Beatrice Awarded 2020 Showcase Community Award, by State of Nebraska

BEATRICE – A more formal celebration will have to wait because of the coronavirus, but Beatrice economic development officials are celebrating the community winning the 2020 Showcase Community Award, from the Nebraska Department of Economic Development.

It annually recognizes a community for the steps it has taken to move forward, over the past five years. Representatives of Main Street Beatrice, the Beatrice Area Chamber of Commerce and NGage spoke with reporters Friday, about the honor. Main Street Executive Director Michael Sothan says it’s sometimes easy to forget what’s been accomplished, over the years.

"The amount of the accomplishments this community has had, I think even surprised even us. We kind of just get stuck in working through every single day, that you kind of forget about some of the accomplishments the community has made. Sometimes our attention and memory spans are a little short. That was one of the nice things about this".

Sothan said one thing he’s noticed is that people in the community are taking more pride in what happens in the city.
Beatrice was awarded for how it has collaborated between organizations and engaged citizen participation.

Erin Chadwick of NGage said the efforts revolved around four main areas.
"Creating affordable housing solutions for all ages and incomes....enhancing community amenities such as outdoor recreation, a vibrant downtown and quality schools....attracting and retaining a workforce....and fostering a spirit of community pride".

From strategic planning, various projects have evolved in the community, such as growth in housing, the building of the Chief Standing Bear Trail, expansion of the Homestead Trial and an inner city trail section to be completed this year.
Projects visible to the community include a skateboard park, a new splashpad, playgrounds, an indoor batting facility…things that contribute to making a community a better place to live.

Since 2016, Sothan said sixty businesses have opened, expanded or relocated to Beatrice. A $350,000 downtown façade grant through the state helped produce millions of dollars in investment. One example is the Beatrice Mercantile Building.

"It's a 21-thousand square foot building that had really sat mostly under-utilized or empty since at least 1990...but really under-utilized since 1957. And, how that's now turned into multiple businesses. I think there's now six businesses in that single building. They're planning and additional floor that's being renovated".

Beatrice Area Chamber President Angie Bruna says the list of improvements is long.

"Vintage Venue has done a fantastic renovation project downtown. Taco Johns' has built new and has really freshened up the area. McDonalds has done investment...the Indian Creek Mall has done a lot of investment for the north end of town. I think almost all of the dealerships have done renovations".

Significant investment has also been made in the expansion of local industry.