Looking Back on Weekend Edition’s First Year

By Leslie Rylke

Happy Anniversary!  This past Monday, May 1, marked one year since we launched CCEDC’s Weekend Edition.  Produced in partnership with VISTA.Today, the weekly email serves to keep our generous investors, valued partners, and additional stakeholders informed about CCEDC’s activities.

As you are most certainly aware, each Sunday Weekend Edition shares with its readers a feature story that provides a closer look at CCEDC.  Throughout the year, we introduced you to members of our staff and board as well as people involved with our various programs.

We also shared recaps of events, premiered videos from our Discover Chester County Series, delved into some history, and helped share good news from around the county.

Each week we also asked for your participation by posing a survey question.  We rounded out the email by noting our upcoming events and sharing that week’s top stories from VISTA.Today.

Highlights from the first year included:

• May 1 – Our first feature, Health Care Connect – A Best Practice Story, focused on the impact of this CCEDC initiative on the health care industry in the region
• May 29 – We rounded out our first month introducing you to our board chair – Get to Know CCEDC – Meet our Board Chair – Bill Bogle
• June 12 – Gary Smith Celebrates 40th Anniversary at CCEDC
• July 3 – A look Back at Chester County Economic Development: Balancing Progress and Preservation
• October 16 – Dress Up & Dash 5K Run/Walk Review
• December 11 – We all want to know the latest about the statue! – Making a First Impression: Meet Kathleen Nader, CCEDC’s Friendly Face
• February 5 – Seedcopa’s “Souper” Bowl Celebrates 5 Years
• February 26 – Discover Chester County – La Comunidad Hispana
• March 26 – Building Business Relationship Between Chester County and China
• April 23 – CCEDC Celebrates Its Volunteers

Roughly 62% of respondents listed Longwood Gardens as the biggest draw for tourists to Chester County.

At 35% readers by far chose VISTA.Today as the place to turn to learn more about Chester County public events and happenings.  Facebook ranked second at 15%.

When it comes time to retire, residents are reluctant to leave the area.  Of those surveyed, 38% prefer to stay put in Chester County while another 50% want to split their time between the area and a warmer climate during the winter months.

It’s a tie!  Respondents equally selected goals number four and five as the most important of the five VISTA2025 goals.  Goal #4 focuses on expanding business attraction and retention efforts with a focus on targeted industry clusters while Goal #5 focuses on supporting critical infrastructure in targeted corridors of opportunity.

Sorry kids, 31% of respondents think you should stop trick-or-treating by age 11.  Yet a festive 39% believe there should be no age restrictions.

We thank you for spending part of your Sundays reading Weekend Edition this past year and look forward to sharing the CCEDC story with you in year two.

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