Tour gives insight to what Drexel promises for companies wishing to relocate

The Cass County Corporation of Economic Development hosted a tour for the
Kansas City Area
Development Council and other guests last Friday. CCCED recently joined KCADC in their efforts to attract new businesses and jobs to Cass County. The tour was set up to show KCADC what assets are available in Cass
County: land and
buildings, educational opportunities, and available work force.
The tour began at Loch Lloyd with lunch and proceeded first to Drexel, then Archie, Harrisonville, Peculiar, Pleasant Hill, Lake Winnebago, and wrapping the tour up in
Raymore. The group toured available commercial and industrial land sites and buildings and showed the
proximity of highways and rail service accessible in Cass County.
Drexel Mayor Ken Reece showed representatives of the Kansas City Area Development Council and the Cass County
Corporation of Economic Development around Drexel during the tour of Cass County. He presented plans for the Industrial Park, the proposed water system upgrades, and a vibrant Main Street. Attending the tour were; from left to right,
Dr. Judy Stivers, Superintendent, Drexel R-IV Schools, holding Bryson Jacobs; Pat Daniels, president, The Land Source;
Tim Cowden, senior vice president-business development, KCADC; Jim Welborn, chair, CCCED and owner, Welborn’s
Thriftway; Craig Arnold, executive director, CCCED; Ken Reece, Mayor; Jill McCarthy, vice president-business
development, KCADC; and Ed Fleetwood, CCCED member.
“Everyone was really impressed with the tour of Cass County,” said Craig Arnold, executive director of CCCED. “Our county has many valuable features, like the Enhanced Enterprise Zone here in Drexel, the only one in Cass County. The Drexel
Industrial Park, with the adjacent rail service, and proximity to Highway 69 in Kansas and Highway 71 in Missouri, the two intermodal facilities in Gardner and south Kansas City, and great tax incentives will really be looked at by companies looking to relocate to the midwest. The Industrial Park offers manufacturers and transportation companies options for shipping and
receiving their merchandise and supplies. Mayor Reece has done a great job promoting this city asset.”
The tour lasted about five hours and saw dozens of available properties and new developments in the county. CCCED
continues to work with KCADC on attracting new businesses to Cass County to provide jobs offering family-sustaining
wages and increasing tax base to cities. Photo by Jill Jacobs