If you read part 1 of my plan, you know I think Eastern Kentucky has a chance to successfully reboot using authentic Appalachian culture to develop a tasteful food/drink/nature based tourism destination. Part 1 was basically a big picture outline. Part 2 starts down the yellow brick road discussing the finer details and steps necessary to reach the end game.
The problem that needs immediate attention is infrastructure.
The road to revitalizing Eastern Kentucky begins with - roads. The roads aren't awful. This is probably to ease access to Lexington so Appalachians can spend hard earned money away from home. The need for the "buy local" concept is another issue Ill be addressing later.
Visitors/tourists MUST be able to easily access the area; especially from I64. To do this, roads need 4 lanes the entire way from Lexington to Eastern Kentucky. They're almost there now. Just not quite.
Secondly, cell/data service must improve. Cell service (which I also mean to include data service) in Eastern Kentucky is absolutely abysmal. I would call it garbage; but that would be offensive to garbage everywhere.
Its a struggle to consistently make calls, texts, or get data connection. This is true for either of the cell providers in the area. Even worse, cell service is most scarce along the Mountain Parkway.
The problem that needs immediate attention is infrastructure.
The road to revitalizing Eastern Kentucky begins with - roads. The roads aren't awful. This is probably to ease access to Lexington so Appalachians can spend hard earned money away from home. The need for the "buy local" concept is another issue Ill be addressing later.
Visitors/tourists MUST be able to easily access the area; especially from I64. To do this, roads need 4 lanes the entire way from Lexington to Eastern Kentucky. They're almost there now. Just not quite.
Secondly, cell/data service must improve. Cell service (which I also mean to include data service) in Eastern Kentucky is absolutely abysmal. I would call it garbage; but that would be offensive to garbage everywhere.
Its a struggle to consistently make calls, texts, or get data connection. This is true for either of the cell providers in the area. Even worse, cell service is most scarce along the Mountain Parkway.
This is crucial, because its the route most tourists would use to access Eastern Kentucky. If there are federal subsidies, it certainly needs to be to improve cell service rather than to provide high(er) speed internet (a SOAR recommendation. As if internet doesn't exist in the area).
Next is the power/electricity reliability. Anyone who's ever lived in Eastern Kentucky knows the power goes out anytime there's even the slightest inclement weather. This is easily solved by burying the power lines. Burying the lines would ensure dependable service and reduce costs of paying linemen overtime to constantly make repairs.
The final point on infrastructure that needs attention is public sewer/water. This is an essential governmental service that must be in place in order to allow the smooth operation of restaurants and other tourism focused businesses. Thankfully this only needs intermediate attention because some cities do a good job. Even the cities that don't do a good job with water/sewer are getting better. One things certain: Eastern Kentucky has several lakes upon which to use as a water source. So this really shouldn't be an issue.
Next up.....legislative framework...
Next is the power/electricity reliability. Anyone who's ever lived in Eastern Kentucky knows the power goes out anytime there's even the slightest inclement weather. This is easily solved by burying the power lines. Burying the lines would ensure dependable service and reduce costs of paying linemen overtime to constantly make repairs.
The final point on infrastructure that needs attention is public sewer/water. This is an essential governmental service that must be in place in order to allow the smooth operation of restaurants and other tourism focused businesses. Thankfully this only needs intermediate attention because some cities do a good job. Even the cities that don't do a good job with water/sewer are getting better. One things certain: Eastern Kentucky has several lakes upon which to use as a water source. So this really shouldn't be an issue.
Next up.....legislative framework...
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