Welcoming Casey Peterson, New Business Retention and Expansion Manager

On episode #45 of the Building BN podcast, BNEDC CEO Patrick Hoban sits down to speak with Casey Peterson, Business Retention and Expansion Manager, BNEDC. Originally from Northern California, Peterson relocated to central Illinois in 2017 to attend Illinois State University. Peterson explains, “I got my Master's Degree in Community Economic Development through the Stevenson Center Fellows Program, and I've been here in town for four years. I’ve worked for McLean County Regional Planning. Previous to this role, I worked for the Greater Peoria Economic Development Council as their director of Rural Outreach and development.”

Peterson’s role at the EDC involves, as his title suggests, local business retention and expansion. He explains, “My job is to make sure that businesses know of our presence in the community, and how I can help them connect with our networks….[The BNEDC has] an amazing board with representatives from public and private organizations. I let [local businesses] know that we are at their disposal for any resources that we can have, whether they're expanding, whether they're going through some tough times, whatever we can help them with right now. The topic of the day is always workforce. I know where they're at and what type of employees they need and seeing what's coming down the pipeline to make sure that that's a match.”

Ultimately, Peterson explains, his role comes down to the people. He says, “It's really about relationships and just making sure that [local businesses] feel heard as part of our community.”

Listen to the entire podcast here, which includes Peterson’s favorite local eats, his personal philosophy on Economic Development, and why he’s a huge fan of trivia