KNOXVILLE — The University of Tennessee Urban and Regional Planning program in conjunction with the UT Community Partnership Center invite the public to participate in two forums this fall to develop a community-driven, sustainable growth plan for the Copperhill-McCaysville area on the Tennessee-Georgia line.
The forums will be on Tuesday, Sept. 26, and Tuesday, Nov. 2, at the Copperhill City Hall. The meetings, which begin at 6:30 p.m., will last no longer than two hours.
UT graduate students will facilitate the process. The resulting plan will guide sustainable economic growth and development to ensure that the needs of the present generations are met without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
The plan will be presented to the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) in Washington, D.C., in December. The plan could be used to apply for federal funding toward improvement projects in the area.
“We are very excited to be working with citizens of Copperhill and McCaysville on this year’s project,” said Tim Ezzell, UT Community Partnership Center director. “These communities have a unique and storied history and we look forward to meeting with local residents and working with them to shape a vision for the future.”
Copper was once mined in Copperhill and McCaysville.
The public forums are part of the annual Appalachian Teaching Project. The project is funded by the ARC, and is designed to build relationships between communities and universities in the region.
UT helped to establish the Appalachian Teaching Project and has participated since the project’s inception in 2000. This year, UT and 12 other colleges and universities will participate in the program in towns across the Appalachian region.
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Contact:
Amy Blakely, (865-974-5034), amy.blakely@tennessee.edu
Eric Ogle (865-974-4562), eogle@tennessee.edu