Louisa plans to become Trail Town….special meeting held, application process begins
The Lawrence County Tourism Commission held a special meeting Monday, July 10, at the Lawrence County Courthouse, to announce plans to apply for state certification to make Louisa a ‘trail town’.
Over 30 people were in attendance, including State Representative, Jill York, Southeast KY Chamber of Commerce President, Jordan Gibson, FIVCO Economic Development Director, Kelly Ward, Assistant SOAR Director, Josh Ball, Paintsville Trail Town Coordinator, Lara Pack, Mayor, Harold Slone, County Judge Executive, John Osborne, and the Lawrence County Tourism Commission, along with several business and community leaders.
With the recent passing of House Bill 156 which created the KY Mountain Regional Recreation Authority, the rapid increase of tourism in eastern KY, and the success of other trail towns, the idea to try to make Louisa a trail town was something that the Lawrence County Tourism Commission, the Lawrence County Economic Development Dept., and the City of Louisa felt would benefit the area by advancing local and regional tourism, boosting the local economy, and greatly increasing small businesses opportunities.
The Kentucky Trail Town program is a tourism development program administered through the state Tourism, Arts, & Heritage Cabinet. The main goal of the program is to positively impact the economic and physical health of Kentucky communities through increased access to outdoor recreation, and to connect to nearby recreational resources, and complete community assessments to ensure they are tourism destinations. The train town program also involves all facets of a community as it works on improving tourism infrastructure, highlighting local products, and sharing its unique cultural identity.
Cathi Wells, Treasurer of the Lawrence County Tourism Commission, will be serving as the catalyst for this project, and will be the primary contact person for Louisa’s trail town application. This undertaking includes a 115 page comprehensive workbook, requiring the formation of several committees, and a series of assessments. The city of Paintsville has applied and is about two years into the process. They have graciously offered to help Lawrence County in this endeavor. Lawrence County’s primary trail is the Levisa Fork River.
Tourism is the 3rd largest industry in the state, with $887 billion spent in KY last year on outdoor recreation. Tourism revenue in Lawrence County increased by $338,787, in just one year, bringing the total to $15,215,532 in 2016. The city and county are working together, along with Johnson and other counties to expand tourism opportunities in Lawrence County and Louisa, as well as the entire region of eastern Kentucky.
