Agenda - 02-12-2008-2 - Laserfiche WebLink

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* Indicates not in attendance Over the following month, some other service providers were contacted to also help support the project, especially in disseminating a potential users' survey. These include the following individuals: Milele Archibald, Director Doris Schomberg, Director Small Business Center Culinary Program Alamance Communi Colle e Alamance Community College John Parker Penny Hawkins, Owner/Chef Good Work The Carolina Gourmet The members of the advisory committee represent a broad cross-section of agricultural and business service providers located throughout the four-county region, culinary professionals, directors of two area farmers markets, and chief officers of two of the largest local food retail outlets. The level of involvement from the community speaks well of this project's inclusiveness, as well as the success in soliciting for surveys from community members who might be interested in accessing a shared use food processing center. The region has a remarkably strong, diversif ed economy, as well as a strong food infrastructure that is willing and able to support local value added food production. Two major food retailers in the natural/local food market were active participants and provided monetary support for the feasibility study. Decision makers at Whole Foods Markets and Weaver Street Market expressed strong interest in sourcing products from local food entrepreneurs and farms manufacturing at a value added food processing center. Dan Thomas, the market manager of the Chapel Hill Whole Foods, met with the lead researcher and was enthusiastic about sourcing high quality value added food items made locally. Weaver Street Market assisted the project by giving researchers their. local vendor list. Over 100 Weaver Street vendors .were mailed a potential users survey. Other retail outlets including the new Chatham Marketplace in Pittsboro, and a planned locally owned supermarket in Burlington, expressed interest in the project and assisted in disseminating surveys to potential users. Area restaurants owners, most notably Andrea Reusing of Chapel Hill's Lantern Restaurant, actively promoted the feasibility study through word of mouth and informing other independent restaurants of the project. Geographically, the four counties are not a distinct social or economic area. They are instead a part of a much larger, mostly urban region usually identified with Research Triangle Park (RTP), one of the largest high technology business parks in the country and located in eastern Durham and western Wake counties. Raleigh, located just to the west of RTP, is the state capital and the second largest city in the state. The North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center reports that Wake County had a population of 786,522 in 2006. 15