WEEKLY UPDATE      May 25th, 2007

MEETING DAY LOTTERY ...yesterday was the Chamber's monthly membership meeting. You will no doubt recall that this meeting is always held the last Friday of the month. It was held yesterday since next Friday won't be the last Friday and yesterday was the second to last Thursday so the meeting took place then since the first four days of this week was Small Business Week which wasn't an entire week as today was the day before a three day weekend honoring a holiday that used to fall on the last day of the month but is now on the last Monday in order to offer said three day weekend particularly for those who worked all or part of the aforementioned week unofficially shortened due to the impending Memorial Day weekend. UML AT PCCoC ...now that we have that cleared up, the reason we mentioned all that was because the luncheon featured an update on the UML, (the OSU University Multispectral Laboratories). Associate Director of Lab Operations Tim Reynolds outlined the UML and was joined by Lab Director Web Keough and Director of Research, Development, Testing and Evaluation Chris Hassell. This brain trust featuring two Ph.D.s and a Naval Commander, (Retired) discussed the labs' role in the national war on terror and touched on the economic impact to Ponca City, the headquarters for this national operation. Senator Myers and Representative Luttrell were also thanked, in abstentia, for their hard work in trying to obtain additional state funding for the facility. We'll know the answer to that as soon as the budget is signed and released. With graduation at Ponca City High today, Reynolds also noted that one of the key new management hires made is a Po High grad so one of the main goals of building a knowledge-based economy…providing an economic opportunity for our kids, has started. ACRONYM OF THE WEEK ...or should we say acronyms. We better get used to them since the UML is working to become an FFRDC, (Federally Funded Research and Development Center…think national lab). With the amount of DoD and DHS work that will be done here, we'll get to know the alphabet better than most. But the UML does not have a corner on acronyms. This week, PCDA staff hit ICSC, AmCon and IEDC which amounts to two trade shows and one conference. The shows mark the end of the spring trade show season and both ICSC and AmCon provided PCDA with a chance to take three existing PC businesses to solicit RFPs or conduct B2B, (depending on their MO) so it wasn't BAU for them this week. PCDA ACTION ITEMS ...so you don't think we're neglecting to make the close, not only were we working the various shows this week, we also presented one proposal, (a renegotiated one), responded to a new lead, and did follow-up contact with three other companies. In addition, we partnered with Pioneer Technology Center, the Chamber and Mainstreet on Small Business Week which wrapped up yesterday with a great panel of home grown Ponca City businesses discussing how to succeed, (or survive) in the modern economy. UPCOMING.... Fri. May 25th: Ponca City High School Class of 2007 Graduation, 8:00 pm, Sullins Stadium. Ponca City Development Authority 102 S. Fifth Street, Ste. 3, Ponca City, OK 74601 580.765.7070/580.765.0969-fax Or E-Mail - David Myers CEcD - Executive Director Visit Ponca City Development's Latest News Archives © www.goponca.com - Ponca City Development Authority - Ponca City, Oklahoma