The Appalachian Regional Commission, in partnership with the State of Tennessee Division of Economic and Community Development contracted with We Make Things Happen Corporation(WMTH), Barge, Waggoner, Sumner & Cannon (BWSC) and Economic Research Associates (ERA) to provide technical assistance to selected Appalachian counties in Tennessee for the development of marketable "trails" and "corridors".
The Cumberland Plateau Heritage Corridor (Big South Fork Region) consists of eight counties made up of: McCreary County in Kentucky and Clay, Scott, Fentress, Pickett, Overton, Campbell and Morgan Counties in Tennessee. (Click on any of the following counties for an individual county map along with information on
attractions located in that area.)
The following are the steps taken over a six month period to achieve the final product . . .
a Regional Websitefeaturing both themed trails and community offerings.
PHASE I: Inventory and Mapping of Assets and Offerings
1. Preliminary meeting with primary representatives from each of the 8 counties.
Meeting held in February in Scott County
All counties present provided an overview of what each of their communities had to offer. Click here for an overview.
Windshield Tour of three of the participating counties (Fentress, McCreary & Morgan) by representatives from all three agencies (WMTH, BWSC and ERA). Click here for windshield tours.
2. Month of March - Conducted in-depth tours of Fentress and Morgan
Inventoried all existing attractions and offerings for these two counties
Developed maps for the two counties highlighting primary sites
Created website and added map, photos and information to website for both Fentress and Morgan.
3. Month of April
Held second meeting in Pickett County
Discussed signage concerns, findings thus far, ideas for name of trail, possible route and potential funding
Developed map for the county highlighting primary sites
Added preliminary maps of Scott and McCreary counties to the website
Developed signage concept for entire eight county initiative and sent to primary contact at Tennessee Economic and Community Development to review before introducing concept to participating communities.
Recommendations and suggestions were developed for the counties of Fentress, Scott and Morgan Counties from observations during more in-depth tours of each community
Proposed Scenic Byway map was created with primary attractions noted along the route and a website created that includes this information
6. Month of July
An inventory of all offerings was compiled and ranked according to visitor readiness
From this information, a Cluster Analysis was conducted by Economic Research Associates. It identified potential trail opportunities across the region.
Segmented attractions and services by type, market-appeal and ability to support visitation
Examined potential niche marketing and cross-marketing strategies
Click here for a Powerpoint Presentation of their findings.
A third community meeting was held to finalize on name, logo, signage, concept, proposed scenic byway route, requirements and discussion on preliminary recommendations as well as potential funding for recommendations.
7. Month of August
A regional website was created for the eight counties. Click here to view website.
