Copperas Cove Economic Development Corporation (TX) – Envision Copperas Cove

Challenge

Copperas Cove’s development has been closely tied to the establishment and growth of Fort Cavazos (formerly Fort Hood) since the post’s inception in 1942. While the post remains a major asset, the city’s location in a large and growing transportation corridor, with easy access to the state’s largest metro areas, positions it for the future. With an abundance of natural beauty, available water resources , strong K–12 public school partners, a skilled military workforce, and a range of affordable housing, Copperas Cove offers significant advantages to attract businesses and residents, including servicemembers and retirees. Fully realizing these advantages will require the city to create an identity separate from Fort Cavazos and address current constraints including a lack of amenities and downtown investment, limited employment options, and an inability to keep up with increasing demand for city services. Coupled with insufficient relief from the state of Texas to account for loss of revenue from the disabled veterans property tax exemption, the challenge facing the community is significant.

Response

In response, the Copperas Cove Economic Development Corporation (CCEDC) engaged TIP Strategies to prepare a five-year economic development strategic plan. Envision Copperas Cove is intended to inform the CCEDC’s activities, guide the prioritization of projects and investments, and build community support, all in the interest of diversifying the economy and ensuring prosperity. While the city faces challenges to its growth and development, Envision Copperas Cove provides a blueprint for the CCEDC and its partners to overcome barriers and seize opportunities. Embedded within the plan are four guiding principles: leveraging the region’s veteran population, building a distinct community identity, making strategic investments, and creating a more regional approach to workforce and economic development. With these values in mind, TIP worked with local leaders to create a framework that maximizes the resources available to the CCEDC, including the ability to identify additional funding. The organization has already begun to reverse the historic trend of underinvestment in economic and community development by obtaining several grants from federal and private sources. With business development as the plan’s first goal, bringing private investment to the community is paramount. Community development related strategies also considered how placemaking and marketing efforts can encourage additional investment in Copperas Cove. And leveraging the City’s robust nonprofit and veteran support network represents an opportunity to attract philanthropic dollars. Across the spectrum of fundraising strategies, securing the buy-in of Copperas Cove’s existing businesses and residents through robust community engagement campaigns will be critical.