Perhaps 30 or so years ago, Jefferson had chances to land several large businesses within their city. These included Pella Windows, and several department stores. They were not aggressively pursued. Do you think that was a good or bad idea?
8 comments:
Anonymous
said...
What do you think? These guys wanted to keep the mom & pop square alive and had their head buried so far in the sand they could see the Olympic games this year. They didn't have a clue, and still don't. Those big box stores bring business into the downtown. The store owners need to learn how to use these businesses to their advantage, but that's as moot as you can get. Just ask that guy in the Squirrel Hollow outhouse basement. You need to talk about new problems, like all those Irish moving here from Perry.
Think of what Jefferson would have been like if (they) hadn't dismissed the idea of a dam on the Raccoon River north of us, before Lake panorama was built.
There was talk of a dam on the raccoon river near Jefferson and community leaders dismissed that idea? And, losing businesses like Pella Windows? I hope the community leaders of the past, if still alive, are proud of their decision making.
With the dam issue, I might be wrong, but I suspect a few farmers sqawked about not getting enough money for their land. With not bringing in a big business like Pella, I'm guessing other businesses in town would have seen that as competition for their workers. They probably would have had to pay their current workers more, offered better working conditions, or hire all new workers...all costly options to their businesses. And, perhaps, bringing in companies like Pella or the department stores, would have also brought in much bigger fish in the little pond called Jefferson. Do you suppose a few community leaders felt threatened or worried about their future lower status in town?
In hindsight, it was definitely a bad idea not to have persued the business opportunities.
The lack of interest in this particular topic points out the glaring lack of responsibility on behalf of community leaders and citizens in Jefferson to attract a broad range of businesses to the area, which is the only way you insure that your community will continue to grow.
Jefferson long ago determined that they were not interested in enlarging their town, and will gradually reap the benefits of this strategy, namely a town that will consume the rest of the county, and then die off.
Nobody wants to talk about this because all the big players who made those decisions back in the day are gone or retired and don't give a damn. Jefferson doesn't have the money or tax breaks or whatever to get back in it. They need more money. They should drill for oil, or find some of that shale oil, or maybe that oil sand like they have up in Canada, or maybe mine those unburnt tire mines; they're out there, email me for more info.
Rich...seriously? There was talk of a junior college (Boone) to be located in Jefferson? What year was that? I was so oblivious to the possibilities when I lived in Jefferson. I was just a kid, of course, but my goodness.
The possibilities of a recreational lake, a junior college, a major manufacturer (Pella)...and none of them came to be? Jefferson slashed its wrists, its jugular veins, its femoral artery a long, long time ago. Why it's not a ghost town by now is unbelievable. I shouldn't say that...Halloween is approaching.
JJ: I know it's difficult to take much seriously on here (especially that Bland guy or is it that bland guy?). But, look at it from a geographical standpoint. How much sense does it make to have a community college 12 miles from ISU, when the next one west after that is Council Bluffs?
Someone will have to verify with a map of Iowa CC's.
8 comments:
What do you think? These guys wanted to keep the mom & pop square alive and had their head buried so far in the sand they could see the Olympic games this year. They didn't have a clue, and still don't. Those big box stores bring business into the downtown. The store owners need to learn how to use these businesses to their advantage, but that's as moot as you can get. Just ask that guy in the Squirrel Hollow outhouse basement. You need to talk about new problems, like all those Irish moving here from Perry.
Think of what Jefferson would have been like if (they) hadn't dismissed the idea of a dam on the Raccoon River north of us, before Lake panorama was built.
There was talk of a dam on the raccoon river near Jefferson and community leaders dismissed that idea? And, losing businesses like Pella Windows? I hope the community leaders of the past, if still alive, are proud of their decision making.
With the dam issue, I might be wrong, but I suspect a few farmers sqawked about not getting enough money for their land. With not bringing in a big business like Pella, I'm guessing other businesses in town would have seen that as competition for their workers. They probably would have had to pay their current workers more, offered better working conditions, or hire all new workers...all costly options to their businesses. And, perhaps, bringing in companies like Pella or the department stores, would have also brought in much bigger fish in the little pond called Jefferson. Do you suppose a few community leaders felt threatened or worried about their future lower status in town?
In hindsight, it was definitely a bad idea not to have persued the business opportunities.
The lack of interest in this particular topic points out the glaring lack of responsibility on behalf of community leaders and citizens in Jefferson to attract a broad range of businesses to the area, which is the only way you insure that your community will continue to grow.
Jefferson long ago determined that they were not interested in enlarging their town, and will gradually reap the benefits of this strategy, namely a town that will consume the rest of the county, and then die off.
Nobody wants to talk about this because all the big players who made those decisions back in the day are gone or retired and don't give a damn. Jefferson doesn't have the money or tax breaks or whatever to get back in it. They need more money. They should drill for oil, or find some of that shale oil, or maybe that oil sand like they have up in Canada, or maybe mine those unburnt tire mines; they're out there, email me for more info.
I remember hearing that Jefferson was to be the site of the community college that eventually located in Boone.
The powers that be didn't want all those college-aged kids livening up the community.
Rich...seriously? There was talk of a junior college (Boone) to be located in Jefferson? What year was that? I was so oblivious to the possibilities when I lived in Jefferson. I was just a kid, of course, but my goodness.
The possibilities of a recreational lake, a junior college, a major manufacturer (Pella)...and none of them came to be? Jefferson slashed its wrists, its jugular veins, its femoral artery a long, long time ago. Why it's not a ghost town by now is unbelievable. I shouldn't say that...Halloween is approaching.
JJ: I know it's difficult to take much seriously on here (especially that Bland guy or is it that bland guy?). But, look at it from a geographical standpoint. How much sense does it make to have a community college 12 miles from ISU, when the next one west after that is Council Bluffs?
Someone will have to verify with a map of Iowa CC's.
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