By Trish Svoboda

On June 14, Laura Kelly announced that Kansas has won Area Development magazine’s prestigious Gold Shovel Award for the fourth consecutive year. This achievement highlights the significant economic development success under the Kelly administration.

Since the beginning of 2019, Kansas has initiated 1,180 new economic development projects, generating over $19 billion in private sector investment and creating or retaining more than 67,000 jobs statewide.

Kansas has been recognized for attracting high-value investment projects that significantly boost job creation across the state. In 2023 alone, there were 255 projects totaling nearly $3.1 billion in private-sector investment, leading to the creation or retention of almost 12,000 jobs. The largest of these projects was Building Materials Manufacturing Corporation’s $350 million facility in Newton.