Why Not Sidney?

Who knows a town and what it has to offer better than its own residents?

That was part of the discussion Joe and Cathy Arterburn had when they decided to enlist Sidney area residents to join a letter writing campaign to bring attention to Sidney for businesses looking to expand their operations.

The idea began when Cathy read an article on Apple's plans for expansion.

Apple announced last week it is planning business investments that will contribute more than $350 billion to the U.S. economy over the next five years.

That includes capital expenditures over $30 billion, the creation of over 20,000 new jobs at existing Apple locations as well as at a new campus to be built at a new location. Apple also plans to spend $10 billion to build new data centers around the U.S.

So, the Arterburns asked, why not Sidney as part of that picture? Several former Cabela's buildings are available and could be used to meet many needs, perhaps that of a data center perfectly.

As reported in the Sun-Telegraph Wednesday, The Arterburns recently began a social media campaign asking area residents to write letters to Apple CEO Tim Cook, telling him what they like about Sidney, what the area has to offer, and ask him to consider the area for its needs.

The Arterburns are collecting letters and will print and mail them in specially colored envelopes all on the same day.

"We want to make it noticeable," Arterburn says, "and to show him the people of Sidney are behind the idea."

Arterburn, who also serves as Sidney's mayor, said the city's economic development department and others have done an exceptional job promoting the area, but hopes adding resident voices to the pitch adds another layer to be heard. He said each person has a different view of what they like about Sidney and it's important that those views are given.

"One spokesperson doesn't have the same affect as hearing many voices".

Arterburn added that everybody in Sidney has a stake in what's happening, not just those whose jobs might be directly affected by the Cabela sale.

"And if we can make it a true community effort, a lot of good can come of it," Arterburn said. "You never know when something like this will stick, and hopefully it will work."

While Apple is the initial campaign target, Arterburn hopes to also use the letters to draw interest from other companies.

The Arterburns ask those writing letters to email them to [email protected] by Jan. 31.