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Oklahoma County approves professional services agreement with Oklahoma City Chamber economic development team
Summary
The committee heard a presentation from the Oklahoma City Chamber’s economic development staff about current project activity and then approved a contract to continue partnership work focused on aerospace and broader business attraction/retention.
Dennis, senior vice president for economic development at the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, and Eric Long, who leads the Chamber’s research division, presented the Chamber’s project pipeline, sector priorities and regional workforce assets to the Oklahoma County Policy & Governance Committee on June 9. The presentation emphasized aerospace and defense activity anchored by Tinker Air Force Base while noting a broader slate of manufacturing, life‑sciences and other projects across a 10‑county region.
Committee members asked how the Chamber counts outreach activities listed in the contract (18–20 engagements). Dennis said formal engagements include arranged visits, data-based outreach and business-retention calls; he cited factory-floor visits and scheduled meetings as examples. The Chamber noted about 111 active projects in the 10‑county pipeline, a recent year of roughly 70 projects in deal flow, and that roughly two‑thirds of projects are manufacturing-related.
After the presentation a commissioner moved to approve the professional services agreement supporting the Chamber’s economic development work in Oklahoma County; the motion received a second and the committee voted "aye." The transcript records the motion, a second and unanimous assent.
"We have a team of about 15 people on the economic development division," Dennis said as he described the Chamber’s functions of business attraction, retention and research support. "For us, that encompasses a 10 county area, but ... Oklahoma County obviously is our core county with 85% of the population."
The Chamber representatives said activities under the agreement will support aerospace and defense initiatives (including cooperation with Tinker and the Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center), site readiness, workforce development and business retention communications. One commissioner requested that future presentations include county‑level maps rather than city‑only graphics; Dennis agreed to try to provide Oklahoma County–specific mapping for the next briefing.
