Clay County Mayor Dale Reagan said he does not understand what has moved Clay County back to its rating as a distressed county.
Reagan said Clay County has been on the fine line of a distressed or at-risk county for the past several years. The Appalachian Regional Commission uses a three-year average of income, unemployment and poverty rates to determine which counties are distressed. Reagan said he is hoping an upcoming meeting with the Upper Cumberland Development District can help the county find the root problem that is holding the county back.
“We are certainly open to any suggestions and stuff, but as far as being able to put my finger on one thing I can’t and I really don’t, I have not figured out the answer to that,” Reagan said.
Reagan said the state and state representatives recommended that the county build an industrial park to attract industries that may be looking to relocate or expand. Reagan said that is something the county has been trying to accomplish.
“We’ve got the Mitchell Street Industrial Park, and we have been working on that and everything,” Reagan said. “We are working on heading in the direction of getting some areas, and we already got an area, you know, it’s already got an area that is suitable to build on.”
Reagan said though being a distressed county is not good, it may be easier to obtain grants to help the county address some issues that the county has.
“That does throw you into another tier to where it makes you more available for grant funding and less matching on that, which helps, and everything to help hopefully get us back out of that state,” Reagan said. “Hopefully, we can turn it around and at least get back to an at-risk status.”
Reagan said being a rural county is also a hurdle that the county deals with. Reagan said being a rural county has advantages and disadvantages. Reagan said the county will continue to work with what the county has available.
“God be our helper, you know, we will continue to do that,” Reagan said. “And make this place, what we always said we think it’s the greatest place to live, work, and play, and that that’s what we are going to try our very best to work on.”
Reagan said he doe not think many people in Clay County are unemployed, as the county only has a 4.2 percent unemployment rate.
