SURVEY RESPONSES: ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

 Economic development concerns were one of the most prominent themes found in Question 1 of the survey:

Do you think some aspects of the RRED proposal are a good idea,  but not others? If so, which ones do you like? Which ones do you dislike?

Themes beneath the umbrella of economic development include job creation, maintaining a small-town atmosphere, maintaining local control, protecting and  creating local businesses, and development across the entire region. Many respondants’ statements regarding economic development come with caveats, in the sense that they feel positively about economic development but feel negatively about the environmental repercussions or the added stressors on the local community. Citizens were concerned about what might happen to local mom-and-pop businesses if large corporations came into the region. Moreover, they did not want control of the local economy to be wrestled away for local citizens. 

Some respondents were concerned with the new development supplanting local businesses, and others believed that any money generated should stay in-state. A few respondents compared this new development to other extractive industries that  have plagued Appalachia. One respondent commented: 

The idea that this will bolster Eastern KY's economy is laughable. This is just another  example of exploiting the region for its resources and subjecting its inhabitants to low paying, unsustainable jobs. For years, corporations exploited coal, and now the resource has changed to environmental aesthetics. The resource is different, but the intent and  consequences are the same.

Another respondent agreed that the new development should be in the hands of local Kentuckians:

Ownership of any new development should be placed in the hands of local Kentuckians to avoid making the same mistakes we've made in the past. For example, 'company mining towns' completely monopolized large areas of Eastern KY for a hundred years, and when they left because there was no money left in coal, they also left people's livelihoods destroyed with them. There was no real investment in the people of  Appalachia, and that has to be at the forefront of this project. Local ownership (not just employment!) is vital to seeing good outcomes, both for the people who live here and the  tourists who visit.

Some respondents did not want the area to lose its small-town appeal and become  overdeveloped. As one stated:

“They’ve  (local people) worked hard for what they have. They are what give the Gorge the small-town appeal for a quiet getaway people seek out when traveling here. I fear the resort as a one stop shop will damage their businesses.”