Jesslyn Wilson, of the Regional Planning Commission of Greater Birmingham (RPCGB), spoke to the Walker County Commission on Monday to officially announce a project to impact economic development in the area.
In partnership with the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA), the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) announced that the Regional Planning Commission of Greater Birmingham’s (RPCGB) “Economic Development Strategic Planning for Economic Growth & Resilience” project was selected for a $50,000 grant award through the POWER program’s planning initiative.
The project will lead to the preparation of a comprehensive Economic Development Strategic Plan (EDSP) for Walker County, with the goal of improving community capacity in rural and under-resourced communities and enhancing multijurisdictional collaboration and regional project implementation. The plan will align communities’ priorities with federal funding initiatives from recent legislation and existing funding programs. Through partnerships with local and regional development organizations, the plan will be based on local community engagement and develop specialized plans for the Interstate 22 corridor and expansion of outdoor recreation industries in the county.
“I know that the county has been in project development with the Walker Area Community Foundation to look at outdoor recreation as a way to diversify the local economy and invest in the natural assets, the beautiful natural assets that Walker County has,” Wilson said. “We are excited to be a partner in this strategic plan.”
The ARC awarded nearly $54 million to 64 projects in 217 counties through its POWER (Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization) Initiative. This program directs federal resources to economic diversification projects in Appalachian communities affected by job losses in coal mining, coal power plant operations, and coal-related supply chain industries. The Walker County project was one of those 64 projects.
So when you got a good thing going, the thing that’s important is pull it together with a plan so that everybody’s putting in the same direction and we’ve got all these efforts moving in the same direction.
“I’m thrilled about this opportunity in figuring out how we aid the county commission in being able to come up with a master plan that’s gonna allow Walker County to be all we want her to be,” Sen. Greg Reed (R-Jasper) said during Monday’s meeting. “Do we have challenges and problems? Of course we do, but working together, we’re going to be able to continue to move in a direction that will allow our county to be all that we want her to be.”
Wilson said ROCGB funding comes from the state legislature and thanked Reed as well as Rep. Matt Woods (R-Jasper) for the work they do.
Woods called the announcement a “starting point” for Walker County. Woods urged county leaders to emphasize recreation, especially outdoor recreation, as well as infrastructure on the I-22 corridor.
“I think we all share common goals with the people we represent,” he said. “We want the same amenities as other communities; we want places for our families to enjoy and for young people to be entertained.
Later in the meeting, the commission voted unanimously to approve the POWER grant.
