|
The Forest County Industrial Development Corporation, with assistance from the J. Bowman Proper Charitable Trust, engaged Shepstone Management Company and The Fairweather Group
to assist with the preparation of an Economic Development Strategy for
the Tionesta area of Forest County, Pennsylvania. A copy of this
Strategy may be obtained by clicking on the link below: |
|
PROJECT HISTORY
A project kickoff meeting was held with approximately 30 stakeholders on Tuesday, May 17, 2005 at St. Anthony's Church Hall to launch the project. It involves a three month process to identify the Tionesta area’s key economic needs, assign priorities to those needs and make recommendations to businesses and local officials on a strategy for addressing them. The first meeting focused on NEEDS IDENTIFICATION. This included a map exercise to identify STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES. It also included an overview of some of the KEY TREND DATA affecting the Tionesta area.  A second meeting was held on Wednesday, June 15, at the Presbyterian Church Social Hall, included a more in-depth analysis of the TIONESTA AREA TOURISM ECONOMY along with a group discussion of priorities. This meeting resulted in general agreement that marketing of Tionesta needed to be a priority for the future. A third public meeting to build an economic development strategy around this marketing theme was held on Thursday, September 22 at St, Anthony's. Results of a second home survey were discussed at that time. A summary of data gathered and draft recommendations were also discussed with approximately 40 community stakeholders. This input was then used to assemble the TIONESTA AREA ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY. |