Maryland was highlighted in the June/July Issue of Area Development Magazine as one of four states who received a Silver Shovel Award in the 3 to 10 million population category. The magazine's annual Gold and Silver Shovel awards honor states that have generated top job-creation and investment projects across the nation. These states are highly active in business development, from conducting foreign trade missions to crafting innovative incentive packages and work-force development programs — all of which attract new companies, stimulate investment, create jobs, and strengthen tax bases. Below is an excerpt from the article:

Silver Shovel Awards 3 to 10 Million Population

Maryland — One of Maryland’s strongest industries is financial services. Almost 14,000 financial firms are located here, including Bank of America, Chevy Chase Bank, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Nationwide Mortgage, Toyota Financial Services, and Wachovia Bank.

Morgan Stanley has been awarded $4 million in state grants to expand its Baltimore operations into Harbor Point, a 27-acre redevelopment in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. In return, Morgan Stanley is investing $21 million and adding 900 workers at the 277,000-square-foot facility.

Merkle, a database marketing company, is establishing its headquarters at Columbia Gateway, a corporate business park in Columbia, Howard County. The company’s $65 million investment includes two buildings and a 10,000-square-foot state-of-the-art data center. “Our new headquarters places Merkle in an area with a strong talent base of highly skilled professionals, with ample room for our future growth plans,” says Merkle President David Williams.

With its central East Coast location and outstanding transportation infrastructure, Maryland is also a choice spot for warehousing/distribution operations. Costco Wholesale Corp., for example, is constructing a $50 million state-of-the-art distribution center in Frederick that will ultimately employ 300 people.

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