Area Development Announces Recipients of 2011 Gold & Silver Shovel Awards Celebrating State Success in Job Creation and Investment

Our Annual Shovel Awards recognize state economic development agencies that drive significant job creation through innovative policies, infrastructure improvements, processes and promotions that attract new employers as well as investments in expanded facilities. The Gold Shovels are presented annually to the states that have achieved the most success in terms of new job creation and economic impact.

For the Silver Shovel Awards, the states are compared only to other states in their tier based on population. This year, Texas, North Carolina, and Georgia will receive Silver Shovels in the 9+ million population group; Alabama, Kentucky, Louisiana, and Tennessee are being awarded Silver Shovels in the 4 to 9 million population category; and Kansas and Mississippi are being honored in the fewer than 4 million population group.

Each of the 50 states was invited by Area Development to submit information about its top-10 job creation and investment projects. Only those projects that began to materialize in 2010 were considered. Area Development gave the Shovel Awards to the states with the highest weighted scores based on the number of high-valued added jobs per capita, amount of investment, number of new facilities, and industry diversity.

Check back soon for the full report highlighting all the qualifying projects of the award-winning states.

2011 Gold Shovel Award Winners - Top Investments by State