Staff Writer
It’s been several months since Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce officials and community members took their annual leadership trip to Kansas City, but Tuesday night many of them received reminders of its importance moving forward in the trip’s feedback process.
The first reminder was the screening of a documentary, “The Next American Dream,” within WJCT Public Broadcasting studios that focused on the revitalization efforts and success of downtown Kansas City. The hour-long feature touched on the historical shift from downtown living to suburban sprawl in the city and its recent shift back to urban living and commodities through concentrated efforts, a result Chamber officials and Mayor John Peyton are looking to duplicate to a certain level.
“We’re making sure we have a really crisp plan for Downtown revitalization,” said Chamber Chair Kelly Madden.
Economic development, the creation and retention of jobs and effective leadership would all be vital cogs in ensuring Downtown’s revitalization efforts, she said.
Following the film, the second reminder of the trip came in the form of a 10-theme summary of feedback items observed by attendees of the trip itself. Themes included the importance of a vibrant downtown, making Jacksonville a medical corridor, the creation of a Civic Council, the need for public and private funding and the need for regionalism among other points. Those who attended were asked to review the materials and provide input on the themes over the next two weeks, before meeting again March 10 to reconvene the dialogue and implement a vision.
Spending his time between the event and Tuesday’s City Council meeting that saw Council approve several Downtown improvements, Peyton discussed Downtown’s improvement since he’s been in office and the market fluctuation that altered plans.
“A lot of things were coming to fruition,” said Peyton, referring to his early tenure, “then everything changed almost overnight.”
Peyton went on to call the Kansas City trip useful and timely for Downtown dialogue, while saying that the public sector would have to play a large role in its development through methods such as offering incentives to businesses.
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