Adams County set for development projects caucus on June 15

Adams County will be in the middle of the region’s next funding fight when the Ohio Valley Regional Development Commission holds its second-round caucus in West Union. The meeting is set for Monday, June 15 at 9 a.m. in the Government Center Conference Room at 215 N. Cross Street, where local representatives will rank projects already submitted for possible Appalachian Regional Commission funding.

The caucus is more than a routine calendar item. OVRDC said second-round meetings are required only in counties where multiple pre-applications were filed, which means Adams County has enough projects in the pipeline to require a formal ranking step. The session is open to the public, local government officials and nonprofit organizations, and groups with submitted projects are being encouraged to send a representative and speak during the meeting.

What moves forward from that room could shape county and village investment for months to come. OVRDC says the Area Development program supports projects that strengthen infrastructure, promote economic growth and improve quality of life across Adams and 10 other eligible counties in southern Ohio. That puts roads, community facilities and other public improvements in play for communities trying to turn planning work into visible local upgrades.

The June 15 caucus is also one stop in a longer process that began in March. OVRDC opened its 2026 Area Development pre-application cycle on March 23, originally set a May 22 deadline, then extended it to May 29 after a May 19 training session with the Appalachian Regional Commission and the Ohio Department of Development. Final recommendations from the second-round caucuses will go to the OVRDC Project Review Committee for approval on Aug. 27.

Adams County’s place in that process carries extra weight because ARC classifies the county as distressed for fiscal year 2026, using unemployment, per capita market income and poverty to determine status. In Ohio, ARC said its fiscal year 2025 investments supported 70 projects totaling $36.9 million, matched by $69.4 million in state funds and serving residents across the state’s Appalachian counties.

OVRDC says contacting the commission is the first step for eligible applicants seeking ARC Area Development money, and the June 15 caucus is where those proposals get sorted in public. For Adams County, the decisions made there will help determine which local ideas are strong enough to keep moving and which ones still need backing before regional planning turns into actual construction, repairs or expansion.