A record number of workers in the county means home builders will be very busy for the next few years, builders association members heard Tuesday. George Robertson, president of the Kosciusko Economic Development Corp., was the guest speaker at the monthly Builders Association of Kosciusko Fulton Counties meeting. He told members that Department of Labor statistics showed 42,234 workers in the county as of December, a gain of about 2,000 over last year and well over the 35,000 to 36,000 range of the 1980s. “It means one heck of a lot of people moved in last year,” Robertson said. As a result, he observed, housing is tight in the county. He said the average vacancy time for an apartment is only one hour and that affordable houses are snatched up quickly. “It tells me that economic development ought to be helping home builders,” he said, describing real estate and workforce as the meat and potatoes of economic development, “and everything else is gravy.” Robertson also invited members to submit job openings for an online list KEDCo is developing, which will display jobs by the skill required. Applications sent through the site will be forwarded to all companies who listed those types of jobs. “I invite you to participate – we want every kind of job imaginable,” he said. “I hope what we do this year keeps you busier than heck building homes.”
