By Deb Cottier, Northwest Nebraska Development Corporation
More than 30 members and guests attended the 2021 Annual meeting of the Heartland Expressway Association. The luncheon, held in Scottsbluff Wednesday Sept. 22 featured presentations from several speakers.
HEA Board Chair Deb Cottier moderated the meeting and shared highlights of the past year, including the strategic planning process that led to the request for proposals to develop a new Communications plan for the organization.
Cathy Shull of Sage Strategies (and fellow Ports to Plains Board member), was awarded the contract and briefed the group on the plan, which is still in progress. Identifying markets, beefing up the social media presence and overall awareness of the organization are the main goals of the plan. With Shull’s assistance, an aggressive amount of work will be accomplished in the next 6-8 months.
John Ricks, Director of the Nebraska Tourism Commission spoke regarding the importance (since the pandemic) of surface transportation to the new found ‘exploring’ activities of visitors to the area. Western Nebraska has much of what visitors are looking for, and better roads makes it easier to improve our visitation numbers.
John Selmer, the new Director of the Nebraska Department of Transportation shared his background and the philosophy he brings to the position. His many years of experience in Iowa provide a good understanding of the balance between rural and urban needs. He is becoming more familiar with the vast number of miles of roads in Western Nebraska that require maintenance as well as consideration for additional miles. He welcomed the input from the HEA organization and is ready to engage in conversations regarding the Heartland Expressway as the department tries to be proactive about the future of transportation needs.
One highlight of the luncheon was the unveiling (officially) of the new logo for the organization, which has not be updated since the 1990. The Board of Directors continues to meet monthly, moving the meetings from one end of the corridor to the other. A video developed by Shull of Sage Strategies highlights the relationship between Ports to Plains and the Heartland Expressway. It is available on our website and facebook page, along with the annual report at https://heartlandexpressway.com/ or Heartland Expressway | Facebook