Starting a New Facebook Look

Facebook seems to be the latest tool for marketing your business or organization. I know we may be a little behind the time here. But I have been working on a Facebook page to help promote our community and the resources we have available for new and/or expanding businesses.

We have started uploading our inventory of available buildings and building sites and will highlight some of our business incentives.

Take a look at our fan page for Mitchell County Community Development and become a fan today. Just follow this link

Green Acres!

I was surfing the net this morning and came across a story from the Wall Street Journal describing how young people are leaving metropolitan areas in search of greener pastures in rural areas of the country. You can read the story here.

My first reaction was.....great! I thought how great it would be to have more people moving to our rural areas. We have been struggling with a declining population for over 100 years. But then I read the many posts people made in response to the story. They are from rural residents who do NOT like city people moving in to their areas. They are concerned the "city" folks won't understand the difficulties that come with living in a rural area. And they might believe they can earn a living on a 5 or 10 acre farm. Or they might drive up the cost of land. There are many other concerns or fears the rural people have about welcoming "city dwellers" to the countryside.

Then I thought "What about inviting people from the metropolitan areas" to contact us and invite them to come and learn more about what rural living is really about. It's not for everyone. But for some people it could be a positive lifestyle change.

I don't believe people should rush into making life changing decisions. I also believe we should not close the door to opportunities for both rural and urban residents. With education and understanding there could be positive opportunities for both. I believe the lines of communication and understanding should be open. And if someone from an urban area has a genuine interest in moving to Mitchell County, Kansas. Great! Let us know and we'll work together to see if it "really" is something for you and your family.

Social Media Best Practices For Economic Development

Social Media can serve as a great communication tool to reach your target audience. That is...IF it is done the right way. Mark Schaefer created this presentation on Social Media Best Practices for Economic Development Organizations.

Social media such as Facebook and Blogger and "tools". But it takes some research and understanding to use them effectively. Understanding the basics as Mr. Schaefer has outlined in his presentation is a first step in this process. Social media sources can be used effectively to market to professional Site Selectors, Commercial Realtors and Business Owners and Managers everywhere.

At this time we are looking at traditional direct marketing coupled with our website and soon more direct social media marketing.

We have identified our target. Now we are learning how to reach our audience more directly through the use of social media.

President Proposes Help for Small Businesses and States

President Obama outlined plans today to assist small businesses by cutting taxes and enhancing other programs. He is also looking at possibly providing assistance to states to provide money for infrastructure and schools. His plan is aimed at helping to fight unemployment and give a shot to small business owners.

Here is an interactive run down of some of the ideas he is suggesting.

Shopping Local Makes Sense

New commercials recently started running on the local cable TV system stressing the importance of shopping locally.

Brent Cunningham, Vice President/General Manager of Cunningham Telephone & Cable is featured in the first commercial that can be found online at Youtube. You can see it here.

Cunningham has been working with Solomon Valley Economic Development to create several ads to remind everyone of the importance of supporting our local businesses.

Unemployment Wave Hits Home

The wave of unemployment has made its way from the coasts to the center of the United States. That is evident by recent layoffs, the tight labor market and tough economic times we are seeing locally.

There are several maps that can be found on the internet that demonstrate how unemployment rates began increasing first in the eastern and western thirds of the United States. Here is an example using information from the U.S. Department of Labor.

The Kansas Department of Labor statistics show that locally our unemployment rate increased from a rate of 3.3% in October 2008 to 4.6% in October 2009.

While this is a difficult period it is also a time for some busineses to seek new opportunities. Businesses that are in a position to expand may find this as a good time to purchase realestate at low prices. Because of recent layoffs the size of the available labor pool has increased. This also means there are good quality workers seeking employment. There are some positive factors to consider that businesses can tap into if they are in a position to take on new product lines or otherwise grow and expand.

Tracking Federal Recovery Funds Down to Us

If you do a search on the internet there are several sources you can use to track the Federal Stimulus Funds as they trickle down from the federal government to the states.

Taking a closer look you can see where those dollars are going to help local schools, housing programs and assist with highway projects. Take a look at the federal governments tracking website Recovery.gov and this is what you will find in Mitchell County, Kansas.

According to Recovery.gov over $1.3 Billion has been awarded to Kansas. Of that amount nearly $453 Million has been received.

In Mitchell County there has been over $5 Million awarded in federal recovery funds. The largest amount, over $4.6 million has been allocated to the North Central Kansas Community Network for residential weatherization assistance for low income persons.

The Kansas Department of Transportation was awarded $465,450 for infrastructure improvements on a road south of Glen Elder.

The City of Beloit Housing Authority was awarded $55,453 to install a generator for the Sunny Slope housing addition.

