Economic Collaborative of Northern Arizona (ECoNA) — The Year in Review

Good afternoon,

This past year, the Economic Collaborative of Northern Arizona has worked on the region’s behalf to promote the greater Flagstaff area, Sedona, Winslow and Camp Verde.

We took the story of the opportunities available in northern Arizona to conferences around the country – the ICSC Retail Show, the national Site Selector Guild, SEMI-CON, and the Flinn Brown Bio Capital Conference.

ECoNA lent its support to applications for funding for work on the I-40 corridor, the Northern Arizona University Venture Studio, and infrastructure improvements along the BNSF railway in Flagstaff.

We also fielded 62 qualified leads that resulted in 34 competitive bids with the potential of added more than 3,000 jobs and $1.8 billion in capital investments to our area. Almost half of these businesses were in the manufacturing sector, with the rest being a mix of retail, office, transportation and bioscience.

Throughout the year, ECoNA highlighted efforts being made by northern Arizona communities to address one of the most pressing challenges for our region: the regional housing gap.

According to our 5-year Strategic Plan, northern Arizona needs more than 15,000 additional housing units to close the current deficit. Fortunately, our region made significant strides in meeting that need in 2025. Flagstaff is more than three years into its 10-year plan to reduce the current affordable housing deficit by half. Winslow had 450 dwelling units in the pipeline last year, and Camp Verde is well on its way to meeting its goal of 1,300 units.

As we look ahead to the new year, ECoNA remains committed to driving sustainable economic growth throughout northern Arizona. The momentum we’ve built together—from attracting billions in potential investment to making real progress on housing—demonstrates what our region can achieve through collaboration and strategic focus.

We’re grateful to our partners and supporters who make this work possible, and we look forward to continuing to champion northern Arizona’s economic vitality in the year ahead.

Sincerely,

Gail Jackson

President & CEO

Economic Collaborative of Northern Arizona