In January of 1999, the economy was very robust and there was speculation that "it can't go on forever." We've completed the first full quarter of 2000, and in spite of Mr. Greenspan's efforts, the nation continues to grow at a very strong level and set records for the lowest levels of unemployment in 30 years.

The expanding economy continues to drive new business formations and growth of existing companies, which has continued to put pressure on the labor force.

In this column, we'll examine the supplier of the labor - the community - and the mindset that has evolved within these markets during this boom time.

A new phenomenon that is developing at the community level, which may be of particular relevance to readers of this magazine, is the challenge the communities are facing in balancing growth with the supply of labor to fill the positions created by the growth.

There is an attitude developing in many communities across the nation that they don't want any business type that does not pay top wages. It appears that the high demand for labor is being viewed as an opportunity to accommodate only the highest paying employers offering the highest skilled jobs in the marketplace for their community.

While this is commendable on the surface, it is inconceivable that every worker in the community is qualified for a high-tech job, or in many cases capable and willing to be trained as a high-tech, or high dollar, worker.

With few exceptions, communities across the nation all have workers with skill levels that run the gamut from low-skilled to the highly-skilled.

These low-skill workers need employment as well, and communities may be overlooking good job opportunities for these people on the premise of securing high-skill, high-paying jobs, which they may not be capable of filling.

These continue to be challenging times for both the companies and the communities. As noted before, the companies must continually reassess their wage and benefit policies to be competitive in the marketplace for the skill levels needed to meet their business needs.

However, the bigger challenge now seems to be with the communities to make intelligent decisions about how to balance the available jobs to the community's population and limited work force.

It is important that this success derived from the historic economic boom not be taken as the standard for the future. There will be a change at some point in the future and communities must be ever mindful of that situation.

Part of your analysis today should include some thought of how your company will fare in the future and can it withstand a major or minor downturn in the economy?

Your company's ability to make it through some rocky times can make you more attractive to communities under consideration for your expansion.

Communities, site location professionals and companies must work closer together than ever before to meet these challenges. These are prosperous times, but all of these entities must strive to make sound long-term decisions that are best for all parties.

Gil Mayfield, P.E., is a vice president with Carter and Burgess Inc., a national consulting firm. Mayfield serves as director of Real Estate Services. You can reach him at (817) 735-6708.