Greene County was officially announced yesterday by Governor Terry Branstad as the first county in the state to be designated as a Home Base Iowa community.

One of the centerpieces to why Greene County was chosen to be the first community selected in support of the governor’s plan to bring veterans to Iowa is because of the large number of expected jobs in the next few years for the county.

And while Greene County is looking for ways to alleviate that issue, Branstad points out that veterans are a logical fit.

“We’ve already have heard, there’s a lot of good jobs available out there but we can’t find enough people with the right skill set.  We know there’s a lot of veterans that have the discipline, the experience, the technical skills needed for these jobs and we want to be able to match them with the jobs that are available here in Iowa.”

Greene County is estimating to have over 800 jobs within the next three years that range from manufacturing to retail to entertainment and health care.

Jefferson Mayor Craig Berry likes the idea of giving veterans employment opportunities to help fill needed jobs in the years to come.

“Well I think its a fabulous idea.  I think it gives an opportunity for veterans to have something to look forward to when they get out of the service and it also serves a purpose for Jefferson and Greene County to fill the positions that we are going to have open.”

Branstad noted that he’s very pleased with the entire county’s support with 31 businesses including all major manufacturers in the community that have backed his program.