At Lincoln South Rotary Club on July 14, 2023 we heard from Jason Ball, CEO of the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce.
Jason reminded us about his last presentation to our club - about a year ago. We were the first speaking invitation that he accepted after assuming his new position as CEO of the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce.
He picked up on Mary's comments about Hope and the Rotary International Theme for 2023-24 "Create Hope In The World".
He believes that is what the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce does every day - creates hope. The Chamber lives in a world of optimism. Even when things don't go as planned, they believe "we have to keep trying". He stated that the Lincoln Community is capable of doing big things. It is that hope and optimism within our individual citizens that will make things happen.
When Jason talked about the team he stated that they love their work. They love their community. He believes they are the hardest working chamber. When he moved away from Lincoln a while back he kept in contact with the contacts at the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce. Their continual optimism and helpfulness was one reason why he was comfortable returning. He did not have his eye on the position of CEO of the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce - but it happened and he is more comfortable because of his ongoing relationships with the staff.
Jason shared that he is working to maintain connections with the leadership in Lincoln. There have been many recent changes - and there are more to come. Some that he pointed out
- New Director of the Lincoln Community Foundation
- New Executive at LES
- State Department of Economic Development has a leadership change
- The CEO of the Omaha Chamber of Commerce has changed
- The new Chancellor at UNL
It is important to keep all of the leadership close - making sure they are plugged in and involved in conversations about the community. And, working with Omaha on joint projects - particularly development opportunities - is important.
Jason talked about the RISELincoln group (https://www.riselincoln.org/). The program started by volunteers wanting to bring attention and support to female-owned businesses and women in business positions. Recently the Chamber adopted the program. They were able to expand on their programs to serve women in business and the program has grown. There is an upcoming event open to everyone (you do not need to be a chamber member). But it is SOLD OUT - they are taking names for the waitlist: https://lcoc.weblinkconnect.com/events/RISE-Lincoln-Boutiques-at-the-Ballfields-807/details. What a successful program.
He also talked about the importance of holding conversations with our elected officials. They had opportunities to meet and converse and come up with Community Consensus. That group agreed that we need to pay attention to:
- move forward with east beltway
- housing affordability
- fund 2nd source of water (25 year program)
- convention center
During the legislative session there were funds allocated to the water source project. And, they committed to support a convention center and other projects using a turn-back tax program. Jason clarified that the turn-back tax is not a new tax to the citizens. Instead it is a way to determine an impacted area and allocating a percentage of those sales and use taxes to support development.
Vitality Lincoln is the result of a community survey, individual interviews and focus group surveys. Click here:
You will want to review this plan outline - click here:
This outlines the key components of the plan and the committee members. Jason pointed out that this is not a Chamber program - it is an effort of the Chamber, Community Leaders, and Businesses.
Some of the primary focus areas:
- Develop a downtown convention center to expand Lincoln’s capacity to recruit events and visitors
- Create a network of dynamic mixed-use activity hubs across the city to promote entrepreneurs, the arts and neighborhoods
- Establish a coordinated Career Pathway System to connect people and businesses with Lincoln’s workforce and education programs
- Tell the story of life in Lincoln through a refreshed external brand and sustained earned media promotion
- Work with regional partners to establish an I-80 development corridor and prioritize the development of the Lincoln East Beltway
- Create an accelerated infrastructure investment task force
- Support workforce growth through expanded housing development and early childhood education programs
One of the final items Jason shared is the Sandhills Global Lincoln Youth Complex. He said that ground-breaking is coming soon. He stated that our former member Jeff Maul is the primary reason that this is going to happen.
BIO:
Jason is president and CEO of the Five-Star Accredited Lincoln Chamber of Commerce and Lincoln Partnership for Economic Development. As Chamber president, he also oversees the operations of the Lincoln Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Jason is a Certified Economic Developer and a graduate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for Organization Management and Oklahoma University’s Economic Development Institute. He is an active member of the International Economic Development Council, the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He is a member of the U.S. Chamber’s Committee of 100 and serves on the board of the U.S. Chamber Midwest Institute for Organization Management. He was also selected as one of Development Counselors International “40 Under 40 Rising Starts in Economic Development.
Prior to his current role with the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce, Jason served as the president & CEO of the Round Rock Chamber of Commerce, the Sioux Falls Area Chamber of Commerce and the Hutchinson Chamber of Commerce. He also served as the director of business development for the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce for five years. Jason also has professional experience in chemistry, technology transfer and business plan development.
A Nebraska native, Jason was raised in Sidney, Nebraska and earned his undergraduate degree from Nebraska Wesleyan University and an MBA from the University of Nebraska – Lincoln.