed that this is the correct way to look
at these numbers.
Mr. McGowan then talked about the average military exits Wichita Falls has each year. In
the year 2020, there were 182 military exits. For each category of job, a certain number of
employees are demanded, so many of those positions will be filled by exiting military members.
For example, in the category of First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers, 15
military exits will fill the positions available. The military provides a decent chunk of the
community's workforce, anywhere from 100-182 per year,that will be trained to do an in-demand
skill.Mr. McGowan asked the Board if they had any questions.
Mr.Toogood asked if there is any insight about the changes in population at Sheppard.He
wondered why the workforce decreased, but the number of dependents increased. Mr. McGowan
said he was not sure of the reason. He surmised that it could be because of a change in mission,
but he did not know.Ms.Davis stated that she did not think Sheppard was immune to the changes
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that have been seen in the labor market, in which many employers are losing their talent. There
were some forced exits due to people not complying with the COVID vaccine requirement. Mr.
Toogood said he was interested in the change in the number of dependents because that usually
means some change in structure that changes the type of people of will transfer to a military base.
Mr. Lane asked Mr. McGowan if the study included the Euro-NATO people in the study. Mr.
McGowan stated that these numbers do not include students, only people here for full-time
employment.
Mr. Toogood asked if Mr. McGowan had the median wage number. Mr. McGowan stated
that it was really close to the average wage. It is around $43,000 versus the average of$45,000.
Mr. Toogood noted that he remembered that the number was significantly lower six years ago. It
was about$31,000.
Mr. Gordon and Ms. Davis commented that they are discussing the possibility of doing a
labor market study based on some submissions they have received that specifically ask if a third
party has done a labor market study.They think it would be beneficial because the previous studies
would be past their viability. The study could also show how much talent is lost to other locations.
The study would align with the Falls Future 2.0 strategy in helping determine what could be done
to keep the talent in Wichita Falls.
Mr. McGowan also noted that 98%of the workforce lives in the MSA. Mr. McGowan and
Mr. Lane believed the workforce coming from outside the MSA would have been higher. Ms.
Davis noted that they do not know how many people live in the MSA but work outside it. Both
Ms.Davis and Mr.Leiker believed that number would be higher.The Board had no more questions
for Mr. McGowan. Mr. McGowan asked the Board if they would like a quarterly report, and the
Board agreed that information would be helpful in their meeting packets.
4. Executive Session
Mr. Lane adjourned the meeting into executive session at 2:50 p.m. pursuant to Texas
Government Code §§ 551.087, 551.071,and 551.074. He announced the meeting back into regular
session at 3:36 p.m. The subjects posted in the Notice of Meeting were deliberated, and no votes
or further actions were taken on the items in executive session.
5. Adjourned.
The meeting adjourned at 3:36 p.m.
Leo.Lane, President
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