ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The $1.89 billion in economic activity generated by the Sandia Science & Technology Park (SS&TP) since it was established in 1998 has produced more than $73 million in tax revenue for the state of New Mexico and $10.4 million for the city of Albuquerque, according to a new report by the Mid-Region Council of Governments (MRCOG).
And direct and indirect jobs associated with the research park, which houses private companies and several Sandia National Laboratories facilities, have generated $3.06 billion in wages, a major boost to the local economy, the report said.
Bernalillo County Commissioner Maggie Hart Stebbins and city of Albuquerque Chief Administrative Officer Rob Perry announced the report’s findings Tuesday at Ted Hobbs Park in the 300-acre master-planned SS&TP. The report is available at http://www.sstp.org/about-sstp/economic-impact.
“Institutions such as the Sandia Science & Technology Park are instrumental in creating economic stability within the region,” Hart Stebbins said. “Despite the tough economy, the park continues to contribute to our nation through innovation and technology, and to our region through increased local investment, area revitalization and spin-off jobs that provide opportunities to our residents. Bernalillo County is proud to be a partner in this effort.”
Perry said the park “is a great example of regional cooperation for economic development. It is a model that has been celebrated nationally for its innovative approach to regional economic development. The city of Albuquerque is proud to have been an active partner in this important job-creation initiative since its inception.”
MRCOG assessed the research park’s economic impact on the economy from its groundbreaking in May 1998 through the end of 2011. The report also measured the number of Albuquerque-area jobs created in the park, economic activity in the community and wage and salary levels.
“Creative partnerships that represent public and private interests and multiple jurisdictions, like the Sandia Science & Technology Park, are critical to the health of the region,” said Dewey Cave, MRCOG’s executive director.
“The Sandia Science & Technology Park was founded in 1998 as a partnership to promote business growth and facilitate collaboration with Sandia National Laboratories and the Air Force Research Lab (AFRL). Since then, the park has provided a remarkable economic boost to New Mexico,” said Sherman McCorkle, chairman of the board of the SS&TP Development Corp. “This public-private partnership is a true testament to the importance of technology commercialization and its important role in job creation.”
The average salary for full-time employees in SS&TP was $74,949 in 2011, nearly 1.8 times higher than that of the average of all full-time employees in the Albuquerque area, according to the report.
“Since park jobs are primarily high technology, mainly engineering and research and development jobs, a high wage rate is associated with them,” McCorkle said.
The park expanded by more than 500 jobs since the last economic impact report was issued in 2009. By the end of 2011, SS&TP was home to about 1,500 private-sector jobs, plus another 1,000 Sandia Labs jobs. Growth in private sector employment within the park is due largely to expansion at Air Products and Emcore Corp. The park’s activities have created an additional 4,123 indirect jobs throughout the regional economy for a total of 6,593 jobs in 2011, according to the report.
Sandia Labs also shifted a number of jobs to the park with the establishment of the Cyber Engineering Research Laboratory and the addition of staff to the Innovation Parkway Office Center. Other Sandia Labs facilities in the park include the Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies, the International Programs Building and the Computer Science Research Institute.
Public investment since the park was established has been nearly $87 million, including the U.S. Department of Energy’s contribution for the master development plan, Sandia’s management of the park, land from Albuquerque Public Schools and the New Mexico State Land Office, and landfill cleanup by Bernalillo County, the report said. Other federal, state and local government entities also helped the park by providing grants or matching funds, the report said. For example, the U.S. Economic Development Administration provided significant grants for secure fiber-optic communications and security network infrastructure. The city of Albuquerque also contributed to infrastructure improvements in the park.
“As of December 2011, investment in the park has been more than $350 million with 75 percent coming from private sources,” said Jackie Kerby Moore, the park’s executive director and manager of Sandia’s Technology & Economic Development Department.
“Fourteen years ago, this area was nothing but dirt and tumbleweeds, but since then the jobs and investments have led people to invest not just in the park, but in the surrounding area,” she said. “The park has been a catalyst for economic revitalization in southeast Albuquerque.”
The SS&TP is located next to Sandia Labs and Kirtland Air Force Base, giving park companies access to scientists and engineers from Sandia and AFRL. Many park companies supply Sandia and AFRL with goods and services or technological products or have licensed and commercialized technologies that originated at the federal laboratories.
The park received the 2012 State and Local Economic Development Award from the Federal Laboratory Consortium.
The park is a partnership of Sandia, the U.S. Department of Energy, Lockheed Martin Corporation, Technology Ventures Corporation, the City of Albuquerque, Albuquerque Public Schools, Bernalillo County, the Mid-Region Council of Governments, BUILD New Mexico/Union Development Corporation, the New Mexico State Land Office, the state of New Mexico, Public Service Company of New Mexico and the U.S. Economic Development Administration.
For more information about the Sandia Science & Technology Park, visit: www.sstp.org.