City receives major grant for local training center

The City of Rector has received notification of the receipt of a major grant from the Arkansas Economic Development Commission for the continued development of the community's new educational training center.

The grant totals $250,000 and will be used for the renovation and development of the Northeast Arkansas Innovative Training Center on Main Street in downtown Rector. The funding comes through federal Community Development Block Grant sources.

"This is an exciting development for our community," said mayor Ron Kemp, "and will be a great step forward for the progress of our training center. This is one of the largest grants we have received in recent years and we are appreciative of all those who have made it possible."

Kemp received notification of the award from Basil Julian, grants division director for the AEDC. The grant application was prepared by local training center director Jacinda Welch in coordination with Janet Lee of the East Arkansas Planning and Development District in Jonesboro.

"I appreciate all the work that both Jacinda and Janet put forth in helping to attain this grant for Rector," Kemp said.

The project involves renovation of the existing building to house both training and wellness centers. No acquisition will be required as the city currently leases the property with the option to purchase at any time. Plans and specifications have been drawn and the project should be ready to accept bids within 120 days.

"In the long term, the community will benefit from a more qualified applicant pool and a healthier citizenry, resulting in the retention of numerous local jobs and workers," according to a news release from the AEDC.

"The training center will provide job skills to local citizens, making them more attractive to local businesses and providing for a more sustainable community," the release said. "The health center will provide citizens the opportunity to enhance their own well-being through access to workout equipment."

"We all know that we need more jobs and businesses in our community," Kemp said. "The training center is an important part of the process to try to improve our community in those vital areas and I urge all our citizens to support it in any way they can."

Kemp said the city's partnership with both the Greene County Industrial Training Center in Paragould and Black River Technical College in Pocahontas is a key to making the local center successful in the coming years.