MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Representatives with the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond have their focus on increasing economic development in the Mountain State.
Vice President and regional executive for the Baltimore branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond Andrew (Andy) Bauer took part in the first ‘District Dialogue’ forum hosted in West Virginia on Wednesday at the West Virginia University Erickson Alumni Center, where he was joined by five state leaders that aim to increase development in rural areas. Among those who joined Bauer were senior research analyst at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond Surekha Carpenter, President of the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation Jen Giovannitti, Executive Director of the Wyoming County Economic Development Authority Christy Laxton, and WVU Assistant Vice President of Economic Innovation Liz Vitullo.
“It was a fantastic panel with a lot of really good insights, and I’m hopeful that the people here were able to take away things that they were able to take action upon,” said Bauer.
As part of the forum, each of the five economic leaders discussed Mountain State needs that range from increased funding capacity to the need for increased local collaborations in order to address a 44 percent rural unemployment rate for the represented Federal Reserve areas that was reported by Bauer on Wednesday. This not only included the predominantly rural West Virginia, but also portions of Maryland and Virginia that have all experienced some level of economic downturn over the course of several decades. With opportunities to get funding considerations from hundreds of Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) across the country, Bauer also feels that if certain issues can be addressed within the state with the help of local collaboratives, financing for ideas to tackle rural unemployment will increase.
“You know, if you got a project in a local community, in order to get that out the door, it requires a lot of individual parts,” said Bauer. “And I think that’s what really resonated first and foremost, the collaboration (needed across several avenues) to get it done.”
In recognition of the need to increase opportunities to take advantage of available dollars offered through CDFIs, the West Virginia Grant Resource Centers was highlighted by Vitullo during the forum. The initiative, which involves both WVU and Marshall, aims to offer expert training and hands-on support to projects that range from workforce development and community revitalization to infrastructure projects. With just over $44.3 million in funding secured on a federal level as a result of the collaboration, Vitullo, along with the rest of the panel, feels that such examples serve as a jumping-off point to increase development in the Mountain State, with workforce development as one of the priorities.
“We need to have the strong workforce pipeline so that we can build our own entities and attract outside business to the state,” said Vitullo on how workforce development grants have been a focus for the WV Grant Resource Centers. “So I think that’s going to be an important element for West Virginia to realize its potential.”
While opportunities for large-scale development in the Mountain State appear to be openly considered by Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond representatives in attendance, members of the forum also expressed that there need to be several aspects of CDFI and grant funding addressed on a state level. This not only includes collaborations from local institutions but also an increase in exposure to local match funds, opportunities to improve credit, and pieces of collateral to support large-scale CDFI loans, along with the mapping of assets that can be invested in across West Virginia. Despite the challenges, each member of the forum believes that a combination of education on investment opportunities combined with collaboration could help development in West Virginia.
“Liz talked about asset mapping, and Christy talked about preparing the small businesses, so you have to think about what you have to build off of,” said Bauer. “In terms of the strength in your community and how you leverage those assets in a plan that is supported by everyone else.”