The Michigan Office of Rural Prosperity (ORP) Michigan’s Roadmap to Rural Prosperitya 71-page report detailing the challenges facing rural Michigan and strategies to address them.
ORPEstablished under the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO). Launched in 2022 as the Department of Rural Development. It was later renamed the Rural Prosperity Bureau in 2023.
ORP Director Sarah Lucas said the office was created to respond to the unique needs of rural communities and the challenges they face regarding issues such as housing, broadband, infrastructure, economic development and health care access.
“The Office of Rural Prosperity is one of the few state departments focused on rural prosperity. There are about six of us across the country, and we are proud to have such a comprehensive strategy specifically targeted at rural areas. Not many states have it,” Lucas said. “I think this is very unique and a very important opportunity for the state to come together around the needs that rural communities are experiencing.”
According to the Roadmap for Rural Prosperity released last month, rural Michigan is home to 20% of the state’s population and accounts for nearly 94% of the state’s land area.
““The Michigan region includes Michigan’s 12 federally recognized tribes, more than 1,400 local governments, and 70 counties that are considered rural or mostly rural,” the report states. I am. “Rural Michigan helps prepare the workforce of the future, as more than two-thirds of our school districts and 21 universities are located in rural areas of the state.”
According to a LEO press release, the roadmap aims to understand the needs and priorities of rural areas and help local, regional, and state leaders create “a collaborative and collective way to achieve prosperity across Michigan’s rural communities.” It aims to guide people to “promote action.” ORP defines rural prosperity as “resilient and connected rural populations, communities, and natural environments.”
Lucas said the idea for the roadmap began after hearing consistent concerns among rural community members. She said ORP believes it would be helpful to understand how policies, programs and resources could impact some of the issues being discussed.
“I would say the hearing process started in April of 2022, but we never really stopped it,” Lucas said. “A key role of our office is to work closely with rural communities to understand what they are experiencing and to help our partners within and outside state government understand what those experiences are. It’s about being able to share.”
ORP will conduct several events, including a 58-county listening tour, a 2023 statewide survey with responses from 2,489 people, a rural leadership summit, local and regional discussions, and thematic roundtables. We received input from rural residents and community leaders through different initiatives.
According to the Roadmap, respondents to the 2023 Rural Priorities and Perspectives Survey say the biggest challenges facing rural communities over the next decade are increasing housing opportunities, attracting more working-age people, Manage changes in the cost of living, population growth and development, and maintain the workforce.
The roadmap lists housing as the most important issue facing rural communities across the state, followed by workforce issues.
The seven strategies outlined in the roadmap to address these issues are:
- Expand and diversify the workforce across sectors.
- Improve personal health and financial well-being.
- Support local and regional capacity to deliver services.
- Expanding opportunities for high-quality, affordable housing.
- Building and maintaining resilient infrastructure.
- Strengthen community-driven and place-based economic development efforts.
- Protection and conservation of natural assets.
Now that the roadmap is published, Lucas said ORP plans to use it as a way to “frame the conversation.” She said this is an opportunity to share resources and “best practices” so that communities looking to implement the ideas outlined in the report will have the support and connections to succeed.
“We’re actually going to be talking to a number of organizations over the next few months about the roadmap and what it’s going to look like in terms of local and regional efforts and statewide efforts,” she said. . “This is really going to be a conversation starter in some ways and a way for us to collaborate with other institutions and other types of partners within and outside of Michigan.”
So far, Lucas said, people have told him the roadmap reflects their experience living and working in rural Michigan.
“Even in the last few weeks since its release, there have already been a lot of really great opportunities to incorporate it into local, regional and state-wide activities,” she said.
Michigan’s Roadmap to Rural Prosperity_Final Report
