The Northwest News

It’s hard to believe that it’s already the time of year to head out to a local pumpkin patch, carve a jack-o-lantern, get the kids’ costumes ready for trick-or-treating, or put together a costume for your own celebration! While some are busy playing pranks like corning, and window soaping, others are preparing treats for the coming visitors. The Northwest Commission has been preparing treats for businesses and municipalities in Northwest Pennsylvania, some are detailed below. But first, here is a Halloween Trivia Question:

Why did dressing in costume become a custom on Halloween? (Scroll to the bottom for the answer!)

Local Funds
At the October Board Meeting, the Northwest Commission’s Board voted to award Local Funds to three regional projects.

The Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership was awarded $16,000 for a Business Attraction/Intelligence Database. The purpose of this project is to research and obtain in-depth company profiling and industry analyses in order to target businesses for business attraction efforts as well as develop strategic and tactical approaches to enhance the regional business climate.

STARTUP Incubator was awarded $35,000 for the Edinboro STARTUP Incubator Applied Media Arts Lab. The purpose of the project is to purchase animation/graphic design/photography equipment and set-up the applied media arts lab portion of STARTUP Incubator to be shared by clients located in the incubator as well as associate member companies in the creation and production of their products and services.

The final grant was awarded to the Lawrence County Economic Development Corporation/Penn-Northwest Corporation for the Opportunity Knocks Project, in the amount of $25,000. The purpose of this project is to design a marketing initiative aimed at attracting young adults to manufacturing jobs, debunk misconceptions about manufacturing jobs, and increase enrollment in skilled workforce education.

Strategic Plan Adopted
The Board of Directors adopted the new Fiscal Year 2008-9 Strategic Action Plan for the Northwest Commission. Six new strategic initiatives were introduced for the staff to develop throughout this next year. The initiatives include: Eco-Tourism/Signage/PA Online Initiative, Energy Efficiency Awareness, Infrastructure Development, Workforce Retention/Recruitment Initiative, Business/Community Recycling Awareness Initiative, and the GIS Optimization Initiative. To see the 2008-09 Strategic Action Plan click here.

Check Presentation!
The Northwest Commission’s Board Meeting was held October 3^rd, at Structural Modulars Inc., in Clarion. Main Event Sports Bar and Restaurant catered breakfast and lunch for the event. Main Event is a loan client of the Northwest Commission.

Richard and Susan Hutton purchased the assets of Izzi’s Ristorante and changed the name to Main Event Sports Bar and Restaurant. The Huttons plan to maintain all operations of the business. They also plan to implement management controls that will impact profitability to include food waste as well as pour control systems and daily bar inventory reports to match the sales with inventory usage. The facility has operated as a restaurant and bar in Clarion for more than 30 years.

The Huttons received a Small Business First Loan in the amount of $175,000.

For a picture of the check presentation, click here.

Trivia Answer: The ancient Celts thought that spirits and ghosts roamed the countryside on Halloween Night, so they began wearing masks and costumes to avoid being recognized as human.

Happy Halloween!

Three Loans Closed – Four Loans Approved

In September the Northwest Commission closed two loans:

Child Development Centers Inc. of Venango County closed on a $200,000 SBF loan to expand its building in Seneca. Eight jobs will be created within three years.
George-Ko Industries, Inc. of Erie County closed on a $41,950 USDA/RLF loan to purchase equipment. Two jobs will be created within three years.
Rum Runners Cove of Erie County closed on a $200,000 SBF/FIF Tourism loan to start up a restaurant and bar. Eight jobs will be created within three years.

The Loan Committee approved four loans in September:

Allegheny Wood Works, Inc. of Erie County
Erie Inspection Services, Inc. of Erie County
Honey House Holistic Bakery of Erie County
Innovative Pressure Technologies, LLC of Erie County

Interest Rates Reduced Again
DCED reduced the rate on SBF and FIF loans to 3% fixed! The First Industries Fund for Agriculture and Tourism has also been reduced to 3% and will be reduced to 2% if a farm is located in an Agricultural Security Area or the farmer’s land is enrolled in a farmland preservation program. Both programs will finance 50% of a project up to a max of $200,000. The programs will finance land & building, machinery & equipment and working capital needs. If you have an expansion planned, please call the Commission for additional information on the programs.

