The University of Virginia’s Weldon Cooper Center paints a stark picture of Southwest Virginia’s future. Buchanan County is projected to lose nearly half its population by 2050. Neighboring Dickenson, Russell, and Wise counties will each shrink by around 30 percent.
Yet buried in the UVA demographers’ projections was a crucial caveat: their forecasts could prove “too dire if people start moving into the region.” In other words, decline is not destiny. The question is how to reverse the exodus and transform Southwest Virginia from a region people leave into one they choose to call home.
Despite billions of dollars in federal investment since the 1960s, from highways to retraining programs, the region continues bleeding people and opportunity. The problem runs deeper than jobs. It’s about land — who controls it, where homes can safely be built, and whether working families have secure, affordable ground beneath their feet.
A framework already in place
For years, I’ve advocated for a modern Homestead Act for Central Appalachia as a new model for development — not as nostalgia for the Homestead Act of 1862 but as a practical strategy built on existing legal and institutional frameworks. The tools for transformative land reform already exist; what’s missing is the political will to coordinate them at scale. In this article I’m going to outline how I envision a homesteading venture working in Southwest Virginia and all the Central Appalachian coalfields.
Virginia’s Land Bank Entities Act of 2016 allows localities to create public land banks that can acquire tax-delinquent or abandoned properties and prepare them for productive reuse. Community Land Trusts (CLTs), pioneered in Georgia and operating successfully in rural Tennessee since the 1970s, keep land affordable while preventing speculation. Federal brownfields law shields new property owners from environmental liability when proper cleanup protocols are followed. Most importantly, billions in federal funding for mine reclamation, infrastructure development and climate-resilient housing are already flowing through existing programs.
The legal infrastructure exists. The funding mechanisms are operational. What we need now is a comprehensive implementation plan.
The Blueprint: 3 million acres across Appalachia
Here’s how a regional Homestead Act could work in practice, focusing initially on Southwest Virginia while coordinating with similar efforts across the broader Appalachian coalfields.
Land Acquisition Strategy
A federal-state partnership administered through the Appalachian Regional Commission would target three categories of property for acquisition:
Reclaimed Surface-Mined Land: Thousands of acres of former strip mines have been reforested under federal reclamation requirements. While these sites need decades to reach full agricultural productivity, many are suitable for residential development, renewable energy installations, and agroforestry systems that combine timber, fruit trees and grazing.
Corporate-Owned Undisturbed Land: Coal and timber companies control vast tracts of never-mined forest land blessed with pure springs and rich soils. As these companies face bankruptcy or divestment pressures, strategic negotiations could secure prime development sites at below-market prices.
Underused Federal Properties: Portions of national forests and other federal holdings could be designated for homestead development, particularly higher-elevation sites suitable for climate-resilient communities.
The acquisition process would leverage existing land banking infrastructure, working through established partnerships between federal agencies, state governments and local land banks. Rather than creating new bureaucracies, the program would scale up proven models already operating across Appalachia.
Funding mechanisms
Initial capitalization of $100 million from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act would support land acquisition, supplemented by state contributions and private partnerships. This seed funding could be leveraged through several mechanisms:
- Strategic Auctions: Coordinated bidding at bankruptcy auctions for distressed coal company assets, with government agencies and conservation groups working together to secure large tracts at reduced costs.
- Negotiated Sales: Direct negotiations with struggling companies seeking to divest land holdings, offering structured payments and tax benefits in exchange for below-market prices.
- Land Swaps: Trading less desirable federal holdings for prime private land suitable for homestead development.
- Green Bonds: Issuing municipal and state bonds backed by federal guarantees to finance large-scale land acquisition and infrastructure development.
Property distribution model
The program would offer 10- to 40-acre plots to eligible participants at nominal cost—potentially as low as $100-500 per acre for reclaimed mining sites, with higher prices for prime greenfield properties. Each homestead would come with:
- 10-Year Property Tax Exemptions: Complete local property tax relief during the establishment period, with gradual phase-in beginning in year 11.
- Development Incentives: $10,000 relocation grants for new residents, low-interest loans for home construction and agricultural development, and five-year state income tax exemptions for those committing to 10-year residency.
- Infrastructure Guarantees: Every homestead community pre-wired with high-speed broadband, access to improved roads, and modern stormwater management systems.
