(CHADRON)-The city of Chadron will most likely be moving forward toward updating a video that features various aspects of the city on the city’s Web site. Initially, Chadron mayor Karin Fischer, public works director Milo Rust, city clerk Donna Rust, and Chamber of Commerce director Colette Fernandez visited with a company as to the feasibility of filming and creating a new video for the city. Mayor Fischer said the idea was an attractive one, but as more input was received from other city entities in town, the cost was an issue. Production of the video was going to be $24,800, and although Fischer said its quality was top-of-the-line, finding the funds was going to be tricky.

The interest in a new video did however lead the group back to the current video the city has online. Fischer said updating the current video will even pay for itself by asking city businesses to sponsor the video’s production through advertising. “Having this company approach us for this production, made us really take a look at what we had and realize that we do actually have a pretty good video,” she said. “And it is three years old, and the company is willing to come update it and see if those same advertisers will support it again.”

Fischer said this process has reinforced the fact that a lot of positive things are taking place in Chadron. “You have to promote your city; they don’t determine what’s important for you,” said Fischer. “For a small community, we have some real pluses. Because this generates the idea of well, what do we have? If we were going to do this, what would we promote? So all these thoughts are running about…wow, we do this, we do that, we do this. We are growing, we have new business, we have a very high volunteerism record, and that’s a huge plus. So, it’s like, okay, we’re in there, we’re doing what we’re supposed to be doing, and it feels good. It did generate a lot of thought in a positive fashion about Chadron.”

Fischer says additional pluses in the city’s favor are having a four-year college, a new hospital and multi-million dollar fiber-optic network, and the city’s walkability and desire to gain public input in planning as community pluses.

Council members decided to stick with the video that is funded through advertising. It will revisit the agenda of an upcoming meeting for an official vote. City clerk Donna Rust said it is about time to update the current video anyway, as it has been three years since the original one was made. She explains what will happen if the council votes to renew the video. “They would come out to Chadron, update what we currently have, make any changes that the council would like to see, and then revise the script accordingly,” said Rust. “The city obviously would want to have the filming done when the city looks its finest. So, I’m thinking green-wise, we may even be looking at next spring.”

The segments of the current video, called the Chadron Video TourBook, can be found on the city of Chadron’s Web site at the bottom of the home page.

(Questions? Comments? E-mail roxie@chadrad.com.)

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