Cawker City received over $90,000 to replace roofs on two buildings.

Schools received recovery funds to assist with funding cuts and technology upgrades. The North Central Kansas Techhnical College has been awarded over $248,000 in "stabilization" funds for educational programs. USD 272 at Cawker City is receiving over $184,000 for educational technology. At the same time USD 273 in Beloit has been awarded just under $20,000 for educational programs.

In all over $5 Million in recovery funds have been authorized for projects in Mitchell County, KS. But at this time not all of the funds have been received and distributed locally.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 authorized the distribution of $787 Billion. A very large amount of the funds have not been allocated. You can check back at Recovery.gov to see how the funds are awarded and distributed in the weeks and months ahead.

Investing In Our Future--Today

I am currently working on a new brochure that will be mailed to professional site selectors and commercial Realtors. The focus of this brochure is the incredible amount of investment our local businesses have made in Mitchell County over the past several years. These investments demonstrate a confidence in our community.



Our businesses have invested $13.2 million in new construction, additions and renovations for their business facilities from 2006 to 2009. This figure does not include the investment they have made in new equipment, machinery and technology upgrades. These figures are based only on those construction projects approved under our Neighborhood Revitalization Program.



The leader in this has been Farmway Co-op with the renovation of a rail car loading facility in Glen Elder; construction of two new flat storage facilities that provide nearly 2.5 million bushel of storage capacity; a 470,000 bushel grain storage facility in Beloit and a 50,000 s.f., state-of-the-art chemical, lubricant an seed distribution facility in Beloit.



At the same time, Sunflower Manufacturing, a division of AGCO expanded their manufacturing facilities in Cawker City and added to their main building in Beloit. They also purchased new automated welding equipment and other advanced manufacturing technology.



Great Plains Manufacturing in Tipton also invested in upgrading their buildings and equipment. One of their new key investments was a new paint system.



Between October 2006 and October 2009 there were 40 commercial building construction projects approved under the Neighborhood Revitalization Program in Mitchell County. There was nearly $5 million in housing construction and renovation work during that same time period.



On top of all this our community is stepping forward firmly. Since 2005 we have embarked upon two major renovations of our hospital. The first provided three new surgical suites and other renovations. The latest expansion project, underway now, will create all new private patient rooms and upgrade other areas of the hospital. The two projects combined cost nearly $25 million for construction and new equipment.



Expanding or establishing a new business can be a difficult decision. We offer a variety of incentives to help make the transition smoother and successful. These include, but are not limited to:

• Enterprise Zones
• Property Tax Abatements
• Revolvign Loan Funds
• Tax Exemptions & HPIP
• Grants and Revenue Bonds
• Workforce Opportunity Tax Credits
• Job Creation Tax Credits
• Neighborhood Revitalization Tax Rebates

In these difficult economic times we are working to let businesses know what we have done as a community, the investment our businesses have made in our community and in our future. These investments demonstrate a confidence in our future that can benefit businesses today and tomorrow.

AMI A Business Resource

Last month I had the opportunity to take a local resident to the Advanced Manufacturing Institute in Manhattan, KS to discuss an idea for a potential new product and the patenting process. The staff there are very professional. They took time to listen to our client, discuss their idea and agree to a preliminary patent search and market study.

In this case, unfortunately, someone has already patented a similar idea. But that doesn't mean we should give up. Existing businesses manufacture new products everyday.

New manufacturing and production processes are created all the time. And business owners learn new ways of conducting their business or find new markets for their products.

This is where the Advanced Manufacturing Institute can really help us locally. AMI, can assist in areas of manufacturing, engineering, agriculture, transportation and much more.

They can provide a very valuable resource to our local businesses. I would encourage you to check out their website to learn more about their services.

They may have information that could make your business more productive, open doors to a new product for you or help create new efficiencies in your business process.

Reversing the Rural Brain Drain

For many years small towns have struggled with the problem of brain drain. Bright, young people leaving after high school to go to the cities and gain a college education. Many start their careers in the cities and do not return to their rural hometown.

To some extent we, in Mitchell County, Kansas have seen some young people return to our area to work in family businesses, start their own business or find other roles in our workforce. We have some who have returned in a variety of workforce positions such as attorneys, veterinarians, dentists, teachers, plumbers, salesmen, nurses and many other professions. Even with these success stories we continue to struggle as many other communities to retain people in our community and attract new people here as well.

The issue of the Brain Drain in rural America is addressed in a new book called "Hollowing Out the Middle" written by Patrick J. Carr and Maria J. Kefalas who say rural communities need to change their way of thinking in order to reverse the Brain Drain .

Here is a Newsweek article on their book and their views of issues facing rural America.

Is Social Media a Fad?

