News & Events

Childcare is vital to local economies more than many realize. “Nebraskans know it takes a lot of different elements to make a vibrant, sustainable community. That includes housing, transportation, utilities, healthcare, education, public safety, commercial and financial services, and many other factors. Each of these factors is dependent on the...Continue Reading

Kinney Manufacturing came to Beatrice in 2018 and has been expanding since with the purchase of three other local industrial businesses. Randy and Debby Kinney both grew up on family farms in northeast Nebraska. They married in 1991 and spent time working for different companies in Louisiana, Texas,...Continue Reading

Exmark Manufacturing is well ingrained in Gage County as both a mower manufacturer and a company that gives back to its community. And the company has no plans to slow down in 2023, with new products on the horizon and another year of community service projects in the works...Continue Reading

A new report by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) Bureau of Business Research shows a strong return on investment from the State’s Business Innovation Act (BIA) programs. The report analyzed the overall economic impact BIA programs have had by spurring the growth of Nebraska startups. BIA funds have generated...Continue Reading

NGage works to create opportunities for businesses to start, grow, or move to Gage County while increasing economic opportunities for businesses and residents. This year was a busy one, with new areas of focus, challenges, and successes. Here’s a look at some of the highlights from 2022: Economic Development...Continue Reading

C4K is the Communities for Kids initiative created by the Nebraska Children and Families Foundation (Nebraska Children) in response to the shortages of high-quality childcare throughout Nebraska.  Gage County is a Community for Kids! With a deficit of nearly 400 childcare spots in the county, there is a great...Continue Reading

BEATRICE – Students in Architecture and Planning at Kansas State University have been working with Beatrice Public School officials to find a new use for elementary buildings that will be replaced by a single site school. The effort that began this summer has morphed into a wider look at...Continue Reading

As we end October and begin a new month, we would be remiss if we didn’t showcase last month’s Manufacturing Day celebration!  The observance of Manufacturing (MFG) Day, held nationally on the first Friday every October, is continued throughout the month to celebrate manufacturing, a $2 billion industry, employing...Continue Reading

LINCOLN – Today, Governor Pete Ricketts commented on this afternoon’s decision by the Nebraska Economic Forecasting Advisory Board to raise the State’s revenue forecast by $2.5 billion through fiscal year 2024-2025.  The board voted to increase the State’s revenue forecast by $621 million for the current fiscal year (FY2022-23), to...Continue Reading

What’s life like for workers now? Somewhere between terrible and meh, based on a quick scan of the news. We’re all enduring the Great Resignation, the Great Reshuffle, the Great Rethink. Whatever you call it, it feels like the opposite of great. Companies are coping with an epidemic of quiet...Continue Reading

LINCOLN – Today, Governor Pete Ricketts announced that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved the continuation of groundbreaking research being done in Nebraska on E30 fuel.  Results of the State’s initial pilot program, launched in 2019, showed that E30 is safe and reliable fuel for use in conventional...Continue Reading

“The first years of a child’s life are a period of rapid brain development, deeply influenced by early experiences, interactions and environments. That’s why high-quality early childhood care and learning environments are so important: they build the foundation for cognitive and social-emotional skills that help children succeed now and in...Continue Reading

An idea for downtown more than a decade in the making is being revisited by the Beatrice City Council. In 2011, RDG Planning was hired to develop a master plan for the downtown area. Part of that plan included a change to the highway system, and proposed moving Highway...Continue Reading

Residents of north central Gage County in southeast Nebraska will soon have fiber optic internet. The Hudson Oaks, TX. based company of NextLink Internet will soon be on the ground, providing what they believe to be some of the fastest and most reliable service to those in rural Gage...Continue Reading

Beatrice elected officials have approved a resolution for a loan to help Beatrice Community Hospital upgrade technology. The city council Monday night approved a rural economic development loan agreement for $360,000 to help the hospital purchase telemetry monitors. City Administrator Tobias Tempelmeyer says the project will use a USDA...Continue Reading

Chet McGrury IV, of Beatrice, started Fat Rabbit Produce when he was 14 years old and looking for a job. “No one really hires someone that young and we had always gardened as a family,” McGrury said. “I decided that if I expanded a bit and delivered, as well...Continue Reading

Over the past three years, we’ve dealt with shortages of many goods, from lumber to cars to toilet paper.  Supply chain shortages have shown that the United States is overreliant on foreign suppliers.  Instead of depending on China for medicine, Taiwan for computer chips, or Russia for fertilizer, we need...Continue Reading

There are few subjects about which more ink has been spilled in the last three years than the state of the U.S. workforce. From the impact of business shutdowns and enhanced unemployment benefits on labor participation, to pent-up challenges bringing critical supply chain workers to the verge of major strikes,...Continue Reading

Governor Pete Ricketts and leaders in the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) recognized child welfare specialists at a proclamation signing ceremony at the State Capitol. Gov. Ricketts proclaimed September 2022 as “Child Welfare Workforce Development Month” in appreciation of the great work being done by State...Continue Reading