History

Republic County Economic Development Corporation (RCEDC) was formed in 1999 to help improve the economic diversity of Republic County. RCEDC was created by an interlocal agreement between the Republic County Commission and the City of Belleville.

RCEDC offers numerous services and resources including business recruitment and retention work, financial resources, site location selection assistance, marketing assistance, state resources and incentives, employment assistance as well as employee training resources.

The need for a broad range of skills, information, and finance in many economic development projects has led to the need of a new organizational structure. RCEDC is taking steps to become a public-private partnership. A public-private partnership is an organization model with funding sources from public sources such as government entities, private sources such as businesses, industry and individuals, as well as grants. Public-private partnerships act as a strong voice for the interests of local businesses, while also possessing immediate access to the highest levels of local government. These organizations have greater flexibility than the public sector to conduct economic development activities.

The local governments, private businesses and citizens will come together, forming a non-profit organization with the aim of undertaking economic development efforts, promoting sustainable business, improving workforce development, diversifying the economic base of a region, and improving the quality of life.

RCEDC currently has a nine-member board of directors to carry out the day-to-day decision duties of the organization in addition to a 16 member voting committee that meets quarterly to set policy. The new structure will utilize the current board, which includes a Republic County Commissioner and public officials from all municipalities in the county, in a collaborative effort that leads toward more rational allocation of both public and private sector resources.

JenRus Freelance out of Courtland, Kansas was contracted to direct the office duties of RCED in October of 2010 and continues to serve Republic County. Jenny Russell serves as executive director.