Appalachian Regional Commission steps up

♦ It partners with local entities to boost economic development.

The Appalachian Regional Commission — which pumps millions of dollars into economic development activity in parts of 13 states — is going to delay an update to its five-year funding plan until 2021 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Annaka Woodruff, the ARC program manager at the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, spoke with members of the Rome Floyd Chamber economic development committee. She said the ARC does not directly fund local projects, but it partners with local government, development authorities and nonprofits to assist local communities.

Woodruff said the ARC typically receives $3 million to $3.5 million for the state of Georgia each year. It services 37 communities across the northern tier of the state.

“That doesn’t go terribly far, as you can imagine,” Woodruff said during a video conference with the chamber panel.

As a result, it limits the investment in any one project to no more than $600,000. She said the governor could intervene and request more for special projects, but that has not happened during her time with the agency.

Woodruff said the primary goal of any investment is to create an environment that helps small businesses succeed in a community.

The ARC awarded Rome $600,000 in 2019 to assist with infrastructure work in the River District. She said the fact that the work would be performed in a federally designated opportunity zone made it particularly attractive to help fund.

The funds will be used for water, sewer and related utility work in the area near the intersection of North Fifth Avenue and West Third Street.

“We hope to make the area more attractive to private investors,” Woodruff said.

The grant will be administered through the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority.

Woodruff spoke of other projects ARC has funded across Northwest Georgia in recent years — including funds for the development of an amphitheater and special events building in the area of Church Street and Seaborn Jones Park in Rockmart.

Woodruff said the city acquired the property, which sits next to a section of the Silver Comet Trail, and hopes to have the project completed in time to celebrate its 150th anniversary in 2022.

The agency has started a regionwide project to fund local programs highlighting locally grown and made products across all 13 states, from Mississippi to New York.

“It’s a celebration of the way that Appalachia is unique in the United States,” Woodruff said. “We’re Southerners and food is huge for us.”

The ARC also has been charged — as part of the CARES Act — to use some of its funding in the next year to offset the impact of the coronavirus on communities across the region.

“We’re still working with local governments to figure out what that means,” Woodruff said.