2023 PEDA Fall Conference

DoubleTree by Hilton Reading • Reading, Pennsylvania

@PEDAtweets       #PEDAfall23

We hope you'll join us in Reading this fall. In the meantime, please join the conversation on social media.

@PEDAtweets     #PEDAfall23

PEDA is the primary statewide organization representing economic development professionals and, as such, provides opportunities to share best practices that enhance the professional dialogue and support local, regional, and state economic development initiatives.

Who should attend? Those in attendance are expected to include professionals representing economic and community development at the municipal, county, regional, and state levels as well as workforce development professionals, commercial and industrial developers, business incubator operators, project finance professionals, IDA directors, elected officials, and executives representing utilities and transportation, engineering, and construction.

Agenda & Registration

Download the 2023 PEDA Fall Conference Registration Brochure.

Download a PDF version of the 2023 PEDA Sponsorship Brochure or Register Online.

Download a list of speaker bios and session overviews.

Early Bird Rates: Full payment must be received by
September 5, 2023 to receive the Early Bird rate.

Thank you to our sponsors!

PLATINUM

TUESDAY EVENING RECEPTION

     

GOLD

SILVER

     

BRONZE

EXHIBITORS

     

       

   

This Project was financed in part by a grant from the federal Department of the Treasury, under the administration of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, DCED.

Sponsorship Information

Submissions will be accepted on a rolling basis. Updated terms, conditions, deadlines and benefits (which may be revised at any time by PEDA) are available at www.peda.org and, by completing the sponsor registration process, the submitter understands and accepts them.

Visit www.peda.org/sponsorships for updates.

Note: Once capacity has been reached for exhibitors’ table-top displays at this event, no further exhibitor commitments can be accepted. If a commitment/payment for an exhibit table is received after capacity has been reached, it will be returned or refunded as soon as possible. Thank you for your understanding.

The Pennsylvania Economic Development Association (PEDA) is classified as a 501(c)(6) association by the Internal Revenue Service.

Pre-Conference Session: Demystifying RACP - A Deeper Dive

To learn more about this pre-conference session, which requires separate registration from the conference, please click here.

Hotel Accommodations

Hotel Accommodations: The conference will be held at the DoubleTree by Hilton Reading, located at 701 Penn Street, Reading, PA 19601. To reserve your overnight room at the discounted rate of $149/night, please visit our customized reservation page or call (610) 375-8000 and reference room block group code "PED". The deadline to reserve rooms at the PEDA rate is October 1, 2023. After this deadline or once capacity has been reached – whichever comes first – reservations will only be accepted upon availability at prevailing hotel rates.

Parking

Complimentary parking is available – in the parking garage adjacent to the hotel – for conference attendees and guests of the DoubleTree by Hilton Reading. Because the garage is not owned by the hotel, it is required that specific procedures are followed to obtain complimentary parking and to avoid being fined by the owner of the garage.

Conference attendees who are commuting to the event, but not staying overnight at the hotel, will receive complimentary parking beginning 1 hour before the start of each day’s first event and ending 1 hour after the end of each day’s last event, but they must enter their license plate information into the Ballroom Foyer kiosks – located in the ballroom area of the hotel – on a daily basis. (Note: The kiosk across from the on-site restaurant is for restaurant guests only and requires a code.)

Conference attendees who are overnight guests of the hotel must present their license plate information to the front desk agent when they check-in in order to receive complimentary parking during their stay as an overnight guest. If a conference attendee who is an overnight guest of the hotel arrives on Sunday and wishes to exit the garage prior to hotel check-in time, they must enter their license plate information into one of the Ballroom Foyer kiosks prior to their exit.

Parking garage cameras record license plates when vehicles exit so, whenever a conference attendee not staying overnight at the hotel (or a conference attendee who is staying overnight at the hotel, but who hasn’t yet checked in) leaves the garage, the complimentary parking is deemed to have ended. If a commuter parks, leaves the garage for any reason, then returns on the same day, they will need to re-enter their license plate information at a Ballroom Foyer kiosk. Conference attendees who are overnight guests of the hotel, and who have checked in and provided their license plate information to the hotel’s front desk staff, have in-and-out privileges from the garage and do NOT need to use the Ballroom Foyer kiosks during their stay.

Exiting the parking garage without having successfully entered your license plate information into a Ballroom Foyer kiosk or provided it to the hotel’s front desk staff, as laid out above, will result in a fine. Conference attendees who are commuting to the event, but not staying overnight at the hotel, will be fined for exiting the garage more than 1 hour prior to the start time of a day’s first event or exiting more than 1 hour after the end time of a day’s last event. Fines may also be applied for other violations of the procedures established for the garage which are not listed here. For additional information, please visit the website of the Reading Parking Authority.

