Photo credit: Midland Development Corporation

What to watch: The Midland Development Corporation (MDC) board will meet Monday, Nov. 2, to consider a consulting agreement to help sell the Midland Altitude Chamber Complex and hear a presentation from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center on its Permian Basin Specialty Care Center in Midland.

The board will also review year-end financial reports showing MDC collected about $17.7 million in revenue during fiscal year 2025-26, about $1.5 million more than budgeted.

Editor’s note: MDC is funded by a quarter-cent of Midland’s sales tax. Its seven-member board is appointed by City Council and can review and negotiate economic development incentives, but all spending requires council approval, The Permian Press previously reported.

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Key points:

  • Altitude chamber consultant: The board will consider approving a consulting agreement with Kenneth Doyle to help sell the Midland Altitude Chamber Complex, including its equipment and other assets.  The MACC is a building and lab that can be used to test pressurized suits and equipment.The agreement took effect Oct. 5 and runs through March 31, 2027. The MDC chairman and Doyle can extend it for six months. The board is being asked to ratify the agreement, meaning it would formally approve a contract that has already been signed.MDC would pay Doyle $1,500 a month for eight hours of work and up to $90 an hour for additional work.

    Doyle would review the equipment and records, identify potential buyers, answer technical questions and coordinate site visits. MDC can end the agreement with 30 days’ notice.

    Minutes from the board’s Sept. 14 meeting identify Ken Doyle as MDC’s operations manager. MDC announced in April that they were looking to re-lease or sell the facility.

  • Texas Tech specialty care center: Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center will present information on the Permian Basin Specialty Care Center in Midland. The agenda does not include details of the presentation or say whether Texas Tech is requesting funding.Over the past decade, MDC has funded $8.4 million in healthcare collaborations, including partnerships with Texas Tech Health Sciences for physician assistant and psychiatry fellowships, The Permian Press reported.
  • Year-end finances: MDC reported about $17.7 million in revenue for the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, compared with $16.2 million budgeted. About $15.9 million came from sales tax. Expenses totaled about $14 million, leaving about $3.7 million in net income.MDC spent about $1.6 million on economic development incentives, compared with about $905,000 budgeted. It also spent about $9.9 million on incentives committed in previous years. Other expenses included $254,233 in consulting fees and $10,220 for travel and entertainment.MDC reported about $42 million in cash and $9.7 million in investments. It also reported about $123.5 million in incentive commitments to be paid over time, including about $22.9 million due within a year.

    At its September meeting, the board learned that MDC ended the fiscal year with sales tax revenue 24% above budget.

  • Economic development report: Executive Director Sara Harris will present the September economic development activity report. The report shows Midland’s unemployment rate was 3.2% in September, down from 3.4% a year earlier.