The Rio Grande Council of Governments has been awarded a $50,000.00 USDA Rural Business Enterprise Grant (RBEG) and a local match from the City of Anthony of $12,500.00 to build economic development capacity for the newly formed City of Anthony, New Mexico.
The Rio Grande Council of Governments (RGCOG) is a voluntary association of local governments in six Far West Texas counties and Doña Ana County in New Mexico. For over 25 years, the RGCOG has worked hard to help support an environment that will spur economic development in Anthony as well as the whole multistate Paso del Norte border region.
The RGCOG has been working alongside the Small Business Development Center and the Women’s Intercultural Center in holding business development workshops in Anthony. These workshops provide both potential and current small business owners the tools to start and market their own businesses. As a result, these workshops provide small businesses in Anthony with the ability to retain and expand employment.
In conjunction with the Mesilla Valley Economic Development Alliance, the New Mexico Economic Development Department, the South Central Council of Governments, and the Borderplex Alliance, the RGCOG has worked with the Anthony Board of Trustees in formulating and providing incentives to selected private businesses that will make a measurable difference in achieving economic growth and development. This, in turn, will expand and diversify the tax base and create new quality jobs in Anthony.
Finally, the RGCOG will create a strategic plan for economic development as a roadmap for the City. The strategic plan establishes direction for Anthony’s short and long-term economic development. Specifically, the plan guides future planning and land use decisions with economic development implications, and outlines strategies to enhance Anthony’s attraction, expansion, and business retention efforts. By leveraging the City’s existing strengths and taking advantage of key opportunities, the strategic plan aims to create a vital, diverse economy in Anthony.
USDA- Rural Development’s funding is not only beneficial for Anthony, but for all of Doña Ana County, as well as the greater Paso Del Norte region. The technical assistance provided by the RGCOG through this grant shall grow the economic capacity of Anthony to improve its economic future and quality of life for its citizens for years to come. It is a process in which public, private, and non-profit partners work together to create better conditions for economic success and job creation.
The grant period is from October 1st, 2013 through September 30th, 2014.
