HASTINGS, Neb. — The new leader of economic and business development in Hastings is familiarizing herself with the city.

Shannon Landauer is set to be the first executive director in charge of both the Hastings Chamber of Commerce and the Hastings Economic Development Corporation.

She visited town last week and liked her first impression.

“We do have some strong industry, we’ve got some great things moving with housing, we’ve got a lot of activity in the downtown," Landauer said. "All of those are good things, so it really is just not doing anything different but expanding on that.”

Landauer thinks she can help find some efficiencies by being the unified leader of the two similar organizations.

“When we talk recruitment, we recruit people, we recruit small business ideas, we recruit industry," Landauer said. "It’s a similar process with different audiences. I think the more that all of these entities collaborate, the better we’re going to see movement and momentum.”

Landauer comes to Hastings after a stint as the president and CEO of the Iowa Lakes Corridor Development Corporation, which serves a four-county region in the Lake Okoboji area. She’s originally from Spalding, Neb.

Landauer says she’s happy to bring her family back to her home state and to a new city.

“It’s got such a small-town feel but so many more amenities and it’s just awesome. It feels good here,” Landauer said.

Her official start date is August 1.