I'm am currently involved in helping with four Facebook pages about a half dozen websites and two blogs. I had to stop and ask myself the other day. Is this all a fad? Well I came upon the following information on youtube. Judge for yourself.......Check out this link.

Neighborhood Revitalization Program Has Positive Impact

Since the Neighborhood Revitalization Program was adopted county-wide nearly $19 million in construction projects have been approved in Mitchell County, KS.

The program was adopted county-wide in October 2006. It offers an incentives to both home owners and businesses to make improvements to their properties, build additions and construct new buildings. The incentive is a tax "rebate" based on the increase in the value of the proprety after the improvement is made.

Local taxing entitites also say they like the program because it does not take away any existing tax revenues. For example if the taxes on a property are $1,000 per year and you put up a new building that increases the taxes by $1,000. The local taxing entities will still receive the $1,000 in taxes. What they "rebate" is based on the additional $1,000 that was added to the tax value of the property.


A property owner can receive a rebate up to 95% on improvements made to their home or commercial building. It can also be applied to new construction. The 95% rebate is good for 3 years. On the 4th year it drops to 80%, the 5th year 70% and so on for a total of 10 years in the Neighborhood Revitalization Program.

Applications for the program are available at the Mitchell County Appraisers office. They must be completed and approved by the county commissioners before any work can begin. The project must increase the value of the property at least $10,000 and it should be completed within a year.

Once the work is completed you will also need to complete a form to notify the Appraisers office the project is finished. So they can inspect it again and set the new property value.


It is important to note. This is not a tax abatement program. It is a rebate and the property owner is responsible for paying the "full amount" of the taxes including the new, increased portion. After receiving the payment the county will figure the amount that is to be rebated and return 95% .



Local taxing entities participating in the program include Mitchell County, the cities of Beloit, Glen Elder, Cawker City, Tipton, USD 273 and USD 272.

For more information on the program call 785-738-2717 or 785-569-1465.

2010 U.S. Census Important to Community

The annual census is much more than just counting how many people live in our community. It could make a difference in whether we receive millions of dollars or not.

I recently met with Lech Wisniewski a Partnership Specialists with the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Census Bureau. He is putting together local community teams to assist in getting the community ready for the 2010 Census that will begin next Spring.

According to Wisniewski the last census in the year 2000 covered roughly 2800 residences in Mitchell County. Unfortunately only 68% of the people responded to the census leaving 32% of the people uncounted.Wisniewski said federal funds are tied to the census based upon the number of households included in the data they gather. If 32% of the households are not counted he estimated that we have missed out on $3,300 per household or approximately $3 million in federal funding. Since the U.S. Census is done every 10 years that means we have missed out on $30 million dollars. We can't let that happen again.

The Census count affects federal grant funding for many, many programs. Some of those include the National School Lunch Program; Adult Education; Special Education Grants; Community Services Block Grants; Head Start; Low Income Home Energy Assistance programs, Medicaid Grants to States; Special Programs for the Aging; Community Development Block Grants; Employment Services; Unemployment Insurance Programs; Highway Planning and Construction.

Census questionnaires will be delivered or mailed to households via U.S. mail in March 2010; many households will receive a replacement questionnaire in early April. Census workers also will visit households that do not return questionnaires.The questionnaire will be quick, easy and confidential for you to fill out. There will only be 10 questions and should not take more than 10 minutes to complete. You will NOT be asked your Social Security Number, credit card information or any other private information.


Remember, just taking 10 minutes to fill out a questionnaire could affect our community's chance to receive millions of dollars in grants and federal funding. Take the time to be counted in the 2010 Census.

News About the BJCF History

Heather Hollingsworth, a reporter for the Associated Press recently wrote a detailed story about the history of the Beloit Juvenile Correctional Facility for Girls.

The story has been picked up by many news outlets from coast to coast. It has been reported nationally by the Associated Press, MSNBC and here by the National Public Radio.

Beloit Juvenile Correctional Facility

After more than 120 years of operation the state of Kansas closed the Beloit Juvenile Correctional Facility. The facility closed on August 28,2009. This is a great loss to the community and the many people who worked there.


Today we are looking to the future to see what may become of the buildings and land that are located just west of the Beloit Junior/Senior High School.



We have a new task force with representatives from the City of Beloit, Mitchell County Commission, USD 273, NCK Tech College and the hospital.



They have met with State Senator Janis Lee who plans to introduce legislation in January asking the state to "return" the property to our community. Representative Clay Aurand will introduce similar legislation on the Kansas House of Representatives.



