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Opportunity Appalachia in WNC

The Opportunity Appalachia program provides targeted support for downtown and rural development to build entrepreneurial communities where local business can thrive, creating quality jobs for residents, helping to address the COVID downturn and revitalize local economies.

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Mountain BizWorks is pleased to be the the WNC lead partner in Opportunity Appalachia, a five-state endeavor designed to bring new investment into Central Appalachia. 

Opportunity Appalachia brings new investment to underserved Central Appalachian communities, creating new jobs and businesses that support sustainable growth. The 2023 Project Portfolio includes downtown development, manufacturing, IT, healthcare, education, food systems, clean energy, and heritage tourism and recreation. These high impact projects are expected to provide both robust social return as well as an attractive financial return. 

Seven investment-ready projects – representing $68 million in regional investment – recently presented at the Opportunity Appalachia Investor Convening. Click the links below to view videos from the following local projects:

For a full list of participating projects – which include manufacturing facilities, downtown development, tech business, agricultural facilities, hotels / housing, broadband deployment, and retail enterprises – please visit the overall program site here.

Mountain BizWorks will provide guidance and support to any interested WNC participants and will work with communities on developing their application and proposals.  All North Carolina ARC counties and communities therein can participate (NC ARC Counties). 

How to Apply:  

Note: The next cycle will open Winter 2023. Continue reading for a preview of the process, and scroll to the bottom of the page to add yourself to the interest list! 

Step 1: Review the program guidelines and watch the webinar or review the slides

Step 2: Submit a project interest form. This step is optional but encouraged for you to have a pre-application session to review your project, answer any questions about the Opportunity Appalachia process, and to assist with preparing a well qualified application

Step 3: Submit the Online Application.

Timeline:  

Opportunity Appalachia Kick-off Event (Virtual)

North Carolina Outreach Event

Watch Recording

North Carolina Outreach Event

Watch Recording

WNC Projects Work with Mountain BizWorks on Application

Submit Interest Form

Application Submission Date

Apply Here

Project/Community Selection Announcement

Have a Potential Project?

Fill out our project interest form to set up a pre-application project review session and to stay up to date on important program announcements.

Click Here

Questions? Contact the Mountain BizWorks Opportunity Appalachia Project Manager, Christine Laucher, at christine@mountainbizworks.org.

Mountain BizWorks is partnering with Appalachian Community Capital and other partners on Opportunity Appalachia, which is funded through a grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC).  For more information on Opportunity Appalachia, please click here. 

Project Funders