Land excavation will begin this spring, and the lots should be ready for people to start building on in late spring. South of the golf course, John Burklund of Clay Center has owned some building lots since before the course was built. Water and sewer services are in, and he expects the first house to go up the spring. Mayor Dave Bondegard said Clay Center has had a pretty strong housing market for a while, but options and availability are lacking. Hastings said new employees of the Roman L. Hruska Meat Animal Research Center west of Clay Center look for nearby housing in town.
Nothing is available, however, so they look elsewhere.
Bondegard said Clay Center is a good town for people to live in because it's the Clay County seat and is close to the cities of Hastings and Grand Island. Clay Center's population is continuing to increase but not by much, he said. Population estimates from U.S. Bureau of the Census indicate Clay Center grew 7.5 percent between 1990 and 1996.