POWER – Page 3

Gazette-Mail: POWER Continues to Invest Millions in Economic Diversification Projects in West Virginia

10.31.16

power

Coalfield communities in West Virginia and around the country received millions of dollars on Wednesday, as part of the second round of grants under President Barack Obama’s POWER Initiative.

The program is designed to help communities that are hard-hit by the decline of the coal industry. In August, West Virginia programs and communities received more than $16 million as part of the first round of grants — nearly 40 percent of the money given out.

The largest West Virginia grant was $2.04 million to the city of Bluefield for the Bluefield Commercialization Station project.

This time around, West Virginia projects got more than $5.6 million, of nearly $28 million distributed.

The grants are administered by the Appalachian Regional Commission and the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration.

The largest West Virginia grant was $2.04 million to the city of Bluefield for the Bluefield Commercialization Station project. The project will turn a 50,000-square-foot freight station into a business incubator, and will “support the creation and retention of 72 jobs, expand at least 12 local businesses, and leverage $510,000 in private investment,” according to a White House fact sheet. The Shott Foundation of Bluefield is also contributing to the project.

The Marshall University Research Corporation received more than $1.5 million for the Sprouting Farms project, which aims to help develop agriculture in nine Southern West Virginia counties…

Read the full story at wvgazettemail.com

Huntington Herald-Dispatch: ReWire Appalachia to Train, Employ Displaced Coal Workers

09.30.16

Photo by Lori Wolfe/Herald-Dispatch

By Josephine Mendez/Huntington Herald-Dispatch

ReWire Appalachia, an initiative of the Coalfield Development Corporation to train displaced coal and manufacturing sector workers in solar roof installation, is not only changing the community, it’s changing lives, Huntington Mayor Steve Williams said.

The enterprise was celebrated Wednesday at the West Edge Factory in Huntington’s Westmoreland neighborhood when representatives with the U.S. Conference of Mayors and Wells Fargo presented Coalfield Development with a 2016 CommunityWINS grant for $150,000 for its work with the West Edge Factory Solar Training Institute.

Adkins said he was more than blessed to be able to transition into a new career through the help of Coalfield’s solar training program.

To commemorate the award, Williams, along with representatives from U.S. Conference of Mayors, Wells Fargo and Coalfield Development, ceremoniously raised a solar panel on top of a makeshift roof at the factory that is used to train ReWire Appalachia crew members.

“We are so proud of what the Coalfield Development Corp. has been able to do,” Williams said. “We are able to stand here together and say that we can create a new future for those who live within our community and beyond.”

Robert Adkins, a crew chief with ReWire Appalachia, is helping to drive that future.

After working in the coalfields for seven years, Adkins, like others, found himself without a job.

“Everybody knows that the mining industry is declining, and it’s a scary feeling to leave for vacation – and even the weekend – and not know if you are going to have a job when you get back,” he said.

With the added pressure of wanting to provide for a wife and 10-month-old baby girl, Adkins said he was more than blessed to be able to transition into a new career through the help of Coalfield’s solar training program…

Read the full story at www.herald-dispatch.com

Bluefield Daily Telegraph: Trail System a Wellspring of Business Opportunities in Southern West Virginia

09.28.16

Photo by Hatfield McCoy Trails

By Charlie Boothe/Bluefield Daily Telegraph

More businesses have opened in the area to serve the growing tourism draw of the popular ATV trail systems.

The Busted ATV Resort, in Bramwell, opened in April by owners Robert Hedges and Pat Brabbs, both of Daytona Beach, Fla.

“We used to race four-wheelers and we’ve been coming to the trails for 14 years,” Hedges said, adding that their trips here gave them the idea to open the resort.

“We’ve been coming to the trails for 14 years.” Their trips here gave them the idea to open the resort.

“We started (on the project) three years ago,” he added.

Hedges said they own “a mountain,” Mt. Me, and plan to expand their business by offering mountaintop camping, among other things.

They also plan to move here.

“Once we get up and running we’ll move here,” he said. “That’s our goal.”

Hedges said the resort will keep growing, and expanding services. “There’s plenty more to come,” he added.

