Rising Tide
Weekly Update 12/4/2022 to 12/10/2022 #150
President Kennedy said, “A rising tide lifts all boats.” Let me share some of my busy week serving as mayor of the best smalltown in America before I expand on this thought.
This week, during the Jackson County Industrial Development meeting, members learned that 2022 was the second-highest year for promised investment from our area industries. This follows up on 2021, which was also a top-five year for promised investment. The investments come from companies setting up shop here in our community and existing companies reinvesting in their operations. Thank you to everyone that has been involved with these investments over the last few years.
The core team for the Brookings Study met with our cohorts from Michigan City and Warsaw, Indiana. We learned about the other communities as they learned about us. We heard from the Indiana Economic Development Corporation and why they chose the participants. Seymour was first on the list for a couple of reasons, the first being that we have been doing very well over the last several years on several fronts such as economic development. One of the others was our Latino population growth over the last decade. As we work with Brookings and their partners over the next year, we should have many chances to learn and grow our community for many years to come.
Did you get a chance to visit the Train and Toy Show at the Seymour Museum this past Saturday? The displays are fun, and as you look them over, the details will keep you seeing something new every time you turn your head. Club members must have been thinking about a white Christmas going into this show as several displays have snow this year. They also have the popular scales on display from N to O and maybe even a G scale display. Good work to the Seymour Museum and the Train Club for a job well done. If you didn’t make it this past Saturday, they will be open again on 12/17 from 10-4 for the kids and kids at heart to enjoy.
Over the last few paragraphs, we have seen how the tide is rising. Second best year for promised investment from the industrial members of our community. This is one example where they are keeping jobs here and often adding new ones. The Brookings study that we are participating in will help us make sure we are using best practices from around Indiana and beyond. We will be able to share what has worked for us and learn what has worked for others. This year and the last two, we have had several blighted properties removed by investors, and oftentimes new construction would follow shortly after their removal. In 2021, we chose to apply for road funding during the second round after we received less than we hoped for during round one. One of the reasons we did this was to improve ourselves and our applications for future rounds. From that process, we learned many things and went on to have good applications and awards from INDOT that round and the next. We have on many occasions been a part of that rising tide that has improved ourselves and our community. We have been given the chance to grow and develop for a better tomorrow. Together, we can keep that tide rising and keep our community moving forward in a positive direction.