Chamber and Planning Next outline Drive Jackson vision and county strategic-plan update

The Chamber of Commerce presented a semiannual report to a Jackson County committee that highlighted Drive Jackson, workforce development efforts and several local projects, while Planning Next described a parallel county strategic-plan update and public-engagement timeline.

The Chamber representative, Ryan (Chamber representative), told the committee the Chamber helped secure $4.5 million for the Hayes Hotel redevelopment and is pursuing additional state appropriations for mountain-bike trail work, including an 11-mile proposal for Ella Sharp Park. Ryan said the Chamber compiled a 30-page downtown parking report and testified with county partners on the Cascade project. He described an ongoing workforce-development collaborative and said Jackson County’s share of residents with bachelor’s or associate degrees is about 33 percent, compared with initiatives such as Oakland County’s “Oakland 80” target of 80 percent by 2030.

Planning Next director Sarah Bongiorno said the county strategic-plan update will serve as a 10-year blueprint for county decision-makers and will use two inputs: public engagement and technical data on demographics and economic trends. She told commissioners the process has reached more than 1,000 residents so far via the Drive Jackson engagement effort, and the consultant will analyze first-round results in August with a second round of workshops planned for September and October. She said the county last adopted a strategic plan intended for 2013–2020 and that the new plan will align county operations and community priorities.

Ryan and Bongiorno detailed specific programs and events tied to the Drive Jackson work. The Chamber is working on a workforce-development collaborative with partners that include Jackson College and Southeast Michigan Works and said the effort is grant-funded by the State of Michigan. The Chamber also described Experience Jackson events, including the Irish Hills Gravel bike race (a metric century with 100-kilometer and 50-kilometer options) planned for October, targeting more than 500 participants; organizers estimate roughly 82 percent of the course will use gravel roads and said they are coordinating with law enforcement on safety measures. The Chamber reported creation of a gravel-roads mapping hub in Brooklyn at Swain Park and noted interest from other Michigan communities in adopting the mapping platform (michiganr3.com).

The Chamber announced an AI-literacy event, AIQ, scheduled for Sept. 18 and open to the public; organizers expect speakers from Microsoft and Google (identified in the presentation as Amy Hinchey and Aiden Sova) and said they were working to secure the lieutenant governor as a closing speaker. Ryan encouraged participation in DriveJacksonCounty.com’s survey, which the presenters said would remain open through the end of the week.

Members of the committee thanked the presenters and asked whether the Chamber remains engaged on a previously discussed jail appropriation. Ryan confirmed the Chamber submitted a broad appropriations package to the state that included a request larger than $50 million for a jail project and said it remains a priority for the Chamber and its board.

The committee voted to receive the Chamber’s semiannual report.