A Conversation With Adriana Cruz, President of Greater San Marcos Partnership

Publishers Corner

By, Melissa Jewett

Publisher Note: I wrote an article on December 5th where I mentioned that I had an opportunity to have a conversation with Adrianna Cruz, the President of the Greater San Marcos Partnership back on August 28, 2014.

After reviewing our conversation, I realized that it was very lengthy, so I have split it into two parts. Below is Part I and Part II will be published next week.

I hope you find it interesting, eye opening, and after reading the full conversation, I hope you will have a better understanding of who Greater San Marcos Partnership is and what they are task with doing for San Marcos and Hays County.

August 28, 2014: A Conversation With Adriana Cruz, President of Greater San Marcos Partnership, Part I 

Melissa: Why did you decide to take on Economic Development in San Marcos?

Adriana: “I’ve been in Austin for 30 years. I grew up in Laredo, small town, came to Austin to go to school, and never left, like so many others, so many UT grads and so many Texas State grads.

After graduation I stayed in Austin, was underemployed for a number of years because I had a degree. I just took a job at whatever because I did not want to go to Dallas, I didn’t want to go to Chicago, I wanted to stay there. San Marcos feels very similar to Austin back then, with its own flavor, with its own charm, and with its own twist.

A lot of people say it’s Austin 30 years ago. Yes and no. It’s like Austin in a lot of ways in terms of the university presence, in terms of water, the river, water activities, outdoor recreation, but it has its own center of gravity. It has its own charm, and it has its own uniqueness.

I believe that the San Marcos community knows we are going to grow. They are okay with that, but let’s do it in a way that we want to do it. They want a say in how we’re going to grow, and it’s not just going to be . . . we’re just going to be run over with growth and overrun, which I think is very smart, very forward thinking, very visionary, which is different from Austin back in the day.
Melissa: Has that made your job easier or harder?
Adriana: It certainly does not make it harder. I think that the City of San Marcos has looked at the direction they want to grow in, what areas are ready for growth, which is very wise. Hays County has invested in transportation infrastructure. In 10 years, they’ve put in half a billion dollars of roadways, which is incredible and a smart decision.

There are a lot of assets here that people either have forgotten or take for granted and think, “Well, it’s always been there.” without really realizing what an asset that is. This includes not just the university, the research park and the university’s population, but Gary Job Corps.

I was in Austin for 30 years and had no idea Gary Job Corps was here or what they did – it’s the largest job corps facility in the country.

I think that a lot of people feel as though, “Well, it’s there, but does it play a significant role?” It is an attractor for companies. I don’t think we’ve ever put it on display before now. I don’t think San Marcos has put all of our assets on display in a way that makes it compelling for companies that are looking to come into the area or that are looking to grow and create jobs.

Adriana: I think that perhaps some people have a misunderstanding that companies relocating or expanding to San Marcos are bringing in all their own talent. When we say we’re bringing companies into the area, that doesn’t necessarily mean 300 people are coming into the area. That means that 30 executives with the company might be coming in but they are hiring 280 new employees who are local.

The goal is not to bring in people but to bring in companies who will then hire our people and the talent that is already here. What that means for our economy is someone who is working in a service sector job can suddenly have a job at a company that has health benefits and that has advancement opportunities.

Then they’re earning a higher salary. Their family is better off. They have a better quality of life. That then generates benefits into the rest of the economy because if they have a better salary, they can afford to go out to eat more or they can go to the dry cleaners, and so on. Then the service jobs and the retail stores and the restaurants follow that growing economy.

Melissa: In San Marcos you have a couple of differing opinions. Can you explain for those  that asked why can’t we accomplish this with an influx of dollars from tourism, say like the river?

Adriana: Tourism dollars coming in are good. They are outside dollars coming into your community that are then spread around as opposed to our own local dollars – think of it as you or I going to get a haircut close by, going to the Meadows Center, or going to the outlet mall. Those are all internal dollars and it just rotates.

It’s the same thing in terms of jobs. We’re trying to create jobs. We’re trying to bring in those companies that are going to create high-quality, high-paying jobs, to hire the already great talent that we have here. Bring in additional dollars that are not currently circulating here so that our families have more opportunities.

Melissa: When I heard you speak at a function several months ago, you mentioned how  hard it was finding a home for you and your family and that you were almost ready to  give up, can you explain why?
Adriana: That is true. When we are bringing in companies they do ask, “Where are my employees going to live?” They want to drive through neighborhoods and they want to drive around the city – which is a beautiful city – and we have some wonderful neighborhoods.There’s just not a lot of available inventory.

Six months into the process, I was ready to give up. I started thinking, “I’ll just live in Austin and I’ll commute, or I’ll live in Kyle or Wimberley, or even New Braunfels. For me, there was no job requirement that I had to live in San Marcos, but I wanted to. We just kind of held out until we did find a very nice house for us. It’s beautiful. I love it. It’s a great neighborhood. It just took a long time and a lot of patience.

Some people may not have the luxury of waiting 10 months to find a house. So they will just purchase whatever there is available when they need it. That one house has to be the one that you want. A lot of times, it needs a lot of work. It has to be redone, or it’s dated and needs to be revamped. So add to that, the cost and it just becomes more expensive.

I think it is important to note that even now, today, to purchase in San Marcos is still 30% more affordable than Austin. We were named the fourth least-expensive urban area in the United States, and that comes from the Council for Community and Economic Research report for 2013, so we’ll have to see what 2014 holds.

So our inventory and diversity is a challenge, but we have some great neighborhoods and some great developments with Blanco Vista, Willow Creek, and so on. We drive people through Willow Creek all the time, and the historic districts. There are some wonderful options, but there needs to be more. There needs to be more inventory and more diversity of options and not just entry-level housing or apartments. Some additional really high-end apartments or condos would also be great for young professionals and more options for families. We are just needing and wanting some more of a mix.

Melissa: How big do you see San Marcos becoming?

Adriana: For economic developers, success does not come in a size but rather in the strength of the local economy. That being said, economic strength comes from job creation, which will often correlate with population growth.

I don’t want to say a finite size but there’s only so much land. We are up against New Braunfels’ ETJ and up against Kyle’s ETJ, but we can go east and west a little bit.

There is still a lot of land available. When I take consultants driving around, they see the outlet malls and we go by the Embassy Suites. They’ll say, “Why isn’t there more here?” I mean, there’s just acres and acres of land available that would be great for more work space, activities, restaurants, etc.