The White House Rural Council announced on Dec. 3 that Grundy County/Tracy City was among 26 communities in the United States named to its Local Foods, Local Places initiative.
This effort is designed to help rural communities as they seek creative approaches to integrating entrepreneurship, environmental management, public health and other place-based considerations into successful economic planning. Local food development is often a key part of the strategy.
Local Food, Local Places will provide technical support to integrate local food systems into community economic action plans, help revitalize struggling downtowns and preserve farms and undeveloped land.
The local effort was developed and submitted under the auspices of the municipality of Tracy City and Grundy County, and builds on the work of South Cumberland Community Development Partnership, Grundy County Health Council and Diabetes Coalition, Tracy City Farmer’s Market, South Cumberland Food Hub, Downtown Sidewalk/Mountain Goat Trail Connector Project, Tennessee Main Street program, the University of the South’s program and the Chattanooga Area Regional Council of Governments-Southeast Tennessee Development District.
“This award means that in the coming months, a team of experts will visit and have workshops to help us design concrete steps to improve our community,” said Emily Partin of the Tracy City Business Club. Among the pieces of the project will be local food, tourism and travel, and health issues.
The 26 communities were chosen from among 316 applicants.
A team of agricultural, transportation, environmental, health and regional economic consultants will work directly with the communities to develop local food projects they proposed.
Local Foods, Local Places is a federal initiative providing direct technical support and expertise to community partners integrating local food systems into regional economic action plans. Under this effort, a team of federal agricultural, transportation, environmental, public health and regional economic experts will work directly with communities to develop specific local food projects. These efforts will make a significant impact in the communities participating in the Local Foods, Local Places initiative.
Local Foods, Local Places is a unique partnership among the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), the Delta Regional Authority (DRA), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The initiative draws on the Administration’s Partnership for Sustainable Communities, USDA’s Seven Strategies for Economic Development, and other place-based strategies to address regional challenges.
Local Foods, Local Places will provide direct technical support to selected communities to help them develop and implement action plans promoting local food and downtown revitalization.
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