The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) recently released its latest economic analysis. Three counties in Western North Carolina were designated “at-risk.”
These designations help the commission decide what areas to focus on and how to award grant funding.
“It’s important to measure the economic health of the 423 counties that are part of Appalachia,” said Kostas Skordas, director of research at ARC.
Skordas says there isn’t much change in the report from year-to-year because it looks at the most recent data over the last few years from census numbers to economic reports.
Three counties in BPR’s listening area Cherokee, Clay and Graham stayed in a low economic category of “at-risk.” Meanwhile Buncombe County is the only one in the region to drop down a category from competitive to transitional in part due to an increase in distressed areas in the county.
The five categories range lowest to highest from distressed, at-risk, transitional, competitive to attainment. None of the counties in Western North Carolina are in the lowest category of distressed or the top two categories of competitive and attainment. Most are defined in the middle as transitional counties.
Skordas explains this data is important for grants but doesn’t show the whole picture.
“The story on the ground is also important. Speaking with local businesses, local leaders about what’s happening currently helps round out the picture of the data shown,” he said.
Between 2009 and 2019, A-R-C gave over $40 million for about 130 projects in Western North Carolina.
