By Mike Rhodes, Editor-in-Chief, MuncieJournal.com—
MUNCIE, IN—Tuesday’s Engage Indiana event in Muncie focused on the unique challenges and distinct opportunities for growth of Muncie and the entire East Central Indiana region.
The event was created by the Indianapolis Business Journal, IBJ Media and Inside Indiana Business and was part of their Engage Indiana series, which began in 2016.
Nathan Felton, CEO of IBJ Media said Tuesday’s event was the first to be held in East Central Indiana. He said the series is traveling to nine locations around the state this year.
Early in the program, Muncie Mayor Dan Ridenour shared what could be considered surprising information about population increases in Delaware County.
“I am confident that East Central Indiana is on a rebound, Ridenour said. “I think ten, fifteen years from now, East Central Indiana will not be a “flyover area.” We have to admit, for 50 years we struggled. But in Delaware County, in the last three years, we have increased population each year— more than some very popular areas in the state that have received a lot of positive attention. If you look at Henry County and Delaware County, both have increased population.”
Panelists pictured L-R included: Trevor Friedeberg, Mark K. Hardwick, Geoffrey S. Mearns, Ronald Morrell Jr., Lathay R. Pegues, State Rep. Elizabeth Rowray and moderator Gerry Dick. Photo by Mike Rhodes
David Rosenberg is Indiana’s Secretary of Commerce. He leads the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, (IEDC) guiding the strategy supporting the growth of the state’s economy and its economic development efforts.
Rosenberg said, “To do business in the next decade, due to reshoring and modernization and the geopolitical uncertainty around the world, there’s nearly $1 trillion of investment looking for a place to land.”
Companies aren’t going to the coast, due to the instability, the high costs, the lack of workforce—they’re truly looking at the midwest and the southeastern states. So why not Indiana? Why shouldn’t we be able to go get more than our fair share of that investment?”—David Rosenberg
Rosenberg says Indiana is truly an international player.
In Muncie and Delaware County, that international influence can be seen through new companies such as CanPack, and Italian-based companies such as INOX Market America, Filtrec North America and FT Casting.
In a 2023 MuncieJournal.com article, County Commissioner, Shannon Henry said, “The diversification of our local business community means that other industries can participate in the multipliers of business that come from the new investments. These new businesses also bring a host of higher skilled employment opportunities—giving local residents a variety of industry sectors to choose from to advance their careers.”
According to Forbes Magazine, Indiana has been ranked second in the nation as one of the best places to start a business.
Rosenberg says Indiana has also been recognized as a Top 40 Emerging Ecosystem for Entrepreneurship by Startup Genome. In addition, the Small Business Development Center has served over 726 small businesses since the beginning of 2023 and has helped launch 62 new companies.
Numerous jobs and infrastructure projects are underway in virtually every corner of the state. With over $70 billion of committed capital investment, Indiana continues to put up some big economic development numbers.
The video below by the Indiana Economic Development Corporation is narrated by Gerry Dick and was played during the event. The video proves the point that economic development-wise, Indiana is on fire!
Earlier today, September 19, Governor Eric J. Holcomb and Indiana Secretary of Commerce David Rosenberg announced at the Indiana Economic Development Corporation’s quarterly board meeting that Indiana broke another record for committed capital investment in the state – a total of $38.3 billion through Q3 2024.
You can listen to the entire Engage East Central Indiana program below via this audio from WMUN radio.
Related article below.
Why We’re Optimistic About the Future of East Central Indiana
