Centralina Regional Council and the Centralina Economic Development District (EDD) recently hosted the Regional Recovery Summit. The Summit was the first of three fall virtual workshops that will be held by the Regional Resilience Collaborative. Started by Centralina Regional Council and the Centralina EDD, the Collaborative will assess the viability and resiliency of emergency management plans and coordinate resources so the region can pursue greater efficiency in responding to current and future natural and man-made disasters. “It’s vital to know how we recover from these disruptions in a way that moves our communities forward and leverages the strengths of government and non-government partners,” said Geraldine Gardner, Executive Director of Centralina Regional Council.

In the 2022-2027 update to the CEDS, the EDA introduced a new requirement for economic resilience, an area’s ability to prevent, withstand and quickly recover from major disruptions. The requirement promotes planning for implementing resilience and establishing information networks. The CEDS economic resilience component supports a stronger and more resilient Centralina region.

After over ten years of dedicated service to our region and a 40+ year career in the Carolinas, Michael (Mike) Manis will be retiring from his position at Centralina Regional Council effective May 31, 2021. An expert economic developer and devoted public servant, Mike led the Community Economic Development Department and served as the President/COO of the Centralina Economic Development District (CEDD), a 501c3 affiliated organization of the Council. During his decade of service Mike made significant contributions to shaping the region’s economic development strategy and supporting Centralina’s local government members secure resources and technical assistance for transformational projects in their communities.

In March 2020, the U.S. Economic Development Administration awarded the Centralina Economic Development District (EDD) the Centralina Disaster Relief Coordinator Grant. The grant award seeks to support the Centralina EDD’s regional emergency management system. Specifically, the project will provide local assessment of viability of existing emergency management plans and develop a regional emergency management strategy that includes evaluating the creation of a permanent regional disaster management roundtable.

Recently, the City of Cherryville needed to illustrate the benefits of such investments ahead of the November 2020 election where the ballot would feature three bond issues totaling $8.7 million. City officials wanted to understand the economic impact of the bond referendum if the projects were implemented and sought Centralina’s assistance in analyzing relevant data.