The resort is located on Rt. 52 in Bramwell and is a half-mile from the Hatfield and McCoy Trails and five miles from the Spearhead Trails in Virginia.

The fully remodeled historic 1880 Bramwell House and adjacent quarters are at the base of Mt. Me and offers accommodations.

Expansion of accommodations is continuing, he said, and the mountaintop camping experience will open next year.

The resort’s website is bustedatvresort.com and the email is bustedatvresort@gmail.com.

Another ATV resort now open is the Trailhead Inn in Rock…

Read the full story at www.bdtonline.com

Public News Service: “Big Ideas Fest” in Kentucky Brainstorming Ways to Energize Appalachia

09.15.16

Photo by The Stay Project: www.thestayproject.com

By Greg Stotelmyer/Public News Service

HAZARD, Ky. – With Eastern Kentuckians looking for ways to re-energize their region, collaborative efforts are popping up – including the “Big Ideas Fest for Appalachia,” on Friday in Hazard.

Organizers say the focus is on growing and diversifying the economy through innovation and collaboration.

Natasha Watts, who teaches visual communications at Hazard Community and Technical College, is on the event’s opening panel. Her main message: When it comes to the “tech world,” there are many paths people can take to be employable in Appalachia.

Growing and diversifying the economy through innovation and collaboration.

“We can’t tap just one part of that tech market. We have to think about that tech market as much larger, because the tech market is much larger,” Watts explained. “When we think of technology, we think of this inanimate object that’s just a computer – but it expands a lot more than what we’re thinking about.”

Watts said, for example, while coding often is mentioned as a tech job in the region, there also is a huge demand for content providers.

Organizer Ron Daley, strategic partner lead for the Kentucky Valley Educational Cooperative, said the idea for the event came from students. Daley said he’s seen proof that young people in the area have creative business ideas…

Read the full story at www.publicnewsservice.org

In Madison, Unlocking the Potential of Boone County

09.15.16

Madison, Boone County. Photo by The Hub.

Madison, Boone County. Photos by The Hub.

I’m from Boone County. When I went to my second ever Innovation Acceleration Strategy (IAS) community meeting in Madison earlier this month, I thought I would feel separated, different somehow, from the other members of my community.

I thought that after three weeks serving with The Hub, I would feel a much greater passion for community growth than those around me, that I would have to lead the charge to change Madison. But I didn’t. And it was amazing.

In Madison, I was blown away at how involved and engaged all my neighbors were.

For those of you that are unaware, IAS is a program at The Hub that strives to diversify the economy of five economically struggling southern West Virginia counties through community engagement. I previously wrote about how I was first drawn to The Hub because of the first IAS meeting in Madison.

Since that time, I have become connected to all five of these places across souther West Virginia, and been working to spread the good word of IAS to the citizens there, and organizations all across the region.

madison-2 In Madison, I was blown away at how involved and engaged all my neighbors were.

I walked in expecting to have to help them understand what it takes to break down a goal into manageable tasks, but they didn’t need it. The members of my home community already have an understanding of what it takes to create positive change.

I was very impressed with the manufacturing team, led by Vernon Eversole. They took off on their own, working to figure out how they could find land for potential manufacturers. They were so productive, I almost felt like we were in their way.

Looking around this room at people that I have known for years, I couldn’t help but think to myself, “We could have done this on our own.” Why did this outside group need to come in to tell us to organize? Then I realized what is so amazing about The Hub and IAS.

“We could have done this on our own. Why did this outside group need to come in to tell us to organize?”

All my life I have been told all the things that are wrong with Boone County. People told me that there was no point to stay because it would never change.

When The Hub came in, they helped us pinpoint what makes our community amazing. They helped us see how incredible we really are.

Now, it is impossible for me to view Madison as anything other than a community filled to the brim with potential. And I know that we have a room full of motivated people that feel the same way.

I can’t wait to see how much my hometown can grow.

Terry-Bartley

Motorcycle Tours, Restaurant Incubator Among Ideas For New Economic Opportunities In Southern West Virginia

09.06.16

Photo by Motographer/FlickrCC

So, fall is almost upon us and our IAS program is kicking into high gear!

