The recent moves of several major players in the automotive industry have put Indiana on the map for the people of Japan.

Now Logansport is trying to raise its profile there as well.

For the second time in slightly more than a year, Logansport has hosted the consul general of Japan at Chicago in the hope of cultivating a relationship to bolster Cass County’s economic development.

Kenji Shinoda spoke at the Logansport-Cass County Economic Development luncheon on Tuesday at the Cass County Memorial Center. His predecessor, Yutaka Yoshizawa, visited Logansport in March 2006.

“I think this was exceptionally well received,” LEDF President Skip Kuker said of Shinoda’s visit. “He was extremely complimentary of the community, and I think we set the bar pretty high for any visit he will do to any other community in any state.”

The Chicago office oversees 10 Midwest states, including Indiana. Though Shinoda has made six visits to Indiana since taking over the position, this was his first official visit outside of Marion County.

Such an honor for the city hasn’t come without planning. Mayor Mike Fincher has visited Japan, and Shinoda said he was pleased by the efforts of the mayor and the city as a whole to encourage Japanese-Logansport relationships.

“Mayor Fincher’s proactive approach conveys that this city opens its doors as well,” he said. “I am very impressed and touched by his economic development team and their enthusiasm. I was pleased to accept this invitation to visit this place.”

Kuker said he has been working for several months to ensure the visit would be productive. More than 150 members of Cass County’s business community showed their support by attending the luncheon. Shinoda, who said he was impressed by the turnout, addressed the crowd as the keynote speaker and discussed the growing relationship between Japan and the people of Indiana.

“Indiana and Logansport have opened their arms to Japan like never before,” he said.

Throughout his speech, Shinoda spoke favorably of the relationship between Japan and the United States.

“There’s no question that the world is changing rapidly and often for the better, but one thing remains constant — the Japan-United States alliance,” he said. “Few alliances in history have achieved so much success. We should continually cultivate our relationship, and that is why I support your initiative to bring Japanese business to Logansport and Logansport to Japan.”

Shinoda made several key references to Indiana’s automotive heritage. He warmed up the crowd with anecdotes about the Indianapolis 500 but also spoke of the significance of the recent opportunities brought on by Japan’s automotive “Big Three”.

He made specific mention of the new Honda plant coming to Greensburg and also noted that Indiana might be the only state in the country to house Honda, Toyota and Subaru manufacturing facilities.

“Their decisions have more than put Indiana on the map in Japan,” he said. “... Their announcements send a clear message that the Midwest and Indiana remain highly competitive.”

Though Shinoda’s visit may create the possibility for future expansion of the automotive industry into Cass County, Fincher said he is hopeful that it might also create related business opportunities.

“Logansport is logistically located for suppliers of the Big Three,” said Fincher. “Not to say that if they wanted to move here we wouldn’t take it, but I think diversity is more a possibility than landing one of the Big Three.”

In addition to formally introducing Shinoda to Logansport, Kuker used the luncheon to update the community on LEDF’s efforts to bring on positive economic change in Cass County.

He expressed hope that LEDF’s new office at 311 S. Fifth St. would attract more businesses and people to the center of Logansport, and he said he had worked to increase Logansport’s visibility on a nationwide scale and was pleased to report that LEDF was working on eight named projects.

He added that these projects, as with any opportunities brought on by Shinoda’s visit, would not happen overnight.

“You’re not going to see anything tomorrow,” he said. “It’s going to be many years down the road. I’m doing it for my kids. Economic development isn’t for today, it’s for the years to come.”

Carla Knapp can be contacted at (574) 732-5150 or via e-mail at carla.knapp@pharostribune.com