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Recreation Economy for Rural Communities: Giles County…

Recreation Economy

 

 

 

Welcome! This is the registration page for the Recreation Economy for Rural Communities Virtual Workshop for Giles County, focusing on the Towns of Pembroke and Narrows, taking place October 26-29, 2020. This is a series of seven, virtual video conference sessions spaced over four days. The process is designed for interactivity. It will create a community action plan built by you, the participants. Ideally you can attend all sessions, but if you cannot commit to all, just select the first and last sessions and any others you can attend. Event video conferencing sign in links, audio call in, program information, participation instructions, and other handouts will be sent to you by email prior to the first session. Thank you for your interest and we look forward to working with you.

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Downtown Narrows | Grant Award & Recommendation

Downtown Narrows | Grant Award & Recommendation

 

The Town of Narrows is excited to receive a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) – Competitive Grant Award for Business District Revitalization in the amount of $699,346. This grant is the result of many months of planning and community input. A volunteer team of local citizens worked with the NRV Regional Commission to develop this application using a previously awarded CDBG Planning Grant. The planning focused on highlighting and enhancing the outdoor recreation opportunities in and around the Town. The proposed projects will create public spaces and amenities in the business district and encourage visitors to stop and explore the town, its businesses, and surrounding attractions. The project provides matching funds for repair and renovation of facades of commercial structures and implements improvement projects to enhance the streetscape and public spaces and amenities – including the addition of a Creekside Trail and public space along Wolf Creek. The Town of Narrows looks forward to continuing the process of investing and improving our downtown area.

 

Conceptual rendering of possible improvements to the downtown in Narrows.
Conceptual rendering of possible improvements to the downtown in Narrows.

 

Governor Terry McAuliffe also announced his recommendation that the Town of Narrows receive $392,588 from the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) to complete a related revitalization project to locate an outfitter business on Wolf Creek. The ARC will finalize approval of this project award later this year. Funds from this grant are to be used in conjunction with the awarded CDBG grant to make many of the downtown improvements, to obtain property along the proposed Creekside Trail and to create an area for water-oriented recreational activities in the downtown area.

 

The award of these grants is an exciting opportunity for the Town of Narrows and its citizens to make significant improvements that support the revitalization of the downtown district, develop opportunities for new and existing businesses, and create a downtown that is functioning and vital for years to come.

 

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Giles County, Virginia is located in Southwest Virginia approximately 40 minutes south of Roanoke and just west of Blacksburg and Virginia Tech. With easy access to the New River, world class dining and lodging properties, and historical attractions for the entire family, Giles offers adventure in Virginia’s Mountain Playground™. Come find your playground at our Visitors Center located at 203 N Main Street, Pearisburg, VA 24134 or find us online at gilescounty.org or by calling 540-921-2079. For interviews or onsite visits, please contact Cora Gnegy, Tourism Marketing Director. We can arrange and assist with any media needs. For more information about planning your visit to Giles County or about activities and events, please visit www.gilescounty.org or contact us at tourism@gilescounty.org.

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Rally Southwest Virginia Arrives in Narrows

Rally Southwest Virginia Arrives in Narrows

 

Giles County, VA- Rally Southwest Virginia is building community leadership capacity and reinforcing collaborative communities across the region of Southwest Virginia. The region consisting of 19 counties from Giles to the far southwest counties in Virginia, has embraced this program and others to find creative outlets for suppressed economies and the revitalization for downtown areas.

 

The Town of Narrows is the first community in the New River Valley to participate in this new min-grant program, facilitated by Opportunity SWVA. The mini-grant program provides a $3,000 award to communities to implement a community development project through a team structure. The team in Narrows is comprised of citizens, small business owners, town staff, and county representatives. The group gathered for the initial meeting to discuss the potential of the Rally program and begin brainstorming how this mini-grant could be utilized to support ongoing development efforts in Narrows.

 

At the initial meeting, participants heard from Robyn Lee, Entrepreneurship Coordinator for Opportunity SWVA. Through partnerships with the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) and the Virginia Tourism Corporation (VTC) this program has already seen success in other communities in the region. Chilhowie, Cleveland, Coeburn, Damascus, Dungannon, Haysi, Pocahontas, and Tazewell have utilized the award monies to build and install kiosks, develop wayfinding signage for their downtown, create art in public places, and more.

 

A goal of the project, aside from a short-term completed project, is to build a cohesive and engaged group at the local level to help facilitate future development in the community. This small group locally, will then serve as energetic leaders to support other community and small business efforts. The goal of attracting and supporting entrepreneurs and their ventures to Narrows  has been the topic of conversation as the community has participated in master planning sessions for over a year.

 

All five towns in Giles County, Pembroke, Pearisburg, Narrows, Rich Creek, and Glen Lyn are all actively engaged in revitalization planning under the guidance of the New River Valley Regional Commission with funds from DHCD in the form of their Community Development Block Grants. Pembroke and Narrows are nearing the time to submit for implementation funds from their master planning process, while the other communities are beginning their visioning and coordination phase of the process.

 

For the next six months Narrows will be considering, designing, and implementing a project to support the town as a place for business as it relates to the master plan that focuses on outdoor recreation as a driver for economic development. The group that recently met, while no final decisions were made, enjoyed the ideas revolving around signage, façade improvements, or a beatification project to welcome residents and visitors to this wonderfully natural, mountain town in Southwest Virginia.

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For additional information on RALLY Southwest Virginia please feel free to contact Robyn Lee at 276-376-3453 or rlee@uvawise.edu.

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For more information about planning your visit to Giles County or about activities and events, please visit www.gilescounty.org or contact us at tourism@gilescounty.org.