Four communities have started working in sector teams to plan for growing their local economy. Projects are being discussed in McDowell, Wyoming, Lincoln and Boone counties. These teams have some pretty cool ideas that other communities in the state should know about!

In McDowell County, the Technology Team is working on a website for local residents and organizations to use to promote events, and to help small business owners promote themselves.

Their Arts and Culture Team is hoping to out together an Arts and Music Festival in the near future, and are working with the RiffRaff Collective for a Create Your State event in Welch on October 3.

In Wyoming County, the Transportation Team is looking at some innovative ideas to promote better bike and pedestrian access to their towns.

The McDowell County Tourism and Recreation Team would like to boost motorcycle tourism in the area by creating a ride modeled off of the Back of the Dragon event, which takes place in Tazwell, Virginia.

And the Local Food and Agriculture Team is working to put together a Fall Festival featuring the produce of growers in McDowell County.

Over in Wyoming County, the Transportation Team is looking at some innovative rail-trail ideas, as well as Safe Routes to School, in order to promote better bike and pedestrian access in and to their towns.

Their Arts and Culture Team, whose first meeting featured a presentation from the Tammarck Foundation, is also planning an art show for the fall.

With so many great ideas and hard work going on around the state, what are you doing to lift up your community?

In Madison, the Boone County seat, we’ve heard ideas around a restaurant incubator downtown, a future arts festival, as well as creative fundraising events to support local artists and media producers.

We are excited to see what happens going forward. Our final IAS community to get started this year, Alderson, kicks off on September 12.

With so many great ideas and hard work going on around the state, what are you doing to lift up your community?

Dan-Taylor

Just Ten Months Later, Changing POWER Fortunes Reveal a Rising West Virginia

09.02.16

Photo by Gene/FlickrCC

Let’s flash-back to October 2015. West Virginia is one of several coal-impacted states vying for more than $14.5 million in federal funding for new economic diversification projects.

The money is being made available through the POWER (Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization) initiative, led by the White House and done through a collaboration of multiple federal agencies.

West Virginia certainly has been impacted by changes in the energy sector as much as any of its Appalachian neighbors.

Of the 36 successful grantees announced, our state won only 3. They told us our projects needed to be bolder, more collaborative, and regional in scope.

But on this fall day ten months ago that the 36 successful grantees were announced, our state won only 3. By comparison, Kentucky received funding for 13 projects. The $1.6 million in grants we received for local work was less than 10 percent of the total allocated to coal-impacted communities.

West Virginia was lagging behind our neighboring states. The agencies who managed the grants were clear with us about why. They told us our projects needed to be bolder, more collaborative, and regional in scope.

They challenged us to bring projects that were in the range of $1.5 – $2 million dollars. They challenged us to step up our game.

And so we did. Over a series of meetings this spring co-hosted by The Hub, TechConnect WV and the Benedum Foundation, more than 100 community leaders and stakeholders from across West Virginia came together to build strong POWER proposals for 2016.

The people who stood up and shared their ideas with trust in the power of collaboration, were this past Wednesday celebrating their newly funded projects.

Instead of building proposals in secrecy, the participants shared their grant ideas, their proposal amounts and the geographic scope of their projects. Participants worked together to link their projects, to reduce duplications, to build stronger, more regional projects.

The same participants who were in those meetings – the same people who stood up and shared their ideas with trust in the power of collaboration – were the same people in the room in Huntington this past Wednesday celebrating their success, and their newly funded projects.

This time around, West Virginia received $16.5 million of a total $38.8 million in POWER grants, 43 percent of the total funding.

This huge showing by West Virginia entrepreneurs on behalf of local projects sparked a colleague in Kentucky to send me an email congratulating West Virginia on our success and noting that, today, we were the star.

The New River Gorge Regional Development Authority brought in $1,087,500 for two projects to expand their economic development expertise across the southeastern region of the state.
The Hatfield McCoy Development authority received a $1,372,275 grant to expand trail-tourism employment in southern West Virginia.
And the Upshur County Redevelopment Authority received a major $2,285,049 grant to build a facility to support and encourage regional business innovation.

