With just more than 1,000 residents, the agricultural city of Kiowa is known for its wheat, milo and canola crops. In fact, according to City Administrator Lou Leone, Kiowa has such a bountiful crop yield, the State of Kansas uses the town’s crops as a gauge to tell how the harvest is fairing in the entire state.
But agriculture isn’t the only business Kiowa wants to be known for. According to Leone, the city is hoping to attract more manufacturing jobs, such as ammunition manufacturing, telecom or even a data center.“We have at least three locations that would be good for manufacturing, two on the west side of town and one right off main street,” Leone notes. “We also have teardowns, so there’s lots of available land.”
Despite its size, Kiowa is surrounded by infrastructure. A BNSF rail line runs just west of town, which Leone says could become a stop if requested, and the city is seated along Highway K2 (a connection to US 281) and K8, which runs from Kiowa to nearby Oklahoma.
Read more: Global Trade Magazine.