History will show that 2021 made positive local headlines

In a year filled with global angst and controversy, Hamilton County residents had a lot of good things, positive things, to read about in the year that ends Friday at midnight. That was reflected in the News-Register’s annual Top 10 stories of the year poll, which touted an exciting housing development project on Aurora’s western edge as the top story of 2021.
This story was an obvious choice, according to a random survey of area residents, who unlike last year had a lot of news, milestones and feel-good events to choose from. The pandemic and its crushing initial blow topped last year’s poll, and while the COVID virus and its impact lingers on with a spot at No. 3, in fact surging at year’s end, there was a lot more happening here on the homefront in 2021, which is in and of itself a major headline for the year. We hope and pray that pandemic-related issues come to a close in 2022, though we’ve got a ways to go on that front.
As for the No. 1 story, Aurora needs affordable housing, and lots of it, thus the Rural Workforce Housing initiative was a very big deal on the local scene. With 64 lots scheduled for development we can expect to see rooftops going up in bunches, which means more people, more potential employees for local businesses, more students in our school, more valuation for our tax base, etc., etc. Bottom line, this story will impact our community for years to come, as will a similar surge of housing starts in Phillips, which earned a spot at No. 5 in this year’s poll. 
As Gov. Pete Ricketts said here in November, addressing the housing challenge takes leadership, vision and initiative, and both of these projects have all of the above. The same could be said when taking a closer look at this year’s Top 10, as well as many of the nominated stories that didn’t make the cut. 
The No. 2 story in this year’s poll continues that trend in that native son Austin Allen was a source of hope and inspiration in the midst of an otherwise dismal Husker football season. Big No. 11 was a shining star for the Huskers, both on the field and off, which gave area Husker fans a little extra skin in the game and reason to watch beyond the final score. Allen made his hometown proud and it will be fun to see him take that same positive attitude to the next level, where we hope he’ll land a spot in the NFL.
Ready or not, it’s time to turn the page and start anew. Here’s to you and your’s, hoping we all make more positive, lasting memories in 2022. Happy New Year!
Kurt Johnson