LEADERSHIP, DETERMINATION & A PLAN
By Jim Holton, Consultant RCIDA

Making things happen in any community can sometimes be a challenge but things have been moving very smoothly in Mt. Vernon and Rockcastle County during what is a tough economic time for many areas of the state and the country. At a time when unemployment rates are soaring nationally, Rockcastle County is not only retaining their existing jobs at their primary manufacturing plants, they are also seeing jobs increasing. At a time when plants are closing we are building a new facility for a company which was on the brink of leaving our community. I can tell you from experience it only happens with leadership, determination and a plan. When I first started working with the people of Rockcastle County about 1.5 years ago, I saw something in the leadership of this community that caused me to believe there was opportunity for improvement here. Now, 18 months later, we have retained two companies that were going to leave (Plasticware, LLC & Sourcecorp BPS) we are building a building for one of those companies which will be owned by the county and will generate a revenue source when the debt is paid off within the next 7 years. We are expanding the Rockcastle County Business Park South to a development which will be comparable with any development (for its’ size) to any property available in Kentucky and we are seeing an attitude of anything is possible become even stronger than ever before in Rockcastle County. How does this happen? Leadership, determination and a plan.

The credit goes to not one individual but to lots of individuals all working together. The role of the Rockcastle County magistrates and the County Judge Executive has been crucial. When put in a situation where they needed to generate revenue for the overall coffers of the county, they made a tough choice which had to be made in enacting an occupational tax. But, what they did not have to do, but they DID was commit 40% of those funds to economic development. Without that commitment of those funds to economic development, many of the activities which are happening right now in our community would have not been possible. The City of Mt. Vernon has been very cooperative in working with us on the need for expansion of the utility lines to the development. It creates new opportunities for them and it also allows us to continue to expand the development. Leadership Rockcastle has worked diligently to ensure that the original strategic plan, written back in 2002 remains relevant, is updated and the community remains focused on making the goals within this document a reality.

Can the cooperation, the leadership, the determination last? Time will only tell. But one thing is for sure, there are many communities TODAY who might have had success in the past when Rockcastle County was sitting idle. Today, Rockcastle County is not in idle, this community is moving forward and I believe the best is yet to come. Let’s not let anything stand in our way of continuing to make up for lost time and create some very possible development for today and for the future residents of this community. Thank your elected leadership for their willingness to take the steps necessary to make this county a contender on the community and economic development field.

Return to home page.