The Seguin Economic Development Corporation Set to Embark on First-Ever Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy

The Seguin Economic Development Corporation (SEDC) is set to embark on the development of its first-ever Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS). After a thorough selection process, on March 7, 2023, the Seguin City Council approved a contract between the SEDC and Ernst & Young LLP (EY) to serve as the consultant for the project. EY is a global leader in providing advisory services to public and private sector clients focused on evidence-based results. Their extensive network of dedicated professionals in over 150 countries allows EY to foster trust and establish long-standing relationships with industry, higher education, and government leaders to accomplish goals, outcomes, and reporting requirements. 

A Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy will help develop a unified vision and strategic approach to achieving a robust, resilient economy over the next three years and beyond. The CEDS will help Seguin attract and retain businesses that will create primary jobs by focusing efforts that leverage the community’s assets and strengths. The Strategy will also be designed to provide the SEDC, the City of Seguin and other business, education, nonprofit, and public sector leaders with a cohesive action plan that ensures everyone is working in-step toward a shared vision and goals.

“We are excited to work with EY to develop Seguin’s very first economic development strategic plan,” said Josh Schneuker, Executive Director of the Seguin Economic Development Corporation. “A vital component of this project will be input from the community at large and other key stakeholders from across the Seguin region to help create a shared economic development vision that will help Seguin continue its positive economic momentum and find new opportunities that will take our local economy to the next level.”

EY’s Economic Development Advisory Services (EDAS) team will oversee the project. The EY EDAS team has decades of economic development experience working with local governments and Economic Development Corporations across Texas and the nation. In Texas alone, EY EDAS has assisted dozens of communities in all corners of the state, from Greater Houston to the DFW Metroplex, from West Texas to East Texas, and in the Greater Austin MSA. EY EDAS also have extensive experience helping communities similar to Seguin, such as Pflugerville, Texas, that are fast-growing communities with strong manufacturing centers that are poised to take advantage of regional growth.

EY EDAS will develop the CEDS in three phases. Phase 1 will focus on gaining a deep understanding of the Seguin economy from multiple perspectives to ensure that the subsequent CEDS truly reflects the needs of Seguin residents and businesses and provides achievable goals to help Seguin take advantage of current opportunities and prepare for the future. Phase 2 of this project will focus on conducting a Targeted Industry Analysis that will identify and validate targeted industries for the City of Seguin. And finally, for Phase 3 of this project, EY will work with the City of Seguin and the SEDC to develop the economic development strategy, which will include documenting the vision, prioritized goals, and measurable objectives. The framework will include an economic development vision for the City of Seguin, which will answer the question “Where do we want to go?” by describing the ideal state of Seguin’s future economy. Prioritized goals around topics and measurable objectives will be included in the strategy to begin to answer the question “How are we going to get there?”. Each goal will be supported by text and statistics that explain the need, the goal’s relevance, and why it should be a priority for Seguin. Objectives will be smaller steps within goals that further break down how the City of Seguin and the SEDC will achieve these goals.

Community input will be an important component in developing a strategy that benefits all residents and businesses. To help gather input from across Seguin, the SEDC has launched an online Community Survey. The findings from this survey will inform Seguin’s comprehensive economic development strategy. Input collected from the survey will help shape the future of the community. The CEDS Community Survey be accessed by visiting: view.seguinedc.com/ceds. 

This CEDS project will require eight months to complete, with an approximate completion date of October 31, 2023.

About The Seguin Economic Development Corporation
The Seguin Economic Development Corporation was created in 1994 as a type “4A” Corporation under state law. Seguin Economic Development has worked to promote Seguin as a premiere destination for businesses looking to expand or relocate. Voter created, SEDC receives a portion of Seguin’s sales tax to market Seguin and provide incentives to industries such as manufacturing, biotechnical, distribution, energy and technology. SEDC works with existing companies in Seguin and new businesses that are looking to expand their operations.

About Ernst & Young LLP 
Ernst & Young LLP (together with its affiliate, Ernst & Young U.S. LLP, the “Firm”) is a private limited liability partnership. The Firm is owned by approximately 3,400 US partners and principals and is a member of Ernst & Young Global Ltd., an organization whose locally-owned member firms operate under the “EY” name in approximately 150 countries around the world. No individual partner or principal owns more than a 1% interest in the partnership. EY refers to the Global organization of member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. For more information about our organization, please visit www.ey.com.

The roots of Ernst & Young date back to the early 1900s and to the lasting legacies of three visionaries — Arthur Young, A.C. Ernst and Thomas Clarkson. Since then, the firm has been through three mergers, culminating in 1989 when Ernst & Whinney merged with Arthur Young to create Ernst & Young. The US firm is a limited liability partnership incorporated in the State of Delaware.

The Partnership is a substantial entity, with approximately 49,000 people working in the US. EY is financially stable, with fiscal year 2021 total revenues, which include expenses billed to clients and amounts billed to other EY member firms (i.e., inter-firm revenues), approximated at $16.2 billion.