annual report II Corn crop important to county economy
Jerry Singley March has definitely come in like a lion. Well, let’s face it. It’s come in like a pride of lions! I join many others in hoping that we can definitely usher it out like a lamb, welJerry coming Singley warming soils and sunny skies. It’s nearly time to put seeds in the soil. Here in McLean County we are blessed with some of the richest soil on earth, and I appreciate and value that soil as a corn farmer. Much like those of you that enjoy nurturing and tending plants in your lawns and gardens, I enjoy coaxing forth a new crop each year. I know what another crop year means to my family and my farm. Of course from year to year, I never really know what Mother Nature will send my way in terms of the weather, but I understand that without planting and harvest, my family’s livelihood is at risk. It’s interesting to consider more broadly what my farm and others in McLean County mean to others in our community andeven to the state of Illinois. The Illinois Corn Marketing Board recently commissioned a study to determine agriculture’s economic impact.Specifically, that study focused on the time between 2005 and 2012. You’ll remember that it was 2005 when the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) first became law, encouraging local investment in ethanol plants like One Earth Energy. One Earth sits just about 30 miles east of Bloomington. Since the RFS became law, estimates suggest that the number of people working in agriculture and related industries has increased by approximately 28,000 in Illinois, helping to offset job losses due to the recession. We know that in Illinois agriculture, there are more than 175,000 of us working in positions directly related to farming. That includes farmers, hired hands, managers, bookkeepers and mechanics. And there are another nearly 150,000 people working in related segments of agriculture including ethanol plants, farm equipment manufacturers, meat processing, and wholesalers of inputs. Revenues from corn farms are increasingly important to our general economy. The most recent data shows that in Illinois, 94 percent of cash receipts are from crops. In 2013, McLean County farmers harvested 334,000 acres of corn that yielded just over 63 million bushels. That represents 3 percent of the corn grown in Illinois last year. Portions of our 2013 harvest may have gone to the One Earth Energy ethanol plant, or to feed beef cattle at Funk Farms just south of Bloomington. Our corn may have even left Illinois by rail to feed cattle in Texas, or it may have gone to Japan to feed livestock there. It may have left the county to be processed into cereals or snack foods. Or it may have even become beverage alcohol. SEE corn / PAGE F2
Sunday, March 23, 2014
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econoMy
LorI Ann cooK-neISLer, The Pantagraph
Construction workers for Franke Construction. Mark Ludington, left, Jeremy Peasley, center, and Nick Dreyer, right, work on a new home in Greystone Fields subdivision on Flagstone Drive in Normal in April 2013.
McLean County continues
eConoMiC rebound Pat Shaver pshaver@pantagraph.com
BLOOMINGTON — The economy in McLean County continued its slow recovery in 2013, but there were also a few bright spots. “I would say the signals are sort of mixed from 2013. On the good side, we remain among the lowest unemployment county in the state, but we are still seeing a virtually stagnant recovery,” said Mike Seeborg, economics professor at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington. McLean County’s unemployment jumped at the end of last year, increasing from 6.4 percent in December 2012 to 7.1 percent in December 2013. The largest year-over-year increase was in November 2013, when the unemployment rate grew to 7 percent, an increase of nearly 1 percent from a year earlier. The area’s economic recovery, Seeborg said, is in line with state and national trends, though local unemployment rates remained lower than other parts of the state. State Farm, McLean County’s largest employer, began to establish hubs in Texas, Georgia and Arizona last year, which led to questions of the company’s future plans in Bloomington and what impacts any changes might have on the local economy. Company officials have said the facilities in Bloomington continue to be fully utilized and employee numbers
cArLoS T. MIrAnDA, The Pantagraph
Andrew Bopp, 16, demonstrates a modified minuteman load as part of open house demonstrations on Nov. 21, 2013, at BACC in Bloomington. Future students and parents toured the labs classrooms including demonstration by current students. remain around 15,000. “Looking at the long term, State Farm and insurance generally has been an engine of growth in the local economy, but of course we can’t rely on that in the future. I think we’ll see a period of stability with State Farm employment, but we can’t rely on insurance as a source of growth,” Seeborg said. In order to grow in jobs, Seeborg
added, it’s important to have a diversity of industries and businesses. “I think its going to take an effort by the community to continue to attract different firms,” Seeborg said. “On the positive side, the community is blessed with favorable transportation, with the regional airport, interstate connections, and a busy Amtrak station.” SEE econoMy/ PAGE F2
normal focuses on future Mary Ann Ford
yet-to-be-determined site farther west. The cost of the last two stations is estimated at $3 million to $3.5 million each.
mford@pantagraph.com
NORMAL — The future of three major components of Normal — fire stations, the public library and uptown redevelopment — were at the forefront of the City Council’s discussions in 2013. In July, council members supported a plan to build three new fire stations over the next 10 years. The 2014-19 community investment plan includes $4.5 million over the next two years to build the first station. That building will replace Station 2 at 604 N. Adelaide St., but serve as the fire department’s headquarter station. Town officials have been in discussions with Illinois State University about a possible land swap for the station since the Adelaide Street site is in the midst of ISUowned property. While a few ISU-owned properties have been suggested for the new station, City Manager Mark Peterson said talks have been put on hold while the town seeks a design team to determine the needs of the station — and ultimately its size.
Library
STeVe SMeDLey, The Pantagraph
Normal Fire Department assistant chief John Grussing looks at a wall full of antiquated electrical panels in Station 2, at Adelaide and Gregory streets. The electrical system in the building needs to be upgraded. “Then we can determine if (one of the proposed ISU) sites would work or not,” he said. As soon as the town has a clear direction for the first site, Peterson said officials will begin looking for a site for a second new fire station — which would replace the current station at 1300 E. College Ave. but be farther east to help
improve far east-side response times. Funding for that station is not in the five-year plan but the council’s original plan suggested the College Avenue station be replaced about four years after the first new station is completed. The town’s No. 3 station, 1200 E. Raab Road, would be replaced four years after that at a
In August, the City Council and members of the Normal Public Library Board met in a work session to learn what would be needed for a new library. A 2008 study revealed the library is out of space. But how to solve that issue remained a question. The City Council wants to keep the library uptown while the library board favors moving out of uptown to get needed space and address parking problems. An ad hoc committee was formed with representatives from the council and the library board to further discuss the issue. Peterson said that committee likely will continue the discussions all year before issuing a joint recommendation. In the meantime, library officials are looking at no-cost or low-cost ways to change the current building to improve the level of service, said Director Brian Chase. SEE norMAL / PAGE F2