These were only some of the awardees who were in that room for each of those meetings over the past nine months, working together to improve their projects.

And The Hub is celebrating their successes. We have come a long way as a state to position ourselves to take advantage of this funding opportunity.

West Virginia is the star this week. We are thrilled to see the success of our state and the economic transition leaders working to improve our coal-impacted communities.

Stephanie-Tyree

Could One Shuttered Boone County Business Actually Change the Future of Southern West Virginia?

08.31.16

Photo of Welch, McDowell County, by Mark Plummer/FlickrCC

When I closed the doors to Spoiler Warning Games and Comics for the last time, I thought I had no option but to leave the economic depression that is the West Virginia coal fields.

When I opened my shop, I did so with the intent of reshaping the culture of Boone County. I researched communities that were heavily reliant on a natural resource and I was inspired by the story of Coos Bay-North Bend, Ore., that after losing the support of the lumber industry, bolstered their economy through opening 436 new small businesses in two years.

I felt that by leading the charge and opening a small business, I could be that beacon of hope that this community desperately needed.

As someone that lives in southern West Virginia, I know how hard it is to have a positive attitude when it feels like the world is against you.

Which made closing my business that much harder. I didn’t just feel like I had failed as a business owner, I felt like I had failed my community.

For several months after, I didn’t know what to do. I went through life looking for purpose, I knew what I wanted to do, but they don’t usually advertise a position for “Community Cheerleader” in the newspaper.

Or, at least that’s what I thought.

I had been writing for the Coal Valley News, Boone County’s local paper, for a few months, which led me to a story about a program called the Innovation Acceleration Strategy, or IAS, coming to help diversify the economy of Madison, W. Va.

IAS is a program coordinated through The Hub to empower communities to expand specific economic sectors, chosen by the individual communities. As I was writing the story, I learned that they were looking to bring on a VISTA to help with the program.

I didn’t think much of it at the time, but even then it sounded like the role I’d been searching for.

Eventually, I decided that part-time freelance newspaper writing wasn’t a great long term employment strategy. Money was getting tight and I didn’t feel like I had the level of creative control as I was craving.

Then I recalled that The Hub was looking for a VISTA, a role that was essentially a “Community Cheerleader” for their IAS program.

I’m helping regular people in struggling communities realize that they have the ability to take control of their future.

I have now been in this VISTA role with The Hub for just over two weeks. I feel more fulfilled than I have for a long time.

The work that IAS is doing feels really important, because it’s helping regular people in struggling communities realize that they have the ability to take control of their future.

As someone that still lives in southern West Virginia, I know how hard it is to have a positive attitude when it feels like the world is against you.

But I’m here to say, that through the power of collaboration, we can take West Virginia back. We have the power to create the change we want to see.

Terry-Bartley

Breaking News: West Virginia Receives $16.5 Million in Funding For New Economic Projects

08.24.16

Photo courtesy Coalfield Development Corporation.

West Virginia took an enormous step toward a more diversified and sustainable economy today, with the announcement that 13 West Virginia projects would receive almost $16.5 million in grant funding through the federal government’s Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization (POWER) Initiative.

At an event held at the Wild Ramp in Huntington, officials from the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA), and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration today announced $38.8 million worth of investments to grow the economy in the nation’s coal–impacted communities. Almost half of this was designated specifically to West Virginia.

In addition to the state-specific economic diversification projects, $1.5 million was granted to the Central Appalachian Food Enterprise Corridor, a 5-state, 43-county project to develop a coordinated local foods distribution network throughout Central Appalachia, including West Virginia.

Here’s a quick summation of the West Virginia initiatives to receive funding.

• $2,500,000 total (a $1,500,000 ARC grant and a $1,000,000 EDA grant) to the Bluewell Public Service District in Bluefield, WV for the Mercer County Regional Airport Development and Diversification Initiative.

POWER funds will be used to extend public water service along Route 52 and Airport Road to the Mercer County Regional Airport. In addition to providing essential infrastructure to the regional airport, the project will create 38 new jobs, and will capitalize on an existing regional asset by providing funding for a strategic plan that will position the airport and its adjoining 200 acres of flat, developable land as an economic driver for four counties in Southern West Virginia and Southwestern Virginia.

