Jackson County leaders and community members will roll out a new 20-year vision plan aimed at guiding the region’s growth and development. Known as Drive Jackson, the initiative was developed as a private-public partnership, drawing input from residents, local organizations, and government entities.
The formal unveiling will happen at the Jackson County Chamber's annual meeting, Victory Lap, at 11:30 this morning.
“This plan came together because everybody came together as a community to formulate it, not just someone sitting in a room somewhere, deciding what the community should do,” said Rachel Buchanan, vice president of marketing and communications for the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce and Experience Jackson.
The plan builds on more than nine months of outreach across the county, collecting feedback from 1,300 residents and more than 6,000 responses. A 24-member leadership committee—including retired CEOs, service industry workers, high school students, and other community members—helped shape the plan into four main pillars with 54 initiatives.
Buchanan said, “We were very intentional, not only about the groups that we approached for that feedback, but how we did that as well…people were able to see themselves in the plan as it came together.”
The four goal areas are:
- Improving the quality of place and identity, fostering pride in Jackson County.
- Investing in education and lifelong learning opportunities.
- Strengthening housing options and economic vitality.
- Fostering a safe and healthy community.
To ensure the plan doesn’t sit on a shelf, the county has secured a state fellow who will spend the next 15 months implementing Drive Jackson, working with community members and experts to move initiatives forward.
Buchanan emphasized the plan is already active: “Many of the things that are put in the plan are things that we do on a regular basis, but they're things that we hope can be developed in the future. And we're already seeing some of the areas of the plan that we're developing even this year.”
Residents and businesses can follow the plan’s progress at drivejacksoncounty.com, where updates are organized by each of the four pillars. Subscribers can receive email newsletters focused on the areas most relevant to them.