Entrepreneur Training Series
On Tuesday, November 11, the Northwest Commission in conjunction with Clarion Small Business Development Center will provide the next Entrepreneur Training Series at Hoss’ Steak House in Cranberry, Venango County. Harry Howard of How2 Consultants from DuBois will discuss “Evaluating the Price of Your Product and Services”. If you are interested in attending the luncheon, please call the SBDC at 814.93.2060 or toll free at 877.393.1843. There is not charge for the event and lunch is provided.

Wednesday, Nov. 12 - Learn from the Defense Supply Center - Columbus
The Northwest Commission is coordinating with the Defense Supply Center Columbus (DSCC) Small Business Office to host a half-day training event focusing on how to do business with the Department of Defense (DoD) and Defense Logistics Agency (DLA). DSCC’s training offers attendees the opportunity to learn how to find open solicitations on the DLA Internet Bid Board System (DIBBS), learn procedures for viewing and downloading drawings, and how to submit quotes through the DIBBS quoting process. This event will be for any company who is looking to start working with, or would like to refresh their knowledge on the sites and certifications used by the DoD and DLA. A representative from the DSCC Small Business Office will provide a presentation along with a question and answer session. This event will take place at the Northwest Commission in Oil City; registration will be at 8:30 a.m. with training starting at 9 a.m. and ending around 12:30 p.m. For more information, and to register, please contact Lori Kenyon at 814-677-4800 x104 or by email at lorik@nwcommission.org

Please contact the Commission with any questions and watch the Calendar of Events for updated information!

Upcoming events:

Let’s talk over lunch! – Cross Cultural Briefing; India
Sheraton Hotel, Erie, Thursday, Nov. 6
11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.

Let’s talk over lunch! – Cross Cultural Briefing; Middle East
Sheraton Hotel, Erie, Thursday, Nov. 13
11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.

The overall objective of these briefings is to provide the participants with the cross-cultural knowledge they require in order to promote successful business and interpersonal relationships with their international counterparts. For additional information, please contact Claudia Garcia.

Mandatory electronic filing of export information (former SED, Shippers Export Declaration) in effect!
October 1, 2008, has come and gone, and with the passing of that day the paper version of the Shipper’s Export Declaration (SED) has officially become extinct. All U.S. exporters are now required to file their SED information electronically through the Automated Export System (AES). Penalties for not complying with these new regulations range from $ 1,100 to $ 10,000, which include filing late, failing to file, and filing incorrect export information. For additional information please refer to the Census Bureau website at:
http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/schedules/b/search/index.html

Hot off the Press: Northwest Export Express
The international program published its second edition of the Commission's semi-annual hardcopy newsletter reporting on activities, success stories, client testimonials, export regulations, and more! Please let the staff know if you would like to be added to the mailing list. Comments are also appreciated! Please contact Dorte Heffernan.

KIZ Program Outreach
In an effort to increase awareness of the KIZ Program, presentations were made over the last month to the Titusville Rotary, the Crawford County Vision Team, and the Economic Vitality Action Team. Please contact Sue Smith, NWPA KIZ Coordinator, at 814-677-4800 x 131 if your organization would like to schedule this presentation.

Energy Program receives ARC Grant
The PA Energy Future Program received a second year of grant funding from the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) to administer energy management services and technical assistance to municipalities, schools, hospitals and nonprofits within the program's 52 county service territory. Matching funds are pending from the Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) and Local Development Districts (LDDs) across the Commonwealth. This funding makes it possible for the Commission to employ one full-time Energy Program staff person to promote energy awareness, provide technical assistance, facilitate workshops and contribute to energy planning activities.

Safe Routes to School Application
Presentations for Federal Safe Routes to School funding were done by project sponsors from Clarion borough and Utica borough at the quarterly Transportation Advisory Committee meeting held September 18. A review committee in Harrisburg will make the final funding decision.

Highway Trust Fund Financing
Congress passed and President Bush signed legislation that transferred $8.5 billion from the General Fund to the Highway Trust Fund which was on the brink of insolvency. This will allow FHWA to resume payments to states in fiscal 2009.

Fall MTAP Schedule Nearing Completion
Northwest Commission staff has developed the preliminary fall MTAP course schedule. Topics covered in the new schedule include Search Engine Utilization, Basic Computer Maintenance and Upkeep, Access Usage and advanced topics in Excel, Word, and QuickBooks. The official fall schedule will be announced shortly with courses slated to begin in early November.

The Northwest Commission is also looking into additional courses on Website Design due to a high demand for training on this subject.

