2017 was another huge year for the Lehigh Valley economy. (photo by Marco Calderon)

It’s been another huge year for the Lehigh Valley economy.

2017 saw record growth for the region, drawing international media attention to the Lehigh Valley’s economic success story. Several major business attraction or expansion projects were completed this year, and the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation (LVEDC) has embarked on multiple initiatives to market the economic assets of the Lehigh Valley.

“The historic economic growth we’ve seen this year speaks to the remarkable balance between our various economic sectors, a sign of a well-balanced and multifaceted economy,” said LVEDC President & CEO Don Cunningham. “And with the recent completion of our new strategic plan, LVEDC is in the best possible position to continue helping the Lehigh Valley economy grow.”

Below are of some of the region’s biggest economic development stories from the past year.

Record economic growth

The Lehigh Valley’s gross domestic product (GDP) for private sector industry reached a record-high $39.1 billion for 2016, a more than 4 percent increase over the previous year.

That means the region now ranks 65th out of the 382 largest metropolitan areas in the United States, compared to ranking 73rd last year. The Lehigh Valley GDP is now larger than that of Wyoming ($38.5 billion) and Vermont ($31.5 billion), as well as 108 other countries.

Site Selection magazine ranked the Lehigh Valley one of the top five overall regions in the Northeast for economic development, and the number one region of its population size. It ranked behind only the New York City, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Boston metropolitan areas.

Additionally, for a fourth consecutive year, the Lehigh Valley ranked highest among major metropolitan areas in Pennsylvania in terms of post-recession job growth, with 4.9 percent more jobs by the end of 2016 than it had before the Great Recession began.

International media attention

The growth of the Lehigh Valley economy has been so strong, it drew attention far beyond the region’s borders in 2017, including a front-page story in one of the most widely-read newspapers in the world.

The New York Times published an A1 story about the Lehigh Valley on Oct. 23, highlighting the region’s booming logistics and e-commerce sector and touting the its central location, strong workforce, and well-developed transportation infrastructure.

In addition, the Lehigh Valley was the subject of a 24-page feature in American Way, the in-flight magazine for American Airlines, the largest airline in the world. The issue, which is available online, was featured on all flights and reached at least 16 million passengers in total.

The Lehigh Valley market was also ranked second globally in industrial growth, according to CBRE, and the region drew additional media attention from such outlets as Forbes, Money, GoodCall, Expedia.com and Realtor.com.

Initiatives regionally and abroad

LVEDC continued to market the Lehigh Valley overseas to attract foreign direct investment to the Lehigh Valley, including a 10-day tour in China in May 2017. This marked the organization’s second international business tour in as many years.

LVEDC also hosted a visit from international business investment representatives, helped spotlight the Lehigh Valley at the SelectUSA Investment Summit, and hosted a visit from Chinese government officials.

Meanwhile, closer to home, the organization has been engaged in an ongoing initiative to identify talent supply and demand issues in the region and create a strategy that results in a broader, ongoing understanding of the Lehigh Valley workforce.

LVEDC also hosted its third annual Fall Signature Event, which highlights a Lehigh Valley company that exemplifies one of the region’s four target sectors. This year, the company was Victaulic, which announced it is investing tens of millions of dollars to increase its manufacturing operations in the region, creating up to 50 new jobs by next year.

Looking ahead

With 2017 drawing to a close, LVEDC is focused on the future.

The organization made a bid for the Lehigh Valley to become the location for a second headquarters planned by Amazon. The proposed HQ2 will be a “full equal” to Amazon’s current Seattle campus, which totals 33 buildings and 8.1 million square feet, and employs more than 40,000 people.

Additionally, LVEDC recently unveiled its new three-year strategic plan to establish the organization’s priorities and initiatives as it continues its work to advance the region’s economic growth and job creation through 2020.

The plan is the result of a comprehensive process that has included outside consultants, key stakeholder organizations in the Lehigh Valley, and the LVEDC staff and board. It includes four sets of initiatives for the organization in the area of recruitment; marketing & communications; advocacy & leadership; and retention, resources, & regional strategies.