Tornado-devastated town banks on plan that it hopes will serve as model for other rural places

One year after a tornado devastated West Liberty, Ky., the Appalachian foothills town is ready to put the pieces back together with a plan its leaders hope will draw national attention and serve as a model for struggling small towns throughout the country, writes columnist Tom Eblen for the Lexington Herald-Leader. (Herald-Leader photo)

Reconstruction plans call for building more energy-efficient houses and buildings, "including a geothermal loop that many buildings could share to lower their heating and cooling costs," writes Eblen. "The strategic plan also calls for encouraging downtown to be rebuilt with mixed-use structures housing businesses, offices, restaurants and apartments. That would create a more lively downtown with lower rents because of more efficient use of space." (Wikipedia locator map)

Another proposal is free wireless downtown "to attract businesses and people in a region where wi-fi availability is now limited," Eblen writes. Other proposals include eco-tourism, focusing on the area's state parks and outdoors attractions, with an emphasis on encouraging people to start businesses that center around outdoor activities. (Read more)

The West Liberty strategic report can be read here. We wrote about the affects of the tornado on local media here, here and here.