McPherson Industrial Development Company (MIDC)
In 1959, a group of civic-minded McPherson businessmen had the foresight to know that McPherson County needed a stimulus if it was to grow and prosper. They recognized that agriculture and the oil industry that had sustained the county’s economy in the past could not continue to do so indefinitely.
McPherson Industrial Development Co. was organized and incorporated to place special emphasis on the recruitment of industry to the area. Thus began an effort that has burgeoned into an industrial base of over fifty industries in this progressive Kansas town of 14,000. With the support of local government leaders and a municipal electric utility McPherson has become perhaps the most industrialized “per-capita”, industry-friendly community in the State of Kansas. McPherson industries enjoy the lowest electric rates in the state, rates that rival even those of hydro-electric utilities elsewhere in the nation. Large industrial users commonly enjoy electric rates less than four cents per kilowatt hour, including demand charge.
McPherson Industrial Development Co. (commonly referred to as MIDC) continues in its role as the official industrial recruitment and expansion arm of the City of McPherson. It provides a similar, though unofficial function, for McPherson County. Industries, the City, County, and State have come to rely on MIDC as the “first-call” agency “when industry matters” in the McPherson area. MIDC maintains an inventory of property suitable for industrial development. It has adopted a policy of selling this property at no profit. MIDC also acts as an industry advocate and provides a continuous liaison between industries and government. It assists in property tax exemption procedures, zoning matters, and workforce training, among other important services…all at no cost to industries.
