Local Economic News

Hostapaloooza was in Scottsdale on Thursday.

It's a one-day information-technology festival that allows Microsoft and its business partners to show off the latest cloud-computing applications that Web-hosting companies and other IT-services companies can offer customers.

It was in the Valley because we have a comparative advantage in providing data center services.

Toys "R" Us has started hiring their seasonal staff. According to the article they will hire almost as many temporary staff as they have full time staff during the rest of the year.

Goodyear has provided enough tax incentives to entice Sub-Zero out of their manufacturing plant in Phoenix and into expanded space in Goodyear's foreign-trade-zone. This reduces their property taxes by 75%. The remainder of what Goodyear will collect in taxes over 7 years will just cover the incentives that they will pay Sub-Zero as they staff up.

Finally, First Solar probably won't get their $1.9B loan guarantee from the feds for their Topaz project but it looks like they will get guarantees for two others.

The Energy Department has given preliminary approval for a $680 million loan for the Antelope Valley project and a $1.88 billion loan guarantee for the Desert Sunlight project.

The loan guarantees reduce the risk to lenders and hence reduce the interest rate First Solar pays on financing for the projects.