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Newtown Corporation

January 21, 2013 By

The mission of the Newtown Corporation is to promote Newtown as a great place to live, work, shop, dine and do business on a regular basis while working with all organizations, businesses and groups in the Newtown community to create an alliance to maintain, develop and promote Newtown.

This organization works with both Township and Borough officials to enhance the economic vitality of our community.

The Corporation hosts the popular “Newtown ‘Original’ Brewfest” and supports the events of other local groups like Newtown’s First Night, Newtown First Fourth and the holiday parades. Throughout the year many charitable donations are made to those in need by the efforts of said events.

Newtown Corporation has a website listing community events and local resources for all Newtown businesses along with important contacts and historical data about our town.

This organization is a non-profit and the entire board is volunteer-driven by both township and borough residents and business people. This year, it will be refocusing its efforts on a new economic development plan for 2013 and beyond.

Visit its website for more information about the Newtown Corporation and upcoming events, www.allaboutnewtown.org, contact their new office at Newtown Township, 100 Municipal Drive, Newtown, PA 18940, or e-mail info@allaboutnewtown.org.

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Filed Under: Guidebook NG Tagged With: , , , ,

Bucks County Economic Development Corporation

January 21, 2013 By

Bucks County Economic Development Corporation (BCEDC) was established as a 501c4 Not for Profit Corporation in 1958. The IRS classifies 501c4 Corporations as an organization that is generally civic leagues and other corporations operated exclusively for the promotion of social welfare, or local associations of employees with membership limited to a designated company or people in a particular municipality or neighborhood, and with net earnings devoted exclusively to charitable, educational, or recreational purposes.

BCEDC’s mission is to create a vital and strong economic base through the preservation and creation of job opportunities for Bucks County. In today’s world BCEDC is a Business Connection Center for business and industry.

This requires the corporation to work closely with all forms of governments – through cooperation agreements to administer loan programs, develop from military installations, manage infrastructure, and other projects deemed necessary to create a vital economic base for Bucks County.

BCEDC Connection Center brings other forms of assistance to the business sector from research and development connections through the Ben Franklin Partnership and Delaware Valley Resource Center. It also helps start up business from the services of SCORE to Temple University/Lehigh University Small Business Development Centers.

The Connection Center also provides services to companies to make the connections to the international markets through the Bucks County International Trade Council (BCITC).

All the above-mentioned organizations use the BCEDC offices to help the business sector make the necessary connections to expand and grow their business. This is seen when Team Bucks County meeting is held at the offices every month.

All the organizations mentioned and other county agencies convene to discuss economic topics that would affect the business sector and how the services of each organization can impact another’s project. This collaboration provides the business sector another tool to better understand the complex programs available to them.

Communication among agencies is paramount in supporting business growth. BCEDC provides its core services to the business sector, which is low cost financing in the term of below prime interest rates and longer amortization schedules for land/building acquisition or construction as well and machinery/equipment.

This unique arrangement as a Business Connection Center allows for BCEDC to be the bridge between government and the private sector which allows for both entities to function in a positive manner to support economic growth in the county.

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Filed Under: Guidebook DO Tagged With: , , ,

Bucks Transition Group

January 21, 2013 By

The Bucks Transition Group (BTG) is a volunteer citizens group that was formed in 2009 by people living in various townships in order to encourage awareness of issues around sustainability for local economies.

BTG springs from the Transition Towns movement that has taken hold in Cheltenham, Media, Philadelphia, Lancaster, Bethlehem and other locales across the nation.

BTG has chosen to focus on the potentially catastrophic high cost of energy that has a ripple effect upon the daily cost of living. Transition Towns seek to help residents and local economies cope and prepare for a time when oil is scarce and expensive. They honor the elders, organize re-skilling and knowledge transfer through workshops for both young and old. 

A founding principle of Transition Towns is that the group is maintained as positive and inclusive. BTG encourages egalitarian participation so that people can share their knowledge of sustainable alternatives to dependence on fossil fuels. It fosters the understanding that unless one grows their own foods, makes their own clothing, energy and all other basic needs, they are not independent of the oil-based economy.

BTG collaborates with existing organizations, local businesses, residents and local governments. It organizes events that aim to have participants share information that fosters community resiliency and personal happiness. 

BTG wants to provide a message of resourcefulness in the face of adversity. BTG specializes in Open Space Forums, four-hour events which empower every participant to lead round-table sessions to share their own expertise, or to ask questions. Open Space Forums encourage egalitarian participation and socializing between experts, businesspeople, residents, students and all.

