Chester County Economy Report Released
Posted January 21, 2022
This past year, Chester County completed an Economy Report providing local data that can be used to guide economic planning and future growth for the county. The data in the report highlights the county's economic strengths and weaknesses, helping to guide recommendations and implementation of the county's comprehensive plan, Landscapes3.
With COVID-19 still a major concern and back on the rise, the county – and the entire nation — continues to face unprecedented times. However, with the availability of the vaccine in 2021, many businesses were able to re-open and recover some of their losses from the previous year. In fact, while unemployment reached a high of 11.6% in April of 2021, the rate has since decreased significantly.
The report is divided into six chapters that describe the county economy: 1) Resident Characteristics; 2) Employment Characteristics; 3) Business Characteristics; 4) Gross Domestic Product; 5) Key Industrial Groups; and 6) Real Estate Characteristics.
Comparisons at both the local, regional, and national level can provide valuable insight to the county's unique strengths and challenges. For this reason, data was collected and analyzed for both local counties located in Southeastern Pennsylvania, as well as counties located outside major northeastern cities with similar attributes to Chester County. The Planning Commission plans to provide updated economic data on an annual basis.
The 2021 Economy Report was prepared by the Chester County Planning Commission, with assistance from the Chester County Economic Development Council.