NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Kansas Department of Commerce launched an initiative called Love, Kansas at an event in Manhattan on Monday.
"It really came out of the recognition that our department of commerce had done some work to see, I think 79 of the 105 counties in Kansas have lost population since 2020," said Hutchinson/Reno County Chamber of Commerce CEO Debra Teufel. "That's just a downward trend that we have to battle every day as we're losing population. How do we get then people to go into jobs? Really at the grassroots level, ask people who live here, who have graduated from here to reach out to their past classmates that maybe have moved away from Kansas and invite them to come back and tell them the good things happening here and why they might want to consider moving back to Kansas. That really is a grassroots effort, but they have asked several pilot communities across the state to be a part of it."
Hutchinson is one of those communities.
"You're going to see us doing new initiatives with class reunions happening and maybe we want to tap that pool," Teufel said. "It really is a grassroots effort, and I think, I hope that it pays off."
If young people want to come back, they need places to live.
"Housing is probably one of the last things holding us back a bit as a county and a community," We haven't had a robust amount of housing development, although there are some developers with plans on the shelf that are looking at Hutchinson."
The hope is that the Landmark building's new life can get some apartment stock into the market, so that there are places for young people to live as they start their careers.
CLICK HERE to download the Hutch Post mobile app.
CLICK HERE to sign up for the daily Hutch Post email news update.