• $2,285,049 EDA grant to Upshur County Development Authority in Buckhannon, WV, for the Upshur County Knowledge and Innovation Business Center.

This project consists of the construction of the new Business Center on property donated by the City of Buckhannon, which will host a small business development center to be managed by the Upshur County Development Authority. Small business development support services will be targeted to IT and other technology-based business interests. The Center will also provide flex-office and incubator space.

Broadband access will be available at the facility as a result of a privately-funded initiative to address the current lack of broadband access in Upshur County. One technology company has already committed to locating in this facility. The project will create and retain 78 jobs and leverage $8,500,000 in additional investment.

• $2,196,450 ARC grant to the Consortium for Entrepreneurship Education in Charleston, WV for the EntreEd K-14: Every Student, Every Year project.

The EntreEd program enables K-12 teachers to integrate entrepreneurial content and context into delivery of required standards in any subject or grade level. The project will educate the next generation of Appalachia’s workforce to create their own businesses to drive the local economy.

• $1,870,000 ARC grant to the Coalfield Development Corporation in Wayne, WV for the Appalachian Social Entrepreneurship Investment Strategy.

ARC funds will be used to incubate job-creating social enterprises; scale-up Coalfield Development Corporation’s innovate 33-6-3 on-the-job training/education/life skills workforce development model; and expand Coalfield Development Corporation’s service territory to other coal-impacted areas in Southern West Virginia.

The award will create 85 new jobs and equip 60 trainees to pursue quality jobs in high-demand industries in the Appalachian Region, and will be supported by funding from the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation.

• $1,822,500 total (a $1,200,000 EDA grant and a $622,500 ARC grant) to the Randolph County Development Authority in Elkins, WV for the Hardwood Cluster Manufacturing Expansion Project.

POWER funds will be utilized to expand a major cabinet manufacturer’s operation by enabling the doubling of its current production rate due to a new national contract – thereby creating 45 new jobs and adding $2,500,000 in annual wages to the regional economy. In addition, the award will strengthen the Hardwood Alliance Zone – a nine-county region in Central West Virginia containing a cluster of hardwood businesses.

• $1,648,400 EDA grant to Mingo County Redevelopment Authority (MCRA) and Mingo County Public Service District in Williamson, WV for the Mingo County Air Transportation Park Infrastructure Improvements project.

The project will provide potable water to the Mingo County Air Transportation Park atop a reclaimed surface mine in the center of the county, which MCRA is positioning as an industrial site for light and advanced manufacturers.

It will include construction of approximately 62 thousand feet of water line, a 500 gallon-per-minute booster pumping station, a one-million-gallon water storage tank, and other related equipment, as well as an on-site sewage, aeration, and absorption system. The project will create and retain 520 jobs and leverage $9,000,000 in additional investment.

• $1,372,275 ARC grant to the Hatfield McCoy Regional Recreation Authority in Man, WV for the Southern Coalfields Sustainable Tourism & Entrepreneurship Program.

ARC funds will develop and implement a comprehensive plan to expand tourism-related employment and businesses in southern West Virginia, and will foster Hatfield-McCoy Trail expansion in Kentucky and Virginia. In addition, the award provides for the deployment of a coordinated marketing effort, which will increase the region-wide economic impact of the Trails by $13,000,000 per year. The project will create 225 jobs and 50 new businesses along the Trails, and will be supported by funding from the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation.

• $1,250,000 ARC grant to the Natural Capital Investment Fund, Inc. in Shepherdstown, WV for the Growing Triple Bottom Line Small Businesses in Coal Impacted Communities in Central Appalachia project.

These funds will be used to expand coal- impacted communities’ access to capital in Southern West Virginia by capitalizing a $4,000,000 tourism-related revolving loan fund and developing a West Virginia New Markets Tax Credit Fund.

The project will create 200 new jobs and 20 new businesses, bring $5,000,000 of leveraged private investment into the region, and will be supported by funding from the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation.

• $967,500 ARC grant to the New River Gorge Regional Development Authority in Beckley, WV for the New River Gorge Region – Developing an Entrepreneurial Economy project.

