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Emporia Regional
Development Association
of East Central Kansas!
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History
The Regional Development Association of East
Central Kansas (RDA) was incorporated on
July 1, 1993, with the mission to
proactively promote economic growth of the
East Central Kansas region through industry
recruitment, expansion and training
enhancements.
The primary goal of the RDA is the
creation of skilled jobs that benefit the
community; encourage the retention of
existing employment within the community;
and create an atmosphere that provides
growth opportunities to industry.
The RDA serves as the lead
organization and key point of contact for
the economic development activities for Lyon
County and Emporia. The RDA members are
Emporia Enterprises, Emporia Area Chamber of
Commerce, City of Emporia and Lyon County.
RETURN ON
INVESTMENT
The RDA is a collaborative effort between
the City of Emporia, Lyon County, the
Emporia Area Chamber of Commerce and
Convention & Visitors Bureau and Emporia
Enterprises. The spirit of cooperation,
consensus and collaboration has yielded $700
million in new buildings and equipment
investment and over 1,000 direct jobs. The
new companies locating in the Emporia/Lyon
County area are Menu Foods Midwest
Corporation, Camoplast (Caterpillar),
Norfolk Iron & Metal, Renewable Energy
Group, Hill’s Pet Nutrition Inc. and Westar
Energy-Emporia Energy Center. Existing
company expansions include Detroit Diesel
Remanufacturing-Central, Hostess Brands,
EVCO, Hopkins Manufacturing, Birch
Communications, Kansa Technology, LLC,
VEKTEK, Tyson Foods (IBP), Glendo and
Fanestil.
Board of Directors
The Regional Development Association of East
Central Kansas carries out its mission under
the policies developed by a seven-member
voting board of directors, appointed by the
four member organizations – City of Emporia,
Lyon County, Emporia Area Chamber of
Commerce and Emporia Enterprises. The City
of Emporia and Lyon County appoint two board
members each; Emporia Enterprises and the
Emporia Area Chamber of Commerce appoint one
board member each. Those six board members
then elect a board member at large.
The Board of Directors has five
ex-officio non-voting board members who
serve as long as they hold their respective
position. They are Emporia City Manager,
Emporia City Attorney, Lyon County
Counselor, Emporia Area Chamber of Commerce
President/CEO and the Emporia Main Street
Director.
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OFFICERS
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Jon Geitz,
Chair
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Emporia
Enterprises
Appointee
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Edward Jones |
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Scott
Briggs, Vice Chair
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County
Appointee
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Lyon County
Commissioner |
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Matt
Zimmerman, Treasurer
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Ex-Officio
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City Manager |
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Jeanine
McKenna, Secretary
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Ex-Officio
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President/CEO of
Emporia Area Chamber
of Commerce |
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BOARD OF DIRECTORS
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Ken Bazil
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County
Appointee
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Retired |
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Scott Briggs
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County
Appointee
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Lyon County
Commissioner
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Kevin Nelson
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City
Appointee
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Red Line Trucking
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Marc Goodman
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Ex-Officio
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Lyon County
Counselor |
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Dr. Michael
Lane
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At Large
Appointee
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ESU Representative
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Don Hill
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Chamber
Appointee
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The Medicine Shoppe |
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Bryan Whitmore |
City Appointee |
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Lane-Whitmore Co.
LLC |
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Casey Woods
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Ex-Officio
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Emporia Main Street
Director
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Blaise
Plummer
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Ex-Officio
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City Attorney
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STAFF
The RDA staff serves as a
confidential single point of contact for
companies considering the Emporia region for
a competitive business expansion or
location.
Kent Heermann, CEcD President
620-342-1600 x 16
kheermann@emporiarda.org
Robin Nelson, Executive Assistant
620-342-1600 x 19
rnelson@emporiakschamber.org
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