Citizens in the Town of Narrows have spent the summer developing several downtown improvement projects as part of the RALLY Southwest Virginia program. The Town of Narrows is the first community in the New River Valley to participate in the latest round of this mini-grant program, which provides a $3,000 award to communities in Southwest Virginia to implement a community development project through a team structure. More information about Opportunity SWVA and the Rally program is available at: https://www.opportunityswva.org/grants/rally-swva/.

The team in Narrows is comprised of citizens, small business owners, town staff, and county representatives. NRVRC staff has been working with the group on several related projects that build on the recent planning grant efforts to revitalize downtown Narrows and encourage business development. The project is working to promote the downtown area as a location for new businesses, through efforts to beautify the downtown and provide information about the Town to visitors and business owners who may be interested in locating in the Town.

The group has developed posters highlighting outdoor recreation activities near Narrows to post in the windows of vacant buildings, improving the look of the downtown business area. The group is working with a local Eagle Scout to build an information kiosk near the duck pond in downtown, with a map of these attractions and space for promotional materials for local businesses and activities. Finally, the group is developing a marketing materials for businesses, detailing information and incentives for businesses looking for a location in the Town.

The RALLY project results will be unveiled at the Narrows Fall Festival on October 28th. For more information on this project, contact Patrick O’Brien  pobrien@nrvrc.org or 540-639-9313 x 206.