The State of Kansas is achieving monumental and historic heights.
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly announced that the State of Kansas set a record for private investment in 2020 with $2.5 billion. However, that was just the beginning. At a recent Manhattan ribbon cutting for new beverage co-packer Bev-Hub, Gov. Kelly said the state had hit $2.3 billion in investment in just the first six months of 2021. The Bev-Hub announcement was over $30 million in new investment and 40 new jobs at the Manhattan Business Park.
“Our state is on an undeniably positive trajectory,” said Kelly to a crowd of nearly 100 celebrating the grand opening of the Manhattan operation. “Our efforts are working; business leaders are taking notice.”
Among the other achievements Gov. Kelly cited:
“The momentum we are experiencing right now is definitely noticeable,” said Daryn Soldan, director of economic development for the Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce. “The excitement that we see in the state is clearly because Kansas is once again at the table and competitive for highly impactful economic development projects.”
According to Soldan, Manhattan is taking advantage of the state’s momentum by extensive outreach through its own regional efforts as well as collaborative efforts with Kansas State University. These efforts center around core industry advantages in animal health, biosecurity and crop science.
Manhattan has also received significant attention thanks to the location of the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF), a new national lab dedicated to the study of diseases that threaten both America’s animal agriculture and public health. That USDA facility is scheduled to open in 2023. Wired magazine recently wrote about the facility in its July 6 edition story, "When the Next Animal Plague Hits, Can This Lab Stop It?"
For its part, Manhattan has been on a number of top lists in the past decade as well. Princeton Review has made Manhattan one of its top cities in the country year-after-year in “town and gown” relationships as projects like NBAF show how a community working together achieves positive economic outcomes. Manhattan has also been cited as a top community for business and careers (Forbes) as well as a top community for entrepreneurs (Entrepreneur Magazine).
For more information on a Manhattan location for your enterprise, contact Daryn Soldan at 785-776-8829 or daryn@manhattan.org.
