By Allison Peck
Listen to the full interview with Gary Person on our Kubota Podcast
Here is a tightened and fully accurate version of the article, keeping it news-forward, AP style, 8th-grade reading level, no subheadings and using quotes appropriately:
The North Platte Chamber and Development Corporation is reporting progress on the Hershey Rail Park, new housing developments and several regional planning efforts as the community moves into a busy year.
Gary Person, CEO and president of the North Platte Chamber and Development Corporation, said the recent Farm and Ranch Expo drew 95 vendors, including 15 new exhibitors. He said Great Plains Health also provided 110 skin cancer screenings during the event, offering a valuable service to farmers and ranchers who spend long hours outdoors.
“It just went extraordinarily well,” Person said, crediting vendors, media partners and chamber staff for helping make the event a success.
At the Nebraska Legislature, Person said LB 719, introduced by State Sen. Mike Jacobson, would clarify how state match funding can be used for infrastructure tied to the Hershey Rail Park. As development moves forward, some infrastructure improvements — including turning lanes on U.S. Highway 30, utility upgrades and rail-related work — extend beyond land owned by the development corporation.
The state previously raised concerns about spending Rural Projects Act funds on property not directly owned by the corporation. Person said the bill would clearly allow that spending when it directly supports the project.
“It’s just common sense development,” he said. “Not all of it’s on the property that you own.”
The bill advanced out of committee on an 8-0 vote and has been read on the legislative floor without controversy. It includes an emergency clause, meaning it would take effect immediately if signed by the governor.
A second measure, LB 915, would expand the number of inland port authorities in Nebraska from five to six. Person said the chamber’s board of directors and the Lincoln County commissioners have taken positions opposing the bill.
“Before those of us that have been designated an inland port even get a chance to prove that we can make it work, the last thing we need to do is have it be a saturated market,” he said.
North Platte’s inland port authority continues planning for construction of a drop-and-pull yard and transload facility at the 300-acre Hershey Rail Park. Officials expect to finalize design plans soon, bid the project this spring and begin construction after a contractor is selected.
The project is also working through an energy capacity study process with Nebraska Public Power District and Dawson Public Power. Person said increased demand from data centers, cryptocurrency operations and artificial intelligence projects has changed how electric capacity is allocated statewide. The study process can take up to 18 months before capacity and delivery plans are finalized.
“It’s a complicated project,” Person said. “You don’t snap your fingers and hope it all happens. It’s a long-term thing.”
The state allows up to 10 years for an inland port authority to become fully operational, and Person said the rail park will likely use that full timeline. He said the long-term goal is job creation and expanded commerce for the region.
Housing development continues across North Platte as well. Person said projects along Francis Street include a 48-unit apartment complex and additional townhomes and single-family homes. At Mulligan Meadows, a chamber-led modular housing subdivision, 16 homes have been placed, with most already sold. Plans also include a 12-unit multi-family complex.
Additional multi-unit housing is under construction along East A Street and East Philip Avenue. A manufactured home subdivision planned near the Twin Platte Natural Resources District office could eventually include between 240 and 290 units built in phases. The homes would be placed on permanent foundations and designed to provide more affordable homeownership options.
“You can’t build your workforce, you can’t recruit without housing availability,” Person said.
He said North Platte employers have absorbed an estimated 400 workers displaced by a recent major employer closure in Lexington. Continued housing growth, he said, will help the community respond to workforce shifts and future recruitment efforts.
Lincoln County will hold a final public hearing March 16 at 10 a.m. in the District Courtroom on its updated comprehensive plan. The plan is designed to guide development for the next 10 to 15 years by identifying appropriate areas for industrial, commercial, agricultural and residential growth.
A regional housing study covering 18 counties in the Mid-Plains region is also nearing release. Person said preliminary findings show that while many smaller communities report housing shortages, nearly 30% of their housing inventory is vacant. In North Platte, the vacancy rate is closer to 11%, though that still represents several hundred homes.
“Those are issues that aren’t going to go away,” he said. “It’s going to get worse with time.”
Person said continued progress depends on long-term planning and leadership willing to support growth initiatives.
“It takes years and years and years to build something,” he said. “It doesn’t take very long to tear it down.”