By By BILL CRIST – Publisher
To determine Escambia County's eligibility for grant money through the Delta Regional Authority, the Coalition For A Healthier Escambia County is coordinating several meetings and interviews to help develop a countywide needs assessment. A town hall meeting is scheduled for Brewton on Thursday, March 6 at 4 p.m. at D.W. McMillan Memorial Hospital.
To help put the report together, the Coalition will be holding three town-hall style meetings as well as 36 structured interviews with various civic and business leaders.
The first public meeting will be held in Flomaton, at the city hall, at 10 a.m. on Thursday, March 6. The second meeting will be that afternoon in Brewton and the third will take place on Saturday, March 8 at 7 a.m. at the Atmore Community Hospital.
According to Ruth Harrell, chairperson of the Coalition, the focus groups are an important part of the data gathering process.
Earlier this year, the Escambia County Commission received $5,000 from the Authority to conduct the assessment. The initial study grant was provided after Escambia County was added to the area that is under the jurisdiction of the Authority by U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions.
The Delta Regional Authority is a federally funded program that gives counties and communities grants to enhance the following areas; basic public infrastructure, transportation infrastructure for the purpose of facilitating economic development, business development with an emphasis on entrepeneurship and job training or employment-related education.