Efforts Underway To Boost Highlands Economy

In recent years, the Alleghany Highlands has experienced the loss of jobs, and the population is not growing, but declining and aging.

School closings due to declining enrollment have been in the news.

However, there has been some bright news, with Mead-Westvaco having made substantial investments in its Covington operations, and HCA Virginia investing in LewisGale Hospital-Alleghany. Balchem has invested in the area with a focus on its animal nutrition and health business, and we have experienced the addition of some new retail businesses.

What does the future hold for us and our children, in terms of opportunities for the next generation to live and work in the Alleghany Highlands?

Questions such as this are being asked of the community in a series of meetings hosted jointly by the Alleghany High-lands Chamber of Commerce and Tourism, the Alleghany Highlands Economic Development Corporation, Dabney S. Lancaster Community College, and The Alleghany Foundation.

The wheels are in motion for a community initiative to identify and evaluate potential ideas that will expand the local economy – from tourism to manufacturing and everything in between.

In early March, over 80 community stakeholders met and engaged in a presentation and roundtable discussion on the local economy that was facilitated by John Rhodes, a nationally-recognized economic development consultant.

The outcome of the event launched a wide array of creative, innovative ideas, providing a foundation from which to launch a solid, workable and achievable plan to transform the economy of the Alleghany Highlands.

As a next step, the team is inviting the community participants to come together on Wednesday at 11:30 a.m.
The event will be held at Dabney S. Lancaster Community College’s Warren Hall with a report out of those ideas in a group session kicking off the meeting.

The goal of this follow-up session is to establish a vision for the future, define the beginning steps, develop teams to focus on numerous aspects of implementing the steps, and make plans to move forward. The teams will reach out and embrace any and all volunteers, lead the work and be ready to see results.

Seeing the vision fulfilled will take many people working in many different areas, but, according to Rhodes, this will be successful because, as he recently stated, “We’re going to roll up our sleeves, get to work, and see some real results. This will not be a spectator sport, and there will be opportunities for everyone to get involved and make a difference.”

For more information about this initiative, please call The Alleghany Foundation at (540) 962-0970.