Fall Issue 2019
From The Publisher –
The cover theme for our Winter 2016 edition was “Hot Spot For Millenials.” The community was buzzing with the exciting news that Money Magazine just released its rankings for Best Cities for Millennials…and Tucson was rated as # 4 in the U.S. Journalist Eric Swedlund provided our readers with a “deep dive” on the many factors that contributed to this ranking.
Recently, our team had a great meeting at Hotel Congress and discussed doing a Millennial update, based on the many advancements of Downtown’s revitalization, the city’s achieving the designation as a UNESCO City of Gastronomy, being named one of the world’s nine best cities for events and festivals – plus Sun Corridor Inc.’s many expansion and attraction “wins” with major employers (Caterpillar, Raytheon, Amazon, etc.), a robust entrepreneurial climate and a growing startup economy, not to mention the recent Outside Magazine ranking, choosing Tucson as the #2 best place to live in the U.S.
BizTucson compiled a list of 10 factors that make Tucson an attractive place for millennials and young professionals – based on research, interviews and feedback from the region’s businesses, leaders and our readers.
At the heart of our city is one of the nation’s top-tier research universities. The University of Arizona is where the love affair with Tucson begins for many. This year marks the 25th anniversary for Tech Parks Arizona, which includes the UA Tech Park at Rita Road and the new UA Tech Park at The Bridges. Our team provides an in-depth Special Report on this Hub of Innovation that contributes a staggering $2 billion to the region’s economy annually.
The 1,300-acre technology and research park in Vail houses 45 companies, and is home to many successful startups.
We also provide an exciting “sneak preview” of the new UA Center for Innovation bioscience incubator in Oro Valley, located in Innovation Park, which is also home to Roche Tissue Diagnostics.
“The entrepreneurial spirit at the University of Arizona is changing. It is really a new day at the Tech Parks,” said Carol Stewart, associate VP for Tech Parks Arizona and president of the UA Center for Innovation. Regarding the Center for Innovation, Stewart said “we are a full service incubator. We don’t just service one aspect of the startup company. Entrepreneurs need to consider money requirements, product development, who their customers will be, as well as what team they are going to put in place to run the company.”
University of Arizona President Dr. Robert C. Robbins said, “Ultimately it is the responsibility of the UA to be a catalyst and a driver for economic development.” Eric Swedlund interviewed Robbins to learn about his vision for the UA Tech Park at The Bridges, a 65-acre complex near I-10 and a straight shot from the university.
In this edition, you’ll also meet the new President of Raytheon Missile Systems, Wesley Kremer. After college, Kremer served our country for 11 years in the U.S. Air Force, as a weapons system officer, who put in more than 1,500 hours flying fighter aircraft, including more than 90 combat sorties over Iraq and Bosnia. “I actually used Raytheon products,” Kremer said. “While in the Air Force, I learned that Raytheon represents the gold standard of quality engineered military defense products.” Journalist David Pittman files an insightful interview.
This fall our team will continue to follow these and other developments that define our future.
Steven E. Rosenberg
Publisher & Owner
BizTucson
