'People make it happen'
<span>EVANSVILLE -- Randolph County must be willing to think outside the box in terms of economic growth.</span>
<span>That was one of the universal themes expressed during the nearly six-hour Randolph County Economic Development Summit on Friday, hosted by Christ Our Savior Lutheran High School in Evansville and sponsored by the Randolph County Progress Committee and the Regional Leaders Committee.</span>
<span>"It's getting out of your comfort zone and talking to other people," said State Rep. Jerry Costello II (D-Smithton), who attended the event along with State Sen. Dave Luechtefeld (R-Okawville). "We're very different, but we have a lot of similar likes in what we want to see in Randolph County in terms of growth."</span>
<span>Illinois Deputy Gov. Cristal Thomas was also scheduled to appear, but was unable to after her flight got canceled. She sent Randolph County Economic Development Coordinator Chris Martin a message relaying her hopes of attending the Regional Leaders Breakfast in the spring.</span>
<span>Both Costello and Luechtefeld took questions from the attendees, which included business, education, municipal, government, healthcare and emergency services leaders.</span>
<span>"Everything you would like to bring to this community, every community would like to do the same," Luechtefeld said. "I think Randolph County is unique in that you know no one is going to do this for you.</span>
<span>"You like this community and would like to see it succeed."</span>
<span>Most of the questions for the pair involved unemployment, worker's compensation and gasoline taxes.</span>
<span>"We're trying to roll back the corporate income tax," Costello said. "I believe we're second only to Kentucky in the region.</span>
<span>"That's a problem and that affects growth."</span>
<span>Costello highlighted a number of projects under way in the county, including the Chester Grade School renovation and the water line extension project at the Kaskaskia River Port District.</span>
<span>He also brought up a Southern Illinois hot-button issue in hydraulic fracturing, also known as "fracking." Costello said the technology has produced 45,000 jobs in North Dakota with 1 percent unemployment.</span>
<span>According to watchdog.org, North Dakota is leading the nation in personal income growth.</span>
<span>"That's a possibility for Southern Illinois," Costello said.</span>
<span>Monroe-Randolph Regional Superintendent of Schools Kelton Davis also highlighted the Creating Entrepreneurial Opportunities (CEO) program that will be coming to county high schools in fall 2015.</span>
<span>"This isn't a science fair project," Davis said. "This is a business, a true business. Will (students) be making a business plan? Yes they will.</span>
<span>"We want our creative kids to stay and change our world."</span>
<span>During the morning session, attendees were given a chance to share their ideas, with responses written on several easels spaced throughout the room.</span>
<span>After lunch, ideas were organized into seven "task forces" - Emergency services, tourism, infrastructure, healthcare, small business, job growth and availability, and a county high school.</span>
<span>It was the idea of a county high school that created some of the most intriguing discussion.</span>
<span>"It is truly interesting to think about this," said Randolph County Commissioner Marc Kiehna, who presented his task force's results. "</span>
<span>Kiehna's group suggested a county high school could be built near Walsh, due to its central location in the county, on a 100-acre campus that could include the Perandoe Special Education District and a vocational center.</span>
<span>Kiehna said the new high school would serve an estimated 1,200 to 1,300 students in grades ninth through 12th. Existing high schools could become community recreation centers.</span>
<span>The idea of a county high school was first suggested by Sparta CUSD 140 Superintendent Larry Beattie.</span>
<span>"You could offer all the programs," Beattie said. "It's outside the box, but I think it's something the county needs."</span>
Other ideas included expanding the Sparta-area airport Hunter Field, building a four-lane highway from Waterloo to Route 127 and developing ways to enhance tourism in the county.