Local township Environmental Advisory Councils support BTG. Its consensus driven meetings occur on the third Saturday of every month. All are invited to attend.

For meeting location or more info contact Deb Barndt at 267-337-0489, or e-mail debsdb1@msn.com or buckstransition@gmail.com.

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Filed Under: Guidebook YV Tagged With: , , , , ,

Visit Bucks County: Tourism drives local economy

December 21, 2012 By

Visit Bucks County, the official tourism promotion agency for Bucks County, reports that the Tourism Industry in Bucks County is thriving!  

According to Tourism Economics, visitor spending in Bucks County means: $865 million in local economic impact, $116 million in federal, state and local taxes and 11,500 jobs supported.

With funding cuts and the rising costs of media, Visit Bucks County relies on co-op marketing with its partners to promote Bucks County to the key feeder market: New York and North Jersey.

The campaign yielded more than 100 million impressions, including train cards, platform posters on Long Island Railroad, Metro North as well as ads on Staten Island buses, PATH trains, showbills, and digital elements.

Key hotel indicators showcase that hotel revenue is up 4.2%, RevPAR is up 3.0%, and ADR is up 2.7%. These numbers indicate an increase in visitation to Bucks County from this past year with a promising 2013 ahead.

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Filed Under: Business Notebook Tagged With: , , , ,

Buying NOW makes sense! Here’s why…

November 1, 2011 By

submitted by Lynne Kelleher, Prudential Fox & Roach, Realtors – Newtown Office

On the fence between waiting until the economy strengthens or buying a home now? The following facts may help you jump off and into your dream home:

  • You can buy more home today with the same payments.  A principal and interest payment of $1230 gets you a $250,000 mortgage at 4.25%. That same payment only gets you a $220,000 loan at 5.25% and a $200,000 loan at 6.25%;
  • Along that same vein, that $250,000 mortgage, which costs $1230 at 4.25%, costs $1381 or $1800 more per year at 5.25% and $1539 or $3708 more per year at 6.25%.

If you’re a move-up buyer, you may be thinking that it makes sense to wait until the economy recovers so your current home may be worth more.
WRONG! If your current home is worth $200,000 now and appreciates 2% in five years, it will be worth $220,731. If your move-up home is worth $350,000 now and appreciates at the same rate, it will be worth $386,427. Waiting five years could cost you $15,696 in additional costs, without factoring in the impact of what would surely be a higher interest rate.

Well, what if prices continue to fall, you say? No one can predict the future, and the only way you know when the market has bottomed out is when it’s on its way back. The big difference is that by then, everyone has figured out that the market – and interest rates – has begun to rebound.
Then the dynamics start to shift from a buyers market and the advantage is lost.  The bottom line? Get off the fence!

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Filed Under: Northampton Herald Columnists Tagged With: , , , ,

Buying NOW makes sense! Here’s why…

November 1, 2011 By

submitted by Kathleen Layton, Prudential Fox & Roach, Realtors – Newtown Office

On the fence between waiting until the economy strengthens or buying a home now? The following facts may help you jump off and into your dream home:

  • You can buy more home today with the same payments.  A principal and interest payment of $1230 gets you a $250,000 mortgage at 4.25%. That same payment only gets you a $220,000 loan at 5.25% and a $200,000 loan at 6.25%;
  • Along that same vein, that $250,000 mortgage, which costs $1230 at 4.25%, costs $1381 or $1800 more per year at 5.25% and $1539 or $3708 more per year at 6.25%.

If you’re a move-up buyer, you may be thinking that it makes sense to wait until the economy recovers so your current home may be worth more.
WRONG! If your current home is worth $200,000 now and appreciates 2% in five years, it will be worth $220,731. If your move-up home is worth $350,000 now and appreciates at the same rate, it will be worth $386,427. Waiting five years could cost you $15,696 in additional costs, without factoring in the impact of what would surely be a higher interest rate.

Well, what if prices continue to fall, you say? No one can predict the future, and the only way you know when the market has bottomed out is when it’s on its way back. The big difference is that by then, everyone has figured out that the market – and interest rates – has begun to rebound.
Then the dynamics start to shift from a buyers market and the advantage is lost.  The bottom line? Get off the fence!

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Filed Under: Business Notebook, Newtown Gazette Columnists Tagged With: , , , ,