Panel discussion held with city leaders at Wortman Family Civic Theatre

The Shelby County Chamber of Commerce hosted a “State of the City” panel discussion Friday afternoon at the Wortman Family Civic Theatre on the city’s west side.

The panel included Shelby County Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Courtney Chapella, Shelby County Tourism & Visitors Bureau Executive Director Rachael Ackley, Shelbyville Mayor Scott Furgeson, Shelby County Economic Development Executive Director Brian Asher and Shelbyville Central Schools Superintendent Dr. Matt Vance.

The discussion was hosted by Jenna Martin, Director of Public Relations for the City of Shelbyville.

The open discussion highlighted how promoting Shelbyville and Shelby County leads to residential growth and attraction of business and industry to the community.

Asher is at the forefront of bringing business to Shelby County. He is impressed with the housing growth in Shelbyville – 170 new homes were built in 2025 – but it has yet to lead to more jobs.

“Housing attracts people,” said Asher. “Eventually, more increases in jobs. It all starts with housing.”

Asher and Furgeson outlined the process for companies looking to locate to Shelby County. It all starts with a Request For Information (RFI). The name and nature of the interested company is typically unknown.

The RFI outlines specific needs such as utilities, transportation and acreage. Asher then tries to identify the right parcel of land.

“We talk and bring in all the utilities, and it passes that hurdle … we can supply the utilities,” explained Furgeson of a typical process. “Then it moves to more visits. Eventually we find out who they are, and they may come to Shelby County or they may not.”

The right of confidentiality is something Shelbyville and Shelby County has to honor.

“RISU was very quiet and didn’t want to communicate from the very beginning,” said Furgeson of Shelbyville’s newest Japanese company to open a facility here. “We have to respect the wishes of the company coming to us. The public has to understand we are not trying to hide things.

“Once we get a commitment, they come to the Planning Department and go through that process … rezoning or annexation … there is a process to all these things and so many steps these things have to go through.”

The deal with RISU was sparked from a trip by city officials to Japan. Maintaining foreign relations, especially with the many Japanese companies located locally, is important, according to Furgeson and Asher.

“What we will continue to do is fulfill the needs of all our companies,” said Furgeson. “If they need something, we will make sure they get it.”

That includes tax abatements that are crucial to agreements with companies interested in Shelby County and the ones already here, according to Asher.

With state government cutting back funding to city governments, spurring industrial growth is one key to making up for a revenue shortfall.

“It is very competitive out there,” said Asher. “Companies are not coming unless they get (tax abatements). Companies may not grow here (without tax abatements).”

Cities across the state are now preparing for budget cuts.

“Those budgets are real reasons to continue to grow our industry,” said Asher. “We need to get more taxes in from businesses.”

Retaining employees is a real concern for small businesses. Chapella deals firsthand with many small businesses in the city and county and offers many services to help them succeed.

“The chamber can come in and be a connector,” she said, citing its human resources roundtable and junior leadership program as prime examples.

Ackley sees the city and county commitment to attracting people firsthand. Often times, the tourism and visitors bureau is a first contact for those interested in visiting or relocating to Shelby County.

Citing a recent report documenting 2024, Ackley stated $61 million was brought into Shelby County via tourism.

“That is very indicative of what’s been going on in our community regarding tourism,” she said.

As part of that 2024 report was the $1.8 million impact locally from hosting the USATF National Junior Olympics Cross Country Championships at Blue River Memorial Park in Shelbyville. The event returned to Shelbyville in 2025.

“People are looking for those communities with things they think are good,” said Ackley. “The trails are really awesome. The schools are fantastic. They want those personal things.”

Vance stated budget cuts are a reality in education, too, and Shelbyville Central Schools is already preparing for the next two school years. Enrollment has been on the decline since 2017 and that impacts statewide dollars.

“We like these kinds of conversations on growth and housing,” he said. “The bottom line is we have not seen the growth yet from housing and industry in the school district. We are optimistic about that. We don’t expect to see a lot of growth. I hope that changes.”

That has not stopped Vance and the school board from aggressively improving its current buildings. Large scale renovation projects were recently completed at two of the school system’s oldest elementary schools. Other projects are completed or near completion at the middle school and high school.

“We are always trying to maintain and advance our school facilities,” he said. “One of the things people look at is the school district. We try to keep our facilities in the best shape that we can.”

The approximately 45-minute discussion Friday highlighted how the chamber, tourism bureau, school system and economic development all impact the City of Shelbyville and showed how preparation for 2026 is well underway.

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