Source: Kathy Nothstine, NADO, 7/20/11

Two Western North Carolina Regional Councils, the Southwestern Commission in Sylva and Land-of-Sky Regional Council in Asheville, have received a 2011 Innovation Award from the National Association of Development Organizations (NADO) Research Foundation for their work with WNC Communities to help develop and construct the new WNC Regional Livestock Center.   

In recent years, some 3,000 area producers and family farmers insisted a long-term, viable market was needed to serve our 19-county mountain region.  Driven by this need, Land-of-Sky Regional Council (serving four counties in WNC) and Southwestern NC Commission (serving the seven most western counties in WNC) encouraged and supported, WNC Communities, a 62-year-old, nonprofit organization, to assume the role of facilitator and project developer in reopening a livestock market.  

The most innovative components of this project were collaboration and cooperation among many stakeholders throughout Western North Carolina, including state and federal agencies.  Southwestern NC Commission and Land-of-Sky Regional Council were at the forefront of the collaboration needed to make this project possible with a result of obtaining $3.1 million dollars to support the project budget.  Their efforts assisted in making grant funds available for this project from the following; NC Tobacco Trust Fund Commission, The Golden LEAF Foundation, NC Rural Economic Development Center, Appalachian Regional Commission and NC Agricultural Development Farmland Preservation Trust Fund.

Other initiatives included the incorporation of best practices for humane handling and processing of a livestock sale from Temple Grandin’s 30-year body of work in livestock management with Colorado State University.  A number of her suggested practices influenced the design of this state-of-the-art facility.  Also, included in the innovative cooperation was an organizational structure that linked numerous stakeholders resulting in a clear feeling of ownership among producers and family farmers which has led to adopting the phrase, “I own it.”  

The WNC Regional Livestock Center opened March 2011 with tremendous success having sold over 4,000 head of livestock for an estimated $4 million in the first eight weeks.  Prior to the new market opening, area producers were transporting approximately 40,000 head of cattle annually, as much as 100 miles to a market to incurring an excess cost of some $50 per head over selling locally.  This local development has increased jobs by some 15 full-time at the operation and some 125 (full-time equivalents) in farm employment.  It also includes an education and training opportunity for farmers to increase quality of production by implementing NC State’s Beef Quality Assurance program to add value.  

NADO is a Washington, DC-based association that promotes programs and policies that strengthen local governments, communities and economies through regional cooperation, program delivery and comprehensive strategies.  The association’s Innovation Awards program recognizes regional development organizations and partnering organizations for improving the economic and community competitiveness of our nation’s regions and local communities. Award winners will be showcased during NADO’s 2011 Annual Training Conference, to be held October 8 through 11 in Miami, Florida.  

“Creative projects like the WNC Communities / WNC Regional Livestock Center advance the economic growth and sustainability of our nation’s regions and communities.  For more than 20 years, NADO’s Innovation Award has provided regional development organizations throughout the nation a unique opportunity to showcase their important work and their critical role in promoting economic development for rural and small metropolitan communities,” said NADO President Tim Ware, executive director of the Mid-East Commission in Washington, North Carolina.

For more information about the award-winning project, contact the Southwestern NC Commission at 828-586-1962, Land-of-Sky Regional Council at 828-251-6622 or WNC Communities at 828-252-4783.