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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES Page 13,July 1987 • There are risks associated with focusing on a specific industry or group of industries. The three industries described above (or any other targets)may find better homes in other parts of the metropolitan area or the nation. Or,their expected growth may never materialize. As such,target industries should be only one element in the region's development strategy. • Back-office functions. Back-office functions include data processing,customer service, telemarketing,billing, bookkeeping and a variety of other functions generated by infor- mation-intensive businesses. There are four reasons to target back-office functions. .1 Fifty-seven percent of region's labor force have an office oriented occupation (e.g. manager, professional,technician,clerk.) ,/ Most local office workers are now commuting to the central cities or a suburb outside the region for work. The ratio of workers to jobs is twice that for the region as-8- whole,i.e. 1.0 for the seven county metropolitan area versus 1.8 for the northern suburbs.10 -/ Many information-intensive businesses located their back-offices in suburban or small town settings. For example,The Prudential Insurance Company of America has its north central home office in Minneapolis and an operations center in Plymouth. West Publish- ing has its headquarters in St. Paul and data entry "satellites" in Anoka end Stillwater. V Occupancy costs are lower in the northern suburbs than in other parts of the metro- politan area. • Metro-resort. A hotel/meeting center combining the Mississippi River, the region's park system and its golf courses could be developed. There is no such facility in the Twin Cities metropolitan area. Businesses can not have meeting in a resort setting without traveling at least two hours north. They can meet in either downtown,but if they want to play golf or fish,at least two hours must be added for travel time. Families that want to getaway for a weekend can stay at a hotel downtown or on the I-494 strip,but there are no outdoor activities. If a first class resort could be built, it would make the northern suburbs more attractive for corporate campuses and upscale retailing. It could serve as the anchor for new office de- velopment and a new business image for the region. Metropolitan resorts are rare. The Four Seasons Hotels Ltd. (Canada)has developed such facilities in Toronto, Houston and London. The Toronto Inn on the Park has almost 600 rooms. It is about 15 minutes from downtown and 30 minutes from the airport. It is adjacent to a regional park and garden. Metropolitan resorts have also been developed by the Marriott and Radisson hotel corporations. Marriott's resort in Lincolnwood, 11 (a first ring suburb of Chicago) includes a dinner theater and golf course. Radisson has recently opened a beach front facility near Los Angeles which includes a nine hole golf course. A metropolitan resort could be a focal point for office and other corporate development in the northern suburbs. In addition, it would help to distinguish the Twin Cities from other major BLAZAR RESEARCH