Gov. Andy Beshear stopped in Owensboro on Wednesday afternoon, surprising a big crowd at the Green River Area Development District’s annual meeting held in the McConnell Plaza downtown. Beshear congratulated GRADD on their work and recent state award, saying they play a major role in the area’s economic development. GRADD also presented awards to one community and four individuals during the meeting.
Beshear touted the many major economic development projects he’s announced over the last couple of years, saying Area Development Districts have been critical in making those investments happen.
He specifically noted the project in Glendale, where Ford and BlueOval SK are building the world’s two biggest battery plants. He said he visited that site earlier Wednesday.
“It reminded me that didn’t happen overnight,” he said. “We invested for decades as a state, the General Assembly, and the locality, putting dollars in to get that site to be one of the best in the country. Through your Area Development District — working with you, applying for those PDI programs, we’re doing the same all over Kentucky to make sure we have the water, the sewer, the electric load that we need to make sure each of your communities has not just a shovel-ready site, but a build-ready site. Because let me tell you, the phone is still ringing off the hook. You can expect to see hundreds of more jobs here in the area.”
Beshear said that because of the work by GRADD and other Area Development Districts, “right now Kentucky is the envy of our surrounding states.”
“When there’s this much investment, there is credit to go around,” he said. “We don’t land a new expansion or a new location without the hard work of the people on the ground, the most local of the local, including our neighbors and friends just smiling at somebody that may be from out of town and showing them what it’s like to live in that community.”
Beshear also said GRADD was “pretty much the Area Development District of the year” after winning the Peggy Satterly Spirit of Kentucky Award last month for their work on the Lisman Workforce Complex project. The Lisman Workforce is a collaborative project to offer technical education and certification for highly in-demand trades in the GRADD region, including CDL, utility lineman, and diesel mechanic.
The is presented to the sponsors of a successful project resulting from multiple government agencies working together in a cost-effective manner.
“Keep setting that great example that others can follow,” Besher said.
GRADD also presented four annual awards during the meeting.
Established in 2008, the GRADD Community of the Year Award honors a city or county that has initiated significant efforts to improve the quality of life for its residents. Henderson was recognized for its Inner-City Improvement Plan (ICIP) — an initiative to bring more than 60 government leaders, city and field experts, nonprofit representatives, inner-city residents, and business owners together to identify and prioritize needed projects for inner-city improvement.
In addition to the Community of the Year Award, GRADD recognized three individuals for outstanding commitments to the region.
Sonny Renfrow, of Livermore, received the Charles Reid Regional Citizenship Award. The award is presented annually to a citizen from the public or private sector who has played a major role in regional development efforts.
Franklin Powers, of Hancock County, received the Texal Brooks Regional Leadership Award, which honors a current or former GRADD Board or committee member who has demonstrated outstanding regional leadership.
Union County Judge-Executive Adam O’Nan received the Wendell Ford Legislative Leadership Award, which is presented to a local, state, or national elected official who has dedicated his/her life to working with legislative issues and services for our region’s citizens.
GRADD Executive Director Joanna Shake said, “This year’s winners epitomize GRADD’s mission and represent the very heart of what we all strive to be as leaders.”
