Choose Topeka Talent Initiative

By Greater Topeka Partnership Digital Team

GO Topeka is excited to share that it has received approval from its board of directors as well as the Joint Economic Development Organization (JEDO) to fund Choose Topeka, a talent pilot program that will offer matching incentives by partnering with employers to encourage talent to move to Topeka & Shawnee County.

“Choose Topeka was created with the intention of investing in employees to live and work in Topeka & Shawnee County, so that we may foster an ‘intentional community,’ one of community support builders.” said Barbara Stapleton, VP of Business Retention & Talent Initiatives, GO Topeka, an organization of the Greater Topeka Partnership.

Incentives will be performance-based, after the employee has moved and resided in the community for a year and could be used for all types of moving related expenses. For primary residences only, the rental agreement incentive is $10,000 - a $5,000 match of employer and JEDO funds. The purchase or rehabilitation of home is a $7,500 match of employer and JEDO funds. Moving costs alone to move a 1-2 bedroom apartment can range from $4,000 to $7,000 and for a 3-4 bedroom home, range from $10,000 to $16,000, depending on the distance and location.

To read the full article, click here or email Alexia Eanes.

Intercity Visit 2019: October 2 - 4

Expedition Montgomery Is Set to Engage Topeka's Community Leaders, Influencers and Activists

As we get closer to Expedition Montgomery, the GTP team is putting together a thought provoking agenda. Some of the major topics and highlights so far include in-depth discussions with Montgomery officials on their collaboration with Market Street consultants to create three community-wide plans similar to Momentum 2022. The topic of what worked, what didn’t work and more will be continuously examined throughout the trip, which will prove especially relevant as Topeka quickly approaches the strategy's halfway point. Attendees will also hear from the Chief of Police on their SMART Watch program designed to combat crime, from city officials on how the city won the SMART CITY Challenge just last year, which was a combined initiative to connect and leverage the communities unique technology assets, and from educators on how the community has rallied to go from a city with some of the lowest preforming nationally known schools to having one the best Magnet schools in the country. Sessions are also coming together that will see GTP leadership break out according to the five pillars of Momentum 2022 for afternoon tours relevant to the issues facing Topeka today: from innovation campuses, to schools, to Montgomery’s strong civil rights tourism, to driving neighborhood tours and discussions. Even with a high-level agenda, the GTP has still found ways to allow for fun and networking within the group. Each day will conclude with a riverboat cruise and a superb dining experience at one of Montgomery's excellent local restaurants, before we call it a night and make our way back to the Renaissance Hotel. More information here.

      To read the full article email Alexia Eanes.

Momentum Grows in Topeka Via Holistic Economic Development Plan

By Kristin Hiller

A renaissance is underway in Topeka, Kansas, with undeniable momentum as new commercial, industrial and residential developments emerge citywide.

The year 2015 was pivotal with a $9.4 million public-private investment in infrastructure and amenities along Kansas Avenue downtown. Local investors have purchased more than 25 buildings on the avenue for gradual restoration into thriving businesses like Iron Rail Brewing, The Pennant, Cyrus Hotel and Kansas Avenue Lofts.

The 45,000-square-foot Evergy Plaza is slated to open in March 2020 in the shadow of the Kansas Statehouse. A crowning jewel of downtown development, the plaza will feature a 50-foot performance stage, digital screen, programmable fountains, fireplaces and an ice skating rink during the winter.

According to a recent market study, growth in the Capital City shows no signs of slowing down. St. Louis-based Development Strategies says downtown could support expansion over the next decade to include 900 new or rehabilitated housing units, 300,000 square feet of new or rehabilitated office space, 690,000 square feet of retail space and at least 200 more hotel rooms.

To read the full article click here or email Alexia Eanes.

JEDO Approves Funding for Downtown Topeka Plaza, NOTO Parking

By Sherman Smith

The Joint Economic Development Organization on Wednesday cleared the way for completion of a public plaza in downtown Topeka, granting more than a million dollars to the project and sparking debate on how countywide sales tax funds are distributed.                                                                                                

In a 4-3 vote, JEDO members approved recommendations made by a panel of community volunteers to award $2 million in economic development money to four projects out of 16 applicants.

One of those projects will invest $644,000 in the NOTO Arts District, assisting in efforts to add parking and establish Redbud Park.

Mayor Michelle De La Isla rebuffed criticism over pouring the bulk of available quality of place funding into jewels in the heart of the city, saying feedback from the community makes it clear residents want to make the city more attractive.

To read the full article click here or email Alexia Eanes.

‘We are almost there’: Speaker describes fundraising success for Topeka’s Momentum 2022

By Tim Hrenchir, The Topeka Capital-Journal

Momentum 2022′s ongoing capital campaign has raised $6.18 million of its $6.3 million goal in private donations from local investors.

Kayla Bitler, Momentum 2022 strategic coordinator for Greater Topeka Chamber of Commerce and GO Topeka, said Thursday she expects the campaign to exceed its goal.

“We are almost there,” she told Downtown Topeka Rotary Club members at a luncheon in the Kansas Expocentre’s Maner Conference Centre. “We have over $1 million in pending investments and we also have about another 100 names that we have added to the list of individuals to approach for funding.”

She acknowledged it’s “kind of hard” to describe Momentum 2022 in a nutshell. It’s definition is a “holistic economic development strategy for Topeka and Shawnee County.” 

To read the full article click here. If it has been removed, please email Alexia Eanes for a copy of the entire article.

Editorial: Strengthening Topeka’s ‘entrepreneurial ecosystem’

By The Capital-Journal Editorial Board

In the Holistic Economic Development Strategy released by Market Street earlier this year, the first subheading under the section “Grow a Diverse Economy” urges our community to “Enhance the entrepreneurial ecosystem.” This ecosystem is defined as the “individuals, organizations, institutions, and programs that support startup activity and small business growth” — core elements of any healthy economy.

Top Tank is a creative way to demonstrate that Topeka is willing to support entrepreneurship in the city. It’s a local contest modeled on ABC’s “Shark Tank,” which gives participants an opportunity to pitch their business ideas to investors...

To read the full article click here. If it has been removed, please email Alexia Eanes for a copy of the entire article.

Editorial: Overcoming our population problem

By The Capital-Journal Editorial Board

Last month, we discussed the importance of attracting young talent to Topeka.

According to a recent community assessment conducted by Market Street Services Inc., population growth in Topeka hasn’t kept pace with other large metro areas in Kansas. Between 2005 and 2015, the state’s population increased by around 166,000 people, and “approximately 86 percent of this growth occurred in Douglas, Johnson, Riley and Sedgwick counties.” However, despite the fact that Shawnee County constitutes 6 percent of the overall population in Kansas, it accounted for only 4 percent of the state’s population growth during this period.

To read the full article click here. If it has been removed, please email Alexia Eanes for a copy of the entire article