RCAP Solutions Partners with Orange EDIC to Provide Economic Development Assessment & Strategy
Contact for RCAP Solutions: Maegen McCaffrey, RCAP Solutions, Inc., Phone: 978-630-6714; Email: mmccaffrey@rcapsolutions.org
Worcester, MA – RCAP Solutions is pleased to announce a partnership with the Orange Economic Development Industrial Corporation (OEDIC) to explore local capacity, support the small business community, and promote sustainable economic development.
OEDIC is the economic development agency charged with leading commercial and industrial development initiatives for the Town of Orange, MA. The project is managed by Elyse Oliver, RCAP Solutions’ Economic Recovery Corps (ERC) Fellow.
By partnering with OEDIC, Ms. Oliver aims to advance its Economic Development Plan by piloting the newly developed Rural Infrastructure Strengths Evaluation (RISE). This resource will assess the town’s assets and community members’ priorities for economic development. Insights from RISE can form a strength-based local economic development strategy and aid in decision-making and future implementation.
In Orange, RISE activities include demographic and economic data analysis, community surveying, interviewing municipal staff, and participatory asset mapping to identify development opportunities aligned with community priorities. At the conclusion of the project, OEDIC will gain an actionable equitable development strategy for growing community assets and economic, commercial, and industrial goals; and acquire tools to enhance their capacity to manage complex development projects, identify viable funding sources, and obtain resources for future public engagement opportunities.
RISE supports equitable development, which provides benefits to all, with a particular focus on residents, community-based organizations, small businesses, and other local entities that have had limited access to economic opportunity. To do so, RISE takes into consideration a broad range of community assets in its assessment, from physical assets like buildings, parks, and rivers to intangible assets like local traditions, social relationships, skills, and mental wellness.
“The Orange EDIC looks forward to collaborating with Elyse and RCAP Solutions,” stated Mikael Pyrtel, OEDIC Executive Director. “The combined approach through community engagement, rural ecosystem analysis, and infrastructure assessment can feed into economic development planning and are all critical elements to help shift the narrative in rural communities over the long term. We can also use feedback from Elyse’s experience to recruit future talent and potentially develop a fellowship program.”
RISE in Orange is one of several pilots that RCAP Solutions will lead over the next 2.5 years in communities in Massachusetts, Maine, and Vermont. RISE is part of RCAP Solutions’ wider efforts to tackle challenges faced by small rural communities concerning infrastructure development and economic sustainability. Through RISE, RCAP Solutions aims to change the narrative of rural areas as disadvantaged by identifying opportunities to grow existing local capacity, foster thriving small businesses, and promote community-led economic development. RISE highlights the link between economic development and the urgent needs in communities of all sizes, including workforce development, entrepreneurial ecosystem building, housing, childcare, climate resiliency, broadband, and access to capital.
“RCAP Solutions has successfully diagnosed challenges and supported locally driven solutions for rural water and wastewater systems for decades,” said Sarah Buck, RCAP Solutions’ New Project Director. “With the RISE’s asset-based process, we can do so more holistically across all areas of community development need in the future so rural communities across the Northeast and US Caribbean can truly thrive. We are so grateful for Orange to be the first rural community willing to partner with us on this exciting pilot.”
For more information on how communities in Franklin County can bring RISE to their community, please contact Elyse Oliver at eoliver@rcapsolutions.org.
For more information about the national Economic Recovery Corps Fellowship – the initiative that makes this partnership possible – please visit: www.economicrecoverycorps.org.
About RCAP Solutions: RCAP Solutions is the go-to resource of sustained success for communities throughout the northeastern part of the U.S. and the Caribbean. Established in 1969 (as Rural Housing Improvement), RCAP Solutions has supported the power and potential of communities for over half a century as strategists of community-wide well-being. Our mission is to foster personal and public self-reliance and improve the quality of life for individuals, families, and the communities in which they live. For more information, please visit: www.rcapsolutions.org