A screenshot of the LVEDC 2016 Annual Report digital microsite.

2016 was a great year for economic development in the Lehigh Valley, bringing with it 31 business attraction/expansion projects that resulted in 4,827 new jobs created, 2,205 existing jobs retained, and nearly $1 billion in new investment in the Lehigh Valley.

All of these economic achievements and more are featured in the newly-released Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation (LVEDC) 2016 Annual Report, which is available both in hard copies and, for the first time, in a digital format.

“It’s been a great year, and based on what we have the pipeline, I don’t expect that growth to wane in 2017,” LVEDC President and CEO Don Cunningham says in a video introduction in the digital annual report. “Thank you for taking the time to visit this site and learn more about the economic success stories in the Lehigh Valley.”

In addition to the 24-page hard copy, which was first distributed at LVEDC’s annual meeting on March 23, LVEDC has released a dedicated microsite for its 2016 annual report, highlighting the many accomplishments of the Lehigh Valley economy over the past year.

They include the region’s record-breaking GDP, its post-Recession job growth, the innovative Lehigh Valley Health Network, LVEDC’s unprecedented workforce and talent supply initiatives, the organization’s business outreach efforts, and more.

“It’s all packaged together into a standalone website with a simple structure, responsive design, and progressive imagery that’s easily accessible across all platforms, from desktop computers to smartphones and tablets,” said Michael Keller, LVEDC Director of Marketing.

The digital annual report can be found at lehighvalley.org/ar2016. A PDF version of the hard copy of the annual report can also be downloaded at the site.

The digital version of the LVEDC 2016 Annual Report includes an interactive map of all the Lehigh Valley’s major business attraction/retention projects for the year.

The most unique function of the digital report microsite is an interactive map highlighting all 31 business attraction and expansion projects from 2016.

Filtered by three different stages (announced, completed, or under construction), the user can click on pinpoints of each of projects on the map to obtain more information, including the company, square-footage, dollar investment, number of jobs created or retained, and more.

“With this interactive map, we’re not just telling you about the many economic development successes the Lehigh Valley has experienced over the past year, we’re showing it to you, and bringing it to life right before your eyes,” Matthew Tuerk, LVEDC Vice President of Economic Development and Marketing, said during an unveiling at the organization’s annual meeting.

Among the projects featured on the map are Guardian Life Insurance, which built a new corporate headquarters in Northampton County; Amazon.com, which doubled its space in the Lehigh Valley; Norac, a French bakery products company establishing its first American facility; Mack Trucks, which is investing $70 million in improvements to its Lehigh Valley plant; and Stitch Fix; an online personal shopping service that established its first Northeast distribution center.

The annual report microsite was designed by Weidenhammer Creative, which also designed LVEDC’s main website. Like that site, the digital annual report is the result of in-depth market research studying mid-sized economic development organizations across the country. The most effective ones were found to have utilized action items in their navigation.

The hard copy of the LVEDC 2016 Annual Report was designed by Michelle Chrin, who has designed the organization’s annual report for the last three years, as well as its Commercial Real Estate Reports, Investment Opportunities brochure, and other marketing materials.