MEDA held our seventh annual Economic Development Week during the week of October 23-27, which was officially designated by proclamation from Governor Larry Hogan! The week was truly spectacular as we celebrated all of the activity, passion and energy that exist in the State of Maryland. We hold Economic Development Week to bring attention to our colleagues across the state who are transforming lives, creating opportunities, inspiring innovation and enriching their communities. If you missed this year’s Economic Development Week, here’s a quick recap of the events and celebrations.
The week began with the annual Fall Conference held in St. Mary’s County, Maryland’s Unique Economic & Innovative Driver, where we highlighted the immense power and robust energy that is our military sector in Maryland. We were able to provide some great examples for ways private sector businesses, regardless of whether or not there is a military base in their community, can capitalize on the military business opportunities in Maryland.
On Tuesday, we celebrated in Montgomery County at Rockville Economic Development, Inc.’s (REDI) annual meetup. REDI announced some inspirational award winners that consisted of individuals and small businesses that are moving their communities forward with the abundance of opportunities they provide.
We joined Salisbury – Wicomico County Economic Development (SWED) to celebrate the impact being made in that community through their economic development efforts. This event marked SWED’s 49th year in operation – what an amazing milestone.
We arrived in Baltimore at the TEDCO Entrepreneur & Stem Cell Expo on Wednesday. MEDA was thrilled to have a presence there where we connected with many of our members who also participated. We were fortunate to connect our members with many of the entrepreneurs in attendance who were looking for resources to help with their entrepreneurial startup.
Click here to read more about TEDCO’s amazing programs and award winners.
On Thursday, it was all about the Eastern Shore. We jumped on the bus in Worcester County and participated in their commercial brokers real estate tour where we visited Snow Hill, Berlin, and Ocean City. The exchange with the broker and economic development community provided an opportunity to share more about the exemplary work being done around the state by our members. We were also on hand for a ribbon cutting at the Eastern Shore Innovation Center in Dorchester County.
We wrapped up the week with our Lower Shore Rural Economic Development Sessions sponsored by PNC Bank at Salisbury University. We were pleased to have Secretary Ken Holt from the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development on hand to kick off as our morning keynote speaker, where he discussed some of the amazing programs that DHCD has that support our rural communities.
There were also two panel discussions, one discussing Why Downtowns Matter! (and trust us, they do!) and the other detailing the Reuse and Redevelopment of commercial space throughout the region. To close, Charlie Fairchild of Fairchild Properties expanded on the development in Cambridge on Route 50 of the Dorchester Marketplace and Cambridge Marketplace.
In addition to the events we were able to deliver and attend, our members conducted business visits, trainings, forums, workshops, and showcases. Members representing various industries came together to share their programs and engage in working together for future success. The interesting take away from Economic Development Week is that we could identify any week on the calendar and we will find activity happening in economic development.
All in all, it was an exciting week for MEDA and our members. We are thrilled to have our governor and so many of our communities proclaim Economic Development Week. We are ecstatic that many of our communities joined us and visited a multitude of different businesses in order to support their business retention efforts or as part of their own business retention efforts, and we are glad that our members took advantage of the special events, activities and opportunities available to them during this week. We can’t wait to see you all again next fall as we celebrate our eighth annual Economic Development Week in October 2018!