Community leaders in Van Buren County are keenly aware that the impending shutdown of the Palisades Nuclear Power Plant will bring drastic changes to the economic health and wealth of the entire county, but they refuse to stand on the sidelines as simply interested onlookers. In fact, they have set the wheels in motion to proactively “build a resilient community and prepare for the pending closure” at Palisades.
Working together, Van Buren County Public and Private Sector Leaders have formed the county’s first ever Economic Development Organization, and selected Zachary Morris as its first Executive Director. They will be focusing on building strong businesses, developing talented people, and growing vibrant communities.
In response to the ever-changing economic climate, Van Buren County and Kinexus formed its first ever economic development organization (EDO). Market Van Buren was formed to respond to the dynamic market place needs of both the private and public sectors.
South Haven Mayor Scott Smith, who is a member of the Board of Directors, says, “The future of South Haven and Van Buren County will be decided by whether we proactively and aggressively market ourselves as a place businesses can grow and people can flourish. We see this organization as an important vehicle for achieving both.”
The Board of Directors is comprised of 14 individuals representing the business, education, non-profit, municipal and county government sectors that live or work in Van Buren County and have a stake in making sure its future is sustainable. They voted to formalize its legal structure and begin operations on October 26.
Tom Stanek, the Regional Director of Owen Ames Kimball, is Chairman of Market Van Buren. He says, “As someone who grew up in Van Buren County and currently leading a business in southwest Michigan, I see the presence of an economic development organization made up of both businesses and local leaders as very crucial for the future of our community.”
The Executive Director of Market Van Buren, Zachary Morris, says, “For the last two years we have employed a very sound, traditional economic development program. We realized it was time to change the model, engage more people, find public and private investors, to have a greater impact in our county.”
Kinexus Group began working with Van Buren County in 2014, administering the Revolving Loan Fund (RLF). Over the last five years, Kinexus Group has had an economic impact of more than $24.5 million for Van Buren County, including 17 expansion and retention projects that resulted in 110 jobs created and 124 retained.
For more information about Economic and Community Development opportunities in Van Buren County, you can contact Zachary Morris at (269) 927-1064, ext. 1188 or visit online at the link below:
