Reflect
“By three methods we learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest. Second by imitation, which is easiest, third by experience, which is bitterest.”
— Confucius
In this 60th year, we have spent time reflecting on Pottstown Area Industrial Development’s place in Pottstown through the years. The Organization has experienced the closing of businesses, the opening of many businesses, downturns in housing markets, the devastation of a once thriving downtown, the end to cruising, the return of cruising, bought and sold its own real estate, managed the development of a business park, reorganized to focus on the 5.5 square miles of the Borough and took on a new name. The one thing that has remained constant is its commitment to improving the economic conditions of Pottstown.
This has not been the work of a few, but many. From the inaugural board staffed by the Chamber of Commerce to a board reinvigorated with town stakeholders who hired the first-ever employee of PAID, its mission has been the economic vitality of the area created through investment in commercial development. In the beginning, it was a group of leaders who understood change was on the horizon for an area that had an economy based on labor-intensive industries. Sites and buildings had to be reimagined to meet the market conditions of the day. Even at our formation in 1965, it was hard to imagine that in just over 10 years, Bethlehem Steel would be shuttered for good.
Today, as Pottstown Area Economic Development, international firms like NPMG and DYWIDAG join established manufacturers such as Precision Polymer, Aegis, and Dana. National chains operate beside local businesses, while adaptive reuse transforms warehouses and newspaper buildings into new living spaces. This era of growth is rooted in past wisdom but thrives on a diverse economy that ensures a sustainable future.
With gratitude to the Pottstown Leaders of today and those who have come before,
Peggy Lee-Clark
Executive Director
View PAED’s 2024 Annual report HERE.