Aggressive, measurable and sustained are the terms that come to mind when looking over the shoulders of economic development professionals in Austin, Texas, the city Commerce Lexington has chosen as the destination for its sold-out 2008 Leadership Visit. Helping to shape an agenda for the event next June 4-6 was the purpose of a recent whirlwind visit to the Texas state capital by members of the committee planning an itinerary for the chamber's largest-ever field trip. While Austin's storied entertainment industry might seem uppermost on the minds of many who hope for a more lively and diverse nighttime economy in Lexington, it's what such an asset means to Austin's overall economy that most impressed this group.
In an event so popular that it sold out in less than two weeks, 250 Lexington officials, professionals and civic activists are scheduled to travel to Austin for two days of intense study of the city that bills itself officially as "The Music Capitol of the World," but whose denizens have adopted the tag line "Keep Austin Weird. The phrase reflects an eclectic