2021 Recap: Our collective achievements reflect the QC region’s strength

It’s been quite a year at the Quad Cities Chamber and we’re proud of the accomplishments your investment supported as we continue our quest to create a prosperous regional economy where all can thrive.

This year, the Chamber in partnership with many community partners, landed six successful business projects. The economic impact of those will exceed $174 million and add 1,825 new jobs. The investment those companies are making will draw new workers and spark new opportunities for families already here. It will financially strengthen our region, feed new investment in infrastructure, amenities and our schools. And the chain reaction begins.

Amazon’s new robotic fulfillment center is the largest economic development project in QC history. When the 640,000 square-foot center opens next year, it will spread across 158 acres and employ 1,000 workers. But already, this project has piqued new interest and inquiries, and work is underway. We are confident Amazon’s investment in our region will drive additional development, and soon.

The volume of business projects the Chamber pushed forward is out-pacing previous years. We worked on 87 projects, 69 of which were focused on business attraction and 18 were focused on business expansion. In addition, we provided 2,665 individual technical assists to small and large businesses throughout our region, providing them with essential information on growth and financial resources and the advocacy support they needed to plan for the future.

We served thousands of businesses in the region – both members and non-members – bringing us closer to achieving our goal to serving 25% of the region’s businesses by 2030. Supporting the business community is at heart of the Chamber’s work, and it goes hand-in-hand with distinguishing the QC as the place people want to live, work, raise families and the confidence that here, they will thrive. That pulls people into the region and these new workers attract new businesses and economic development.

This year, our new Talent Attraction & Development division embraced its charge and is actively working with QC employers, educational institutions and organizations to host job fairs and build career pathways. It is foundational work and has already more than doubled enrollment in apprenticeship programs, which has increased from 41 to 84 students. We collaborated on Home Base Iowa, an incentive program that connects veterans with businesses and is a catalyst for them to move and establish roots here. We provided resources to help businesses tackle workforce challenges and will welcome the first Leadership QC class in January, a new program we designed to shape community-focused leaders who want to step forward and advance our region now and in the future.

We are leading placemaking initiatives that are establishing the unique identity of several of our downtowns, an element essential to building our talent pipeline and helping new and established businesses succeed. The Downtown Davenport Partnership (DDP) completed a Downtown Master Plan which sets the vision for a more sustainable, vibrant and inclusive downtown and advocated for a comprehensive flood plan with the City of Davenport. We celebrated the opening of the new Interstate 74 bridge, 20 years after we began advocating at the state and federal level for the Mississippi River crossing. Downtown Bettendorf Organization (DBO) is leveraging the new bridge to draw new businesses downtown and additional development is anticipated, proving you can #BettonDowntown. Our value in placemaking was recognized by the City of Rock Island which contracted with the Chamber to provide place management services and reactivate its downtown. Just this week, we secured $2.5 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds toward a proposed $7 million project that would modernize and enhance the city’s historic center of commerce and culture.

This year, we achieved a milestone when we announced a new regional brand in partnership with Visit Quad Cities. “QC, That’s Where!” is a bold brand and marketing campaign that will cut through the clutter and grab the attention of visitors, investors, new talent and residents – all while putting the region firmly on the map. QC, that’s where every weekend is a celebration, our homegrown businesses thrive, down-to-earth people live and play – and where we call home. 

Thanks to the strong commitment from our investors and strategic financial management, we are advancing our regional business, driving economic growth and development and attracting talent to work and live here. The support of our investors sustains our work, and it matters. The impact of it was witnessed throughout the region in 2021.

As we enter 2022, we’re bolstered by the words that RSM’s Chief Economist shared at our Economic Forecast, “an economy poised to be the best it has been in a lifetime.” The U.S. economy is in the middle of a transformation - the most significant transformation since the Industrial Revolution.

Despite living amid a pandemic, experiencing rising inflation and supply chain disruptions, the QC region has continually demonstrated its strength. There is so much to look forward to in 2022.