50 Communities Nationwide Complete Revitalization Plans in Hopes of Becoming America’s Best
12 November 2015 - 2:05AM
Business Wire
Sponsored by Frontier Communications, DISH
Network, CoBank and The Weather Channel, America’s Best Communities
$10 million competition is investing to revitalize small towns and
rural communities
Semifinalists will be chosen from 50
quarterfinalist communities based on their plans to grow local
economies and enhance quality of life
Fifty quarterfinalist communities across the country have been
hard at work developing Community Revitalization Plans to jumpstart
their local economies and improve quality of life. Frontier
Communications, DISH Network, CoBank and The Weather Channel,
sponsors of the America’s Best Communities Prize Competition, have
supported these quarterfinalists with $50,000 in seed money and
assigned mentor partners as the communities compete to be America’s
best and win $6 million in grand prizes.
“From business incubators and new social gathering places to
workforce training and infrastructure improvements, this
community-driven prize campaign has uncovered a wealth of
innovative ideas that are revitalizing towns and cities across
rural and suburban America,” said Frontier Communications
Executive Chairman Maggie Wilderotter. “350 communities entered
the contest and all of them are implementing improvements for a
better quality of life. As the contest progresses, all ideas are
shared with every community who has participated so everyone
wins.”
In each of the quarterfinalist communities, local leaders have
worked tirelessly to bring their neighbors together to support a
collective vision and develop a strategy to deliver results.
Yesterday the quarterfinalist communities submitted their best and
final plans, which will be reviewed by a panel of independent
expert judges. Fifteen communities will be selected as
semi-finalists and will continue this journey by participating in
the America’s Best Communities Summit in April 2016.
“The America’s Best Communities program has become a movement
for positive change in the 50 towns and cities that are in the
quarterfinals,” said DISH Network Executive Vice President and
General Counsel R. Stanton Dodge. “By uniting business owners,
elected officials, leaders and residents to achieve a common goal,
these communities are taking active steps to define and invigorate
their futures.”
“Rural America is a mainstay of the nation’s broader economy and
an essential source of food and energy for the entire world,” said
CoBank CEO Bob Engel. “But rural communities also face a
host of issues, including demographic challenges, a shortage of
quality jobs and aging infrastructure. Rural economic development
is the answer to many of these problems, and we are delighted to
see the exciting proposals that have been put forward through the
America’s Best Communities program.”
“By tapping into the tenacity and resilience of our nation’s
small towns and rural regions, America’s Best Communities has
helped drive exciting progress in communities across the country,”
said Dave Shull, CEO of The Weather Channel Television. “The
competition has provided an infusion of investment and hope in
communities that are often ignored.”
“One in six of us calls rural America home. These communities
are the backbone of our country, but they’ve suffered from a host
of challenges, from poverty to drug abuse,” said Vince Gill, the
country music great who has served as a spokesperson for the
competition. “America's Best Communities is an innovative way
to inspire hope in rural America and provide a hand up, not a hand
out. It will help our neighbors in small communities lift
themselves up by their bootstraps and live their own American
dream.”
To achieve economic revitalization, communities identified a
diverse array of ideas in their plans:
- Huntington, West Virginia wants to
redevelop brownfields left behind by heavy industry and replace
dilapidated housing to restore a key neighborhood.
- Wilmington, Ohio plans to build a
makerspace in a vacant building to encourage entrepreneurship and
inspire its workforce.
- Imlay City, Michigan intends to
capitalize on its agricultural heritage, converting vacant lands
into opportunities for community farms and agri-business.
- Northern Idaho communities of Rathdrum,
Hayden and Post Falls are pursuing a regional plan to become a hub
for technologies related to autonomous and remotely piloted
vehicles.
- Lafayette, Indiana wants to invest in
talent development, encouraging the community’s youth to cultivate
their knowledge and grow their careers locally.
In January 2016, up to 15 communities will be named
semifinalists and invited to attend the America’s Best Communities
Summit, where they will present their revitalization plans. Eight
communities will then be selected to receive $100,000 to implement
their plans. The top three communities will be announced in 2017
and awarded a total of $6 million in grand prizes, with $3 million
for the first-place community, $2 million for second and $1 million
for third.
For additional information on the competition, please visit
www.americasbestcommunities.com.
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Frontier CommunicationsJohn Puskar, 203-614-5095VP, ABC
CampaignJohn.puskar@ftr.comwww.americasbestcommunities.com
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