If divided conservatively into 30-acre parcels, Kentucky’s potential 1.3 million acres could support over 43,000 homesteads. Virginia’s portion — potentially 500,000 acres across Southwest Virginia’s coal counties — could accommodate 16,000 new homesteads, enough to reverse projected population decline and create a foundation for sustained economic growth.
Eligibility and priority systems
Three categories of participants would be eligible, with priority systems ensuring benefits reach those most likely to contribute to long-term community development:
- Current Regional Residents: Families already living in Appalachia but seeking safer, more affordable housing or land for small-scale farming and business development.
- Returning Diaspora: People who grew up in the region but left for economic opportunities, now able to return thanks to remote work capabilities and homestead incentives.
- Committed Newcomers: Individuals and families from outside the region willing to make long-term residency commitments, particularly those with skills in agriculture, renewable energy, healthcare, education and small business development.
Priority would be given to applicants committing to 15-year residency, those with experience in sustainable agriculture or small business development, and families with children who would help stabilize rural school systems.
Infrastructure as foundation
Modern homesteading requires 21st-century infrastructure. Every homestead community would be designed around three core principles:
High-Ground Development
All residential development would prioritize higher-elevation properties above the 100-year floodplain. This isn’t just about safety — it’s about fiscal responsibility. Rather than repeatedly rebuilding in flood zones, strategic relocation to higher ground represents sound long-term public investment.
Modern engineering would incorporate sophisticated stormwater management systems that work with natural water flow rather than against it. Each community would feature retention ponds, permeable surfaces, and native landscaping designed to handle extreme weather events while creating attractive, functional neighborhoods.
Universal Broadband
Every homestead would receive fiber-optic internet service capable of supporting remote work, online education, and e-commerce. This infrastructure investment — potentially $5,000-8,000 per homestead — would pay for itself by enabling residents to work for employers nationwide while living in affordable rural communities.
High-speed connectivity would also support precision agriculture, telemedicine, distance learning and the marketing of local products through online platforms. Rural isolation becomes rural opportunity when combined with digital infrastructure.
Cooperative service networks
Homestead communities would be encouraged to form service cooperatives for equipment sharing, bulk purchasing and infrastructure maintenance. Building on Appalachia’s strong tradition of mutual aid, these cooperatives could provide:
- Equipment Libraries: Shared access to tractors, construction tools, processing equipment and seasonal machinery too expensive for individual ownership.
- Purchasing Cooperatives: Bulk buying of seeds, fertilizer, building materials and household goods to reduce costs and support local suppliers.
- Marketing Cooperatives: Collective branding and distribution of local products, from organic vegetables to craft goods to agritourism experiences.
- Service Cooperatives: Shared provision of childcare, eldercare, equipment maintenance and seasonal labor.
Economic development through land use
The homestead program would prioritize economic activities suited to Southwest Virginia’s landscape and market opportunities:
New Agriculture Systems
Rather than competing with industrial agriculture, Southwest Virginia homesteaders would focus on high-value specialty production:
Orchards and Vineyards: Building on the region’s historical apple production and expanding grape cultivation already underway in Wise and Russell counties. Mountain elevations provide ideal conditions for cold-climate varieties and extended growing seasons.
Agroforestry Operations: Integrated systems combining fruit and nut trees with pasture land for livestock grazing. These operations provide multiple income streams while improving soil health and carbon sequestration.
Controlled-Environment Agriculture: Greenhouse and tunnel production of vegetables, herbs and specialty crops. The success of facilities like Oasthouse Ventures’ $100 million tomato operation in Carroll County demonstrates the potential for year-round production.
Non-Timber Forest Products: Sustainable harvesting of mushrooms, ginseng, medicinal herbs and other forest products that have always been part of mountain economies.
Carbon Forestry and Climate Services
Reforestation with blight-resistant chestnuts, native hardwoods and other climate-adapted species can generate income through carbon credit markets while restoring ecological services. Early estimates suggest well-managed carbon forestry could generate $200-400 per acre annually in carbon credits, providing steady income while forests mature for timber harvest.
Value-Added Processing
Strategic placement of food processing facilities, sawmills, and craft workshops would allow homesteaders to capture more value from their production. Cooperative ownership of processing equipment — commercial kitchens, grain mills, lumber kilns — would make small-scale operations economically viable while building community wealth.
