This story originally appeared in The Centre County Gazette.
The Chamber of Business and Industry Centre County is set to unveil and launch the Centre County Economic Development Strategic Plan on Wednesday, Oct. 9, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. at The Penn Stater Hotel and Conference Center.
Since June 2023, CBICC has worked with local leaders and businesses to develop a strategic plan centered on the future of the region’s economy. The event launching the plan will feature speakers Greg Scott, CBICC president and CEO, Neeli Bendapudi, Penn State University president, Mark Higgins, commissioner chair, Ben Kirshner, chief transformation and opportunity officer for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and Luke Bernstein, president and CEO of the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry.
“Beginning early last year, CBICC began starting conversations about Centre County’s economic past, present and future, and we realized that while there is a lot to be proud of in our region, there is more we could be doing to grow our economy, become more competitive and harness our strengths to enhance quality of life for residents of Centre County,” Scott shared.
“Centre County has always been a region with a reputation for strong community connection and pride, high quality of life and innovation coming out of Penn State University. Despite these positive attributes, Centre County still has yet to achieve its full economic potential.
“We believed that a comprehensive, collaborative, common plan was the answer to this and would help our region overcome headwinds realized during the (COVID-19) pandemic including population decline, workforce instability and infrastructure challenges.”
Scott noted that to address the needs of the county and develop a plan, Todd Dolbin was hired on as CBICC’s vice president of economic development, and Camoin Associates, an economic development consulting firm, was chosen to guide the planning process.
Scott noted that though CBICC coordinated the starting point of the Economic Development Strategic Plan, the plan is made possible due to the many business and community partners who provided insight, collaborating to ensure its success.
“The plan’s goal was always to provide a shared vision for smart economic growth for the next five to 10 years in Centre County. To ensure the plan is truly collaborative, it was essential for CBICC to engage as many partners and community members as possible from all corners of the county,” Scott said.
“This process is not something CBICC ever intended to embark on alone, and working so closely with the community allowed us to understand all perspectives including leaders from businesses of all sizes, education, local government, health care, hospitality and more.”
Development of the plan included the formation of an Economic Development Council, that featured members from multiple industries who met throughout the planning process to give feedback on plan drafts. Scott noted that members of the EDC also came from a variety of towns in Centre County in addition to industries to ensure that all voices and industries in the county would be represented in the plan.
“Beyond the EDC, we conducted interviews, focus groups and meetings with over 150 organizations and individuals, ensuring that the plan represents and serves the entire region,” Scott said. “It was important to us to engage as many diverse perspectives as possible and consider all feedback so that the plan would be truly collaborative and resonate with communities across the entire county.”
According to Scott, demographic, economic and occupational data trends in Centre County compared to the rest of the state and country were examined as a part of the plan development. This data helped give a clearer picture of the strengths and opportunities in the area and allowed actionable goals to be developed to “help us move the needle on economic development in our region in the years ahead,” Scott explained.
The plan also includes an action map which provides a visual for the planned rollout and implementation of the plan.
With the aim of fostering economic resilience in Centre County, Scott noted that the plan has a two-angle approach to ensure the whole county benefits.
“First, our local economy is based on a diverse set of employers and industries, the major ones being Penn State University, health care facilities and local government. Part of this plan highlights opportunities for us to introduce, develop and support new types of businesses, further diversifying our economy,” Scott said.
“In the Economic Development Strategic Plan, we’ve targeted the sensor technology industry as an area where our community can grow, expand and add jobs in a sector beyond education, health care and government. Doing so will make us more resilient as a community as we become less wholly reliant on a few industries.
“The second angle for building economic resilience identified within the plan is ensuring we protect the more vulnerable communities in our county. The plan isn’t only for State College and Bellefonte — it is a county-wide plan offering action items for revitalizing communities from Penns Valley to Snow Shoe and everywhere in between. The plan outlines what we can do to help these communities be sustainable, including exploring state funding and grant programs.”
