December 2011
By Luke Mahin
Cal Clark wrote in 101 Ideas on Economic Development, “I find no factor more closely related to community progress than the sense of pride within the community. Is that pride is a result of the progress, or does the pride cause the progress? I am convinced that both are true.”
One community that is a prime example is Ord, Nebraska (Valley County). I read about Ord recently in an online publication, The Daily Yonder (www.dailyyonder.com). It is a daily multi-media source of news, commentary, research, and features on rural America. Ord, Nebraska made news because of their rural economic development successes. Between 2000 and 2008, according to the U.S. Census, non-farm employment in this rural county rose a staggering 42%. (During the same time period, non-farm employment increased just 7% across Nebraska and 6% nationwide). Caleb Pollard of Valley County Economic Development noted that their unemployment rate was 2.9%. Republic County’s unemployment rate is 3.1%
How are they doing this? In 2001 the City of Ord (pop. 2100), which is the county seat, increased their sales tax by 1% and these funds were dedicated to economic development projects county wide. The City of Ord recognized that their success correlates with the other communities in Valley County. “We were the first Nebraska community to collect sales tax funds in the city proper for use in the county as a whole,” he says. “A rising tide raises all ships.” Possibly the greatest asset for continued success, Pollard describes “an epic shift in attitude.”
In a follow up article in The Daily Yonder, Caleb Pollard wrote “5 Ways Ord Did It”.
1. Reach out to families and ask: "Who wants to come home that you know of?"
2. We reach out to those people and families we’ve identified and ask them: If the opportunity were ripe, would you come back or come here? The answer is usually yes.
3. We connect them with opportunity, which may take months or even years. While we've been operational in economic development for 11 years, the past 5 to 6 have been our most impactful and we are continuing to gain steam.
4. Social media is essential. I have been preaching this since I began my career in economic development in 2006. If we aren’t connected online and using this new fangled social media to our advantage, then WE DON'T EVEN EXIST. So far, Ord's Facebook page is really taking off, with well over 1,500 fans. Many are former residents quite proud and interested in how we're changing our town. (Ord’s Facebook page is www.facebook.com/ordnebraska, you can follow RCED’s page also www.facebook.com/RCEDC)
5. We work on actually building the social and community capital that is necessary to recruit people back. After all, who in their right mind would want to come to a rural community, isolated from much of Nebraska (and by rights isolated to a greater degree from the rest of the U.S.) if the livability was worse than other places?
Ord, Nebraska coined the term “Invest in Prosperity”. Pollard stated “Population decline has instilled the belief of many of us in Ord that we don't have any other options: invest or die. That's quite compelling and frankly, it is a glaring fact.”
Republic County offers many of the same things as Ord and Valley County Economic Development. Republic County currently offers revolving loans through the Republic County Development Program and we have implemented Neighborhood Revitalization Program. RCED offers resources from business plan assistance to help accessing local, state, federal resources for businesses. As you can see it takes an array of groups, organizations, and even cities working together to promote positive change in a rural county. Lately that positive attitude is evident with many of the communities organizing Christmas tours, parades, open houses, and displays. I want to commend Tom Tsao and his volunteers for their time and labor put into the Rocky Pond Christmas Lights project. Thank you Tom for your unwavering support of Belleville and Republic County alike.
If you have questions about all the resources Republic County Economic Development offers, we are here to serve you. Please contact Jenny Russell or Luke Mahin at rcedc@nckcn.com or 785-527-2310. Also, join our Facebook initiative by searching Republic County Economic Development, now at 537 people strong.