Tourism and Recreation
Southwest Virginia’s natural beauty — from the Clinch River’s biodiversity to the elk herds in Buchanan County — creates opportunities for agritourism, outdoor recreation and cultural tourism. Homestead communities could develop farm stays, craft workshops, hunting and fishing guides, and outdoor adventure services.
The new Clinch River State Park demonstrates the region’s recreational potential. A network of homestead-based tourism enterprises could create a distinctive regional brand while generating income for rural families.
Governance through democratic land trusts
Community ownership and democratic governance would be built into the program’s structure through Community Land Trusts (CLTs) designed to prevent speculation while ensuring long-term community benefit.
Preventing speculation
Under the CLT model, homesteaders would own their homes and improvements while the community land trust retains ownership of the underlying land. This structure ensures affordability in perpetuity — when homesteaders sell, they receive fair compensation for improvements while the land remains available to working families rather than outside speculators.
Resale restrictions would limit appreciation to no more than 3% annually above inflation, ensuring homes remain affordable for local families while providing reasonable returns to homesteaders who invested in improvements.
Community Control
Local development districts would manage applications and tailor implementation to regional needs, with priority given to high-poverty areas where homestead development could have the greatest impact. Community assemblies comprising all homestead residents would make decisions about land use, infrastructure investments and cooperative enterprises.
This democratic structure builds on Appalachian traditions of community decision-making while providing modern legal frameworks for collective ownership and management.
The role of educational institutions
For homestead development to succeed, Southwest Virginia’s universities and educational institutions must serve as technical assistance and training hubs:
Virginia Tech’s expertise
Virginia Tech’s Powell River Project has studied mine land reclamation since the 1980s, developing expertise in soil restoration, sustainable forestry and agricultural adaptation to challenging sites. The university’s agricultural extension services could provide homesteaders with training in orchard management, livestock systems, renewable energy installation and sustainable building practices.
UVA Wise as Innovation Hub
The University of Virginia’s Wise campus could serve as a training center for broadband-enabled remote work, small business development and cultural programming. Partnerships with technology companies could provide training in digital marketing, e-commerce and remote collaboration tools essential for rural entrepreneurs.
Regional Cooperation
Land-grant universities across Appalachia — including those in Kentucky, Tennessee, and West Virginia — could develop shared curricula for homestead development, creating regional networks for technical assistance, research, and knowledge sharing.
This represents exactly the kind of applied, mission-driven research land-grant universities were created to provide. A regional Homestead Act could transform the coalfields into a laboratory for rural innovation and sustainable development.
Learning from precedent
Successful relocation and rural development programs provide models for implementation:
Kentucky’s High-Ground Communities
Governor Andy Beshear’s response to Eastern Kentucky’s devastating 2022 floods demonstrates climate-resilient relocation in action. Beshear’s answer has been bold and right: build high-ground neighborhoods. His administration is creating eight such communities across Breathitt, Floyd, Knott, Letcher and Perry counties, with more than $8 million allocated to Perry County alone. “We cannot keep putting people back in the same places and expect a different outcome,” Beshear said at the groundbreaking.
This model — strategic relocation to higher ground combined with modern infrastructure — could be scaled across Southwest Virginia’s flood-prone communities.
International Examples
Scotland’s Isle of Eigg offers a compelling example of community-controlled development. When residents purchased their island from absentee landlords in the 1990s, they created a renewable-powered, democratically governed community that has attracted new residents while maintaining traditional culture.
Valmeyer, Illinois, successfully relocated an entire town to higher ground after the 1993 Mississippi River floods, while Soldiers Grove, Wisconsin, reinvented itself as “Solar Village” in the 1980s after moving from a floodplain.
The lesson is clear: with coordination, adequate funding and community ownership, relocation and renewal can succeed. Without them, communities die slowly through neglect and repeated disaster.
Economic impact and fiscal benefits
A comprehensive homestead program would generate significant economic activity throughout Southwest Virginia:
Construction and Development
Initial infrastructure development — roads, broadband, water systems and housing construction — would create thousands of construction jobs over the program’s first decade. Using conservative estimates of $150,000 per homestead for infrastructure and initial housing, 16,000 Virginia homesteads would generate $2.4 billion in construction activity.
