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How to overcome the small town politics

By Becky McCray

An anonymous reader left this plaintive cry on an old post here: My Arizona small town is a mess. We are going to become a ghost town and/or absorbed into the County if we can’t generate revenue. The Town Council and Chamber are full of power plays, bickering and a Good Ol’ Boy attitude. We […]

June 5, 2011 Filed Under: community, rural Tagged With: Climate

Small town profit/nonprofit partnerships

By Becky McCray

Long ago, Rebecca Leaman asked me about nonprofits in small towns. Profit/nonprofit partnership is essentialin most small towns.  “A lot of your thoughts on small-town and small-biz development seem to apply well to nonprofits, too – certainly to the grassroots groups that keep rural communities (I live in one) rolling. Your thoughts?” At the time, […]

May 10, 2011 Filed Under: community, rural Tagged With: Climate, Support

When saving a dollar could lose your community

By Becky McCray

[Melyn Johnson is the Main Street Manager in Guymon, Oklahoma. She always amazes me with her innovative projects in tourism and community development. She is also incredibly generous at sharing her knowledge. She wrote this piece for her “On the Bricks” column, in the Guymon Daily Herald. It’s been reprinted in other area papers, and she […]

February 21, 2011 Filed Under: Best of, community, economic development, rural Tagged With: Climate, opinion

Want more entrepreneurs? Grow your own

By Becky McCray

Looking to grow your own local entrepreneurs? See if you can take some inspiration from these entrepreneur contests. First, Lewiston-Auburn, Maine, with Launch L-A. They are targeting young entrepreneurs with a prior connection to their county, but currently living elsewhere. Does your idea have wings? If you’re a young entrepreneur just itching to launch your […]

September 9, 2010 Filed Under: economic development, entrepreneurship Tagged With: Climate

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