PCDI Sets Annual Meeting Date, Three Board Positions Opening

Prowers County Development Incorporated will hold its annual meeting on Friday, March 27 at the Holly School District.  The economic development organization will have two featured speakers for the dinner/meeting event: Kari Linker, Executive Director, Morgan County Economic Development and Emily Nieschburg, LiveWell Coordinator.

Nieschburg will show how a community’s orientation towards a healthy lifestyle and outdoor activities can serve as a prime attraction being sought by companies looking to locate to a particular community.  Linker will share her knowledge and experiences with small town economic development possibilities.

Prior to the annual meeting, tours of the new Holly School District facility will be offered at 6:30pm, followed by the dinner at 7pm which will be catered by the Holly High School Senior Class.  The business meeting and speakers will follow the meal.

Three Director positions are open, each with a two-year term and an election will be held to fill the vacancies.  Qualified residents should contact the PCDI office or any director to place themselves on the ballot.  Terms are expiring for Lawrence Brase and Larry Lusher and neither are seeking re-election; Rick Robbins, PCDI President will seek re-election to the board.  A representative to the board from the City of Lamar is currently pending.

The PCDI board is planning their business seminar series for 2015.  The directors met with two Colorado State Patrol, Haz-Mat officers during their monthly meeting, Tuesday, February 23.  Mark Manual from the Motor Carrier Safety Section and Chris Pryor from Haz-Mat, detailed five or six different fields of study for area businesses, from agriculture to retail to carrier companies, which would benefit from several CSP courses being planned by PCDI.  Other topics included ways to offer local CDL classes for drivers and another series of seminars for DRE’s, Drug Recognition Experts, which would be held for business owners and managers.  Another forklift seminar will be held and speaker Maureen Karny from BP Services will be brought in to discuss standard business rules and regulations pertaining to sexual harassment and drug use in businesses as well as employee handbook writing and revision and customer service training.  PCDI Vice-President, Aaron Leiker said, “These seminars will be a good opportunity for the board to begin its annual membership drive.  One benefit to members will be a discounted fee for attending any of the seminars we’re setting up.”  The board also discussed revisions for membership dues, lowering the fees originally introduced and applying discounts for first and five year memberships.

Tickets for the annual meeting are $25 per person, available at the PCDI office in the Rodeway Cow Palace Inn or email pcdi@procolorado.org.  Holly residents may purchase tickets through Aaron Leiker at 719-691-5306 or email aaaronjleiker@gmail.com.

By Russ Baldwin