A ‘deal-closer’ on county’s growth

When companies are shopping for a place to do business, they won't find Henrico County on the discount rack.

While some communities may offer overly generous incentives to lure employers, Henrico has largely succeeded on its own merits, said Frederick T. Agostino, executive director of Henrico's Economic Development Authority.

"Henrico County really sells itself on the quality of life that exists here and the price you pay for that quality of life," Agostino said.

But many say Agostino, 65, who retires this month, has also been instrumental in persuading companies to locate or expand in Henrico.

Stephanie T. Ford, the Henrico authority's board chairwoman, said the county was a very different place when Agostino arrived in 1985.

"There was no Short Pump Town Center or White Oak Technology Park, and Innsbrook was really just getting started," Ford said. "Under Fred's leadership, the EDA staff has assisted nearly 700 companies to locate or expand in Henrico -- resulting in an investment valued at over $5 billion."

In 1996, Agostino helped land what remains the state's largest development deal in terms of investment -- the $2.6 billion semiconductor plant, now known as Qimonda AG, in the White Oak Technology Park in eastern Henrico.

The early field of competitors included more than 20 metropolitan areas in 16 states. The company's decision to locate in Henrico came after months of intense, top-secret negotiations orchestrated by Agostino.

The county has invested $43 million in infrastructure improvements to the White Oak Technology Park, which also has a large Hewlett-Packard facility. Last spring, county leaders reduced the machinery and tools tax that the plant pays by $1.3 million a year.

Qimonda, a manufacturer of computer, phone and game memory chips, has fallen on hard times, with layoffs of 1,200 at one of its two fabrication plants, but bringing the facility to the county is still considered a coup.

"Fred was the deal-closer on that project," said Gregory H. Wingfield, president and CEO of the Greater Richmond Partnership Inc.

Economic development directors are hired to bring new dollars into a jurisdiction by attracting capital investment and jobs, said Gary McLaren, deputy director of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership.

When McLaren was Chesterfield County's economic development director, he said, he enjoyed a "healthy competition" with Agostino.

"Sometimes he'd win, and sometimes I'd win," McLaren said. "Everybody within the region cooperates and operates with the understanding that we want it for our localities first and foremost. But if it comes to the region, it's better than it not coming to the region at all."

Henrico Board of Supervisors Chairman David A. Kaechele and County Manager Virgil R. Hazelett said Agostino and the economic development authority have helped the county build a stronger industrial and commercial tax base.

"That didn't happen overnight. Many changes and many companies came to Henrico County," Hazelett said. "Fred had a hand, an integral part in making Henrico what it is today."

The Henrico authority opened an office in Shanghai, China, in 2004 and has employed consultants elsewhere, including Japan and Europe, to recruit companies. Ford credits Agostino with helping to attract nearly 70 foreign-owned companies to Henrico.

Agostino said he's seen a lot of change during his years of attracting business to Henrico.

"The world of business is much more dynamic today than it ever was in the past. Things change much more quickly today than they ever did," Agostino said. "In the'70s and'80s, if you brought a company to a locality, you could almost count on your children working for that company. That has really changed over the years.

"When we lose a company, almost invariably, it's for reasons we have absolutely no control over. Those kinds of things didn't happen so much in the stodgy old past."

In his retirement, Agostino said he plans to take on consulting work for several companies, playing golf and tennis and spending more time with his family, which includes two grandchildren, ages 4 and 7.

Ford said the authority is still "actively engaged" in a national search for its next executive director. Contact Melodie N. Martin at (804) 649-6290 or .