Business leaders, economic developers, and community officials gathered at White Hawk Country Club on Thursday afternoon for Lake County Economic Alliance’s (LCEA) Annual Meeting. Attendees networked, celebrated the year’s achievements, and previewed some projects on the horizon for Lake County.
Members of the LCEA also took the opportunity to conduct some official business, such as re-electing members of the board. It is a busy time for the organization, which is assisting Lake County’s ongoing economic growth while hitting its own organizational milestones. LCEA installed Chris Salatas as President and CEO late last year and is set to welcome Indiana Governor Mike Braun to the Region at an event on April 3.
“We’re very excited; we’ve had a successful and transformative year,” Bailey Tombers, LCEA VP – Business Development, said. “We’ve reshaped a lot of the organization, and under Chris, we’ve really taken on new and bold approaches. We’re thrilled to celebrate another annual meeting and another board of directors – it’s going to be a great year.”
2024 saw the LCEA play a role in bringing over $142 million in investment to Lake County, such as a new $100 million 332,600-square-foot cold storage project in Crown Point by the Georgia-based company Arcadia Cold. It also built connections and fostered engagement with organizations such as the Lakeshore Chamber Workforce Task Force, One Region, NWI Forum, Home Builders Association, and IEDA Legislative Committee.
“We’re all here today because of a shared vision to make Lake County a better place,” Salatas said. “We live here and do business here; we want to see this area succeed. We have strong residential growth and strong commercial and industrial growth. There's so much we have to offer here that many other places in the state don’t.”
Among the attendees was newly re-elected LCEA Board Chairman Paul Beneturski, Senior Vice President at Old National Bank. He spoke to the attendees, highlighting the rapid growth that LCEA experienced over the last two years.
“The organization has grown from 18 members to 46 members in the last 18 months,” he said. “Our sole purpose, by far, is to bring a focus on economics into Lake County Indiana. It’s most important to bring jobs to the local area by expansion, and Lake County is exploding thanks to an influx of businesses and individuals.”
Todd Scheub, another LCEA board member, serves as president of Peoples Bank, which is headquartered in Munster. He explained the role a community bank can play when companies make major investments in the area.
“When these big buildings come in, we’re here for the people that work at them,” he said. “We’re here to help with mortgages, deposit accounts, and all of their banking services. We’re also here for those smaller businesses. They know that they have a local banker that can help with all the financing they need to grow.”
Scheub is eager to see how the LCEA grows under Salatas’ leadership and noted that local businesses and organizations are already catching on to its transformation.
“We’ve had a lot of businesses and developers in our area join in to be a part of this,” Scheub said. “It’s very good that they see the work that we’re doing and feel that we’re adding value to Lake County.”
To learn more about Lake County Economic Alliance and its members, visit lcea.us.