Where: Green River, Utah
Issue: Small, rural communities face economic challenges
Outcome: Rural Community Assistance Corporation’s (RCAC) Building Rural Economies (BRE) provides economic development strategies, training and helps build organizational capacity
The city of Green River, like many western rural communities, lacks economic opportunities. Young people are leaving town and wages are low. Residents and visiting workers face a lack of adequate, affordable housing. Main Street, once vibrant and alive, struggled as businesses closed. Tourists heading to the nearby national parks (Arches and Canyonlands), pull off Interstate 70 to fuel their cars and recreational vehicles at Green River gas stations however, few stay to explore the recreational wonders and opportunities along the Green River and the adjacent San Rafael Swell wilderness area.
To help improve the community’s economic outlook, RCAC worked with the city of Green River’s citizens through the BRE initiative. The BRE strategy concentrates on local resources, markets and opportunities, and then builds a network of leaders, entrepreneurs and support around these assets.
RCAC worked with the nonprofit organization Epicenter to help increase its organizational capacity, and helped write a funding application to USDA RD Rural Business Development Grant Program (RBDG). The organization was awarded a $24,000 grant to continue to assist small local businesses with expansion and business creation. RCAC helped Epicenter to develop the “Green River Downtown Revitalization Plan.” Through the RBDG grant, the organization offered a series of workshops for Green River businesses.
Since BRE began its work with Epicenter, two businesses have expanded, creating two full time jobs. In its efforts to provide affordable housing, the organization built the first Frontier House, a case study to test an affordable, quality-made, and high-performance option for the high desert west. Epicenter was also a finalist in the ArtPlace America national creative place making grant program for its multi-family housing proposal.
