21st CENTURY EMPOWERMENT ZONE

PLAN OF WORK OVERVIEW

CATEGORY: ADMINISTRATION / GOVERNANCE

Problem/Community Need Goal/Approach to meet community need:

There will be a need to have organizations to receive funding and provide coordination for the Empowerment Zone projects: Develop a staff and citizen advisory board for a 501 C 3 organization and enter into a contract with the Quad County Joint Development Authority, through a subcommittee composed of the members representing Turner and Worth County, to serve as the fiscal agent for receipt and disbursement of funds from the Department of Community Affairs..

Need to encourage and equip a broad-based supply of community leadership: Expand current adult leadership program and address need for youth leadership training programs.

Lack of community capacity in grantsmanship: Provide ongoing training for broad spectrum of community citizens in how to write a competitive grant application.

Need trained experienced staff to help guide the regional Empowerment Zone: Seek two (2) graduates in Applied Community and Economic Development

Need to continue to improve race relations in Empowerment Zone: Distribute copies of "Breaking Down the Walls" to key leaders in the community

Lack of knowledge in the community of principles of Total Quality Management and volunteer non-profit board rules and responsibilities: Provide Total Quality Management and Non Profit Board Training

Community organizations and agencies need to improve their communication with residents of the Empowerment Zone: Implement a professional public relations program

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CATEGORY: AGRICULTURE

Problem/Community Need Goal/Approach to meet community need:

The increasing pressure on family farms to survive: Establish a pilot project with three family farms to connect with communities/organizations in the southeast that would contract for their production.

There will be an increasing need to diversify the economy and yet look for ways to take advantage of the rest of the land: Develop an aquaculture industry in the region.

Agriculture lending, harsh weather, low market prices have endangered the existence of farming: Cooperative arrangements to pool production capacity and establish value added processing and return.

Need to protect water supply in agricultural areas: Establish incentives for farmers to place buffer land near point water sources.

CATEGORY: COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

Problem/Community Need Goal/Approach to meet community need:

Lack of broad citizen involvement in issues, which impact large numbers of local residents: Develop a process to evolve a shared vision among interested people.

There is a need to prepare citizens of all ages to think about the impact of future trends on present issues of importance to the local community: Develop a network of diverse citizen leaders who are knowledgeable about trends and who can understand local issues within a futures context

CATEGORY: ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & EMPLOYMENT

Problem/Community Need Goal/Approach to meet community need:

Lack of opportunity for low and moderate-income persons to be entrepreneurs to develop income opportunities: Provide support and mentoring to prepare rural workers for income opportunities in the 21st Century.

Lack of community support to help small businesses start and nurture early phases of operation: Provide a facility which would allow targeted group of entrepreneurs to work in collaboration to share the cost and risk of start up operations.

There is a need to provide full service industrial space in order to expand existing industry and attract new business: Identify land in each county suitable for industrial development: Develop a specific, targeted idea to be the focus for each industrial site which takes advantage of the agricultural region.

Existing Industry is base of economy and needs to be cultivated and encouraged to grow: Establish comprehensive Existing Industry program.

Need to maximize Empowerment Zone designation to attract jobs into the zone: Develop comprehensive marketing campaign to showcase the benefits of locating an industry in the Empowerment Zone.

Lack of Foreign Trade Zone status makes area not competitive for final assembly/manufactures that use imported components: Establish Foreign Trade Zone.

Workers entering the job market for the first time are lacking basic job search skills and basic knowledge of business practices: Develop training sessions to assist with job search skills and introduce workforce to basic skills necessary to maintain employment.

Access to capital for small start up businesses is limited: Establish lending program to meet needs of start-ups until they qualify for bank financing.

Small businesses are not reaching their potential as suppliers for governmental agencies: Promote private sector investments and job creation by fostering the growth of federal contractors within the Empowerment Zone.

CATEGORY: EDUCATION

Problem/Community Need Goal/Approach to meet community need:

There is a significant problem of adult illiteracy and a lack of basic intellectual skills capable of responding to the challenges of the 21st Century. Create a concept, which integrates the need for reading and computer literacy with the incentive to obtain a General Education Diploma.

Need to insure that qualified educators are attracted to the region for the public school system: Develop a system of skills building which will utilize technology and collaborative, generative dialogue techniques to create ?learning leaders? for the 21st Century.

Lack of skills in the technical areas to insure a qualified 21st Century workforce. There is a need for the development of technical curriculum at all levels of education: Create a partnership of educational organizations in the region to provide access to technical skills building important to a 21st Century workforce.

There is a need to prepare low-income citizens for a more technical work environment: Create a program, which incorporates Welfare to Work training, business support and transportation needs.

Lack of awareness of what Moultrie Area and East Central Technical Institute Satellites can afford all citizens for a qualified 21st Century work force: Develop a Center, which meets the needs of all citizens of all ages and raise public awareness of and participation in the program offerings.

Lack of awareness and understanding of all available financial aid programs for college and technical schools: Sponsor ?Career/Post Secondary Night?.

