Washington County Stands Out in Fourth Economy Community Index

Last Updated on Friday, 30 October 2020 15:03

The Washington County Chamber of Commerce, the largest business association in Washington County and the second largest chamber of commerce in the Greater Pittsburgh Region, is proud to announce that Washington County recently ranked second among counties in the Greater Pittsburgh region and was overall above average compared to counties across the state and nation in the eighth annual Fourth Economy Community Index.

Fourth Economy is a nationally recognized community and economic development consulting firm. The full results of the Community Index are available here: https://fourtheconomy.shinyapps.io/Community_Index/#section-dashboard.

According to Fourth Economy, the Community Index began in 2012 as an effort to “document key indicators and predictors of community vibrancy and economic strength.” The model is updated annually to incorporate 20 different indicators, combined through a mathematical model, to produce an overall score. The Index looks at economic and community development areas like investment, talent, sustainability, place, and diversity, all areas crucial for successful communities and positive economic development. The results are published annually for all counties across the United States.

“On behalf of the chamber and its over 1100 members, I am excited about Washington County’s showing in the 2020 Fourth Economy Community Index. We are always striving to be leaders in the region and these results affirm our commitment to those efforts. It also provides us with some aspirational goals to aim toward and insight on the areas to we need to improve to continue to grow Washington County.” stated Jeff Kotula, President of the Washington County Chamber of Commerce. Kotula continued, “This year has been difficult for both the businesses and residents of Washington County, but this kind of positive news demonstrates what we have known all along – Washington County has the right foundations in place to continue to recover from the COVID pandemic and come back stronger than before.”