Person County Economic Development Commission Hosts “ED Day” Community Event

On Thursday, September 12, 2013, the 2nd Economic Development Day (ED Day) was held at Piedmont Community College by the Person County Economic Development Commission. The event was a follow-up to a similar event sponsored by the commission in March of this year.

Stuart Gilbert, Director of Economic Development for Person County, set forth the goal of the day as finding an answer to the question, “What can we do in the next year that will help us to be better prepared and do a better job in [Person County’s] economic development?” Attendees broke up into small groups to discover and discuss vital components of a healthy economic development action plan.

Mike Abruzzo, CEO of Piedmont Filtration Corporation, addressed those in attendance outlining the path that led him to Person County. Formerly based in Oxford, NC, Piedmont Filtration recently relocated its filter manufacturing facility to Person County where it operates out of the Gates building on Virgilina Road and brings with it a capital investment of $200,000 and as well as plans to hire from 10 to 20 people over the next year.

To learn more about Mr. Abruzzo’s  decision to locate in Person County, his comments along with the full day’s content can be viewed by clicking here or by clicking on the “Economic Development Day (September)” link on the Videos and Minutes Archive page at www.personcounty.net.  (Abruzzo’s presentation begins approximately 17 minutes into the video.) The documented outcomes of the event are also available at www.personcounty.net under the “Economic Development Day” link on the Economic Development page.

Also in attendance for the ED Day event were city, county, regional and state officials, members of the Person County Board of Commissioners, as well as members of the Person County Economic Development Commission Board.

Randy Reynolds, Chairman of the Person County Economic Development Commission touted the event a success. “Person County Economic Development Commission’s ‘ED Day’ was a success thanks to the interest and collaborative efforts of a broad group of individuals, including elected officials, local business and industry representatives and vested citizens who came together to be a part of Person County’s economic success now and into the future. It is the hope of the EDC that participation of this kind will only increase as we seek to further engage the community in the process of growing our county’s economy.”