CEDS Index

The 2006 edition of the REDDI Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy
(CEDS) incorporates several changes from previous years. It is in many respects a
transitional document. Over the course of the next year, REDDI will be transitioning its
CEDS from a paper-based document that is also posted on the web, to an interactive
web-based document that can also be printed. This may sound like semantics, but it
represents a profound shift in the nature of the document and the planning process.
The web-based approach is more interactive and more graphic. Some of those
graphics have been included in the 2006 CEDS. Writing and organizational styles tend
to be different as well. Topics on the web are somewhat more self-contained, with
hyperlinks to background and related material. This approach tends to make ongoing
editing much easier, so a web-based plan can be updated much easier. It does
however provide some challenges in the production of a paper-based document.
REDDI will be addressing these challenges over the coming year. The web version of
the REDDI CEDS is expected to be operational by mid July, 2006. In addition to this
document, the site will also include a user forum where REDDI partners and interested
visitors may discuss various aspects of the CEDS online.

The 2006 edition of the CEDS also incorporates some new approaches to data
analysis. This edition begins to introduce some Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
functionality into the planning process. REDDI is currently in the process of installing a
GIS system. The maps and geospatial analysis included in this edition of the CEDS
are a preview of what the new system will be able to do for the region. The system
should be fully operational before the end of 2006.

The analysis section also includes new approaches in the assessment of labor force
characteristics. In keeping with the shift to a web-based approach, REDDI has utilized
the reporting features available on the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry
website to assemble workforce analyses for each of the partner counties. Fot the
2006 edition of the CEDS, REDDI compiled this information into a regional report.
Over the coming year, REDDI will work with the Department’s Center for Workforce
Information and Analysis to create a customized regional report for the REDDI website
that pulls the latest information directly from L&I’s database.

This version of the CEDS also utilized Labor & Industry data to produce a preliminary
industry cluster analysis for the region. While not a full-fledged cluster analysis, this
document nonetheless includes brief summaries of the region’s industry clusters,
based on the state’s cluster definitions. This represents a departure form the old
industry sector analysis in previous CEDS documents. In order to ease the transition,
the previous analyses for industry sectors and labor force characteristics have been
retained in this edition of the CEDS document.

The 2006 CEDS also introduces a revised vision statement and a new evaluation
framework that gives REDDI a portfolio approach to projects within the region.
Succinctly stated, the vision for REDDI is to continue to act as a catalyst for economic
expansion and prosperity within the 8-county region by focusing effort and resources
on strategic, innovative projects with regional impact. Under the proposed evaluation
system, REDDI will assess projects in terms of their geographic impact and their
innovation impact to determine which projects are likely to have the greatest strategic
impact on the region. In order to assess the regional innovation impact, REDDI will
seek funding this year to conduct a regional innovation assessment, based on
guidance recently released by the Economic Development Administration and the
Council on Competitiveness.

Under the revised vision and evaluation framework, The goals established in previous
editions of the CEDS have been reorganized. They remain valid, and for transitional
purposes, the previous list has been included in this document. However, the list has
been reorganized in a hierarchical fashion to tie goals more directly with geographic
and innovation dimensions. For example, a number of the goals from the previous
CEDS addressed issues related to sprawl. These have been consolidated under a
larger goal that focuses on planning innovations for smart growth that address land
use, transportation and economic development issues comprehensively.

In translating the goals and objectives into an action plan, the 2006 CEDS presents
REDDI’s agenda in three parts. The first section addresses REDDI’s commitment to
research and development of promising technologies within the region. The second
part focuses on REDDI’s regional business development efforts. Both of these are
new to the CEDS. The third component is more familiar, and it details REDDI partner
projects throughout the region. While these projects demonstrate REDDI’s
commitment to projects initiated and undertaken by its partners, the first two sections
demonstrate REDDI’s unique contributions to the region as a maturing organization.

REDDI looks forward to undertaking the agenda laid out in this document for 2006.
This edition of the CEDS proposes a number of ambitious projects that will help shape
the regional economy and influence the way the region plans for its future. Through a
strategic focus and smart investments, REDDI and its partners are helping to build a
competitive and innovative regional economy that can sustain development over the
long term.