ARC funds will be used to establish a technical assistance support program — which will assist start-up businesses with hands-on technical aspects of their operations — and to hire social enterprise and region-wide business coaches.

• $250,000 EDA grant to the Advantage Valley, Incorporated (AVI) in Huntington, WV for the AVI Site Development and Small Business Feasibility Study.

This study will identify sites for commercial development within identified clusters (including manufacturing, chemical and polymer production, and supply chain distribution), and assess how small business activities can be targeted to meet the needs of existing and new industry clusters (such as health care) in an eight-county area.

This EDA investment will also support the analysis of the critical components necessary to establish a site development fund. AVI is partnering with the Charleston Area Alliance, West Virginia Small Business Development Center, and regional economic development organizations to develop this project, which will be supported by funding from the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation.

• $200,000 ARC grant to the West Virginia Development Office for the Hobet Strategic Plan.

West Virginia will receive technical assistance to develop a detailed economic assessment and strategic plan for the best use of the Hobet Surface Mine Site in Boone and Lincoln Counties, previously the largest surface mining operation in the state.

• $120,000 EDA grant to New River Gorge Regional Development Authority (NRGRDA) in Fayetteville, WV for a NRGRDA Regional Business Loan Study.

This study will assess the feasibility of establishing a comprehensive Regional Loan Fund to invest in the most economically challenged communities in Southern West Virginia.

• $10,000 ARC grant to The EdVenture Group in Morgantown, West Virginia for the Creating Opportunities, Diversifying Economy for displaced coal miners (CODE) project to develop a sustainable plan for economic diversification.

The project being developed is expected to serve 12 counties in West Virginia.

More information about today’s announced awards is available through the ARC Web site at www.arc.gov.

Jake-Lynch

New York Times: Regardless of Politics, Pockets of Appalachia Already Looking Beyond Coal

08.17.16

Photo by George Etheredge/New York Times

By Sheryl Gay Stolberg/New York Times

PIKEVILLE, Ky. — Here in the heart of central Appalachian coal country, an economic experiment is underway inside an airy renovated Coca-Cola bottling plant. Most days, Michael Harrison, a former mine electrician and “buggy man” who once drove trucks 700 feet underground, can be found hunched over a silver laptop, designing websites for clients like the Pikeville tourism board.

Mr. Harrison, 36, is one of 10 former mine workers employed at BitSource, an internet start-up founded by two Pikeville businessmen determined to prove a point: that with training and encouragement, Kentucky miners can learn to code.

“We told them, ‘Quit thinking of yourselves as unemployed coal workers; you’re technology workers,’” said Rusty Justice, a founder of BitSource. He called his pep talks “reimagination training.”

“Quit thinking of yourselves as unemployed coal workers; you’re technology workers.”

Nearly 13,000 coal jobs — and countless more in related industries — have disappeared in Kentucky since President Obama took office; coal employment is at its lowest level since 1898. In Washington, Democrats and Republicans remain locked in a feud over whether Mr. Obama’s aggressive environmental regulations amount to a “war on coal.” On the presidential campaign trail, Donald J. Trump is vowing to “put our miners back to work.”

But across central Appalachia, and especially here in eastern Kentucky, elected officials, business leaders, environmentalists and community advocates are looking beyond politics to wrestle with a question essential to the region’s survival: What comes after coal?

The founders of BitSource are not the only ones thinking creatively; there are nascent efforts in craft agriculture and energy efficiency as well.

The founders of BitSource are not the only ones thinking creatively; there are nascent efforts in craft agriculture and energy efficiency as well. These initiatives will not cure central Appalachia’s economic woes; at BitSource, Mr. Harrison was among 1,000 laid-off miners who applied for 10 jobs.

Rather, said Lora Smith, who oversees grants in central Appalachia for the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation, they represent lurching steps into what one local writer called “a terrifying liberation” for a region rich in natural resources whose people have deep ties to the land.

It is “terrifying,” Ms. Smith said, “because people are out of work, but it’s also this liberation, to reimagine what this place can be…”

Read the full story at www.nytimes.com

Follow the author on Twitter @sherylstolberg