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Economic Development Districts: Partners in Rural Resilience and Prosperity [1]

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Date: 2024-10-03

Picture the scene: It’s a ribbon cutting in a small town for a new business incubator that has opened in a formerly vacant storefront. There are speeches, balloons, lots of smiles, and a feeling of accomplishment and a job well-done.

But it took a lot of steps and a lot of time to get to this day – pre-planning, community engagement, environmental reviews, loans and financing, and construction work – and likely none of it was easy. And it’s possible that this project almost didn’t happen.

Writing grants, coordinating partners, managing programs, and even knowing where to look for information about available resources can be particularly difficult for small communities. The challenge of rural capacity is very real and unfortunately can often slow down progress or, at worst, deter dedicated individuals or communities from even pursuing opportunities in the first place. These places often struggle to access federal, state, and philanthropic resources, even those specifically designed to support smaller areas. And these hurdles have been particularly pronounced over the past few years, as communities have had to navigate an alphabet soup of federal pandemic recovery programs (CARES, ARPA, IRA, BIL, CHIPS).

Economic Development Districts as “Support Staff” for Local Governments

Fortunately, small towns and rural communities are not alone in their efforts to navigate resources and funding. A national network of over 400 regional organizations called Economic Development Districts (EDDs) is available to assist communities and regions by writing and administering grants, collecting and mapping data, convening partners, and much more.

The majority of EDDs cover small metros and rural regions and serve as an important intermediary or liaison among local, state, federal, nonprofit, and foundation partners. These organizations act as “support staff” to local governments and can guide them through all phases of a project process, including researching funding opportunities, writing and submitting applications, administering grants, and assisting with project implementation and close-out. Some EDDs even offer contract city management and administrative services at a reasonable cost for local communities that cannot afford a full-time city manager.

EDDs are designated by the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA), an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce. EDA was established through the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 with the primary purpose of facilitating public works projects, creating jobs, and building local capacity in distressed rural regions of the United States.

A little more than a year later, EDA began to formalize a national network of EDDs that would serve as multi-county economic development entities. These organizations would be professionally staffed and have the purpose of providing local technical assistance and helping local communities access EDA and other state and federal economic development programs. In the almost 60 years since the first-ever EDD was designated in Texas, the network has grown to over 400 organizations that cover around 85% of U.S. counties.

Many EDDs are housed as part of a larger regional development organization such as a council of governments (COG), regional planning commission (RPC), or similar organization that may also offer transportation, hazard mitigation, workforce, and aging services. Other EDDs are smaller, single-purpose districts focused solely on planning and economic development. The sizes of EDD staff and the geographies they serve may vary, but they all have the purpose of working regionally to improve local outcomes and foster more prosperous and resilient places.

Each EDD is required to write and maintain a Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) for its region. The CEDS acts as a roadmap for regional economic development and is an opportunity to bring together stakeholders and partners to establish a common regional vision.

Having a CEDS better positions regions for federal funding from EDA and other federal partners and also signals to private industry and philanthropy that the region has undergone a robust planning process and is prepared for investment.

EDDs in Action

The work of EDDs is broad and often takes place out of the spotlight, yet is often instrumental in making many programs, projects, and initiatives to come to life. Recent examples include:

Economic Development Is a Team Sport

Whether conducting studies, preparing and administering grant applications, coordinating partnerships, or facilitating project implementation, EDDs strive to serve their local communities and the region as a whole.

So, the next time you attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony in your community, there’s a good chance that an EDD was involved in some way to contribute to that project’s success. If you’re not already working with your local EDD, now is the perfect time to explore opportunities for collaboration.

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[1] Url: https://dailyyonder.com/economic-development-districts-partners-in-rural-resilience-and-prosperity/2024/10/03/

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