Opportunity Appalachia (OA) will provide targeted support for downtown and rural development projects to build entrepreneurial communities where local businesses can thrive, creating quality jobs for residents, and revitalizing local economies. The expanded program targets real estate projects that support downtown development, healthcare, education, recreation & tourism, food systems, clean energy, manufacturing, and affordable housing, and will now include communities in Kentucky.
Throughout 2024 and into 2025, OA will select 30 high-impact projects to each access $30,000 – $60,000 in technical assistance in areas such as design, business planning, market studies and financial structuring, and assist in the development of investment prospectus, creation of project pitch videos and presentations, and make connection with investment sources. Opportunity Appalachia 2024 expects the selected projects to attract up to $150 million in private investment to participating Central Appalachian communities.
The Ohio program anticipates awards to up to six projects with the allocated portion of these funds. Opportunity Appalachia is available to all of Ohio’s 32 Appalachian counites. Selected communities will each access $30,000 to $60,000 in technical assistance to support their proposed development projects, to include (but not limited to):
- Development of investment prospectus, preparation of pro forma financial projections, structuring of project financing,
- Market research, demand assessment,
- Architectural and engineering,
- Business plan preparation, operations planning,
- Identification of project developers, and
- Investor outreach.
Application Deadline: April 12, 2024, 5:00 PM EDT
Applications must be submitted via the Online Application Form to be considered for program support
For specific questions about Ohio projects contact: Katy Farber at katy@ohiose.com or Projects in the Eastgate district contact Kathy Zook at kzook@eastgatecog.org
To learn more about Opportunity Appalachia, view a listing of participating projects from the first round, or to find the program application, click here.