LINCOLN, NEB. (August 29, 2008)—Ord, Nebraska, which pioneered one of the first and few programs of its kind in the country, has now become the first community on the list to earn recertification approval for another three years. The program is the Nebraska Economic Development Certified Community Program, sponsored by the Nebraska Diplomats and administered by the Nebraska Department of Economic Development.

Ord, population 2,481, and the county seat of Valley County, has come a long way since earning its certification in December 2005.

The community successfully recruited Val-E Ethanol (now VeraSun Ord) in August 2007. The company maintains an annual payroll of $1.4 million and employs 35 people. Anticipating a significant increase in truck traffic prior to the facility’s start-up, Trotter Truck and Tire opened in 2006. Soon after, two more businesses—Trotter’s Whoa & Go convenience store and Arby’s Restaurant—were open and thriving. The ethanol plant has resulted in the creation of 73 secondary jobs.

Earlier this year, Ord officials completed renovation of the downtown district and hosted an event on July 6 to celebrate.

Finally, the Young Professionals Group, established about three years ago now has more than 300 members.

“Ord regularly tackles high caliber economic development projects with great confidence and ease, so it seems fitting that they purposely sought to lead the way by becoming the state’s first certified community, and now, the state’s first recertified community,” said Tim White, Nebraska Diplomats president

Communities exhibiting economic development readiness are eligible to earn certification once approved by a review committee. Communities are judged against standards including: organization, local industry target identification and workforce issues, infrastructure, local financing and business assistance, as well as providing information on building and site availability, zoning, opportunities for tourism, and the availability of child care. More information on applying for the program is available at www.neded.org

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Patty Wood at 800-426-6505, 402-471-1559, or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it