With the 2026 centennial of Route 66, a new publication offers a robust resource for leveraging scenic routes—and the local arts and cultural heritage assets found along them—for rural development.
Published by the Community Development and Engagement Department of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, "The Byways Report: The Scenic Route to Rural Prosperity" was inspired by the Oklahoma Arts Council's Leadership Arts program, through which Leadership Arts class member Steve Shepelwich said the idea for the the piece was initially sparked. Shepelwich is the lead community development advisor for the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City's Oklahoma City Branch.
Among the stories of the arts boosting tourism spotlighted in the book Route 66 is a six-page feature on Suzanne Hylton of Sayre, Oklahoma. Also a Leadership Arts graduate, Hylton launched a nonprofit arts organization in 2012 in her rural Route 66 town, through which she helped open an arts gallery, started the Dust Bowl Days festival, and more.
Read more about byways journeys, the arts, and rural development in the report.
