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Grow Sarpy briefs council on workforce, building-permit trends and construction training programs
Summary
Lisa Schieve of Grow Sarpy updated Bellevue council on county economic-development work, building-permit trends, a new trades-day program expansion and the organization’s role monitoring state legislative changes affecting incentives.
Lisa Schieve, executive director of Grow Sarpy, gave a quarterly update to the Bellevue City Council on March 4, reporting on economic-development activity, workforce issues and education-to-workforce programs across Sarpy County.
Schieve said Grow Sarpy monitors state legislative proposals that could modify or eliminate economic development programs used locally, including site-and-building development funds, customized job training and certain tax incentives. She asked the council to be prepared to advocate for programs that the organization and local employers rely on.
Schieve highlighted an expanded construction/trades outreach program: after distributing 1,200 construction kits to trades programs in area schools in the fall, Grow Sarpy will pilot a trades day in April during the second semester to provide hands-on experience with construction organizations. She said each participating school district expects roughly 12–14 students per class and estimated about 100 participants for the pilot.
On business and building trends, Schieve said 2024 building permit activity remained healthy over 2023 levels, though she does not expect to return to early-2000s permit volumes. She said a site-visit program reached 74 businesses last year and most employers she surveyed did not plan to decrease workforce levels, with many expecting to grow.
Council members asked about labor and permit spikes. Schieve said retention—not hiring—has become a more common challenge as employers face barriers such as schedule conflicts and unreliable transportation; she flagged transit and scheduling adjustments as employer responses. She declined to attribute specific $450 million permit figures without reviewing the report, saying she would verify details later.
Why it matters: Grow Sarpy’s work connects education and industry pipelines for local labor needs and monitors policy changes that could affect incentives used by Bellevue-area projects.
Next steps: Schieve said she will return with quarterly updates and may request council advocacy if state legislation affects local economic-development tools.
