Economic Development Strategy Targets Creation of 2,000 Jobs in Erie
Erie, Penn. – Thursday, the Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership announced Erie Forward – a $5.2 Million regional economic and community development initiative – during its annual meeting. At the time of the announcement, over $3.6 Million of the overall investment has been raised through public and private sector partnerships.
“Erie Forward is the most strategic economic development initiative in the Chamber’s recent history,” said Tom Tupitza, board chairman of the Erie Regional Chamber. “We believe the business community will stand with us and recognize that now is the time to commit to the economic viability of communities throughout Erie County. It will radically change our region for decades to come.”
Over the next five years, the Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership will execute strategies aligned with five core pillars of robust economic and community development including the following: existing industry support and entrepreneurship; workforce development and talent attraction; new business attraction and investment; quality of place, advocacy, sustainability; regional competitiveness and collaboration.
“A successful Erie Forward initiative will create over 2,000 direct new jobs in Erie County and is projected to have an annual economic impact of $465 million by 2024,” said James Grunke, President and CEO of the Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership.
During the annual meeting, Grunke introduced several recent hires to the Chamber team which expand the organization’s services to include government affairs, capital formation, educational programming for businesses of all sizes, and a growing business retention team – all core components to Erie Forward.
“Our team is already hard at work implementing the first stages of Erie Forward so that the Chamber can continue to lead Erie’s economic evolution,” said Grunke.
The full strategic outline is available online: Erie Forward
