Page 21 - FY 2025 Adopted Operating Budget and Business Plan

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competitive, and equitable place to start and grow a business, offering unparalleled access to workforce talent, research and
development opportunities, transportation systems, consumer markets, and business development opportunities.

OED tracks key metrics which help measure Arlington’s economic growth. These include robust sales tax growth, foreign direct
investment, development of industrial parks and continued integration of downtown with UTA and the Entertainment District, as
well as the utilization of TIRZ Zones and leveraging the Viridian Corridor.
Several businesses have chosen Arlington in the past year,
including the opening of the Loews Hotel, an 888-room hotel and
convention center in the Arlington Entertainment District.

Three corporate headquarters relocated to Arlington in early 2024:
Acciona Facility Services, Great American Media (GAC Media), and
E-Space, Inc. E-Space which will establish an advanced space
satellite manufacturing facility at the Arlington Municipal Airport, will
create over 3,000 direct and indirect technology jobs in Arlington,
further enhancing our skilled workforce presence in the market.
These new developments will create a critical mass of skilled
workers, which is a priority for FDI, and relocation of Headquarters.

Arlington is focusing on attracting and relocating corporate headquarters, with an emphasis on redeveloping vacant industrial
buildings, and other Class A, B, and C properties.
The OED and AEDC are in the process of restructuring to enhance their ability to promote small businesses and leverage
various economic tools such as Chapter 380 grant funding, 4B Incentives, TIF financing, small business grants, and CDBG
microenterprise grants. This will enhance their ability to promote small business, deliver incentives and leverage the workforce
pipeline of new graduates from UTA. A multi-faceted economic development strategy will produce increased business attraction
opportunities and cultivate businesses locally, nationally and internationally.

The Convention & Event Services Department is organized into divisions consisting of Administration, Event Services,
and Facility Operations. The department oversees the CES Fund, operates the Arlington Expo Center and coordinates the City’s
activity and efforts in the Entertainment District.
The Arlington Expo Center (former Arlington Convention Center) is home to the Esports Stadium Arlington – a 30,000 square-
foot esports competition showroom, a state-of-the art broadcast and live-event production suite, as well as 8,500 square-feet of
esports training, office, and team hospitality spaces. The stadium offers catering and audio/visual services to accommodate not
only esports competitions, but also expositions, public events, trade shows, meetings, and special events.
The Expo Center is also the home of a new long-term tenant, the Arlington Museum of Art. The AMA exhibits in three distinct
exhibition spaces housed in the venue’s 48,000 square foot former exhibit hall: the Traditional Gallery features commonly held
cultural museum programming including painting, sculpture, textile,
photography, ceramics, clay, glass, ink, collage, etc; the Immersive
Galleries host multi-sensory experiences blending art and
technology; and the Community Gallery features a rotation of
curated exhibits and local programs available with no admission fee.

The CES department administers the City’s contract with the
Arlington Convention and Visitors Bureau (ACVB), the official
Destination Management Organization for Arlington. The ACVB
functions include strategic planning and leadership, serving as
advocate for tourism product development, managing hospitality &
tourism workforce development, promoting arts and the cultural
heritage of the destination; overseeing, creating, and implementing

FY 2025 Adopted Budget and Business Plan 12 City of Arlington, Texas