Empowering Rural Growth: A Special Visit from U.S. Representative Derek Kilmer and U.S. Under Secretary Jed Kolko

The MasonEDC would like to extend a HUGE thank you to U.S. Representative Derek Kilmer (WA-06) and U.S. Under Secretary of Commerce for Economic Affairs Jed Kolko for making a special visit to our community to delve into rural needs toward economic growth with a focus on barriers and the work needed to remove them. Thank you to Sierra Pacific Industries and Taylor Shellfish Farms for opening their doors for an in-depth look into two of our major employers with mill operations, a seed nursery, and processing facilities. These types of tours are a very unique opportunity to shed light on these businesses integral role to our local economy as well as some barriers to expansion they may face. Thank you to the Squaxin Island Tribe for hosting a lunch at the newly renovated Starlight Sports Bar & Lounge. We hear the burgers were AMAZING! The tour finished by sitting down with economic development leaders from all different industry sectors for a roundtable discussion about what our current needs are in terms of economic expansion and growth for our rural and distressed area. Many topics were discussed with a big focus on needed infrastructure and a very big thank you to Rep. Kilmer for his work on Recompete as an tool for rural recovery. Today was a great day to illustrate where the community is and to explain the barriers we face to growth and expansion. Thank you again, Rep. Kilmer and Under Secretary Kolko, for taking the time to discuss economic growth for our community.