Having a building to market to prospective businesses can help Lawrence get its foot in the door.

How do you attract a new business to your community? First, you have to get its attention.

That’s why Tuesday’s ground-breaking for a speculative building in the East Hills Business Park is great news for Lawrence. The 67,000-square-foot building in the park east of the city is being built by Douglas County Development Inc. with the help of five area lenders. It will be the first speculative building constructed in the park since the late 1980s.

Having a building to show a company looking for a location to start or expand a business is a huge plus. A building that’s ready to move into is a big attraction for a business that wants to take quick action on its plans. Having a speculative building in East Hills will give Lawrence an important foot in the door for such businesses.

Companies who come to Lawrence to look at the building may find it doesn’t meet their needs, but once they are here, local officials will have an opportunity to show them other property or discuss other options. The last spec building in East Hills, in fact, is credited with helping attract three other businesses to town before it was occupied by a business of its own. The spec building wasn’t what the other companies were looking for, but they liked what they saw well enough to build other facilities that better met their needs at East Hills.

Tuesday’s groundbreaking came on the second day on the job for Lynn Parman, the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce’s new vice president for economic development. The addition of Parman and the spec building have the potential to breathe some new energy into the city’s economic development efforts.

If Lawrence wants to attract good companies and jobs for the many highly qualified workers who live here, it can’t afford to simply sit back and wait for something to happen. The spec building shows that Lawrence is actively in the hunt for businesses seeking to expand or relocate.

However, a spec building alone will not get the job done. A successful effort to attract and land new business and industry will require the solid endorsement and support of city and county officials and the enthusiastic support of Lawrence residents.

Congratulations to DCDI, the chamber and the lenders who are supporting this important project.