As a zoning and land use attorney over the last 15 years, I have witnessed a lot of change. That change has been brought about by a host of factors including traditional — but increasingly less predictable — business economic cycles, the Great Recession, the affordable housing crisis, and the evolution of transportation technology and commuting options. However, in the last few years, some of the biggest land use changes in many parts of the country have been ushered in as a result of the seemingly insatiable need for warehouse facilities near large population centers.
Read full article.
Junction City-Geary County Economic Development Commission (EDC), in partnership with KBS Constructors, announces the “Build Commercial” resource on their website to streamline and simplify the commercial building process. This latest initiative enhances Junction City-Geary County EDC’s commitment to collaborative and creative services and solutions to support business and industry growth.
“Build Commercial” addresses the various aspects of bringing a commercial construction project to completion. Resources include local contacts for economic development, information about available sites and funding assistance, enumeration of entities involved in the project approval process, plan review requirements, and permitting fees for Junction City-Geary County. General information and consideration...
It takes but a cursory glance at our list of top-performing non-metros, and a one-word theme emerges: Georgia.
Based on numerical tallies of projects that qualify for inclusion in Site Selection’s Conway Projects Database, Georgia placed two non-metro communities among the nation’s top five and seven among the top 50 during the 12-month period ending April 30. They range from the South Georgia town of Alma — which accumulated five qualifying investments totaling nearly $30 million of capital expenditure — to Blairsville (population: 725) in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Blairsville’s two qualifying projects include the $1.6 million Grandaddy Mimm’s Distilling Co...
A polished elevator pitch is essential in our fast-paced world. Not only will it allow you to quickly and effectively communicate your value proposition, but it can also help you win more business. In the luxury real estate industry, it is essential to demonstrate the ability to communicate who you are and what sets you apart quickly and effectively. This ensures that the important differentiators and value-driven items are conveyed clearly. I learned early on how important an elevator pitch was to my business. By mastering this brief and powerful statement, I’ve been able to grow my business, my networ...
Quoting Site Selection colleagues isn’t a reportorial practice we typically employ. But in this instance, a thought-provoking presentation by Editor-in-Chief Mark Arend served as the prompt for an inquiry into attracting top talent through “quality of life” enhancements. QOL has rocketed up the priority list of economic developers.
“In many cases today,” Mark observed in mid-May at the City Nation Place conference hosted out of Pittsburgh, “quality of life rivals traditional location priorities. QOL attributes are increasingly important to talent, and finding the right talent is more important to companies today than ever before.”
Read full article.
Prices are rising (8.6%, to be exact). This isn’t news. We see it at the grocery store, car dealership, and especially at the pump.
But thanks to a mix of slowed business growth and rising labor costs, we’re starting to see something new. Companies like Tesla, Netflix, Wells Fargo, and Carvana are facing hiring freezes and layoffs. Banks and economists have begun sounding the alarm about a looming recession.
If you’re a business owner who went through the last recession 15 years ago, you might be getting unwelcome flashbacks. And if your business wasn’t around back then, fear of the unknown migh...
Fort Riley service members transitioning to civilian life in Junction City, Kansas, just got a powerful new tool through the Joint Military/Civilian Innovation (JMCI). The project is a collaboration between the City, Fort Riley and a network of large regional employers, including T-Mobile; facility service and construction solutions provider P1 Group, Inc; and Evergy, the largest electrical utility company in the state.
As a free program for service members at Fort Riley and Veterans, they can use a career advising platform by AstrumU, SkillSet, to identify civilian careers across the network of regional employers that may be the best fit fo...
Cloud County Community College (CCCC) honored the addition of an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) program to its Geary County campus with a ribbon-cutting on March 2, 2022. Building B which houses Nursing and Allied Health programs including EMT, CNA, and CMA on the Geary County campus was renovated to accommodate the new program. The ADN program ushers in yet another way CCCC is addressing the workforce needs of Junction City and Geary County.
“A 2020 Career and Technical Education Comprehensive Regional Needs Assessment showed that ADN programs were not meeting labor market demands and CCCC had students in the Junctio...
Geary County, Kansas, has a prime location in the center of the nation that gives it an unbeatable drive-time radius that puts multiple major markets within 600 miles. Kansas City is just under two hours away. This location advantage is a major plus for target industries like logistics, warehousing, and manufacturing that need to get goods into customers’ hands quickly. Junction City, the county seat of Geary County, can be reached by I-70, U.S. 77, Hwy K-18, Hwy K-57, and I-135. It has five exits off I-70, the nation’s main cross-country artery. Add in access to interstate rail and ai...
The pandemic has been a game-changer for employee and employer attitudes concerning wellness, well-being, safety, health, and hygiene. Many — if not most — organizations are doubling down on wellness in the workplace. Some are going so far as to incorporate health and well-being into their corporate site selection and location criteria.
A focus on wellness in the workplace has become not just a “nice to have,” but a necessity to keep employees safe and healthy, and to enhance human performance. Health and well-being are among the new employee priorities that are now equal to — if not more important tha...
A prerequisite for a high-quality workforce is people. To upskill employees, attract remote workers, or fill a skill gap through a community college program, you first need people. That may be rather obvious, but talent attraction and retention efforts have been built on the assumption that when it comes to people, the harvest will always be plentiful. But what happens if the supply of people to attract to, or retain in, a community isn’t increasing? Or what if it’s decreasing?
In The Demographic Drought, Emsi Burning Glass raised the alarm bells about the pending sansdemic (sans-without, demic-people). Due to an increas...
The superlatives are accumulating as fast as the shipping containers: Industrial real estate, largely focused on logistics, keeps setting new records, to the point where the pop-up distribution center might soon be as common as the pop-up retail spot once was.
It’s gotten to the point where even a defunct driving range has potential to trade in the Big Bertha for an entirely different kind of driver.
Read full article.
The Covid-19 pandemic happened to be the kind of crisis that can shake up the entire world economy. The kind that forces business leaders to rethink and reevaluate our overall approach to facing a crisis.
Sadly, for many, this exercise was more of an autopsy — looking back in regret at what you wished you would have done differently. Others were luckier — able to scrape by but now well aware that deep changes are needed. As a business leader, the past two years weren't without their uncertainties, but I found that these three things made all the difference.
Read full article.
This is a national level award that is only given to five communities per year across the entire United States after a tough competition between applicants. This award demonstrates the continuous dedication that Junction City shows in its support of Fort Riley and the 1st Infantry Division.
Education
The brand new Junction City High School is a military connected 6A school that prepares students to Educate Locally, Impact Globally and become successful citizens by developing relationships and incorporating relevance and rigor into the curriculum.
Higher Education
Kansas State University, a world-class research institution, is 20 minutes away.
Connected
Five exits off I-70 and an abundance of affordable sites for development.
Connected
An unbeatable drive-time radius with multiple major markets within 600 miles.
Technical Training
Twenty minutes from one of the top tech colleges in the nation: Manhattan Area Technical College.
Natural Beauty
Home to the largest lake in Kansas with 163 miles of shoreline.