The U.S. Department of Commerce recently awarded Allentown a $20 million Distressed Area Recompete Pilot Program grant.
The program, established by the federal CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, makes targeted investments in communities where employment in residents ages 25-54 years old significantly trails the national average.
Allentown will use funding to connect the city’s most distressed and diverse neighborhoods to jobs in high-opportunity industries such as health care and manufacturing, reduce barriers to employment. Barriers to employment and economic success include lack of transportation and educational opportunities, and a lack of access to affordable and convenient child care.
“Allentown and the Lehigh Valley have successfully reacted to crisis many times before, but we’re about to see how we respond to an opportunity,” Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk said. “Leveraging existing relationships and forging new partnerships, we will have a chance to create a model for eliminating the barriers that keep talented people from getting good jobs. Investments in skills development, industrial sites, transportation, and child care will make sure that Allentown’s residents are in a position to succeed.”
Funding is through Phase II of the Recompete Plan.
The CHIPS and Science Act authorized $1 billion for the Recompete Program over five years.