Greetings from the desk of your Ashland Alliance.
The first week in a long time that we are not celebrating the opening of a new business in Boyd or Greenup County. With Monday being Memorial Day, this was a week of honoring our military, families and welcoming summer to Northeast Kentucky.
Today’s report may be a little short, but there are nuggets for you, our members. Over the next few weeks, you will hear an organized effort to highlight how this community has more to offer than you think. This community is a destination. Events such as First Friday, Boyd County Tourism’s recent exotic car drive-in, to Russell’s Farmers Market show the region and the country just what we have to offer.
Monday, we hosted the largest Lunch and Learn in the last three years. Fifty people came out to Giovanni’s Pizza & Pub in Summit to hear about Tourism and an economic driver in the City of Ashland and Boyd County. It was wonderful to have both Boyd County Tourism and Visit AKY speak to the group.
This Summer we are also going to highlight the fact that many have chosen to move to this community to live in. Our population is starting to grow again! The Alliance, along with organizations from South Shore to Catlettsburg are working to share who we are and how everyone can benefit. This is what we are about, and you’ll hear about it in the next few weeks. We are creating a podcast of stories of people that have moved here to work and live. We are finding interesting stories of the people that make this community what it is today and what it will be.
There is one announcement I am proud to make. On Thursday, the former Unity Aluminum Site was returned to EastPark. The Alliance and Boyd, Greenup, Carter, Elliott, and Lawrence County combined to submit a $750,000 Grant from the Cabinet for Economic Development and a $750,000 donation from Steel/Aluminum Dynamics to return 240 acres of prime industrial land back to EastPark. The land was submitted for another large job creation project on the same day this transaction took place. Special thanks goes to Greenup County Fiscal Court, which acted as the fiscal agent for the funding pass thru.
Enjoy your weekend and your family, we have many things to be proud of as Summer 2023 is now underway.
Tim, Scott, Missy & Samantha
Your Ashland Alliance Team