Letchworth Gateway Villages along with more than 30 stakeholders from five counties in the Genesee Valley Region convened February 7th at Cuba’s historic Palmer Opera House to develop strategies aimed at bolstering the region’s outdoor recreation economy. Workshop attendees included municipal leaders, entrepreneurs, tourism professionals, New York State park managers, chambers of commerce, county planners, and a variety of community organizations participating in trail planning and management, and more.
This gathering, which was sponsored by the Cuba Chamber of Commerce, was the second of three regional planning convenings organized under the USDA’s Rural Economic Development Innovation (REDI) Initiative.
REDI is a new USDA program that provides rural communities with planning technical assistance to overcome multi-jurisdictional challenges, surface innovative models of rural development and better leverage federal, state, local and/or private funding.
The REDI planning effort, which officially launched in October 2019, aims to develop the Genesee Valley Region as an outdoor recreation hub by creating new, place-based market opportunities anchored to the Valley’s abundant nature and recreation assets. The initiative involves over 60 other organizations from five counties in the rural Genesee Valley Region, including the Friends of the Genesee Valley Greenway and Genesee River Wilds. To learn more visit: https://www.letchworthgatewayvillages.org/redi-usda.
Cuba was selected to host the second regional convening to share best practices on how one community is working collaboratively to reinvent their local economy through their nature and historical assets.
Cuba Village Trustee Steve Raub moderated a panel consisting of the Village Mayor Michele Miller, the Town of Cuba’s new Supervisor, Lee James, Cuba Chamber of Commerce President Kevin White, and a founder of the Cuba Friends of Architecture, Dr. Michael Doyle to discuss how leaders from the Cuba area worked together to renovate the Palmer House and to create the Cuba section of the Genesee Valley Greenway State Park (The Greenway).
“Outdoor recreation possibilities have always been a huge draw for Cuba,” stated Mayor Michelle Miller. As our economy has improved, we feel positioned to let this gem of natural beauty be known to a larger group of travelers. By linking our trail with the Greenway, bicyclists and hikers can extend their adventures and enjoy the peace of mind and good health that results from communing with nature and like-minded friends. In order to do this, we need to work together with other like-minded people. The REDI initiative is a great opportunity to connect with other leadership from across the region developing creative solutions to rural development challenges. Connecting with others’ expertise and enthusiasm fuels our efforts and effectiveness.”
After the REDI workshop, attendees gathered at the Cuba Circulating Library from 3-7pm to provide input into plans for completing the southern section of the Genesee Valley Greenway.
The event led by the Genesee Valley Greenway State Park and Alta Planning and Design is part of a jointly funded effort between the New York State Office of Parks Recreation and Historic Preservation and the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation to improve the Genesee Valley Greenway State Park in the Rochester area, and to complete a strategic plan to connect gaps in the trail from Cuba to Mt. Morris. Alta Planning and Design, will be seeking public input about completing the southern section of the trail throughout February on their website: https://geneseevalleygreenway.com/
Cuba officials are very interested in completing the southern section of the Greenway, which presently stops just west of Cuba. Connecting the trails will result in Cuba being the southern gateway to the Genesee Valley Greenway, making Cuba a legitimate “Trail Town” which will support ongoing economic development.