Eight staff are employed in the unit, with duties split between them.
As critics ponder the benefits of economic development given the latest announced closures of two manufacturing plants, former economic development officers and the current manager remain convinced of the benefits of the strategy.
One of the Dunedin's original economic development officers more than 20 years ago, Paul Crack, said that when the unit was formed it was ‘‘every man for himself'' when it came to economic development.
Unlike now, there was no national organisation to oversee economic development undertaken by territorial authorities and competition was fierce.
‘‘As a city and a region we woke up to the fact that we had to bid for workplaces and workers. The catchcry then was: ‘We want it, what is it?' And it was pretty much anything.''
Dunedin was an early adopter of economic development, helped by the $1 million in funding provided from electricity surpluses that did not have to go through the normal competitive processes of council, he said.
The key in the 1980s was twofold - attracting and retaining employers and changing the people's attitudes.
Stories were told of business people flying into Dunedin to look at investment opportunities and being asked why they wanted to come to a ‘‘hole like this''.
Part of the job was to instil pride into the city. Every resident was seen as the city's and region's best salesperson.
Projects such as the redevelopment of the Octagon and moving the Dunedin Public Art Gallery to the Octagon were seen as an integral part of lifting the image of the city in the eyes of ratepayers, Mr Crack said.
‘‘We did go out and bid for employment but remember it wasn't casual. We weren't looking for things alien to the natural economy of the region and that hasn't changed.
‘‘We understand now we have to grow what's natural; things like agriculture, education, tourism we do well and can do more of.''
Changes to the global economy meant economic development units from wider regions should look at co-operating. Otago had shown a steady decline in manufacturing employment between 2001 and 2006 with employment hours dropping 10% in that period compared with a 1% fall nationally.
The closure of F&P Appliances would speed up that process but looking at the wider trend, most first and second-level economies were recording a decline in manufacturing.
There was still work to be done collectively on Otago's economic development. It could be shared with Southland, he said.
When Mr Crack was a council economic development officer, Dunedin only had itself to worry about. What happened in Waitaki, Clutha or Central Otago was almost of no concern.
Those days had long gone and a regional strategy was needed.
Mr Crack still believed chasing people for meetings remained the best strategy.
‘‘You have to be there. If someone is promoting export you can do all the desk work in the world but if you have something to sell you have to be in their face.''
Damian O'Neill was a council economic development 12 years ago and remained convinced of the benefits of economic development at a local and central government level.
He favoured a range of support to get businesses to sell offshore or encourage businesses to start a new activity.
‘‘It's about sharing the risk. Businesses are more inclined to take a punt in a considered way . . . They take the risk to push the business a bit harder.''
Some of the businesses aligned with the Dunedin Upstart incubator were doing well and there was an alignment with capital-raising opportunities in the region.
Dunedin had progressed from clusters which were popular 12 years ago. Now, there was support for entrepreneurs and rates relief was available for a wide range of business activities.
‘‘What would people be saying if the council had done nothing for F&P. They would be kicking the council now. Each time F&P expanded, it took the opportunity to consider where - either here or elsewhere. You have got to give it your best shot and hope it makes a difference.''
Mr O'Neill agreed that economic development could not be bound by territorial boundaries.
Current council economic development manager Peter Harris lives and breathes economic opportunities. After 15 years in the city, he remains enthusiastic about the opportunities.
The EDU had four main tasks:
- Business development through one-on-one meetings with businesses.
- Industry development, helping people realise their potential through collaboration.
- Business advocacy.
- Ensuring the economic environment was conducive to business growth.
Business development had four main parts: Creation, attraction, retention and expansion.
‘‘The attraction side is something people react to but we are not out hunting them down.
Generally, Dunedin is not a logical place for those businesses to be. Sure, some will locate here because of the resources.
‘‘A lot of businesses are here because the owners choose to live here and build their businesses around that. It's about growing the businesses we have got and keeping the people in town.''
That came back to things such as supporting entrepreneurs and helping with succession planning so current owners could leave their businesses knowing that what they had established would continue to grow, Mr Harris said.
Dunedin business was as much about people as it was about business and many alumni were still loyal to this part of the country.
Economic development was ‘‘an easy dog to kick'' and it was hard to measure the success of what the staff did alongside a myriad of other factors, he said.
But without economic development, Dunedin could not compete with other centres.
"‘It's an inexact science, no doubt about it, but it's not a unique problem to Dunedin. There is some debate about whether it is business development or economic development. You have to be careful because you cannot have one without the other.''
Some areas in New Zealand looked at creating the right environment in the expectation businesses would locate there. Others hoped businesses would come after being offered some incentives.
To be locked into one approach meant missing out on the other, Mr Harris said.
The next review of the council's economic development policy was due in 2010 but the unit had to be able to react to what was going on in the economy.
By 2010, the current skill shortage might not be such a large issue but it was hard to see it disappearing when highly skilled people in Dunedin could take their jobs around the world.
The future meant keeping on with the plan to develop the technology, information and computer technology and biotechnology industries and being careful not to write off manufacturing.
For tourism, it was about increasing the value of the jobs and improving the yield. Tourism had many things that could affect it quite quickly, such as the exchange rate or companies deciding to point their cruise ships in another direction.
‘‘It's a visible industry. ICT is not so in your face and people don't appreciate the worth of the industry. All I am saying is don't hold up tourism as the only answer. We need more than that.''
