Full speed ahead for city Money Magazine called tops

This time last year, I recall saying what a great place Lee’s Summit is to call home after only living here for a short while. Now, I can truly say how astonished I am by the continuous support this community provides to its businesses, residents, visitors and fellow neighbors.

Lee’s Summit has celebrated some exciting successes so far this year, from breaking ground on several new infrastructure projects to new investments in businesses and education.

The Chamber, along with leaders of our business community, continues to push for more progress which can be seen in the number of new and upcoming developments. From entrepreneurs and small business owners, to CEOs and all of our volunteers, the people here are why Lee’s Summit is one of the best places to live, according to Money Magazine.

With the addition of two new staff members, the Chamber is running full speed ahead to continue improving and developing initiatives to keep up with the ever-changing business climate. Entrepreneurship programs have reached new levels, providing members with access to additional resources and mentorship to grow.

The Chamber’s new mobile-friendly website provides much more opportunity for digital enhancements as we evolve into a world relying on the digital realm more than ever. Within that site also lies new legislative resources to help members stay on top of issues affecting their business.

We continue to work on tourism efforts, as tourism and business development walk hand-in-hand.

We’re bringing people to Lee’s Summit so they can experience everything we love about our community. This translates into hotel stays, dollars spent in our shops and restaurants and additional foot traffic at local events and attractions. In the third quarter of fiscal year 2017, the bed tax saw a 21 percent increase over third quarter of fiscal year 2016. In addition, sales tax revenues have increased nearly three percent so far this year.

It’s been a busy year so far for the Chamber and the community in general, with the passage of the capital improvement sales tax, new development announcements, changes in leadership within local organizations and much more.

We’re looking forward to celebrating the Chamber’s 50th anniversary as we move into 2018 and I invite everyone in the community to be a part of it. To all of our members, I say thank you for helping our organization thrive. It’s because of your hard work and commitment to the good of Lee’s Summit that we remain one of the best places to work and live.

This story was originally published July 27, 2017 at 2:17 PM with the headline "Full speed ahead for city Money Magazine called tops."