With all of the doom and gloom in the headlines: high gasoline prices, high food prices, recession, it is often quite easy to get caught up in the entire bad news as a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Yes, it is true that the economy has seen better days, but for every bit of bad news, if you look hard enough, you can find some nuggets of good news.

The Plymouth County Board of Supervisors heard a report on economic development in the county from Gary Tucker, county economic development director. There's plenty to be optimistic about.

Plymouth County is in good shape. Currently the county's property tax rate is ranked the eighth lowest of the 99 counties in Iowa at 7.9 percent per $100,000 valuation. The county's actual property valuation has also grown from $1.3 billion in 2000 to $1.7 billion in 2007.

Comparing wages in the six county region -- Plymouth, Sioux, Lyon, Osceola, O'Brien and Cherokee -- Plymouth has the highest average wage of $16.45 an hour and in March its unemployment rate was 3.4 percent.

New commercial and industrial businesses in fiscal year 2008 are expected to exceed $150 million in investment. Residential growth has helped fuel the economy as well with 550 new dwellings constructed between 2000 and 2007 in Plymouth County.

Our corner of the state has a lot going for it, and economic development officials are working to expand what we already have. They are working with Smart Solutions, a Des Moines company, to design and implement a marketing plan to bring new companies to the six-county region in northwest Iowa. We must remain responsive to the needs of local businesses as well, because often job growth and creation come from within.

Working regionally is smart. If a business isn't necessarily a good fit for one county, perhaps a neighboring county will do just fine. When communities in Northwest Iowa prosper, it helps everyone. Expanded job offerings, as well as new products and services often result from growth and investment.