Things Looking Up in St. Louis County, MO

St Louis County, Mo. had a good year in 2005. Its major achievements include projects like Chrysler's $1 billion commitment to its Fenton plants and Pfizer Inc.'s planned $200 million Chesterfield research facility as examples of investments in the county that should pay economic dividends for years to come.

The county experienced continued expansion from major anchoring companies located in the area as well as continued growth in small-business startups.

"There are great business startups. They don't make headlines now, but they will in the future," said Denny Coleman, St. Louis County Economic Council president and chief executive.

St. Louis County was the leader in new-business starts among Missouri counties last year, with 2,300 new businesses, according to a report from the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center.