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 To view meeting: https://youtu.be/dpOFdzefc9A December 14, 2021 - Silas Chamberlin became vice president of economic and community development of the York County Economic Alliance in September 2018, when Downtown Inc. joined forces with YCEA. Prior to that, he was executive director of the Schuylkill River National Heritage Area and also worked for the state department. The York County Commissioners created the YoCo Strong Recovery Task Force in April 2020 to provide guidance on the county's response to the COVID 19 pandemic. In May 2020, the task force delivered an exhaustive report with 8 priority recommendations. In April 2021, the Commissioners reactivated the recovery task force and asked for updated recommendations to guide the county's recovery process and inform the allocation of $87 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds. Those priority recommendations are: *Continue to provide emergency relief to businesses and non-profit organizations impacted by the pandemic and ongoing economic disruptions. *The county serves as a coordinating entity during pandemics and other community emergencies. We should continue to invest in technological improvements to the Emergency Operations Center; ongoing improvements to the COVID hub site; and enhance sites that provided economic and community resources. * Reactivate York County’s tourism economy. Few sectors of our economy were impacted more than tourism during the pandemic, and the effects of travel restrictions and shuttered attractions continue to be felt. * Implement the YoCo Fiber countywide broadband strategy to continue closing the digital divide. * The pandemic created historic disruptions to employment across the county, we continue to experience higher unemployment than in 2019, thousands of employees exiting the workforce, and significant obstacles for employers trying to hire at full capacity. With more than 2 million women exiting the labor force in the past 10 months and more than 60% of women reporting reduced working hours due to providing childcare.The County should prioritize childcare centers in grant and loan programs and invest in programs. |