Lincoln Corridor Organizer Linc Kroeger
A new concept is looking to bring big companies into small, rural communities like Jefferson and Perry.
The Lincoln Corridor is a region that connects Jefferson, Carroll, Boone and Perry together as one entity. Organizer Linc Kroeger says he developed the regional idea to attract bigger companies on the West Coast to locate in the combined 39 communities, and he explains the questions that needed to be answered.
“How do you get companies to open offices of 5-50 people, that are professional jobs, that pay $50,000-$125,000 per job? So that’s really the end goal of the Lincoln Corridor. How do you support that?”
So Kroeger created the Lincoln Corridor that consists of 50,000 people, 13 golf courses, 11 hospitals, low cost of living and shorter commute times. He says by pitching those factors he believes West Coast companies will be more receptive to locating an office within this region. Kroeger says he hopes the corridor will help retain recent college graduates and attract former residents to return.
“So as these jobs start to appear, hopefully that’s the scenario, then these people can start moving back to rural communities, starting with the Lincoln Corridor to prove this out. I felt the idea was very well embraced.”
Greene County Development Corporation Executive Director Ken Paxton says this concept is a logical expansion of what The Forge has established by bringing technology jobs to Jefferson.
“The Forge is the anchor, it’s the starting point. When Linc is on the West Coast talking to Google, eBay, and Amazon, and Microsoft and people like that, they have the anchor spot as a reference to be able to see that it’s already happened and it’s already working.”
To learn more about the Lincoln Corridor, click the link below.