Small Business Development
Each homestead represents potential for small business creation, from agricultural enterprises to remote work operations to service businesses serving other homesteaders. If half of all homesteads generate additional business activity averaging $25,000 annually, that represents $200 million in new economic activity across Southwest Virginia.
Property Tax Base
While initial property tax exemptions reduce short-term revenue, successful homestead development would dramatically expand the long-term tax base. Properties purchased at $500 per acre but improved with homes, outbuildings and agricultural infrastructure could have assessed values of $3,000-5,000 per acre within a decade.
Reduced Social Services Costs
Successful economic development reduces demands on unemployment insurance, social services and healthcare systems while increasing income and sales tax revenue. Population growth stabilizes rural schools and healthcare facilities, reducing per-capita costs for essential services.
Implementation timeline
A phased rollout would allow for learning and adjustment while building momentum:
Phase 1 (Years 1-2): Pilot Projects
Launch pilot programs in 2-3 Southwest Virginia counties, focusing on 500-1,000 homesteads to test systems, refine processes and demonstrate success. Priority would go to sites with existing infrastructure and minimal environmental remediation requirements.
Phase 2 (Years 3-5): Regional Expansion
Scale successful models across all Southwest Virginia coal counties, targeting 5,000-8,000 new homesteads. Use lessons from pilot projects to improve application processes, infrastructure development and community support services.
Phase 3 (Years 6-10): Full Implementation
Complete buildout of Virginia’s homestead program while coordinating with similar efforts in Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia. Focus on regional cooperation, interstate coordination and policy refinements based on a decade of experience.
Monitoring and accountability
Comprehensive tracking systems would measure program success across multiple dimensions:
Economic Indicators
Job creation, income growth, business formation, property values, and tax revenue generation would be monitored annually. Transparent reporting would maintain public support and justify continued funding.
Demographic Trends
Population growth, age distribution, education levels and family formation would track the program’s success in attracting and retaining residents. Special attention would be paid to young family formation and school enrollment.
Environmental Outcomes
Soil quality, water systems, carbon sequestration and biodiversity would be monitored to ensure sustainable development practices. Environmental restoration should accelerate through homestead activities rather than being degraded by them.
Community Development
Social cohesion, civic participation, cooperative formation and cultural vitality would be assessed through community surveys and participation metrics. Success means not just individual prosperity but strong, resilient communities.
Beyond economic development: A proving ground for democracy
The homestead program’s value extends beyond economics. In an era when populist authoritarianism finds fertile ground in regions abandoned by conventional politics, community-controlled land ownership offers an alternative model of democratic engagement.
By putting land and decision-making power in the hands of ordinary families, the program strengthens the social fabric that democracy requires. It offers hope for economic security and community control that can compete with the false promises of demagogues.
If political leaders are serious about governing differently, they have no better place to start than Appalachia. The region has survived boom-and-bust cycles, corporate exploitation, and political neglect while maintaining strong communities and cultural traditions.
The mountains have always been home to people who knew how to make something from nothing. Give them land they can count on, infrastructure they can build on and communities they can control, and they’ll create a model for rural democracy that can inspire the nation.
Southwest Virginia’s coalfields need not be a symbol of decline and abandonment. With the right policies, adequate investment and respect for local knowledge, they can become a laboratory for the future of rural America — a place where democracy, sustainability and prosperity grow together on solid ground.
Conclusion: From decline to renewal
The UVA demographers were right to include that crucial caveat in their population projections. Decline is not destiny if people start moving back to the region. A modern Homestead Act provides the framework, incentives and community structures to make that migration not just possible but attractive.
The tools exist. The funding streams are available. The communities are ready. What’s needed now is the political will to coordinate these resources at the scale the challenge demands.
Southwest Virginia stands at a crossroads. One path leads to continued decline, aging communities, and economic stagnation. The other leads to renewal, sustainable prosperity and communities that can weather any storm.
The choice is ours. The time is now. The land is waiting.
Jim Branscome, a native of Carroll County, worked for the Appalachian Regional Commission from 1969-1971. He is a retired managing director of Standard & Poor’s in New York City. A former journalist, his work has appeared in The New York Times, New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post and numerous other national newspapers and magazines.