Outdoor Recreation Roundtable (ORR) has awarded five rural communities – from New England and the mid-Atlantic to Appalachia and Alaska – with implementation grants to help grow their local economies and make them more resilient through outdoor recreation.
The 2024 awardees are: Beverly, Ohio; Claremont, New Hampshire; Giles County, Virginia; Haines, Alaska; and Poultney, Vermont.
Each recipient participated in the Recreation Economy for Rural Communities (RERC) program, an interagency partnership between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, USDA Forest Service, Northern Border Regional Commission and Appalachian Regional Commission that provides technical assistance to help communities chart out economic development plans including outdoor recreation.
This is the third group of ORR grant recipients since the program’s launch in 2021 and comes just after the RERC program opened the application period for its new cycle. For communities with big plans and limited bandwidth, this funding will help to unlock federal, state and local match dollars from programs like USDA Rural Development, state infrastructure funds and interest from private foundations.
Success stories from the five communities awarded grants by ORR in the previous year’s cycle are highlighted here. The grants are made possible through funding from the Richard King Mellon Foundation and help ensure that ORR can continue to provide support, information, and resources to rural communities seeking to create economic opportunities through outdoor recreation.
“This year’s group of rural recreation communities receiving support through our grant program represent an outstanding mix of all that outdoor recreation has to offer,” said Jessica Wahl Turner, president of ORR. “From economic resilience and retention of workers and businesses to public health improvements and environmental investments, hundreds of communities nationwide are turning to outdoor recreation as a core foundation for their success. The Richard King Mellon Foundation has been an invaluable partner in helping deliver this grant program and ensuring that more places and people than ever will have the opportunity to experience the benefits of time spent outside. We can’t wait to see what these communities accomplish with this support.”
“Appalachia’s rural communities have tremendous potential in helping to grow the regional outdoor recreation economy,” said ARC Federal Co-Chair Gayle Manchin. “ARC is proud that ORR has chosen to invest in the growth of the outdoor recreation industries of Beverly, Ohio, and Giles County, Virginia. These grants will not only allow the invested communities to make their trail systems safer and more accessible to visitors but will also improve the overall quality of life for the people who live there.”
“Northern Border Regional Commission (NBRC) believes in building inclusive outdoor recreation economies where benefits are realized by local communities. The awards announced by ORR today put those values into action,” said NBRC Federal Co-Chair Chris Saunders. “The Commission deeply appreciates ORR’s commitment to helping rural communities activate their plans to increase access to outdoor recreation.”
“EPA is so pleased that ORR and the Richard King Mellon Foundation are supporting more RERC community partners as they seek to uplift outdoor recreation and main street revitalization,” said Steph Bertaina, manager of the RERC program at EPA’s Office of Community Revitalization. “These implementation grants will help communities move their RERC plans into action as they build resilient, diverse outdoor recreation economies; increase access to the outdoors for all; and protect natural resources and the environment.”
“These implementation grants are a great boost for communities that have been a part of the Recreation Economy for Rural Communities program,” said USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Natural Resources and the Environment Meryl Harrell. “USDA is proud that our partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Northern Border Regional Commission, the Appalachian Regional Commission, and the Denali Commission takes a community-centered approach to supporting economic growth and community well-being through access to the outdoors. The Outdoor Recreation Roundtable’s partnership will help communities realize their vision.”
Descriptions of the ORR grant recipient communities and their projects are below:
Beverly, Ohio (Population: 1,216) will use its grant to install lighting in its marina and bike trail facilities to promote greater accessibility and improve safety and comfort. In Beverly’s RERC Action Plan, community members identified several goals that would benefit from the installation of lighting. The first goal is to build a multi-use path in the village that is accessible to all. With funding, lighting would make this path more usable during times of day that are often restrictive for the elderly and disabled. The second goal is to establish Beverly as an outdoor water recreation destination, with lighting to enhance accessibility for activities such as kayaking, boating, and fishing at any time of day. Additionally, lighting the marina and pathways will improve safety and comfort for elderly residents living nearby, making them more receptive to these positive changes in the community.
Claremont, New Hampshire (Population: 13,149) will use its grant to fund a design study for a pedestrian path connecting Wall Street in downtown Claremont to the existing rail trail bridge along the south side of the Sugar River. Having experienced challenges common to former Mill towns, Claremont is in the midst of a dynamic upswing, re-energizing its City Center. Conducting a design study for the new pedestrian path is the first step in creating this connected walkway followed by convening a committee to guide the project and securing funding for implementation.
Giles County, Virginia (Population: 16,543) will use their grant to provide signage to the Giles Trail Center and interior graphics that identify and direct users to nearby trails, recreation attractions, and local businesses. Local leaders recently completed the physical structure for the Giles County Trail Center, and this funding will allow for the outfitting of the building’s interiors with graphic displays of area outdoor recreation attractions and capacity building to maintain that space.
Haines, Alaska (Population: 1,762) will use their grant to create a Community Outdoor Initiative under the supervision of the Community Programs Manager. This funding will be used to plan and administer year-round activities for the community, in a partnership between Haines Borough, Haines Huts & Trails, and the Chilkoot Indian Association. Each month, a guided group will depart from the Haines Public Library to experience various outdoor activities such as biking, hiking, birdwatching, packrafting, kayaking, and camping. Activities will be designed to accommodate various physical, age, and disability factors. This program will greatly increase access to the outdoors while ensuring that there is an activity for everyone throughout the year.
Poultney, Vermont (Population: 3,270) will use its grant to create redevelopment scenarios and conceptual architectural renderings for the community’s use in visualizing a new outdoor recreation hub. The ‘Garage Property’ neighbors a senior center, high school, and low-income/disabled housing development as well as the growing Slate Valley Trails Network, which currently offers over 50 miles of multi-use, public access trails. Historically, many of the community’s water assets have not been within walking distance, and access to the Poultney River has become a topic of local conversation as border lands have increasingly become privately owned. At this time, no public access area for the Poultney River is established within the community.
