Passage Through the Gap Partnership Launched at Appalachian Gateway Communities Workshop

Molly Theobald with the Appalachian Regional Commission speaking at the Heartwood Center in Abingdon.

Passage Through the Gap Partnership Launched at Appalachian Gateway Communities Workshop

Representatives develop action plan to improve economic competitiveness by capitalizing on the area’s natural and cultural assets

MIDDLESBOROUGH, Kentucky. (Jan. 18, 2014) – A team from Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia participated in a three-day workshop designed especially for towns and communities bordering national or state parks, forests, and other treasured public lands. Working with national and regional experts on sustainable tourism, economic development, the arts, natural and cultural resources, transportation, and branding, the 7-person team crafted a new vision that focuses on the unique Appalachian assets that make the area surrounding the Cumberland Gap National Historical Park an appealing place to live, work and recreate.

The partnership of the Appalachian Regional Commission, the National Endowment for the Arts, The Conservation Fund, and The National Trust for Historic Preservation convened the program. With partnership and relationship-building as essential elements to the Appalachian Gateway Communities Regional Workshop, each of the eight participating communities – ranging from Alabama to Virginia – formed a diverse team that included a public land manager, elected officials, business and tourism representatives, civic leaders, and community arts representatives.

This first-of-its-kind convening brought together leaders from multiple communities in our area. The City of Middlesborough sent Mayor Bill Kelley and Discover Downtown Middlesboro Executive Director Isaac Kremer. The Town of Cumberland Gap was represented by Toni Winston. Arts in our area had a presence thanks to Denise Wanscott with Union College and Barbourville Tourism, and Scott Freeman with the newly formed Magic City Collective in Middlesborough. Our public land manager representative was Pam Eddy from the Cumberland Gap National Historical Park. Finally, Debby Spencer who has extensive experience promoting ecotourism and cultural tourism in our area participated.

Early in the workshop the team recognized that despite having great assets that too many people who live here don’t realize what we have and the story of our assets is not told to visitors well enough. The Passing Through the Gap Ambassador Program was formed in respond to this marketing and communication challenge that we face. In the coming months we will study models from other areas and launch a program here, likely in June, to help train residents and front-line employees in how to interact with visitors. Participants will be given an immersive introduction to all that our area to prepare them to serve as Ambassadors.

Isaac D. Kremer, Executive Director of Discover Downtown Middlesboro said, “We went to Abingdon as a loose confederation of like-minded people and left as partners. The story of who we are as Americans started with the people who first passed through the Cumberland Gap. Sharing that story with visitors in new ways has the potential to transform the economy of our area.”

“The Passage Through the Gap Partnership was an ideal candidate for the Appalachian Gateway Communities Initiative because of the terrific natural and cultural resources and the emphasis of the arts in its community’s plans,” said Vice President of Sustainable Programs and Director of The Conservation Fund’s Conservation Leadership Network, Kris Hoellen.  “It’s our goal to help communities foster valuable partnerships, reinforce development plans that balance environmental and economic goals and provide technical assistance to enable places like Southeast Kentucky, Southwest Virginia, and Eastern Tennessee to become even more vibrant and thriving communities.”

Participation in the workshop also makes the Passage Through the Gap Partnership eligible to apply for seed grant funding from the Initiative to implement the action plan. 

The Appalachian Gateway Communities Regional Workshop is part of an initiative developed by the Appalachian Regional Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts.  Since 2007, the Gateway Initiative has helped gateway communities across Appalachia expand tourism and other economic development opportunities through community assessments, tourism planning workshops and grants for project implementation.  The Conservation Fund and the National Trust for Historic Preservation have partnered to strengthen the leadership capacity of towns, cities and communities that neighbor publicly protected natural and recreational lands in distressed, transitional or at-risk counties.

The workshop was held at the Heartwood Center in Abingdon, Virginia.  Later this winter, another Appalachian Gateway Communities workshop will take place at the National Conservation Training Center in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.

About the Appalachian Regional Commission

The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) is a regional economic development agency that represents a partnership of federal, state, and local government.  Established by an act of Congress in 1965, ARC provides funding for several hundred projects each year in the Appalachian region, in areas such as business development, education and job training, telecommunications, infrastructure, community development, housing, and transportation. www.arc.gov

About the National Endowment for the Arts

The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is the largest annual funder of the arts in the United States.  An independent federal agency and the official arts organization of the United States government, the NEA has as its mission to support excellence in the arts; bring the arts to all Americans, and provide leadership in arts education.  The NEA awards more than $100 million annually, investing in every state.  www.arts.gov

About The Conservation Fund

At The Conservation Fund, we combine a passion for conservation with an entrepreneurial spirit to protect your favorite places before they become just a memory. A hallmark of our work is our deep, unwavering understanding that for conservation solutions to last, they need to make economic sense. Top-ranked, we have protected more than 7 million acres across America. www.conservationfund.org  

About the National Trust for Historic Preservation

The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a privately funded nonprofit organization, works to save America’s historic places. For more information, visit www.PreservationNation.org.

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