Columbia’s Regional Economic Development Incorporated (REDI) is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year. REDI president Stacey Button joined host Fred Parry in-studio for the hour Saturday morning on 939 the Eagle’s “CEO Roundtable” to discuss the 35th anniversary and economic development efforts. Ms. Button also briefed listeners on business expansion that’s taken place in the Columbia area in the past few years, including at American Outdoor Brands, Kraft Heinz, Swift Foods and Equipment Share. Ms. Button notes American Outdoor Brands is the only publicly traded company headquartered in Boone County:
UM System President Choi to appear on 939 the Eagle Saturday morning
We’re expecting to learn new details Saturday morning about efforts to build a new and larger research reactor in Columbia. UM System President Dr. Mun Choi will join host Fred Parry in-studio from 7-8 on 939 the Eagle’s “CEO Roundtable” program.
Mizzou officials briefed Columbia-area business leaders during June’s Regional Economic Development Incorporated (REDI) board meeting. Mizzou’s Sarah Chinniah says building a new and larger research reactor in Columbia is critical to ensuring a lifetime supply of isotopes needed to diagnose heart disease and to detect and treat cancer.
The proposed reactor would be built on Mizzou property near Discovery Ridge, near Highway 63 in south Columbia.
President Choi will also update listeners about Columbia’s Roy Blunt NextGen facility. He’ll also be discussing the new $200-million Children’s Hospital being built in Columbia, and will discuss the recent hiring of new chief marketing and communications officer John Denker.
(AUDIO): Homelessness will be major focus of Columbia business leaders when they travel to Madison
Columbia business leaders and elected officials will travel to Madison, Wisconsin for September’s leadership visit.
Columbia Chamber of Commerce president Matt McCormick announced the visit during this week’s Regional Economic Development Incorporated (REDI) board meeting at Mizzou. Mr. McCormick tells 939 the Eagle that Madison has been doing great things with homelessness, and Columbia leaders want to see what they’ve done.
“One of the things that we’ve noticed with Madison pre-COVID versus post-COVID, they’ve done a lot of work during that timeframe around homelessness. And a lot of the issues that they’ve been dealing with, which are a lot of the same issues we’re dealing with, the unhoused. And you know people are wanting to responsibly help this,” McCormick says.
Columbia’s city council voted in February to approve a permit that allows for the construction and operation of a proposed homeless shelter near the Business Loop. The Voluntary Action Center (VAC) would operate the shelter, under the proposal.
Columbia Chamber members and others visited College Station, Texas in October. They’ve also traveled to Tuscaloosa, Athens, Knoxville and Gainesville in previous visits. Mr. McCormick is inviting business representatives and elected officials on the trip.
“Our leadership visits are always made up of business leaders, business owners of small, medium and large-sized businesses. But it’s also made up of elected officials on the local level, on the state level. We have different organizations, we have our city and our county are part of it. The University (of Missouri) is a part of it. Because it’s going to take all of us to work on these issues,” says McCormick.
Madison, Wisconsin, which has about 269,000 residents, is a state capital and is also home to the University of Wisconsin. This will be the chamber’s tenth leadership visit.
Columbia’s REDI meets Wednesday at NextGen; will be briefed on research reactor project
Columbia’s Regional Economic Development Incorporated (REDI) board will take tomorrow’s meeting on the road, to Mizzou’s $220-million NextGen Precision Health building.
MU Health Care vice chancellor for health affairs Nim Chinniah will deliver a presentation regarding workforce, and another Mizzou official will be discussing the University of Missouri’s Research Reactor (MURR).
Mizzou officials unveiled their plan in March to build a new, larger research reactor aimed at expanding cancer-fighting research at MU. The proposed reactor would be built near Discovery Ridge, off of Highway 63 in south Columbia. UM System President Dr. Mun Choi says the work they do at the current MU Research Reactor (MURR) saves lives and improves thousands of lives daily. The current MURR was built in 1966.
President Choi has predicted that NextGen will reduce the cost of health care, adding a primary goal is to make health care more affordable.
Mizzou is still Columbia’s largest employer; VU now third on list
The University of Missouri is still Boone County’s largest employer, by far. Columbia’s Regional Economic Development Incorporated’s (REDI) website says Mizzou has 8,612 employees. It’s followed by the number two employer, which is University Hospital and Clinics, also known as MU Health Care. They have more than 5,200 employees. Columbia Public Schools (CPS) and the …