The reason we say the legislation will ask the state to "return" the property is because the original Girls Industrial School was built on land given to the state. The Women's Christian Temperance Union started a reformatory school for girls in 1888. The Legislature approved $25,000 to start the state facility in Beloit but they wanted the city to secure a minimum of 40 acres at no cost to the state. The people of Beloit donated 80 acres of land and the state took over the facility and began construction a larger building.



The task force has been working to document the land that was given to the state as well as any donations that were given to start the facility. From what we have learned the donations originated from individuals and most likely those associated with the Women's Christian Temperance Union. Anyone with information that may assist us can call 785-738-2717.



While the task force is working to document the origins of the Beloit Juvenile Correctional Facility to help build our case for asking the state to return the property. The group is also looking forward to prepare for receiving the property and find new ways to utilize the buildings and the land.



The main portion of the property or "campus" has roughly 12 building on 23 acres of land. Two buildings are currently occupied by the Mitchell County Partnership for Children and Early Learning Center. Other buildings include a school, gymnasium, cafeteria, administration building, dormatory style living units, a lock-down jail facility, greenhouse, shop buildings, a residence, barn and more.



Adjacent to the "campus" is 15 acres of agricultural land to the west and 28 acres of agricultural land to the north.



At this time the task force is preparing a budget and will discuss how the proeprty will be handled and expenses such as utilities and maintenance will be addressed. It is important that the community be prepared if the legislature does agree to return the property.



The task force is also considering how the buildings and ag land can be utilized in the future. They are balancing many options and want to do what is in the best interest of the community.



If all goes as planned our Legislators will introduce their bills in January and they will begin working their way through the legislative process. It is possible a decision could be made sometime by the end of March, 2010.



Updates on the status of the Beloit Juvenile Correctional Facility will be provided here on the Mitchell County Community Development blog.

The Role of Social Networking in Marketing & Communication

I think it's only appropriate my first blog should address the value of social networking and the Internet in today's marketing and business communication.

I recently had the opportunity to attend a workshop with Patsy Terrell who handles marketing for the Kansas Cosmosphere. Patsy utilizes a variety of social networking sources to help market one of the top tourist attractions in the state. She uses her blog, Facebook, Twitter and other resources to reach out to people and get them interested in coming to the Cosmosphere. And the best part is the networking sources she uses are completely free.

Now what does this have to do with us in Mitchell County, Kansas? It could have a lot to do with us. We could be using these "free" sources to promote our businesses, marketing our community and simply communicate important messages to a vast number of people both locally and abroad.

Facebook currently has over 250 million active users. Over half of them log on every day and the average Facebook user has 120 friends in their "network". To a business those individual users and their network of friends could be a gold mine for free "word-of-mouth" advertising.

Major retailers have already figured this out. According to Patsy 86% of major retailers are already using Facebook to market their products. And that is expected to jump to over 95% next year.

Locally there are several businesses who have started using Facebook to promote their businesses. They include The Perfect Pair and Becker Auto in Beloit. We would like to encourage more of our businesses to utilize the Internet as part of their marketing plan. It's easy to use and if you need help just contact me at 785.738.2717 or 785.569.1465 and I can help you get started.

Facebook is the fastest growing social networking source for people 35 and older.

But there are other sources you can use to market your product and communicate with a broader audience. Twitter is also very popular. According to Patsy, Twitter is used more by people aged 45-50 than any other age group, followed closely by 25-34 year olds. More than 9 million people are on Twitter and it's growing rapidly.

Twitter doesn't have all the photo, games and frills that Facebook uses. But it is more of a "communication" tool. You are limited to messages using 140 characters or less. While that can be a limiting factor you may find that more people use Twitter on their cell phones and other mobile communication devices. Both Facebook and Twitter can be connected and used in unison.

Finally a third source of social networking and communication is the use of a "blog". Which is exactly what we have created here. According to Patsy a Pew study in 2008 showed 42% of Internet users have read blogs and experts think that number should be higher because many times people are reading blogs thinking they are regular websites.

Blogs are a very effective way of communicating with a vast number of people. Politicians, Organizational Leaders, Universities and community leaders are starting to use blogs in place of newsletters to communicate ideas and information. That is the purpose of our blog that has been developed as a communication tool for Mitchell County Community Development.

We plan to use our blog to provide local news and information concerning economic development, business, community development, community activities and programs in Mitchell County, Kansas. In the days, weeks and months ahead we plan to cover topics including but not limited to business marketing opportunities, business incentives and programs such as our Neighborhood Revitalization Program. We hope to provide updates on programs being offered by the Small Business Development Center in Concordia. We will cover other subjects including housing, business expansions, construction at our hospital, the Bio Science Industry and we will discuss our ideas for future use of the former Beloit Juvenile Correctional Facility.

We hope this will be something that is interesting and useful to those who are interested in our businesses and our community.