Revitalization Expert Storm Cunningham to Kick-off Strategic Planning for Downtown Middlesboro

Storm Cunningham

Middlesboro, Kentucky, March 21, 2013 – Downtown Middlesboro will host internationally recognized revitalization expert Storm Cunningham on April 19 and 20, 2013. Mr. Cunningham is author of the Restoration Economy and ReWealth, and CEO of ReCitizen, L3C.  His website ReCitizen.org is transforming the way people revitalize places by utilizing “crowd” technologies.

Storm will kick off a strategic plan for downtown Middlesboro on Friday, April 19, at 6 p.m. with a one-hour talk at Lincoln Memorial University, in the Math and Science Building Room 100. During his talk and the question and answer session to follow, he will share the potential of crowdmapping (to perceive opportunities), crowdsourcing (to design projects), and crowdfunding (to launch projects) to put tools into the hands of citizens to revitalize their own communities.

The following day, the strategic planning will begin with a community leaders workshop facilitated by Mr. Cunningham. In the following months faculty and students from Lincoln Memorial University School of Business will analyze feedback and conduct additional research to prepare the formal strategic plan. The plan is expected to be completed around September.

Middlesboro will be one of just a few pilots nationally to use the new technology that Mr. Cunningham has developed at ReCitizen.org.  Subsequent to the planning exercise Mr. Cunningham has also agreed to use Middlesboro as an example of successful community-led revitalization efforts nationally.

In addition to using ReCitizen.org in preparation of the strategic plan, upon completion of the plan ReCitizen.org will help with implementation of projects people have identified as priorities for them.

This event is made possible through the generous financial support of the Appalachian Regional Commission and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Other partners include Appalachian Regional Healthcare – Middlesboro, Bell County, Bell County Chamber of Commerce, Bell County Historical Society, City of Middlesboro, Kentucky Heritage Council, Kentucky League of Cities, Kentucky Main Street Program, Kentucky Small Business Development Center, Lincoln Memorial University, Preservation Kentucky, and TourSEKY.

Contact:

Isaac D. Kremer, Executive Director

Discover Downtown Middlesboro, Inc.

(606) 248-6155

downtownmiddlesboro@gmail.com

www.downtownmiddlesboro.org

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Local Communities Benefit from $44,029,000 Generated by Cumberland Gap National Historical Park’s Tourism

Local Communities Benefit from $44,029,000 Generated by Cumberland Gap National Historical Park’s Tourism
Part of $30 Billion Impact Which Supports 252,000 Jobs Nationwide

A new National Park Service (NPS) report for 2011 shows that the 828,947 visitors to Cumberland Gap National Historical Park spent $44,029,000.00 in communities surrounding the park. This spending supported 602 jobs in the local area.

Visitors from Barbados learn about Cumberland
Gap during a ranger program.
Courtesy: Cumberland Gap NHP

“With its mosaic of splendid scenery and vistas, rich history, varied recreational opportunities and almost 85 miles of trails, Cumberland Gap is a wonderful place to learn about America’s story,” articulated Park Superintendent Mark Woods. “We attract visitors from across the U.S. and around the world who come here to experience the park and then spend time and money enjoying the quality and diverse services provided by our neighboring communities in Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia and getting to know this amazing part of the country so proudly known as Appalachia. The National Park Service is proud to have been entrusted with the care of America’s most treasured places and delighted that the visitors we welcome generate significant contributions to the local, state, and national economy.”

The information on Cumberland Gap is part of a peer-reviewed spending analysis of national park visitors across the country conducted by Michigan State University for the National Park Service. For 2011, that report shows $13 billion of direct spending by 279 million park visitors in communities within 60 miles of a national park. That visitor spending had a $30 billion impact on the entire U.S. economy and supported 252,000 jobs nationwide.

Most visitor spending supports jobs in lodging, food, and beverage service (63 percent) followed by recreation and entertainment (17 percent), other retail (11 percent), transportation and fuel (7 percent) and wholesale and manufacturing (2 percent).

To download the report visit www.nature.nps.gov/socialscience/products.cfm#MGM and click on Economic Benefits to Local Communities from National Park Visitation, 2011. The report includes information for visitor spending at individual parks and by state.

To learn more about national parks in Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia and how the National Park Service works with communities to preserve local history, conserve the environment, and provide local recreation opportunities, go to www.nps.gov/kentucky,
www.nps.gov/tennessee or www.nps.gov/virginia.

About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 395 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov.