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San Angelo mayor outlines strategy: keep and train local firms, lean on schools and university partnerships
Summary
Mayor Tom Thompson told Moves That Matters the city is emphasizing business retention, workforce training and partnerships (including Angelo State University and Howard College) as it pursues manufacturing, cybersecurity and aviation growth; he cited about 86 local manufacturers and warned of impending staff retirements.
Mayor Tom Thompson said San Angelo's economic strategy emphasizes business retention, workforce development and partnerships with local educational institutions rather than chasing headline-grabbing announcements. In the Moves That Matters interview, Thompson said a door-to-door effort tallied roughly 86 manufacturers in the city and that many produce goods shipped out of state or overseas.
Thompson stressed workforce training and education as critical levers: he credited Angelo State University (including Dr. David Bixler's technical expertise) and Howard College for stepping into recruiting and training roles. He described a recent collaboration where he connected German electronics maker Rosenberger with Angelo State faculty; Thompson said the dialogue helped the company design a student-friendly evening shift for training purposes.
The mayor also flagged local workforce planning risks: he estimated about 25% of the city's directorial leadership is eligible for retirement, and urged proactive succession planning. Thompson noted that the Chamber's destination marketing work and a successful ISD bond vote signaled community commitment to schools, which he said companies view when deciding to locate workers with families in San Angelo.
On future sectors, Thompson named software/SaaS, cybersecurity, advanced manufacturing with robotics/CNC and aviation as growth targets. He said these areas play to existing local strengths (manufacturing and aviation components) while offering higher revenue per resident and lower infrastructure cost per dollar of municipal revenue.
What's next: Thompson said the city and its development corporation (led by executive director Ryan Gaddy) will present community leadership with plans to adapt to automation and to expand training pipelines. He framed the long-term objective as steady, manageable growth that preserves quality of life while increasing tax capacity.
