News Flash

Small towns and rural communities across the United States are struggling because they were built largely on a single economic sector such as agriculture, logging, mining, or manufacturing, all of which have changed significantly over the past several decades due to market forces, technology, or changing circumstances such as resource depletion, globalization, or shifts in consumer preference. Changes in the economic foundations of rural communities often leave local residents without jobs and the community without a healthy tax base. Rather than just simply seeking to attract major employers to replace these lost jobs, different approaches are being adopted to overcome some of these challenges. “This emerging shift toward place based approaches to economic development can go by various names, such as “smart growth economic development” to refer to a strategy that builds upon existing assets, takes incremental actions to strengthen communities, and builds long-term value to attract a range of investments.