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5 Business Changes
At least three major business expansions took place here in 2024.
Secuirty Bank completed their new 313 S. Robinson Avenue facility and moved into the building in July.
Both Security Bank and Security Wealth Strategies relocated to the new site from their downtown Hartington locations.
Family First Dental began work on a new Highway 57 facility. Plans are to be moved into the new facility in March. Once completed, it will be double the size of their previous Hartington location.
The Hartington City Council cleared the way to begin the expansion and renovation project by approving a zoning change.
The downtown business wants to expand, but first must get its property rezoned.
Current plans call for the house immediately to the west of Farmer’s Union to be razed and the ground leveled out this year.
Farmer’s Union manager Roy Carl said it is hoped a three-bay garage can then be built on the site next year.
Eventually, Carl said, they would like to make it even easier for diesel trucks to pull in and fill up at their pumps and for those trucks to be serviced at Farmer’s Union.
In order for any of this work to begin, though, the Council first had to rezone the lot immediately to the west of the business from residential to business, which they did on a unanimous vote.
A retirment party was held in January at the Cedar County Courthouse for County Clerk Dave Dowling. Wayne Bena Assistant Secretary of State for Elections, was on hand to congratulate Dowling and present him with a special letter and plaque from Secretary of State Bob Evnen, and a plaque from the National Association of Secretaries of State recognizing
6 County Clerk retires
Dowling’s 37 years of service.
Jessica Schmit was appointed to fill out the remainder of Dowling’s term. The rural Coleridge woman was appointed as the new Cedar County clerk on Jan. 9 during the board of commissioners’ first meeting of 2024.
7 County Attorney Retires
Norfolk attorney Ron Temple was appointed as the new Cedar County attorney afer the resignation of Nick Matney, who submitted his resignation letter which was recently accepted by the Cedar County Board of Commissioners.
In his resignation letter, Matney said he enjoyed working as the county attorney but was taking his career in a different direction.
Matney approached Temple about serving out his term due to Temple’s previous experience in the Dakota County Attorney’s Office in the 1990s. He has been with his current firm, Fitzgerald,Vetter, Temple in Norfolk for the past 27 years.
8 Creative District formed
Hartington was recognized by the Nebraska Arts Council as being an officially certified Nebraska Creative District and awarded a $10,000 certification grant.
The Hartington Creative District encompasses a two-by-six-block area of the city’s downtown, which also is designated as a nationally registered Downtown Historic District.
“The goal for the Hartington Creative District is to encourage and embrace the arts as well as improve and beautify the district itself,” said Miranda Becker, the Hartington Economic Development coordinator and Creative District administrator.
She noted another goal of the Hartington Creative District is to encourage tourism, support local businesses, promote new businesses and motivate people to consider Hartington as a place to live, visit, shop, vacation and so much more.
The Arts Council’s Creative Districts Program utilizes the arts as an economic driver to support communities by telling their stories and elevating the value of the arts.
Plans for a new 15-lot housing development
9 New Housing Development
on the east edge of Hartington were unveiled in 2023, but until late summer of 2024, it looked like those plans would be put on the shelf. Work on infrastructure at the site began in earnest last summer.
Rob Woodling, president of the Omahabased company Foundation Development, is puting together the housing development at the Nordby Addition on the eastern edge of Hartington.
The lots will be developed between Franklin and Main Streets just east of Portland Avenue.
A new street, Nordby Avenue, was built from Franklin to Main and seperate the seven lots on the east side from the eight lots on the west side of the street. An area for drainage is also being planned.
Woodling has built similiar developments in Wayne and Wisner.
The houses will be rent-to-own homes.
10 Record voter turnout
Cedar County led the entire state in voting in the 2024 general election.
Cedar County Clerk Jessica Schmit said 86.83 percent of the county’s registered voters turned in a general election ballot.
Schmit said the all-mail election process here helps, but it’s more than just that.
“I think our voter turnout speaks volumes to the people simply wanting to take part in the democratic process and voicing their opinion,” she said, adding that, “holding the election entirely by mail certainly helps.”
Schmit said her staff wanted to make sure everyone that wanted to vote had that opportunity.
“My entire office worked diligently to make sure all eligible voters received their ballot.”
Of Cedar County’s 13 precincts, three had over 90 percent of eligible voters return ballots.
The highest voter turnout in Cedar County — 90.5 percent — was in precinct 10, which is located just north and west of Randolph and includes Magnet.
Precincts five and 12 had the next highest voter turnout with 90.4 percent. Precinct five is located between Hartington and Coleridge.
