Sheboygan County means something different to everyone who lives here. It means something to visitors who vacation here, business people who travel here and kids who grow up here.

That meaning is evolving every day, and the Sheboygan County Economic Development Corporation is working constantly to enhance what’s already working in the county and address the things that need a boost.

The SCEDC primarily serves four functions: workforce development, entrepreneurship, site selection and nontraditional financing. We can help entrepreneurs start new business by assisting with things like business planning and financing, we help existing businesses find the right location for expansion and find the right people to employ.

In this space in the months to come, we will bring you information about new initiatives taking place, positive improvements going on and issues that we are helping to address.

One of the biggest initiatives right now is the development of an innovation district called FreshTech, which will bring together thinkers and doers in a unique setting that gives people from different businesses and industries the opportunity to work together and help each other.

Last fall, we held an innovation summit to find out what would mean the most to people in an environment like FreshTech. What we learned is guiding our efforts now: Separate steering committees are spending the summer focusing on entrepreneurship, best practices for companies and professional/leadership development. Related programs and events will take place over the next few months – stay tuned!

The results of those committees’ work will determine the next steps in this process. Any future building development that is needed will be located along the Indiana corridor in Sheboygan.

We know that employers in Sheboygan County are always looking for ways to attract and retain the best people, including millennials and new high school graduates. Keeping the best and brightest in the community – whether they attend college or start a career right away – has always been a top priority.

Sheboygan County has so much to offer young people who are interested in pursuing a path toward a trade. The Red Raider Manufacturing Initiative is the newest addition, putting cutting-edge machinery, tools and training in the hands of students of North and South high schools in Sheboygan.

At Plymouth High School, the Science & Technology Center gives students a head start on a variety of careers with state-of-the-art equipment and training in an array of areas including skilled manufacturing, welding, engineering and culinary trades among many others.

The Kohler Center for Manufacturing Excellence at Lakeshore Technical College offers expanded technical offerings to post-secondary students, and LTC also offers a Youth Apprenticeship program to high school students.

We are actively marketing the appeal of Sheboygan County’s career opportunities, tremendous quality of life offerings, housing availability and excellent schools through http://www.someplacebetter.org, which pulls together all those things in one place for job-seekers or anyone interested in exploring all the county has to offer.

In addition, Sheboygan County is consistently recognized in studies and rankings for its value. For example:

Sheboygan was recently named one of the best cities in Wisconsin to live.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics has recognized Sheboygan for having the fourth highest population employed in manufacturing in the U.S.

In 2017, financial news website 24/7 found Sheboygan County had the lowest poverty rate in the nation.

In the last three years Sheboygan has been one of four communities with the lowest unemployment in the state of Wisconsin.

Earlier this year, Sheboygan County was named the one of the best communities for millennials to live.

Those are just a few of the accolades Sheboygan County has garnered over the years and more are surely ahead.

Sheboygan County is a place where things happen. Its residents are committed to making it a better place for themselves and each other and creating a good place for their kids to grow up and start their own families.

It’s an exciting time to be in Sheboygan County; good things are happening and people are noticing. At the SCEDC, we are excited to bring you news and information to the readers of the Plymouth Review and we want to make sure we’re getting you the information you want.

If there are questions we can answer – about who we are and what we do, about our programs, about business development throughout the county – please get in touch.

You can contact me at sheehan@sheboygancountyedc.com or 920-452-2479 and I will answer your questions in this space.