The Nelson Community Club, working with the Nelson City Council hosted a Town Hall Meeting at the Elk Creek Country Club clubhouse last Tuesday. More than 20 members of the Nelson community attended the meeting. Rick Nelsen, Nebraska Public Power District senior economic development consultant and Kelly Gewecke, business development consultant for Nebraska Department of Economic Development were also in attendance.
Decker Brown, ECCC president opened the meeting with a welcome to all who attended. Royce Schott, Nelson Community Club president, explained the purpose of the meeting and emphasized the many projects that have been completed in the community since a similar group met in May of 2022.
That day 37 members of Nelson and the surrounding community met at the old ECCC clubhouse and expressed an interest in revitalizing Nelson to attract businesses and residents.
Since that 2022 meeting, a digital message board has been installed in front of the Nelson City Office and community-wide garage sales were held Sept. 24. A community clean-up day was held on Sept. 25, with more than 50 volunteers spending a Sunday tackling several clean-up and repair projects throughout Nelson. A Farmer’s Market was established at the former Ox Bow Motel and has been started again this summer. Nov. 11 was the date the Community Club and ECCC sponsored Dueling Pianos as a fundraiser for both organizations. Championship signs have been erected at both highway entrances to Nelson recognizing Nelson Tiger and Lawrence-Nelson Raider State Championships and also recognizing Russ Snyder, playing for the 1966 World Champion Baltimore Orioles. The Community Club has taken over the Main Street planters from the beautification committee. A mural is planned for the north side of the former Nelson Food Center welcoming people to Nelson.
ECCC has completed a new clubhouse and two new businesses have located on Main Street.
The Community Club also worked with the Nelson City Council to put together a community survey. This was done with the help of NPPD. Conducting the survey is just one of the steps required for submitting grant requests for community betterment. The town hall meeting is another requirement.
Rick Nelsen, NPPD, presented the survey results and monitored discussion on points of interest.
Kelly Gewecke, Nebraska Department of Economic Development, then led discussion on the three most recognized items from the survey concerning Nelson: community improvement, housing and business development. Attendees broke into three groups to discuss and plan strategies to addressing these issues.
Many ideas were brought forward. LB 840 the Local Option Municipal Economic Development Act authorized incorporated cities and villages — if approved by local voters — to collect and appropriate local tax dollars, including sales tax, for economic development purposes. The survey indicated residents were in favor of additional sales tax in Nelson if the funds were utilized for economic development and community improvement.
The group is working on a plan to bring businesses to Nelson, provide quality, affordable housing for young professionals and retirees, and making Nelson a more desirable location for prospective residents and businesses. More meetings are being planned for the future.
All residents of Nelson and the surrounding community are encouraged to become involved with making Nelson an even better place to live and work.
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