RURAL CREATIVITY - SMALL TOWN NEBRASKA
March 19, 2020
MARCH 2020 WEBINAR
In this session, Doug Koch (President of Petersburg Industrial Development Corporation) and Michelle Olson (Executive Director at Boone County Development Agency), their journey of developing housing in a rural community. Koch and Olson discussed hurdles that they faced while Petersburg created 19 residential lots during 2021-2020.

The 80th HomeNE Learning Network featured Jean Van Iperen, who discussed Columbus, Nebraska’s housing challenges and the city’s proactive strategies to address them. Jean highlighted the city’s 7% population growth and a shortage over 4 years of 387 homes, prompting efforts like zoning reform, streamlined permitting, and investment in new developments, including a 238-unit apartment complex. The city is also planning a new housing study, exploring affordable housing options, and considering mixed-use projects to meet evolving community needs. Participants were encouraged to revisit past webinars for insights and to attend the upcoming session on June 19th featuring Michelle Cole. The session emphasized the value of small takeaways from presentations and invited community members to share their stories for future webinars.