Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Last month, Cheyenne County was ranked among the top 15 counties in Nebraska for job seekers in an article by NerdWallet, a national financial advice website.
The site placed the county 12th best in the state for those searching for employment. Overall, the state of Nebraska is fairing better than most of the country in this aspect, with one of the lowest unemployment rates in the U.S. As of November 2013 Nebraska’s unemployment rate was 3.7 percent, compared to a national rate of 7 percent.
The criteria that determined the website’s rankings included growth in the working age population between 2009-2011, median household income, average mortgage payments and unemployment rates.
According to NerdWallet’s findings, in Cheyenne County the working age population grew 1.6 percent from 2009-2011. The median household income was around $50,000 and the average mortgage payment was around $1,100. The median homeowners costs for Cheyenne County were higher than all but two of the other counties in the top 15, but the median income was also higher than most other counties. Cheyenne County’s unemployment rate of 3 percent was also a factor in the rankings.
Included in the analysis were 56 Nebraska counties. Only counties with a population larger than 5,000 were considered in the report.
Although city manager Gary Person acknowledged that it is always positive to receive recognition from a nationally publicized outlet, he disagreed with the website’s findings.
“That’s ridiculous, we’re the best,” Person said.
Sidney beats all the other counties on a per capita basis when it comes to job availability, he argued. Sidney, as well as the rest of Cheyenne County are a hotbed for jobs, and that will only continue to grow, Person added.
There are $200 million in projects planned for 2014 and even more development will take place in the future, he added.
Person predicts that all the development going on at the moment will have a spillover effect and lead to even more projects. It’s an exciting time and this is an excellent place for job seekers, Person said.
Many of the major employers in the area made quite a few hires last year and expect to continue that trend into this year. Adams Industries plans to hire between 25-50 new employees in the next year, while Sidney Regional Medical center will continue to make hires to accommodate its new facility. Of course, Sidney’s biggest employer is Cabela’s which plans to hire around 80 to 125 employees to work in the city annually in the upcoming years.
The new Bell Pole and Lumber plant located near the old depot site adds at least 30 new, good paying jobs to the area. Bell originally planned to be open and operational by summer of 2013 but now hopes to be open in the first quarter of this year.
Person admitted one of the biggest challenges when recruiting employees to the area was a shortage of housing. The city is currently working to address the lack of housing options.
Person thinks the city needs another mobile home park, as well as more apartments. Many of the complexes in the area are completely full and others are not the most desirable living spaces.
The Lodgepole Creek apartments, currently under construction on Fort Sidney Road, will have 72 units. Plans for some additional apartments in Sidney are also in the works. Of course the largest contribution to housing in the area will be the Cabela’s housing subdivision, part of the east Sidney development. This subdivision will be called The Ranch.
There will be 92 homes in the first phase of the subdivision with another phase of planned building right on the heals of that. Cabela’s wishes to begin this building as soon as possible, Person said.
Many projects in the east Sidney development will begin construction this spring when a few hundred construction workers will be based in Sidney temporarily, mostly staying in downtown hotels. Although there are many challenges that come with this rapid growth and development, it’s a positive thing compared to what’s happening in many other parts of rural America, Person commented.
“I’ll take what we’ve got going for us,” he said.
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