Economy League Roundtable I.09: Greater Philadelphia’s Leaders on the Regional Economy


April 17, 2009

As the national economy suffers its worst decline in 70 years, the Philadelphia metropolitan area’s economy, while struggling, continues to fare better than that of most other regions. That’s the consensus of more than 30 regional business and nonprofit leaders who took part in three days of candid roundtable discussions hosted by the Economy League of Greater Philadelphia. 

Click here to download the report or read the press release. 

The goal was to take the pulse of our major economic sectors and to learn: Which areas are strong and which need attention? What are the threats facing our regional financial health, and what are the opportunities? What are the implications for local and state governments?

Also discussed were communicating to city government how the private sector is restructuring and how the City of Philadelphia could help itself – and the region – by changing the way it does business.

Overall, optimism was the undercurrent of the three 90-minute sessions: the recession has not yet impacted Greater Philadelphia as deeply as it has other regions, and smart leaders can find opportunity in this crisis. The area’s strength in colleges and universities and in world-renowned teaching and research hospitals (known collectively as “eds and meds”) has been key to the recession’s relatively mild effects. In addition, the Philadelphia area housing market has proven resilient when compared with most other regions, especially in Center City Philadelphia where home values are still above where they were in 2003.

To be sure, the region is experiencing its share of layoffs. However, the absence of large national banks and a relatively small number of financial service jobs have meant minimal damage in that sector. And small regional banks could stand to gain.

Roundtable participants cautioned that while the region has been slow to follow the rest of the American economy into the recession, it might also be slow to recover. Consequently, they fear “fallout” from the national turmoil such that bad loans and/or trading partners and sources of capital elsewhere could adversely affect the Philadelphia region in unforeseen ways.

Participate in our Survey: The Economy League would like to know what you are experiencing, particularly from senior decision-makers in business and nonprofit organizations in the region. Please follow this  link at EconomyLeague.org/econsurvey to a brief survey.

 

 

Roundtable Participants
Steve Wray, Economy League of Greater Philadelphia (moderator)
Carolyn Adams, Temple University
Patricia Blakely, The Merchants Fund
Joanne Bursich, Nonprofit Finance Fund
John Claypool, American Institute of Architects, Philadelphia Chapter
David L. Cohen, Ben Franklin Technology Partners
Danielle Cohn, Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau
Ethan Connor-Ross, Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corp.
Ed D'Alba, Urban Engineers Inc.
Jeff DeVuono, Brandywine Realty Trust
David Dickson, US Small Business Administration
Denise Earley, Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce
David Elesh, Temple University
David Fair, United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania
Varsovia Fernandez, Greater Philadelphia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
Tony Girifalco, Delaware Valley Industrial Resource Center
Sallie Glickman, Philadelphia Workforce Investment Board
Maureen Greene, US Bureau of Labor Statistics
Patricia Hasson, Consumer Credit Counseling Service
Phil Hopkins, Select Greater Philadelphia
Debra Kahn, Delaware Valley Grantmakers
Tom Kaiden, Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance
Paul Levy, Central Philadelphia Development Corp., Center City District
Tom Morr, Select Greater Philadelphia
Steve Mullin, Econsult
Jason Novak, Federal Reserve Bank
Gregory J. Nowak, Pepper Hamilton LLP
Gerald L. Perrins, Jr, US Bureau of Labor Statistics
Andy Toy, The Enterprise Center
Christopher M. Veno, Trion
Dick Voith, Econsult
Steven Wanner, Ernst & Young
Tony Wigglesworth, Philadelphia Area Labor Management Committee