Local leaders seek best practices in Greenville, SC

More than 60 business, education, nonprofit and public-sector leaders are halfway through a trip to Greenville, S.C., organized by the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce.

The latest in the chamber’s more than 20-year-old Community Leadership Visit program, officials are seeking best practices to learn how they might be implemented into Springfield, according to a news release.

“Previous visits have yielded wonderful connections and innovative approaches to the issues we face,” chamber board Chairwoman Debbie Shantz Hart said in the release. “I’m confident that Greenville will continue that trend of offering unique ways to think about our community and how we can grow.”

During the visit, the Springfield leaders will cover downtown redevelopment, workforce development, education, and talent attraction and retention. Officials with the Southwestern Indiana Chamber in Evansville, Ind. - which was the national 2016 Chamber of the Year - also are visiting Greenville.

Chamber spokesman Jeremy Elwood said the group flew out of Springfield yesterday morning and is scheduled to return during the early afternoon on Saturday.

Past visits have spurred economic and community development: The trip to Colorado Springs, Colo., led to accelerated plans for a Springfield-Branson National Airport terminal; the Lexington, Ky., trip created the catalyst for the Community Focus red-flag report card on Springfield and Greene County; and the formation of the Springfield Regional Economic Partnership came after the visit to Boise, Idaho, according to the chamber.