North Carolina Association Of Community Economic Development Inc

Rocky Mount, NC straddles Nash & Edgecombe counties. According to the 2023 County Health Rankings, Edgecombe County ranked 99th out of 100 NC counties regarding health outcomes. On the Edgecombe County side of the City, decades of racial discrimination and current policies that fuel our exclusionary housing market, have resulted in racial patterns of development that lock Blacks into inferior neighborhoods, especially negatively impacting residents health and wellbeing. NCACDC aims to attack a root cause of local health challenges with a focus on residential segregation, including a significant shortage of affordable housing in Rocky Mount. NCACDC has sought to increase Black resident voices at decision-making tables. Our goal is to enlarge self-directed and direct participation opportunities for Black residents to act as leaders who push for real change that produces improvements to their neighborhoods & health. NCACDC works to strengthen the number and skills of residents impacted by housing and health disparities through outreach, contact and coordination of training, education, leadership development and power building sessions for these residents.

During 2024, the City began implementing planning process to develop a new Comprehensive Plan. The Comprehensive Plan would establish a long-term vision for the Citys future and would identify goals, policies and implementation strategies for achieving that vision. As follow up to an educational workshop NCACDC sponsored during 2024 to build the capacity for low wealth residents to collaborate with City officials in the development of the Plan, Rocky Mount officials recognized the need to address racial equity more comprehensively throughout the planning process. NCACDC facilitated a meeting between low-income neighborhood residents and City officials which included a community-generated presentation entitled Affordable HousingStrategy Recommendations for Rocky Mounts Comprehensive Plan. NCACDC demonstrated planning for equitables communities is possible through deeper participation, especially of communities commonly excluded from democratic voice and power.