Alexandra Clough on business in Palm Beach County in 2016 and Kelly Smallridge of the Business Development Board interviewed

The Post's Alexandra Clough has this article that appeared in the Sunday (1/3) print edition. It is a very good summary of what to expect this year in business growth, the housing market, and how the looming November elections fit into the environment. The housing inventory and office space is continuing to lag. Here are two excerpts from the article:

     Here’s the good expected during 2016: More companies are forecast to expand or relocate here, and unemployment should to continue to fall. If gas prices remain low, tourism will stay strong and continue to fuel new hotel growth, plus strong consumer spending at restaurants and shops. [emphasis added]
     The real estate market will continue its bull run, too, as housing and commercial projects in the pipeline start or complete construction.
     Now, the bad: Rising housing costs will make it difficult for people moving here to find an affordable place to live. Construction might be slowed by higher land costs and spikes in labor costs, thanks to a limited supplies of skilled subcontractors. And, as has been the case for several years now, there’s no new office space to be had.

[and. . .]

     Smallridge [Kelly Smallridge, president of the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County] expects to continue to see not only hedge funds moving to Palm Beach County but also financial services firms, corporate headquarters, medical device makers, bioscience and distribution companies.
     She’s currently talking with four companies in the life science and medical device industries about making a move. Three of them want to be in southern Palm Beach County, she said.

Palm Beach continues to be a very attractive place to relocate too and, so far, nothing appears on the horizon to slow that down much except the November elections.