If ever there was a time to play the drum roll app on your phone, this is it (if you don’t have it, I highly recommend downloading it…you will use it more than you think ;).
The MOUs are all approved, and we are delighted to announce our Rural Opportunity, Advancement, and Resilience (ROAR) pilot communities! They are:
- Starbuck (Columbia County)
- Palouse (Whitman County)
- Darrington (Snohomish County)
- White Salmon and Bingen (Klickitat County)
- Wiley City (Yakima County)
- Everson, Sumas and Nooksack (Whatcom County)
As you’ve no doubt noticed, there are more than six communities. For those areas with multiple communities, we felt the close proximity, good working relationship between the communities, and the nature of some of the projects warranted combining efforts. Our project managers have started working with the mayors and clerks to get to know the communities and stakeholders that will be involved as we refine and prioritize the scopes of work for each location.
We also have a great core group of partners working with us on the ROAR pilot program: Association of Washington Cities, Washington State University Extension, Washington State Department of Commerce (Local Government Division), and Washington USDA Rural Development.
The hamburger is a mess, but the ketchup bottle is finally empty! We look forward to sharing each community’s progress with you over the next 12-24 months.
Take care,
Jody
