Success Stories

Timber markets are one of America’s most valuable, yet unpredictable, natural resource industries. It is no stranger to volatility, going from boon to bust and back again. As recently as 2019, paper mills and biomass electric plants were closing in Maine, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont, a four-state region collectively referred to as the Northern Forest. As the plants continued to close, the demand for wood harvested in the region began to decline.

The place-based investment is core to EDA’s mission, with our team working closely with local community leaders to ensure EDA’s grants support targeted economic development based on each community’s unique needs. It’s not a one-size-fits-all approach, which allows EDA’s grants to be flexible, dynamic, and meet the moment that’s called for in each community. In Lubbock, Texas, that has translated into multiple EDA investments, as leaders turn a painful Air Force Base closure into economic opportunity for the region.

In September 2022, President Joe Biden announced the 21 winners of the Build Back Better Regional Challenge (BBBRC), a key component of his American Rescue Plan. The competition was designed to boost economic recovery from the pandemic and rebuild American communities, including those grappling with decades of disinvestment.

Throughout much of the 20th century, Shelby, North Carolina, about an hour west of Charlotte, was a powerhouse of textile manufacturing. It was home to several mills, which produced yarn and thread for the clothing industry. It also had considerable transportation assets, making these products readily available throughout the United States. By the dawn of the 21st century, however, all of that would change.

When Centrepolis Accelerator launched just over five years ago, it only had capacity to help a couple startups bring their products to market.

A $3.2 million EDA public works project to help fund water and wastewater facility upgrades in Grayling, Michigan, resulted in...