Youth Leadership Program Travels to Harrisburg
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On Tuesday, September 26th, the students of the Chester County Chamber Foundation's Youth Leadership Program traveled to Harrisburg for their first program day of the 2023-2024 series.
Over fifty students from nearly twenty schools across the county were able to tour the Capital Building and meet two of their legislators. State Representative John Lawrence joined students for their tours and provided his own personal experiences from his time as one of Chester County's representatives, including the importance of running for office. The students also heard State Representative Melissa Shusterman reiterate the value in running for office, especially as the next generation of voters and representatives.
The eventful day ended with CCCBI's very own on-staff lobbyist, Alex Rahn of Wanner Associates, educating the students on his role with the Chamber as a voice for advocacy. One of CCCBI's principal missions is to be an advocate for businesses throughout Chester County and beyond.
The resounding theme of the day was the need for students get involved and get excited about the multi-faceted roles in our government.
Thank you to all who helped make this program day a success!
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CCCBI is expanding our committees!
Whether you'd like to get involved as a woman in business with our WIB Committee, advocate for your business or industry in our Government Affairs Committee, or cultivate your network as a Young Professional, we have an opportunity for you!
We've taken the feedback from our membership, and are looking for dedicated and enthusiastic volunteers to help kickstart our new Municipal and Sustainability Committees!
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Laura Manion Speaks at 2023 TDM Advocates Breakfast
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On Monday morning, CCCBI President & CEO, Laura Manion, had the opportunity to serve as a presenter and panelist at the Greater Valley Forge Transportation Management Association's (GVF) 2023 Transportation Demand Management Advocates Breakfast to discuss the importance of infrastructure investments, attainable housing, public transportation and trail expansion, and the need for community groups such as Chambers and TMA groups to work with local municipalities and legislators.
CCCBI’s advocacy priorities include:
- Infrastructure Investments: Modern, safe, and reliable infrastructure system will attract and retain employers across the Commonwealth, increase competitiveness, retain and create jobs.
- Responsible Development - Chester County is consistently ranked as one of the best places to live in the country, and we must encourage balanced land use and responsible development to make sure this remains the case. Enacting and implementing appropriate land use regulations to allow businesses to locate and grow in Chester County
- Economic Growth: Revitalizing business and shopping districts, including providing public parking.
Transparent and Speedy Permitting Processes – Creating a regulatory environment with clear expectations, efficient timelines, and an overall positive experience to ensure that business community applicants satisfy municipal guidelines, which will in turn increase competitiveness and create jobs.
- Housing Costs - Affordable and quality housing continues to be an issue facing our residents. CCCBI advocates to our elected officials, businesses, and our community organizations to work together to address the housing cost and inventory crisis. Local zoning issues and housing are a continued focus
- Fiscal Responsibility: Working to keep taxes low with fiscally responsible spending;
Pennsylvania has some of the oldest infrastructure in the country and consistently ranks as one of the worst states for infrastructure in the entire nation. Thus, CCCBI has been advocating for improved conditions, capacity, operations, maintenance, safety, and resilience of our infrastructure to help with mobility. The Chamber also supports increased investment in Pennsylvania’s multimodal transportation network. To compete in the global economy, the county, region and state need a modern transportation network to safely and efficiently move people and ensure the stability of supply chains. Indeed, deteriorating infrastructure disrupts mobility and commerce, compromises safety, and impacts the quality of life in our communities. Comprehensive transportation policy should prioritize the restoration of aging infrastructure, improve capacity on existing assets, and begin new construction where conditions warrant.
The Chamber will continue to work closely with our members, stakeholders and elected officials to build support for transportation funding solutions that can help access new federal and state investment to advance critical projects that support the needs and changing demands of our growing region.
We have also heard from many of our employer members that the lack of mass transit within the county is an issue in getting employees to work post-pandemic and have been involved in projects to bring transportation on Coatesville area in particular. Decision makers on all levels of government need to create an environment that encourages investment in infrastructure.
We are grateful for our partners – TMACC, GVF, SEPTA, the County, CCEDC, United Way, and many others - who are helping us advocate for our mission!
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PowerGreen Capital is new, local, and ready to provide C-PACE financing to both commercial and non-profit building owners in Chester County and greater Philadelphia.
PowerGreen Capital was recently featured in the Philadelphia Business Journal, where Principal & Founders, Richard Moseley and William Hare, spoke about how PowerGreen came to be.
"We saw a real need in the Philadelphia area to support middle-market building owners, both commercial and non-profit, who typically don't have the resources to navigate the complexities of the new IRA tax credits and C-PACE (commercial property assessed clean energy), which is starting to accelerate in Pennsylvania. We launched PowerGreen to streamline the process of financing these necessary building investments, which leads to energy savings and more valuable buildings so building owners can focus on their business or non-profit mission," said Moseley.
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Hare dove deep into what exactly businesses can expect when working with C-CPACE programs, and how PowerGreen is the right option for Chester County residents. "C-PACE deals effectively pay for themselves because they can't be done unless the energy savings match or exceed the cost of the funding. And because the funding is long-term, and the lien is tied to the building through a special assessment, building owners preserve their cash and credit for other business or charitable purposes," said Hare, "what's more, energy efficient buildings lead to greater tenant satisfaction and employee productivity - buildings where people want to work and live, which makes for more valuable buildings. C-PACE is a win-win for building owners and the community."
The use of C-PACE financing, especially when combined with tax incentives, truly simplifies energy savings in the hopes of creating affordable clean energy for all.
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CCCBI Partners with West Chester University, SCORE, and More for 10th Annual Women's Entrepreneurship Conference
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CCCBI is excited to be a partner and sponsor of West Chester University's 10th Annual Women's Entrepreneurship Conference!
Sign up today for this educational conference to learn from professional leaders and network with women from across the region!
This is an event you don't want to miss!
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We’d love to hear from and highlight your business! We are seeking member spotlight stories to include in our weekly newsletter!
Email your news to abby@chescochamber.org
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