Tech-friendliness: It's in the stars
A recent survey of the state’s 351 cities and towns (see "How tech friendly is your town?" August 7 issue) rated them on their ability to deliver an enticing venue for tech firms looking to relocate or expand. While the Metrowest region got high marks, several North Central towns took home 3 stars or higher, an unexpectedly high ranking for towns typically considered better for affordable housing and manufacturing.
Single tax rate plays crucial role
A contributing factor to the difference in ratings between Leominster and Fitchburg lies in Fitchburg’s split tax rate, with a higher rate for commercial property ($18.99 per mil) and a lower rate for residential property ($12.85 per mil). Leominster, on the other hand, has a single tax rate of $11.76, lower than Fitchburg’s residential tax.
"If you’re looking at two towns next to each other and they each have fairly similar demographics except for tax rate, you’re going to go where you’re going to save the most money," says MHTC Vice President Cort Boulanger. "That’s another job, or more money to sink into R&D or marketing, to make your company more competitive rather than having to pay it at the local level."
Despite the lifestyle qualities of living in Ashby, the distance from parts retailers is a detriment, says Steve Ingerson, president of Mini-Broach Machine Co.Doesn’t bother us
MassTrack weights ratings in favor of towns with larger high-tech workforces. In this area, too, Fitchburg ranked much lower than Leominster – a point that strikes Dan Curley as odd.
"We have very diverse companies in our industrial parks," says Curley, executive director of Fitcbhurg’s Industrial Development Commission. He notes that the city has expanded from its paper-industry origins to a wide variety of companies and product.
Several "high-tech" companies in Fitchburg have a solid technological workforce, and one of them takes issue with the survey. Micron Products has made medical device components in the city since 1978. David Garrison, CFO, insists that being located in the heart of a diverse city has done a lot for the company. Garrison describes Fitchburg as a great city with a skilled workforce. He feels that MassTrack’s survey was unfair.
"I think it’s ridiculous that the MHTC would rate [Fitchburg] so poorly," he says, adding that the survey may not be taking Fitchburg’s unique culture into consideration. Its rankings sagged partly because of the region’s lower MCAS scores and the low percentage of adults with a college degree in comparison to the other towns and cities that were surveyed, according to MassTrack.
But in terms of the local workforce, Garrison is very satisfied. "[The technology business] requires technically-oriented people, and Massachusetts people are not stupid," he says.
Employment: It’s a regional thing
Deborah Dilorio, vice president of Leominster-based Sales and Marketing at Heat Trace LLC, says that the company’s decision to locate there was influenced by the single tax rate. Leominster also offers a tax increment financing program, which Dilorio says is another advantage. MassTrack considered tax increment financing when determining the town and city ratings, stating on its website that the program offers business investment incentives.
Aside from the tax rate, MassTrack considers educational statistics, including the percentage of adults with a college degree. These statistics determine the capabilities of the workforce, as well as the percentage that work in technology.
John Gravelle, owner and president of Mar-Lee Molds in Leominster, indicates that the availability of an educated, skilled workforce is an important determining business location factor. "Employment is a regional thing," he says, describing Leominster as the "western frontier of technology."
High tech stays hidden
Despite North County’s high-tech ratings, rural towns like Ashby (rank: 69, three stars) and Lancaster are still, in fact, rural. Consider Cygnet Interactive, a small Internet development company owned and operated by two business-partner-brothers in Lancaster. In February 1998, the small company opened its doors in the home barn of co-owner Matt Zeh, who admits that although Cygnet deals with technology, he wouldn’t consider it "high-tech."
"I think lay people outside of the high-technology realm think of what we do as technical, and it is to some extent, but I still hold ‘high-tech’ as an elevated term," Zeh says. However, he adds that Ashby’s MassTrack rating may be as high as it is because of growth of home businesses in the more rural North County areas. "With ‘high-tech’, it lends itself to telecommunicating and general home offices," Zeh says. "You give someone a phone line and high-speed Internet and they can open up an office."
While Lancaster is known for its recent business and development, the new businesses are not considered "high-tech" according to the town’s Community Planning Director, Noreen Piazza. "It’s interesting when you first mentioned ‘high-tech’ [because] I thought ‘Hmm, where is it’?" Piazza says with a laugh. Interestingly enough, Piazza’s reaction is similar to several of North County’s rural towns’ businesses and town offices.
Although Lancaster offers vast land for development and could be considered an attractive area for business growth, there are no sewer or water hookups outside of the center of town. Piazza confirms that this would be development issue. She states that the town’s historical preservation is also important.
Aside from the prevalence of home businesses, rural towns boast a few small companies that may not be considered "high-tech," but that associate themselves with some form of technology. Steven Ingerson, owner of Mini-Broach Machine Co. in Ashby, claims that although he wouldn’t consider broaching to be "high-tech," he does use robotics to develop his products.
From quality of life terms, he indicates that spiritually, Ashby is a great location. But productivity tends to suffer from the distance between Mini-Broach and other merchants. "You have to travel at least thirty minutes to get even simple products," Ingerson says.
Work in progress
MHTC’s Boulanger notes that the survey should serve as a means to encourage towns to either strive for a higher rating or market the region as an alternative to crowded, though higher-rated regions like Cambridge and Hopkinton. Despite this, the MHTC’s Boulanger acknowledges that the survey is an evolving process and that for now, it gets the job done.
"It’s not a perfect data set, but it’s pretty good," he says. "It’s as good as we’re going to get."
Editorial intern Kristen Surprise reported on this story, and staff writer Jeff Lavery contributed.
Kristen Surprise can be reached at ksurprise@wbjournal.com
Jeffrey T. Lavery can be reached at jlavery@wbjournal.com
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