In an effort to draw in new people to Greene County with an estimated 800 new jobs within the next three years, the Greene County Development Corporation is exploring several avenues.

Recently, members of GCDC made an appearance at Camp Dodge on Tuesday for Governor Terry Branstad’s announcement of his new Home Base Iowa Initiative.  As part of the program, Branstad wants to raise funds to help connect veterans returning home, whether they be from Iowa or nationally, to find jobs available in the state.

GCDC representatives requested that Greene County be a flagship location for the initiative.  One of the participants, Midwest Partnership Executive Director Chad Schreck says veterans would be a great outlet to bring people into the county.

He explains that they need to get employers on board to provide assistance for veterans and making a website where all available jobs in the county would be available for everyone.

“So there’s lots of opportunities and the veterans are a great resource, they got the work ethic and everything else you could ask for in employees.  And frankly, we have a low population, so we need to fill these jobs with people that aren’t all from our area.”

Another possibility is attracting more of the Latino community to the county.  Lorena Lopez, head of La Prensa, a Hispanic-based newspaper that’s in surrounding cities like Perry and Carroll, spoke to GCDC members at their meeting this week.

She talked about the positives that the Latino community can bring to a smaller area like Greene County.

Chamber and Development Executive Director Ken Paxton points out that with the increased job market that is going to be available in the county, all avenues should be explored to help grow the county together.