Middlesboro Main Street and other Bell County community leaders were in attendance at the Community Economic Development Initiative of Kentucky (CEDIK) for the Promise Zone Downtown Revitalization Spring 2018 Team Convening at the Bell Theater in Pineville on June 19.

The convening was all about how to better initiate and execute lasting community development and change in your community.

The first thing on the budget was Getting Organized for Community Change.

Community change is often dependent on the people and specific situations of the community, and this session was designed to help each team present at the meeting to think through their specific situations and develop a plan for the upcoming year.

Next was the General Develop Environment discussion. Most communities have considered the redevelopment of a specific buildings or space in the community. This session was to help each present downtown team assess their readiness to take on such substantial development projects in the future.

The Development Panel closed out the day. There is a Development 101 training coming this fall and this panel served as an introduction to what will be discussed in greater detail later on down the line. The upcoming panel will feature a commercial lender, a Brownfield consultant, a seasoned developer and some entrepreneurs who have taken on the challenge of renovating buildings in their communities.