Address:
Wall Street Plaza
88 Pine Street, 31st Floor
New York, NY 10005
Phone:
212.668.0690
Fax:
212.668.0691
Email:
info@canamenterprises.com
|
GREATER PHILADELPHIA REGION > Overview
 The City of Philadelphia is the fifth largest city in the United States and the second largest on the East Coast. It includes within its boundaries an area of approximately 143 square miles and a resident population of 1.4 million people. Furthermore, the City is located in the heart of a six-county metropolitan area with approximately 5.8 million residents, ranking it the fourth largest by population in the nation. Strategically situated at the crossroads of the Northeastern United States, Philadelphia is only a short distance from several other major metropolitan centers including New York, Boston, and Washington D.C., giving it access to a myriad of markets, resources, government centers, and transportation, including air, rail, highway, and water routes which provide easy transit to the City.
The Greater Philadelphia Region used to be called the Delaware Valley due to the Delaware River, however, not to confuse the area with the neighboring state of Delaware, in the 1990s, local officials began to call it the “Greater Philadelphia Region”. The area generally refers to the tri-state area where the Delaware River meets the Schuylkill River.
The Greater Philadelphia economy is diverse and home to many Fortune 500 companies including leaders in industries such as: alternative energy, life sciences, information technology, education, defense, and financial services. |
|
|
|
History of Philadelphia Region
Philadelphia was founded in 1682 by William Penn, an English Quaker. King Charles II of England granted him a parcel of land that included 1,280 acres between the Delaware and Schuykill Rivers. Penn’s chief surveyor, Captain Thomas Holmes, devised a grid pattern for the city that included five public squares, all of which remain, to realize Penn’s dream of a “green country town”. Due to its excellent location on the Atlantic Coast and accessible port facilities, Philadelphia grew rapidly in the 18th century until it was the second largest English-speaking city in the world. Considered the cultural center of the New World, it was called the Athens of the Americas.
 Philadelphia’s history from 1774 to 1880 is inextricably linked to that of the American Revolution and the young nation. In Independence National Historical Park, “America’s most historic square mile”, two of the nation’s most recognizable monuments to freedom can be found: the Liberty Bell, symbol of the nation’s freedom, and Independence Hall, the birthplace of the nation, where a group of dissatisfied colonists adopted Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. Dozens of other landmark historical events also took place in Philadelphia, including the sewing of the first American Flag by Betsy Ross in 1776, the drafting of the Constitution in 1787, and from 1791-1800, Philadelphia served as the nation’s capital.
|
|
|
|
Competitive Advantages
Several competitive advantages make Philadelphia an ideal site for business investment and location, such as its relative affordability as a major city, cultural advantages, and its growing strength in key knowledge industries.
Location
 Located in the center of the densely populated, affluent region along the Atlantic Coast, a region that stretches from Boston through New York and Philadelphia to Baltimore and Washington, D.C.- Transaction infrastructure centered within the city, including Philadelphia International Airport, Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor service, major interstate highway access, and the regional public transit system, SEPTA.
- The great success of Philadelphia’s transportation infrastructure is demonstrated by its median commuting time, which is 19 percent below the national metropolitan average.
Affordability
- Philadelphia region is ranked as the 22nd most affordable housing market.
- Households with median incomes can afford a home in 79 percent of the Philadelphia region.
- ACCRA 2010 Cost of Living Index rates Philadelphia as significantly more affordable than its regional peer, New York City, which is 58 percent more expensive, and Washington, D.C.
Employment Opportunities
- Philadelphia ranks first among 14 major metropolitan areas in its concentration of education sector employment, and third in life, physical, social sciences and health care professionals.
|
Economic Potential of
Greater Philadelphia Region
The City's Administration and business leaders have taken substantial steps towards making Philadelphia one of the key industry centers in the region as well as the nation. In just a few short years, the City has helped complete or inaugurate half a dozen mega-projects amounting to well over $2 billion in investment.
The region is home to many major Fortune 500 companies, including Comcast, CIGNA, Lincoln Financial Group, Sunoco, Aramark, Crown Holdings Incorporated, Rohm and Haas Company, GlaxoSmithKline and Boeing helicopters division.
Most importantly, the City of Philadelphia has established an economic development strategy whose goal is to create, maintain and develop investment and business within the City of Philadelphia. Five priorities have been established under the strategy:
- stimulating neighborhood economic activity
- fostering the next stage of hospitality & tourism
- reducing the cost of doing business
- creating a more vibrant entrepreneurial environment
- addressing workforce deficiencies
With these clear objectives in mind, the City's economic development efforts focuses on Philadelphia's strengths and capitalizes on private sector initiatives. Using a combination of targeted marketing, professional support and effective financing tools to create and retain businesses and jobs.
 |
 Next page |
|
