Ed Eilert, chairman of the Johnson County Board of County Commissioners, presented his 2015 State of the County Address on March 24. The theme of his address was “A Community of Opportunity.”

“It is up to each one of us to not to become complacent nor lose understanding of the vision of those who built a strong foundation for our communities,” said Chairman Ed Eilert, Johnson County Board of County Commissioners. “If Johnson County is to maintain the success we enjoy today, we all must be willing to shoulder the responsibility of that shared vision for future success.”

Key facts from the 2015 State of the County address

• Johnson County’s jobless rate was 3.0 percent at the end of 2014. The December 2014 rate was the lowest since 2000.
• More than 324,000 Johnson County residents were employed in 2014…the highest level in the County’s history.
• Johnson County led the metro region with an overall share of 38 percent of residential construction.
• Industrial construction in Johnson County nearly doubled from 1.2 million square feet in 2013 to 2.3 million in 2014.
• A New York Times study on the easiest places in the U.S. to live ranked Johnson County #11 out of the nation’s 3,135 counties.
• In 2014, Johnson County collected $629 million in state sales tax, accounting for 25 percent of the state’s revenue from this source.
• Johnson County leads the state in residents who have graduated high school (more than 95 percent) and hold a bachelor’s degree or higher (more than 51 percent.)
   

Nearly 650 people attended the address and luncheon at The Ritz Charles in Overland Park. The event’s co-sponsor was the Johnson County Public Policy Council, and it was hosted by the Lenexa Chamber of Commerce. The general public could “virtually” attend the event on Twitter by following @jocogov and #JOCO2015.