Press & Media

As a result of updating Greater Lafayette's Regional Development Plan for our client, Greater Lafayette Commerce, the region received $35 million in funds from the State of Indiana’s second round of the READI program which will help fund projects within the seven-county region.

InForum reports on the Red River Regional Council and Fourth Economy Client, the Red River Community Housing Development Organization (Red River CHDO), hosting housing build sessions as part of their rural housing study. The Regional Housing Study and Action Plan will help decision-makers, stakeholders, and community members gain a meaningful sense of the housing market and key housing issues.

Politico highlights the report Fourth Economy and Steer completed for our client, the Chamber of Progress, a new tech industry coalition devoted to a progressive society, economy, workforce, and consumer climate. The study quantifies autonomous vehicle market opportunity, presents recommendations and promising practices to capture that opportunity, and highlights actionable steps for policymakers.

Fourth Economy Client, the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership (PDP), released its 2023 annual report which included goals for advocating and supporting strategies to encourage the reuse of failing office buildings and empty storefronts. As part of this effort, Fourth Economy developed a roadmap outlining strategies for PDP to access and effectively manage resources dedicated to capital projects. For another client, the Allegheny Conference on Community Development, we analyzed the potential for revenue generation that could be captured or diverted through the establishment of a Downtown Pittsburgh Investment Zone.

Sally J. Guzik, Vice President at Fourth Economy, shared what we see trending in our growing body of work related to the outdoor economy — cultural and outdoor recreational opportunities are increasingly merging.

We partnered with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to develop the Energy Funding and Assistance Finder to assist communities and organizations in identifying opportunities to receive funding and technical assistance for energy projects that can help to reduce pollution, lower bills, and drive the adoption of new, clean, and efficient technologies.

Centerstate CEO retained Fourth Economy and Empire State Development to craft a pivotal Community Priorities Document (CPD) that will inform investment millions of dollars in Central New York over the next 20 years. Fourth Economy's multi-faceted role includes conducting data analysis on key focus areas, supporting the Committee's engagement with community groups, leading focus groups and interviews with stakeholder groups and the public, and facilitating additional public meetings.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette recognizes Fourth Economy's Economic Impact Report, Robots in the Backyard (2021), that found the $8 million to $10 million invested in Carnegie Mellon University's National Robotics Engineering Center has since returned $545 million in direct funding in 2020 dollars.

In 2018, the Greater Newport Chamber of Commerce retained Fourth Economy to create and manage implementation of a five-year strategic plan for a regional economic development organization. In May, Grow Smart RI and the Aquidneck Land Trust at Innovate Newport hosted a forum featuring input from municipal planners in Newport, Middletown and Portsmouth, RI, housing policy organizations, and researchers looking for ways to combat concerning trends. Chris Worley, Senior Consultant at Fourth Economy, spoke about the disconnect between housing development and workforce growth and the impact that will have on attracting and maintaining a core cluster of essential workers.

Fourth Economy is working with the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation and community stakeholders to create a strategic plan to attract a larger and more diverse audience to the Music Center, improve and expand programming, and build financial sustainability and operational efficiency. The Blue Ridge Music Center showcases the living musician tradition of the region and has the potential to create even greater cultural and economic impact. This work is made possible by funding from the National Park Foundation's 2022 Strong Parks, Strong Communities grant program.

The Rochester Beacon recognizes Fourth Economy's assistance with the Rental Vacancy Rate Study alongside Mullin & Lonergan Associates Inc., and Highland Planning LLC. After all of the surveys were processed, the contractors had data on 245 properties, or 37 percent of those considered appropriate. With that information, they estimated that the net vacancy rate of Rochester’s ETPA-eligible rental properties was 9 percent, too high for the city to adopt the ETPA and institute rent stabilization.

In collaboration with the Allegheny County Health Department, community organizations, and county residents, Fourth Economy supported the development of the community health assessment and the newly-released community health improvement plan. The project included data analysis and visualization to update the county’s health indicators for physical, behavioral, and environmental priority health focus areas.

The plan was created under the guidance of Dr. Debra L. Bogen, the former ACHD director who is now the acting secretary of health for Pennsylvania.

Prosper, a Birmingham-based nonprofit, has launched Operation: Backing Black Businesses, an initiative connecting Black entrepreneurs and business owners in the Birmingham area to the resources they need to thrive.

In early 2022, Prosper tasked Fourth Economy with examining the ecosystem supporting Black-owned businesses, including its participants, strengths, weaknesses, and areas of opportunity for investment and impact. Strategic partners included IGNITE! Alabama and LRY Media Group.

The Allegheny County Health Department released a five-year community health improvement plan to make the county a healthy place to live, work, learn, and play.

In collaboration with the department, community organizations, and county residents, Fourth Economy supported the development of the community health assessment and the newly-released community health improvement plan. The project included data analysis and visualization to update the county’s health indicators for physical, behavioral, and environmental priority health focus areas.

NEXTpittsburgh highlights Fourth Economy for hosting the Promising Practices of Outdoor Recreation Economies webinar that brought together five outdoor recreation experts from across the Commonwealth to explore how the outdoor economy can aid both environmental stewardship and economic resilience.

Fourth Economy's Rich Overmoyer contributed to grant writing that secured $88,358.64 for Event Programming that Newport County Development Council will use to deliver a range of one-day to series events including hosting the Aquidneck Growers Market, Broadway Street Fair, and Outdoor Art Biennial Exhibition.

The Berks County Commissioners formally adopted IMAGINE Berks, the Strategic Economic Development Action Plan prepared by Fourth Economy for the County. This plan identifies key principles that are intended to guide all suggested investments and action steps within the plan, as well as six priority areas: Business & Industry Growth, Small Business & Entrepreneurship, Infrastructure & Land Use, Talent & Economic Mobility, Housing, and Placemaking.

Fourth Economy Client, Jefferson Regional Foundation, has appointed Trisha M. Gadson, Ph.D. as its new Chief Executive Officer. The foundation maintains assets of over $107 million and is dedicated to investing in the health and vitality of the communities served by Jefferson Hospital in the South Hills and lower Mon Valley of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

We are excited to see our work continue to make an impact. In 2016 Fourth economy helped design the Waterfront Development Tax Credit to spur private investment and a more formal recognition of our waterfront assets. This expansion will pay great dividends to the Commonwealth.

Working with Lord Cultural Resources, Fourth Economy is supporting the development of Gwinnett County (GA)’s first ever comprehensive Creative Economy Master Plan. The plan aims to promote arts and culture resources as an engine of growing the County’s economic and cultural prosperity.