Delta Compass is a new economic development and inclusion intermediary serving the Arkansas and Mississippi Delta. A first of its kind for the region, Delta Compass is setting a new strategic direction for the region. Based in the Delta’s unofficial capital city of Greenville, Delta Compass is building a name for itself locally, regionally, and nationally as a rural demonstration site for economic development improvement. In less than a year, the intermediary has already secured over $2 million in investments and landed some pretty incredible economic development wins for a region that desperately needs it.
“The Delta has everything it needs to succeed,” said President & CEO, Justin Archer Burch. Burch, a Mississippi native, recently returned home to the Mississippi Delta after nearly a decade as the national Economic Development Director for Rural LISC. He was formerly Director of Programs for Delta Regional Authority and head of Community Development at the Foundation for the Mid South. “I wanted to bring some of the logic models I saw from other rural areas of the country,” said Burch. “In Appalachia you have these incredible economic development HUBS like FAHE; on the West Coast you have RCAC; in the Southwest you have Chicanos Por La Causa; in the Northeast you have People, Inc; it just seemed time to return home and build out something similar for the Delta.”
Delta Compass, as an intermediary, works to pipeline in resources, capacity, and funds for low-income communities throughout the Delta and is utilizing Washington County and Greenville as their prime demonstration site. Through Delta Compass’ technical assistance, outputs and outcomes are being pipelined back up to national philanthropy and Hill facing agencies. Delta Compass, at it’s heart, is a capacity builder providing fiduciary capacity and grant expertise to show the scale needed to prove that the Delta is still worth investing in.
In the last year, major awards have come through their doors to include $800,000 from the Byrne Criminal Justice Innovation Program for justice through design; $450,000 from Delta Regional Authority to increase BIPOC representation within Healthcare; $250,000 from USDA for Broadband expansion; $90,000 from LISC for entrepreneurial and workforce supports; $50,000 from T-Mobile for business expansion; $70,000 from Regions Foundation for workforce development for opportunity youth; $200,000 from Walton Family Foundation for economic development recruitment to the region; and over $15,000 from National Endowment for the Arts and South Arts for creative placemaking.
With these investments, the business community and the States of Arkansas and Mississippi have taken notice. Entergy Mississippi just announced their first powerplant in fifty years will be developed in Washington County. Governor Tate Reeves and Mississippi Development Authority CEO, Bill Cork, recently announced $1 million in MFLEX dollars to GKAM, creating 31 additional jobs to the 250 announced through the aeronautics company. “These wins are what will truly move the Delta forward,” said Burch. “Ad Valorem taxes and jobs are the aim of these efforts and every dollar we can secure to work through our sectoral partners is what will put the Delta back on top.”
The Delta is by far the most stigmatized region of the state. However, “there is so much to build upon here,” said Burch. Washington County is home to Stoneville, which is globally recognized as being the Silicon Valley of Agriculture. Billions flow through the county in research and development for USDA’s Southeast Field Office and Mississippi State University’s Extension Services. The Delta has also been rapidly transitioning economies to make the hiring field more nuanced. Healthcare, Public Administration, Transportation, Distribution & Logistics, and Advanced Manufacturing are becoming more and more realized as paths to quality job growth. Delta Compass sees this as the time to grow, to build, and to ensure that the Delta captures every opportunity for revitalization.
With that in mind, Delta Compass has secured some of the nation’s top economic talent to build that growth. The group has contracted with Retail Strategies in Birmingham, Alabama to lead retail recruitment for the region and drive real estate expertise, downtown beautification, incentives consulting, small business support, conference preparation, and broker connections. Delta Compass employed Strategic Location Advisors, led by Chuck Sexton in Kentucky, to bolster site development and industrial recruitment through target sector planning, site analysis, site scheduling, and labor advantages. Lastly, Delta Compass employed Site Location Partners, in Texas, to provide targeted site selector approaches, media amplification for Delta site development, and personalized outreach to over 1,900 industries. “The partners are great, but we also have to do the groundwork,” said Burch. Delta Compass is investing in site readiness—promoting over 300 acres of qualified site land through Entergy Mississippi at the 61 & 82 Industrial Park in Leland, Mississippi. “The site runs adjacent to Stoneville and the Greenville Bypass currently under development with MDOT,” said Burch. It really is an ideal site for companies looking for a shovel-ready investment opportunity with quick access to the Port of Greenville or the region’s only commercial airport. Delta Compass will continue to bring in and make regional investments that support the Delta in being a community of choice to live, work, play, and innovate. To learn more about Delta Compass and Washington County Economic Alliance visit deltacompass.org.
Justin Burch is the Executive Director of the Washington County Economic Alliance.