Boone EDC outlines 2025 wins, shifts focus to housing and retention in 2026
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Summary
Andrea Kern, CEO of the Boone Economic Development Corporation, told the Lebanon City Council the EDC logged 23 direct leads in 2025, helped create 281 jobs with $11.5 million in combined payroll and expects a focused three‑year strategic plan for 2026 emphasizing housing, child care and business retention.
Andrea Kern, chief executive officer of the Boone Economic Development Corporation, presented a year‑end review and 2026 priorities to the Lebanon City Council on the council’s stated meeting date. Kern said the office logged 23 direct business leads in 2025 and promoted projects that produced 281 jobs with a reported combined payroll of $11,500,000 and a Phase‑1 investment figure cited as $136,400,000. She identified major expansions in the county — including projects tied to GXO and Caterpillar — that she said resulted in 1,340 new jobs and an annual payroll impact the presentation listed as $66,000,000.
Kern told the council the EDC’s 2026 work will balance business recruitment with a stronger focus on residential attraction and quality‑of‑place investments, because the county is shifting from a primarily property‑tax model toward one that emphasizes attracting residents. She said housing and child‑care capacity are priority areas and described an ongoing three‑year strategic planning process that includes a retail gap analysis using Esri and Placer.ai, in partnership with the O’Neill School of Public Affairs (referred to in the materials as IUSPIA/O’Neil School of Public Affairs), and collaboration with the Boone County Chamber and school corporations on career and apprenticeship initiatives.
Kern also summarized non‑recruitment efforts: business retention visits and behind‑the‑scenes employer tours, a municipal finance educational series for the public, the formation of a Boone County Early Learning Coalition (filed as a 501(c)(3)), and two microloan grants awarded in 2025 to Pure Life Chiropractic (Zionsville) and Rolling Dough Pizza Company (Advance). She said the EDC plans continued support for early‑learning provider professional development and will hire a staff member in March focused on business retention and expansion.
The council thanked Kern and invited questions; no substantive changes to city policy were proposed during the presentation. Kern provided contact information for follow‑up and emphasized that the EDC intends to remain a quasi‑public educational resource in addition to its business recruitment work.
The presentation concluded with council acknowledgment and no formal action tied to the EDC update.