Butler County sees strong labor market - Iowa sets new business filing record

Iowa had a record 2,326 new business filings in April, besting the 2,204 filings in March of last year. The state is also on track to hit a new record for business filings per annum, according to information released May 9 by the office of Secretary of State Paul Pate. Over 20,000 filings have been made since last July 1. And with statewide growth, Butler County hasn’t been left behind.
     Between Allison, Aplington, Aredale, Bristow, Clarksville, Dumont, Greene, New Hartford, Parkersburg and Shell Rock, Aredale, Bristow and Dumont, 37 business entities have filed so far this fiscal year. Last fiscal year 53 businesses filed in the area. While a few of these businesses, such as the Shell Rock Scoop, a charming ice cream shop in downtown Shell Rock, take their place on Main Street, the majority are farms, rental properties, or home businesses offering boutiques or services including roofing, taxidermy, heating and cooling, and construction.
     “We're seeing small businesses flock to Iowa because we have an environment that I think is very inviting,” Pate said. “We have low interest rates; we've seen low unemployment numbers, but it's the entrepreneur who's stepping up and getting the job done.”
     Every new business makes an impact in growing the Butler County economy. With plans recently announced by Trinity Rail Maintenance Services to invest approximately $60 million in a new facility at Butler Logistics Park near Shell Rock and create at least 263 new full-time or career positions in the next three years (with a potential for eventually up to 400 positions), the county may have a new largest employer in town.
 
Read more in the May 23 edition of the STAR.
 
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