What I’m Watching: I-44, workforce shifts and new tools for growth

August 28, 2026

Growth is one thing. Having the capacity to sustain it is another. Several developments this week moved that conversation from aspiration to execution—and in one case, to a very public debate about what kind of growth we want and under what conditions.

Here's what I'm watching…

Forward 44 moves from plan to pavement

MoDOT broke ground Monday on the $471 million Forward 44 Southwest project, beginning a five-year effort to widen I-44 through Springfield, improve major interchanges and upgrade the corridor from Newton to Laclede counties. MoDOT says the project is designed in part to promote economic development and improve freight movement.

Why it matters: This is growth infrastructure. Moving people and freight more safely and efficiently expands the region's capacity for jobs, investment and development. It's also why the Chamber and so many regional partners pushed hard for this investment: transportation capacity has to be in place before growth demands it.

Source: Missouri Department of Transportation, Aug. 24 - Read more

Workforce demand is shifting—and training is moving with it

Ozarks Tech opened fall semester with its fifth straight year of enrollment growth, with construction, electrical, welding, automotive and diesel programs each up more than 30%. New BLS employment projections show future job growth concentrating heavily in areas including health care and utilities while office and administrative-support jobs decline sharply; a separate BLS report on worker displacement found 3.3 million long-tenured workers were displaced from 2023–25.

Why it matters: Employers can struggle to find workers while other workers are being displaced. The places that compete best will increasingly be those that see where demand is moving, align training quickly and help people move into growing fields. Ozarks Tech's numbers are an encouraging local signal that training choices are moving in the same direction as several national demand signals.

Sources: Ozarks Tech, Aug. 24; BLS Employment Projections, Aug. 27; BLS Worker Displacement, Aug. 27

Missouri's economic-development toolbox changes today

HB 3231 takes effect today, expanding several tools Missouri communities can use for investment and redevelopment, including new Missouri Works incentives for major capital projects, MODESA redevelopment authority, Innovation Zones and other investment incentives.

Why it matters: For Springfield, the details matter less than the practical result: we have more tools to compete for major investment, bring underused property back into productive use and support growing companies.

Source: Missouri Senate - Read more about HB 3231

Sankofa adds housing where Springfield needs more of it

Sankofa, Commercial Street's first new ground-up building in roughly 50 years, is bringing 42 income-restricted apartments plus commercial space to the corridor. The $13.5 million project includes $4.5 million in federal ARPA funding.

Why it matters: Last week I wrote about housing affordability and availability as potential constraints on growth. This is one tangible response—adding attainable housing while reinvesting in a historic commercial district.

Source: KY3, Aug. 21 - Read more

The data-center conversation enters a harder phase

Hundreds turned out for Springfield's first data-center public-engagement session last night. I was there, and I thought City and City Utilities staff handled a complicated environment impressively. What caught my attention was the certainty of some of the most active voices; in my group, several participants were explicit that they opposed all data centers, without much curiosity about the particulars.

Why it matters: The next phase of this discussion will require more than technical facts. It will also require trust, patient explanation and a genuine willingness to weigh real tradeoffs before reaching conclusions. As we're seeing in communities across the country, that kind of deliberation may be easier to call for than to achieve.

Sources: KY3, Aug. 27; The Washington Post, Aug. 23