Keeping and attracting businesses in Worthington requires awareness, action and a shared commitment to meeting their evolving needs.
Retaining businesses isn’t just about keeping storefronts open — it’s about sustaining jobs, supporting families and preserving the character that makes Worthington special.
The Chamber represents more than 530 businesses that collectively employ roughly 17,000 people in the Worthington area. But those numbers don’t tell the whole story. Behind them are business owners making tough decisions — grappling with rising costs, shifting consumer habits and a growing need for flexible, modern commercial space.
In recent months, I’ve spoken with business leaders about what they need to thrive here. Many cite the same concern: a lack of larger, updated office space and mixed-use developments with walkable amenities — options that neighboring communities offer more readily.
This trend should concern us all — not because it signals failure, but because it reveals opportunity.
As President of the Chamber, part of my role during the City’s Comprehensive Plan process is to advocate and educate — to ensure our community understands what today’s businesses need. Most of our business owners and workforce don’t live within Worthington. They invest here, pay taxes here, create jobs here — yet they have no direct voice in local elections or long-range planning. In some ways, it’s a modern echo of taxation without representation. That’s why the Chamber looks beyond our backyard, city limits and even our school district lines. Our economic vitality depends on regional thinking, paired with local action.
Decisions in the comprehensive plan can directly strengthen efforts to keep current businesses here and recruit new ones.
Business retention is the foundation of a resilient economy, but retention alone isn’t enough. We must also think proactively about recruitment — attracting employers, startups and service providers that add value, create jobs and activate our commercial corridors. If we as a community don’t take time to understand what it will take to retain existing businesses, that doesn’t help the city’s efforts to recruit new ones.
The Chamber strongly supports Worthington’s economic development efforts and is committed to amplifying the real-time needs of our business community. Greater awareness among residents, decision-makers and regional partners is the first step toward solutions that strengthen both retention and recruitment. But it will take more than City staff and the Chamber to make this a reality. It takes everyone.
When we keep local businesses thriving — and welcome new ones that see Worthington’s potential — we keep Worthington thriving.