Please feel free to contact William Rupert at 814.677.4800 x109 or williamr@nwcommission.org if you have course requests or suggestions.

High Speed Internet Event Confirmed for November 19th
The Commission is sponsoring a high-speed internet event on November 19, at Cross Creek Resort in Titusville. The purpose of the meeting is to consider the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and challenges of PA Act 183 and the Bona Fide Retails Request (BFRR) Program. All attendees will receive a "BFRR Tool Kit" for going directly back to their communities and starting or completing a successful Bona Fide Retail Request for DSL service! Registration is open to the public, however, seating is limited and reserved on a first-come first-served basis. To register, contact the Commission at 814.677.4800 x101 or at amberd@nwcommission.org

Bona Fide Retail Request Updates
The Bona Fide Retail Request program is ongoing. Two additional communities have requested map and threshold information since September.

The Commission is collaborating with Union City Pride to promote the BFRR program to the parents of K-12 students. Additionally, the Commission is collaborating with the Pennsylvania Medical Society to collect BFRR requests from physicians and their patients. It is anticipated that this collaboration will accelerate BFRR program inquiries. Collaborative promotional campaigns are anticipated to begin in November.

Large Format Scanner/Printer Installed
The Northwest Commission large format scanner was delivered and installed. The scanner will mainly be used for GIS applications (sewer/water maps, property maps, etc.). The scanned data can be used as an archive and/or converted to GIS format. Additionally, the Commission will seek to make this asset available to County planners and other strategic partners.

GIS Strategic Planning
Northwest Commission staff attended the first of six regional stakeholder sessions that deal with the development of a GIS strategic plan for Pennsylvania. The main goal of the strategic planning process is to look at existing strengths and weaknesses and potential models for improving the overall geospatial coordination in the state.

GIS Education Outreach
The Northwest Commission coordinated an Introduction to ArcView 9.2 GIS class on September 25-26, 2008. Half the registration cost was covered by the Northwest Commission and 17 people attended the class. The class was instructed by the Penn State Land Analysis Lab.

Please visit www.clarion.edu/ages/2008NWPAGIS for details on the 3^rd Annual Northwest Pennsylvania GIS Conference. The conference is schedule for October 24, 2008 at Clarion University.

Please visit www.nwneighborhoodgis.com. The Neighborhood GIS site is an interactive mapping web site that is available to all 265 local governments in northwest Pennsylvania. If you would like a custom Neighborhood GIS web site for your organization, please contact the Northwest Commission.

Regional Networking Meeting
A northwest regional networking meeting was held on October 15^th in downtown Warren at the site of the planned Allegheny Center for the Arts. Managers from DCED funded Main & Elm Street community programs attended along with representatives from DCED, DCNR, DEP, the PA Wilds, PHMC, PEC, and the Route 6 Heritage Corridor. Several communities actively involved in central business revitalization were also able to attend a portion of this day-long meeting.

Oil City Informational Session
A community revitalization informational session was held for Oil City on Tuesday, September 16^th in the Great Room of the Transit Building. Over 50 interested community members attended the presentation, followed by a lively discussion about central business district needs, opportunities, and next steps. On October 7^th a follow-up, next-steps meeting was held to review the potential program and project opportunities

Corry and Union City Discuss Next Steps
The Corry Community Development Corporation board and members of Union City Pride began the next-steps planning and training towards a regional Main Street Coordination effort and application on Tuesday, September 30^th with a joint work session at the Corry Hi-Ed facility. All elements of applying for a Pennsylvania Regional Main Street Coordination program were outlined for the group.

Artisan Trail Efforts Considered
Staff has begun working with a diverse group of business and community leaders to review efforts towards the potential development of an Artisan Trail along Route 208, extending from the Ohio border into southwestern Forest County. This effort would actually encompass arts and tourism related businesses and communities in a six county area. Look for more details as the research and planning continues.

Upcoming LTAP Courses
PennDot and the Northwest Commission are pleased to offer the following training course listed below to municipal official and employees. Remember, there is no cost to the municipality to attend these courses.

October 28 – Winter Maintenance, Vernon Township Building
(Meadville, PA) 8:00 AM – 2:00 PM

In addition to the scheduled course, further course offerings on Posting and Bonding are in the works and should be announced in the immediate future.

