GUIDE AVAILABLE ON RURAL DEVELOPMENT By GEORGE H. RYAN, Lieutenant Governor Chairman, Illinois Rural Affairs Council

Lots of resources for rural development exist, but unfortunately they can go untapped because people are unaware of them.

Certainly assistance efforts can be multi-tiered: there are agencies and programs at the state level... the federal government offers help in various forms ... and there are many public and private organizations that can provide advice and lend a helping hand to local decisionmakers and businesses.

I came to know about many of these resources through a recent undertaking. When I chaired the Task Force on the Future of Rural Illinois (which has been succeeded by the Rural Affairs Council), we held meetings and hearings in about 120 rural communities in the State. Over and over, many small businesses, local officials, and community leaders expressed an interest in furthering their economic development, but they were unfamiliar with both the forms of assistance available to them and an appropriate contact person.

As chairman of the Rural Affairs Council, I am pleased to report that the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs has published The Rural Development Resource Guide. This new reference booklet lists agency and organization assistance programs and specific contact information, including addresses and phone numbers.

The guide is comprehensive, because it reflects input from the 11 agencies of state government that are a part of the Rural Affairs Council. Not only have these agencies cooperated in a supplying information about their own programs and services that will help small towns and rural areas, but they also identified service organizations and contacts in the private sector and at the federal level that can help in the quest for economic development.

In many respects, the production of this resource guide testifies to one of the goals that the Rural Affairs Council set for itself when it was established: to ensure the efficient and effective delivery of state services for the benefit of rural residents, businesses, and communities.

Surely a special acknowledgment must go to Jay Hedges, Director of DCCA, and his staff for providing the energy and resources to publish this guide. It is through this type of cooperation and enthusiasm that we can best pursue our overall objective of the Rural Affairs Council — that of promoting a rural renaissance here in Illinois.

Want a copy of the Rural Development Guide? Please contact:

The Illinois Department of Commerce
and Community Affairs
620 East Adams
Springfield, Illinois 62701
(217) 785-6193
    or
The Rural Affairs Council
612 Stratton Office Building
Springfield. Illinois 62706
(217) 782-7514 •

Page 8 / Illinois Municipal Review / August 1988