There is need for a Community Resource Center staffed by qualified personnel: Develop a concept that establishes a resource center responsive to the educational, recreational and spiritual needs of the community.

High drop-out/truancy rate and low SAT scores: Develop a system of ?Mentors & Extended Hours?, study cells for Elementary, High School, & Adult, coupled with mandatory attendance laws. Require Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test of all students and begin offering free Scholastic Aptitude Test preparatory classes.

Lack of volunteers in all schools: Implement organized parent volunteer organization.

Educational opportunities for all citizens need to be identified to ?plug the gaps? for students and citizens who are either exceptional or in need of remedial education: Implement Comprehensive School Improvement Plans to enhance the overall educational quality of our community.

CATEGORY: FAMILY / COMMUNITY RESOURCES

Problem/Community Need Goal/Approach to meet community need:

Lack of facilities and programs to involve family activities for moderate and low income: Identify a family of activities, which can be grouped as a collective menu of family entertainment and collaborative learning experience.

Lack of coordination between agencies that serve common population: Collaborative sharing of data through computer network.

CATEGORY: HEALTHCARE

Problem/Community Need Goal/Approach to meet community need:

Lack of a comprehensive approach for prevention of disease for rural citizens unable to afford health insurance: Create a comprehensive wellness plan for low income citizens.

Need for better diagnosis of human and plant diseases: Utilize digital microscope to transmit lab samples to the Center of Disease Control (Atlanta) and the University of Georgia for disease identification.

Lack of accessible basic and emergency health care in northern Worth County and Turner County: Develop alliances between current regional healthcare providers to deliver needed services.

Lack of available funds to cover unmet medical expenses of low to moderate income individuals: Establish contingency fund for non-covered medical expenses such as prescription drugs.

Lack of programs for senior citizens: Provide comprehensive programs and facilities to address needs of senior citizens.

Need for early intervention for developmentally delayed children: Enhance program offerings and frequency of service delivery. Create better public awareness of birth defects prevention.

Lack of local comprehensive programs to serve the disabled, such as physical therapy/occupational therapy/Speech therapy: Develop in-home therapy (physical, occupational, Speech) service to the disabled.

Lack of drug education/substance abuse programs- administration, programs, and facilities: Establish a 12 month comprehensive health care program to include drug education/substance abuse and summer youth programs.

Lack of substance abuse resources between institutional care and home: Construct and staff a 24 hour Transition (Half-way House) that will accommodate mothers and children and a Transition House for men to serve residents of both Turner and Worth Counties.

Lack of rural health care for senior adults/low to moderate income/handicap: Co-ordinate with Aging Council to conduct health fairs on a regular basis.

Lack of available resources for disabled/aged individuals between hospital and home: Construct an Assisted Living with therapy available to serve individuals who are not candidates for nursing home or personal care facilities, but who need temporary care prior to returning home from hospital.

CATEGORY: HOUSING

Problem/Community Need Goal/Approach to meet community need:

There is a lack of affordable housing for low income people: Develop a ?mass customization? model for homes in the $50-70,000 range and build collaboration among potential customers and suppliers in the region.

Lack of adequate affordable housing sites with infrastructure: Provide sites for housing to be sold on a cost of development basis for low-income first time homeowners

Lack of awareness of resources to assist with home ownership: Sponsor Home Owners Fair/Seminar that covers all aspects of purchasing a home.

Lack of skilled help in construction trades: Establish program for youth in construction industry

There is a need to utilize the trends of an aging population, desire for better quality of life and use of technology as a basis for innovative economic development ideas: Develop a new housing concept which integrates these ideas into a mechanism for 21st Century economic development.

CATEGORY: INFRASTRUCTURE

Problem/Community Need Goal/Approach to meet community need

Lack of recycling facilities and plan to insure that environment is protected: Develop a plan for recycling all appropriate materials. There is a need to repair and extend sewer lines and provide for adequate treatment facilities: Develop a collaborative plan to expand sewer lines into all parts of the Empowerment Zone over ten years. Expand existing treatment facilities.

A regional airport is needed to support economic development: Develop a plan of collaboration, which would locate airport centrally for Turner & Worth Counties.

There is a need to revitalize the downtown area of all communities in the Empowerment Zone: Create a ?Downtown of the Future? concept which would integrate ideas of the 21st Century quality of life approach to include theme, retail boutiques, living space, and greenspace.

Need to upgrade roads and bridges: Replace four wooden bridges and pave 500 miles of road.

There is a need to keep citizens informed about the progress of the Empowerment Zone initiative as well as to help establish a continuous flow of information to build an understanding of community issues: Create a public access show for television in collaboration with a cable company in the area.

There is a need to prepare the infrastructure for an Information Age: Develop a fiberoptic or high compression electronic infrastructure network.

Rail services in need of repair/ installation to accommodate increase usage by industrial customers and provide safer crossings: Develop a priority list of rail-served sites. Recruit specific industries that are rail-users to provide sufficient revenue to warrant upgrade in infrastructure.

Poor storm water drainage causes flooding: Upgrade storm water systems in needed areas.

