RURAL COMMUNITY AND BUSINESS REVITALIZATION: START AT THE VERY BEGINNING. A VERY GOOD PLACE TO START.

Communities have a desire to thrive and not lose itself in rushed change. Supporting the establishment of robust business development and promotion programs as well as cultivating and encouraging local investment vehicles would provide much needed viability to the overall sustainability of community growth policies. 

Paired with strategic grants and state/federal funds to help communities evolve into sustainable and resilient ecosystems, there are ample opportunities for all communities to share in the post-COVID national economic revitalization efforts.

There are an infinite number of paths to take. Planning is vital to ensuring whichever direction rural communities take is scalable, sustainable, and does not destroy the numerous attractive attributes and characteristics – the WHY and reasons community living is desirable. Encouraging business leaders and their businesses to support a sustainable economic future is key to that planning. 

Businesses and critical infrastructure that are scaled to a community and connected to their unique employment base is core to long-term survival.

Communities can and should shape their own economic development futures. It should also build opportunity from within by encouraging businesses to start, stay, and grow in town without losing sight of its purpose: to have a welcoming community where people are drawn to live, work, shop, and enjoy life throughout their lives.  Beyond skill and experience, communities need leaders who have their mind, heart, and soul embedded in their success.

We help you optimize past and present experiences to earn loyalty from the start. We analyze and advise on ways to understand your community so you know when to have a sense of urgency and moments of calm. This enables you to have the ability to seamlessly correct your course when things aren't going well.  

Downtowns are the heart of our communities, and a community is only as strong as its downtown. As we emerge from the pandemic, we will need to take stock of the past year’s opportunities and challenges. We have lessons learned about what we did well and how downtowns were vulnerable to change. We can validate what has been effective and: 

• Elevate focus to revitalize the strategic direction
• Leverage all resources towards a common goal of revitalizing the downtown
• Engage partner organizations and community stakeholders around a shared strategy and action plans
• Measure to determine success and challenges