Groundbreaking in Marshall.

The Candy Kitchen in Greenup.

2008 Boat Outing

September Edition

Effingham

Located at the intersection of Interstates 57 and 70, the City of Effingham, Illinois, has become a regional center for employment, shopping, health care, and recreation. The transportation system located at Effingham is unsurpassed in Central Illinois with U.S. Routes 40 and 45, Illinois Routes 32 and 33, the CSX Railroad, the Canadian National Railroad, and the Effingham Shortline Railroad all converging at Effingham along with the two interstates.

Effingham’s location and transportation system has helped the community in its efforts to grow and attract new business to the City. Construction is currently underway throughout the community with numerous street projects well into the construction phase.  Two sections of Outer Belt West are being constructed which will provide a new roadway from Avenue of Mid-America to U.S. Route 40 connecting Interchanges 159 and 160.  Outer Belt West will open up over 250 acres of property for new development. Maple Street is being extended for a future recreational area and Thies Avenue is being constructed in the South Route 45 Business Park.

The City continues to work with existing and new businesses and makes economic development a top priority. Over the past twenty years, Effingham has been aggressive in pursuing programs to assist companies.  The City currently has four tax increment financing districts, an enterprise zone, a revolving loan fund, and two business districts.  Some recent projects would include: FedEx Freight and its 166 dock facility, Schulte Building Systems which constructed a 89,000 sq. ft. facility, FedEx Ground, ADM, Hodgson Mills 60,000 sq. ft. expansion, Kohl’s, Kingery Printing’s 35,000 sq. ft. expansion, Patterson Technology, and Mechanovent with its 35,000 sq. ft. expansion.

The Rosebud Theatre opened last year which provides a venue for big name acts and space for large functions. The City is also looking at a possible sports and recreation center for tournaments and local recreational needs. Effingham continues to look at ways to improve the quality of life in the community and to attract visitors.

Retail and commercial businesses continues to locate and expand in Effingham due to its regional draw and the interstate beltline. In fact, the City’s daytime population doubles in size to 24,000 people and 40,000 vehicles utilize the beltline every day. The regional draw has enabled Effingham to attract several big box retailers such as Kohl’s, Menards, Wal-Mart, and Kmart.

Effingham is a great place to raise a family and has the attributes of a much larger community. The City continues in its efforts to grow and expand and invites everyone to visit and see what the community has to offer.

Clark County Update

Marshall

Keystone Properties, Inc. held a groundbreaking ceremony on June 25th in Marshall, Illinois for a privately-developed senior independent living facility expected to be open in early fall of 2009. The facility will include 46 units, primarily one and two bedroom apartments, a spacious lobby and a large dining area for eating and entertainment for residents. The building will be a single story brick building, with over 38,000 square feet and will have an enclosed courtyard. Services that will be offered are 24 hour staffing, three meals a day, housekeeping services, all utilities paid, cable TV, individual personal emergency response system, laundry service, all maintenance including lawn care and snow removal and local transportation to healthcare providers. This project is expected to create 15-20 new jobs when completely full and operational. The new facility will be located at 17050 N. Quality Lime Road in Marshall.

Cumberland County Update

Cumberland County is excited to announce the reopening of The Candy Kitchen in Historic Downtown Greenup! After almost two years, the Candy Kitchen reopened this week, under new management.

Cumberland County Development, the Village of Greenup and all residents and tourists are sure to be celebrating. Along with the above announcement, Greenup also announces the opening of Visual Effects and the new Casey's prototype store is set to open on September 11th, 2009 at the intersection of I-70 and IL RT 130.

Greenup Recycling is finishing up remodeling and is now open for operation in historic down town.

The Village of Greenup is making a strong effort and amazing strides in recovery after record flooding in June.

The Cumberland County Fair, held in August, was a great success after community members and groups came together to get the site cleaned up, made countless repairs and repainted almost everything in view.

The village is currently in the midst of Competitive Communities Initiative through Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) and working on their community self assessment. Wonderful work is being done behind the scenes while the public perception has changed from the negative down turn of the local economy to the positive rebuilding of the historic area that has great roots in the past and is facing the future with muscle and endurance.

Ed Morrison Will Lead East Central Open Retreat

Ed Morrison, who keynoted the 2008 ECIDC Annual Meeting, will be leading a retreat on October 22-23 at Allerton Park, Monticello. Mr. Morrison came to East Central Illinois from Cleveland where he founded I-Open, the Institute for Open Economic Networks. Ed also works for the Center for Regional Development at Purdue University, as well as serves as Economic Policy Advisor for the WIRED initiative in North Central Indiana. Ed is the publisher of EDPro, a popular weblog for economic development professionals. He serves on the Board of the University Economic Development Association, teaches advanced strategy at the Economic Development Institute, and serves on the Regional Experts Committee of the Council on Competitiveness.

Leaders from all sectors and communities throughout the nine county region will be invited to participate in the retreat in hopes of reshaping the future of the region and building stronger relationships and thicker networks.

The retreat objectives are:

1. To build stronger bonds across all sectors and mapping our region's talent networks.

2. To construct a practical asset map of our region.

3. To generate and agree upon strategic outcomes for our region.

4. To map the steps necessary to reach the strategic outcomes, complete with timelines and metrics.

5. To arm all participants with the tools necessary to recreate the same experience for those in their individual communities or organizations.

At the end of the retreat, the group members will choose which initiatives they wish to be responsible for and action will commence. The group, along with all of those who wish to have a hand in shaping the region, will reconvene again in January of 2009 to report their progress and decide upon the next steps. During the time between the retreat's end and January, the team will stay in constant communication through Web 2.0 tools.

This retreat was made possible through a partnership between: ECIDC, Agracel, DCEO, Coles Together, Ameren, Shelby Electric Cooperative, Lake Land College, Tuscola Economic Development Inc. , Effingham County Community Foundation, Mattoon Area Community Foundation and Mattoon Area Industrial Development.

ECIDC Update

ECIDC is sizzling with the summer heat! The Annual Boat Outing was an overwhelming success. Many people filled two houseboats the evening of August 28th. Those who are not members of the organization where introduced to its advantages and great food was served by Unique Country Catering.

Since returning from the I-Open Retreat in Michigan, planning has been underway for the East Central Open Retreat. As the group continues to grow and networks become thicker East Central Illinois will begin to see changes in attitudes and behaviors, as well as a new sense of commitment and trust amongst organizations and communtities. We will report the results of the retreat soon after its completion.

If you have any questions regarding ECIDC, the upcoming events or joining the organization please contact Trisha Mason at (217) 238-8233 or by email.

ECIDC Upcoming Events...

October 22-23

East Central Open Retreat at Allerton Park, Monticello, Illinois

November 13th

11 a.m. ECIDC Board Meeting

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East Central Illinois Development Corporation (ECIDC) was established in 1984 to assist economic development in a nine county region consisting of Christian, Clark, Coles, Cumberland, Douglas, Edgar, Effingham, Moultrie and Shelby counties. ECIDC was one of the first regional economic development organizations in the state and has continued to assist in meeting the economic development needs of east central Illinois.