Beckley, W.Va. (November 9, 2023) – The New River Gorge Regional Development Authority (NRGRDA) is hosting its New River Gorge Economic Outlook Summit November 16 at the Black Knight Conference Center in Beckley from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. The event will highlight two valuable economic presentations that will offer insights into the community and economic development potential in Raleigh, Summers, Fayette, and Nicholas counties.

Jina Belcher, executive director of NRGRDA, said the summit will feature reports by John Deskins, Ph.D., Director of the West Virginia University Bureau of Business and Economic Research, and Samantha Nygaard, New River Gorge Regional Representative for the National Parks Conservation Association.

“Our partners and stakeholders are going to want to hear and dissect this valuable data,” said Belcher. “The National Parks Conservation Association report on the New River Gorge will have been released and this will be its first public presentation. Also, WVU’s economic research offers a barometer against past years and benchmarks our region in comparison to the rest of the state,” Registration information for the free public event is at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/new-river-gorge-2023-regional-economic-outlook-summit-tickets-754853867237?aff=oddtdtcreator

The NRGRDA’s mission is to initiate, facilitate and support the economic and community development efforts within the southern West Virginia counties of Fayette, Nicholas, Raleigh, and Summers. NRGRDA stimulates the regional economy through business expansion and retention efforts, including an extensive portfolio of financial services; the management of sites for new companies locating to the region; and serving as a point of access for local service providers that offer a variety of technical assistance for business owners.

The West Virginia Hive is the entrepreneurship program of the NRGRDA. More can be found at https://nrgrda.org/