To register for these courses, you are encouraged to go online at www.ltap.state.pa.us Inquiries and/or registration requests may also be made by contacting William Rupert at 814.677.4800 x109 or williamr@nwcommission.org

Survey Revisions Made
Final revisions have been implemented into the Municipal Outreach Survey and it is now ready to go. The Commission is anticipating that all of the municipalities that reside within the region will be willing to take part in this new survey.

As new data is collected, it will be entered into a database where it can then be used to identify issues and trends throughout the region. These findings may then prove instrumental in the development of future programs and initiatives that will benefit not only the individual municipalities, but the region as a whole.

Draft Greenways Plans Delivered - Public Comment Period Opens
Draft county greenway plans have been completed for the six counties involved in the planning process. The project consultant Pashek & Associates has conducted one-on-one meetings with the county planners to review their plans. After Pashek receives and responds to any comments that the planners have, they'll update the draft (based on their comments) and return a second draft. The planners will distribute the draft to their respective sub-committees for review, and can advertise the 45 day MPC review period. The draft plans were provided to the NW Greenways Steering Committee and the committee will be meeting in the upcoming month to discuss any comments they may have. After the draft plans have been reviewed, Pashek will compile the Northwest Pennsylvania Greenways Plan (a summary of the eight county plans in northwest Pennsylvania).

Wednesday, Oct. 22 - Procurement Opportunities Fair
The Government Agency Coordination Office (GACO) of California University of Pennsylvania, along with Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania, will be hosting a Procurement Opportunities Fair in Washington, PA. The event will take place at the Holiday Inn Meadowlands and will provide companies an opportunity to market their product or service to government agencies and prime vendors. Registration fees for this event are $45. For more information, please visit GACO’s Calendar of Events.

The Ultimate Match-Making & Procurement Event of the Year!
Monday and Tuesday, November 10 & 11 - The American Legion Small Business Task Force will host its 3rd Annual “Salute to Veterans / Getting Veterans Back to Business” seminar on Monday and Tuesday, November 10 & 11, at the Island Sports Center on Neville Island in Neville Township, Pennsylvania. This premier event affords the opportunity for all participants to have direct access to prime government contractors and offers the ultimate experience in networking and matchmaking opportunities. Companies in attendance will have the opportunity to market their business to over 300 attendees including regional veteran business owners and over 50 government agencies. In addition, companies can participate in one-on-one speed match-making opportunities with prime contractors. Please note that this event is open to both veteran and non-veteran owned companies! Registration cost is $15 for veterans and $25 for non-veterans. For details, please call 412-397-6842 or see the Attendee Registration Form.

Wednesday, Oct. 29 - Certification & Contracting Workshop
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) will conduct an 8(a), SDB and HUBZone Certification & Contracting workshop from 9 a.m.-noon at Riverside Center for Innovation, 700 River Ave., 1^st floor Conference Room, Pittsburgh (Northside). It is free to the public. MBE / WBE and Veteran-owned businesses are encouraged to attend. To register, please contact: Mary Ann Sperling at 412-395-6560 ext. 107.

$100,000 Business Plan Contest
KIZ Partner, Ben Franklin Technology Partners, is sponsoring a business plan contest that will award one winning company with $100,000 to start or develop a technology-oriented business. The application deadline is December 17, 2008. More information on the details of this contest may be found by visiting 100k.benfranklin.org

Matt Gilara, GISP, is the Manager of Regional Planning for the Northwest Commission. Matt's duties at the Northwest Commission involve, but are not limited to, coordinating GIS activities such as training, workshops, conferences, and the Northwest Pennsylvania GIS User Group. He also provides support to GIS users in the region and aids Northwest Commission staff with GIS technology on various projects.

Feel free to contact Matt at 814-677-4800 ext 102 or by email at: mattg@nwcommission.org

What is your favorite type of food?
FREE! Just kidding. Actually I don’t have a favorite. I’ll eat just about anything (I’m a meat and potatoes sort of guy)

Do you have any hidden talents?
Not really, unless you count luring wild animals in with game calls a talent

If you could trade places with any other person for a week, famous or not famous, living or dead, real or fictional, with whom would it be?
Vito Corleone (The Godfather) Just to see what it would feel like to have that much respect (and power)

What CD is in your CD player right now?
I own a 1995 Ford Ranger, there is no CD player. But, if there was one, I would probably have some Van Halen playing

If Hollywood made a movie about your life, whom would you like to see play the lead role as you?
Jim Carey

What is the most satisfying thing about working at the Commission?
Providing a valuable service to our partners in northwest Pennsylvania and having the respect from my peers

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