Our Focus Areas
Small Business & Entrepreneurship
Our goal is to foster small businesses and entrepreneurship to build wealth and high-growth ventures.
IMAGINE Your Business
Grant Opportunity
“IMAGINE Your Business” Grant: Provides entrepreneurs with early-stage business ideas and gross revenue less than $200,000, up to $2,000 towards a need you have identified. There will be two submission time frames for this grant in 2025. The first round will open in Spring 2025. More information will be posted as the application window opens.
Learn more about this grant opportunity in English or in Spanish!
The RFO works on raising the profile of Berks County at national events and tradeshows. For local filmmakers, they provide workshops and resources to help their vision become reality. Click on the picture to the left to explore the brand new location database and discover some of Berks County’s hidden gems.
Focus Area
Small Business & Entrepreneurship
Goal: Support small businesses and encourage entrepreneurship to enable the creation of high-growth ventures, main street amenities, and wealth-building for residents
Community Messaging
Sharing Our Stories
Goal: Develop a cohesive and collaborative Berks County message
Messaging in a community is more important than ever in an age where local print media has declined. We provided funding to our key community partner, Berks County Television, in support of their new community hub website. Their site not only provides information about what is happening in the community, they create thousands of articles, videos, and pieces of content a year highlighting the community and its residents. This work is essential in creating cohesive messaging to help attract and retain residents and workers alike.
What We Look To Achieve
Vibrant Communities
Placemaking is the idea that an area is more than the sum of its parts. Each piece of a community helps build a sense of identity and belonging for current and future residents. We’re focusing on enhancing what makes us unique and diverse. We invite you to explore our downtowns and main streets:
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Boyertown
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Hamburg
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Kutztown
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Reading
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West Reading
Our commitment to placemaking includes outdoor recreation and our natural assets. Our Greenways, Parks, and Recreation Plan affords funding opportunities and project support to connect trails systems and improve access to our parks. The plan outlines the need for preserving and investing in these areas to sustain them for future generations to enjoy.