Perry County alliance puts face on business recruitment efforts
Perry County’s business-recruitment push now has a named director, a Hazard office and a board of local leaders, giving residents a clearer way to track who is courting employers.
The Hazard-Perry County Economic Development Alliance now has a public face residents can reach: Zach Lawrence, at 100 Citizens Lane, Suite B, Hazard, KY 41701, or 606-436-9731. The county says the alliance was started by local leaders and business people, and it is operating under the One East Kentucky umbrella as Perry County tries to present a more organized pitch to outside investors and in-county businesses.
The alliance page names Joe Grossman as president, Betsy Clemons as secretary and Janet Smith as treasurer, with Barry Martin, Charlene Miller, Bob Shurtleff and Chuck Sexton listed as board members and the vice-chairmanship vacant. That kind of roster matters in a rural county where business recruitment often hinges on who answers the phone, who knows the local sites and who can keep a project moving through the county’s offices and regional partners.
HPCEDA describes itself as a private, local economic development organization dedicated to job creation, with a mission to attract, develop and expand a diversified business base throughout Perry County. The county’s broader business pages say it created a website to address small business interests, workforce development and advocacy, economic development, jobs and industry, and it says community collaboration is central to building a strong and diverse economy.
The Hazard-Perry County Chamber of Commerce adds another layer to that system. The county says the chamber’s mission is to promote new business and commercial growth, along with the retention and expansion of existing businesses, and that it provides a small business resource center and a membership directory at no charge. Together, the chamber and the alliance give local employers a more defined place to turn when they need help with growth, staffing or visibility.
Lawrence brings regional experience to the job. One East Kentucky says he previously worked as a project manager at the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development, covering a 45-county territory across eastern and southern Kentucky on job creation and workforce development. Perry County also describes Hazard as the center for education, communication and healthcare for the area and surrounding counties, a reminder that the recruitment effort is trying to sell more than land or labor alone. The county’s test now is simple: whether the alliance can turn that structure into retained businesses, new employers and a broader local economy instead of another round of promises.
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