Inadequate water systems require upgrading to assure quality water for citizens: Invest in upgrades to water systems in Warwick, Rebecca, Sycamore, and Ashburn.

Overhead utilities distract from visual appeal: Encourage, where feasible, location of utilities underground.

Concentration of Environmental Protection Agency listed sites in Tift County: Build on current remediation efforts to keep citizens involved and reclaim sites for productive economic benefits.

CATEGORY: PUBLIC SAFETY

Problem/Community Need Goal/Approach to meet community need:

Lack of comprehensive drug prevention and intervention program: Build a concept, which integrates incentives, caring, and building capacities for personal transformation- combine this with a crack-down on drug users.

Citizens are unaware of functions of public safety departments: Establish Citizen Law Enforcement training program.

Drug use is increasing in the area and perception is that it is going unchecked: Increase awareness of current efforts and leverage expertise by cooperative approach to investigation.

Inadequate facilities for fire and police protection: Develop a ten (10) year facilities improvement plan to address future growth areas for service and assure adequate access to protection for all citizens.

Law Enforcement and Fire personnel operate with outdated or inadequate equipment: Equip the protectors of our citizens with state of the art equipment and facilities to protect them as they perform their duties

Court System is clogged with civil cases: Establish mediation program to assist in resolving civil matters to reduce court cases and steamline criminal process time.

CATEGORY: QUALITY OF LIFE / TOURISM / CULTURAL

Problem/Community Need Goal/Approach to meet community need

There is a need to enhance the physical beauty of the Empowerment Zone area: Develop a ?beautification theme? that would identify targeted plants and flowers to be utilized throughout the area.

Lack of quality childcare facilities: Develop an alliance of parents, governmental officials, and businesses to create a collaborative approach to childcare.

Growth is bringing changes to the character of our established rural communities and the surrounding countryside: Develop and adopt comprehensive land-use planning tools, such as zoning, subdivision regulations etc., to help provide direction and management of anticipated growth.

Lack of sufficient Recreational Vehicle Park that will incorporate 21st Century ideas and needs: Conduct a site-analysis to determine appropriate location for a Recreational Vehicle Park.

Lack of rural experience tourism/cultural program: Develop linkages between tourism related activities to serve as a source of potential for new residents, particularly retirees and lone eagles.

Lack of community progress and sufficient festival coordination to capitalize on quality tourism efforts: Enhance current festivals with juried art show and quality crafts that will attract visitors.

There is a need to utilize existing and unidentified/innovative sources of tourism attraction and possible set locations for film production: Develop a strategic concept by which to incorporate appropriate plans

of action for utilizing existing and unidentified/innovative points of interest

Lack of income opportunities for individuals skilled in crafts: Develop concept, which links the products of craftmakers to 21st Century technology.

Lack of quality childcare facilities: Develop an alliance of parents, government officials and businesses to create a collaborative approach to childcare.

Lack of plan to create an ?outdoor ecological classroom?/ preservation resource site at appropriate wetlands site(s): Develop a 21st Century Ecological Stabilization Collaborative to improve wetlands to serve as improvement to quality of life, tourism attraction and preservation of wetlands through accountability locally, state and national.

Lack of Multi cultural/ethnic activities/ Heritage Centers/Museum: Develop a Tourism/Cultural/Ethnic/ Heritage/ Museum Alliance Collaborative.

Lack of incorporating Industrial Park as a tourism attraction; example, plant tour program: Develop a brochure of industries applicable to tourism activities and Develop a tourism education program for CEO?s/designated personnel.

Lack of tourism development process, especially rural aspect (A Day on the Farm): Develop an alliance/collaborative consisting of agriculturally interested citizens/farmers/agriculturists.

There is a need to plan and to execute restoration projects so as to be more visually appealing and pedestrian/tourist friendly: Develop an alliance of Preservation, Government, Community sources.

Lack of capitalizing of I-75as a source of tourism: Develop an I-75 Turner County Development Authority alliance to organize and promote ?Capitalization of Tourism? from I-75 travelers.

Lack of staff and facilities to promote/foster/establish recreation potential: Develop a collaborative to identify and promote recreational needs, and desires

CATEGORY: TRANSPORTATION

Problem/Community Need Goal/Approach to meet community need

Lack of transportation for elderly and those without access to automobiles: Create a mini-van pool.

Inadequate parking in downtown areas: Encourage merchants to use off-street parking and build additional lots if required.

Parents without transportation are unable to attend school conferences, volunteer, or attend vocational education institutions: Utilize parents as bus monitors to allow them access to transportation.

Welfare clients lack transportation to jobs and opportunity to purchase own vehicle: Establishment of a ?Wheels to Work? program.

CATEGORY: YOUTH DEVELOPMENT

Problem/Community Need Goal/Approach to meet community need:

Lack of summer programs for youth: Create an innovative experience for six weeks each summer for youth (6-9); (10-12); (13-16).

Lack of positive home environment for some low to moderate-income Turner

youth: Develop an inter-generation network of mentors.

The area lacks aquatic facilities to provide water safety instruction for youth: Create a regional facility for both Turner and Worth Counties.