Excursions*

Explore Downtown Reading Walking Tour (Monday, October 16, 2023): Explore Downtown Reading through a 60-minute, guided walking tour that will highlight existing public art and planned public art corridors, architecture, redevelopment projects and future plans. The tour, which will begin and end at the DoubleTree by Hilton Reading will highlight the following. Please advise of any ADA restrictions during conference registration. Capacity is limited and pre-registration is required.

• Anchors in and around the downtown area
• Public Spaces – pocket parks that create a corridor from Court Street to Franklin Street
• Activation of spaces via events
• Current public art throughout downtown Reading including the newly installed Fast Lane Art initiative in vacant windows (an arts walk within the walk!)
• Architecture throughout the Callowhill Historic District
• What’s next in Downtown Reading!

“Building on Success” Industrial Development Bus Tour (Tuesday, October 17, 2023): Hop on a bus for a guided off-site tour focused on industrial development. Featured areas will include development around the Reading Regional Airport in Bern Township. Please advise of any ADA restrictions during conference registration. Capacity is limited and pre-registration is required. (Thanks to the Greater Reading Chamber Alliance for providing bus transportation for this tour!)

*Once capacity has been reached for each tour, interested parties may still be able to register, but will be placed on a waiting list. Also, to ensure individuals who have registered for the tour (and who are not on the waiting list) are able to secure their places, please note names of tour registrants will be shared with the tour guide(s) or point people for each tour and that, by registering for a tour, you acknowledge and permit this.

Off-Site Reception 

Sponsored by the BerksIDA and the County of Berks, the evening reception on Tuesday, October 17, 2023, will be held at Saucony Creek Franklin Station Brewpub, located at 100 South 7^th Street, approximately a five minute walk from the DoubleTree by Hilton Reading.

Session Update - Hot Topic Session

While there have been a few changes to the agenda since the original distribution of the registration brochure, there is one to which we want to draw your attention. Strengthening PA’s Economic Competitiveness, presented by Lisa Riggs (Senior Managing Director, Economic Growth Strategy & Partnerships, Team Pennsylvania), replaces Homes for All: A Multi-Disciplinary Approach to Engaging the Issues Surrounding Housing Affordability. This session is considered a hot topic and has been selected as a replacement based on its importance and timeliness.

Young Professionals Committee Meeting

On Monday, October 16, 2023, the Young Professionals Committee meeting will be held at the GoggleWorks Center for the Arts building (Room 325), located at 201 Washington Street, from noon until approximately 2:00pm. The GoggleWorks Center for the Arts building has parking off Stone Alley and is approximately a 14-minute walk from the DoubleTree by Hilton Reading. Members of the committee will be given a tour of the space and will hold their normally scheduled meeting there as well.

Consent to Use of Photo / Video / Audio

Registration for, attendance at or participation in the conference constitute an agreement by the registrant, attendee or participant to PEDA’s use and distribution (both now and in the future) of the registrant’s, attendee’s or participant’s image and/or likeness and/or voice (as recorded on audio or video) without compensation.

Dietary Restrictions / ADA Restrictions / Food Allergies

If you have any ADA restrictions, dietary restrictions or food allergies you would like PEDA or the conference venue to be aware of, please list them on the registration form (or during the online registration process) or contact PEDA headquarters. Please note PEDA currently anticipates plated meals will be served during the October 17, 2023 lunch and any special meal-related accommodations will be based on information you provide during the registration process.

Early Bird Rate

Early bird registration rates will be honored only for registrations received and fully paid by the established deadline. PEDA reserves the right to assess the standard registration rate for registrations received after the deadline or only partially completed by the deadline.

Young Professionals Sponsorship Provider

Through the generosity of Team Pennsylvania, a full conference registration will be made available for a young professional. Please complete this one-page application and submit it to jskopp@wannerassoc.com no later than September 6, 2023.

IEDC Recognition

This event is recognized by the International Economic Development Council (IEDC) as a professional development event that counts towards the recertification of Certified Economic Developers (CEcDs).

Cancellation / Refund / Substitution Policies

Requests for cancellations and refunds must be made in writing and received by 4:30 pm on October 2, 2023. No refunds will be granted after that point. All cancellations and refunds are subject to a $75 administrative fee. No-shows will be billed in full. Substitutions are permitted, but are subject to rate adjustments (i.e., member vs. non-member, early bird vs. standard rate, etc.), where applicable.

Information on this page is subject to change.

Please note the agenda, registration information and other details included in this document, on the conference website or in any related materials or communications are subject to change at any time without notice.

Please do not leave items unattended in function rooms, as neither PEDA nor the hotel can ensure their security and neither will be held liable for missing or damaged items.