The council's study session on Oct. 14 included a staff briefing on economic development and tourism that highlighted sector-targeted recruitment, work with Embry-Riddle and a calculated rise in visitor spending.

Why it matters: Economic recruitment and tourism shape job opportunities, retail and hotel demand. Staff framed the strategy around retaining local graduates and attracting follow-on companies tied to Arizona's semiconductor and aviation clusters.

What staff said: John Hiney, introduced as director of economic initiatives, described three sector-focused "sector groups" that have been meeting with business leaders in health care, advanced manufacturing and aviation. "All three of the sector groups really see the need for recruitment," Hiney said, and he called aviation, avionics, advanced air mobility and support firms for semiconductor supply chains among priority targets.

Hiney said the city is exploring an innovation center to support entrepreneurs and to serve as a recruiting tool that could tie to Embry-Riddle and local workforce development. He also said unique testing conditions tied to Prescott's elevation make the area attractive for unmanned-systems testing.

Tourism figures: Hiney told the council that the city's visitor-spending baseline for fiscal 2024 had been used as a benchmark and that updated spending for fiscal 2025 is now estimated at $252,000,000. "We have increased visitor spending," he said, and staff noted that the growth likely reflects more day trips and spending on dining and shopping even while lodging occupancy and bed-tax collections remain flat.

Staffing and next steps: Hiney said Civic Solutions remains under contract to the end of the year to support the planning phase and that staff will evaluate follow-up consulting needs for recruitment and implementation. He also said staff had made an offer on a candidate to assist directly with economic development and expects to announce that hire soon.

Ending: Council members pressed for updates on physician recruitment and steering/oversight for the sector groups; staff said physician recruitment remains a priority and that the economic recruitment work will continue alongside outreach to commercial developers in northern Prescott.