Community Engagement

This Project concerned itself as much with the leadership of Honaker and regional stakeholders, as with the economics and physical realities of the downtown district. The success of the plan is dependent upon the participation and "buy-in" of these key actors. The Management Team and HDA recognized the need for engagement at several levels: the downtown businesses and property owners, the broader leadership within the community and region-wide partners and stakeholders. From October 2007 through January 2008, HDA conducted meetings with regional and local leaders and a businesses-centered focus group. We also organized a community walk-around through the downtown to identify issues and assets as well as sponsoring two community-wide meetings to solicit broad based input on the plan.

The purpose of the Community Process was:

• To inform the community about the project and its progress to date
• To gain varied perspectives on central issues and creative opportunities
• To understand regional economic synergies that might create more opportunities for attracting tourists and new residents
• To seed interest with potential local investors in co-creating the strategies that they must be partners in implementing