Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce - Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce

Local Restaurants Featured in Food Trail Promotion

The COVID-19 pandemic has been especially hard on retail food businesses as restaurants and bars have had to limit their seating capacity, invest in alterations for outdoor dining, and modify their business operations. In order to help support local eateries and pubs during this difficult time, several organizations have teamed up to launch a Food Trail promotion to encourage the public to patronize local restaurants, whether dine in or take-out, or by way of gift card purchases.

Thanks to funds made available from the Luzerne County CARES Act grant, the Downtown Hazleton Alliance for Progress and Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce has teamed up with the Luzerne County Tourism and Visitor’s Bureau and DiscoverNEPA to organize five different food trails that collectively feature 70 different restaurants in and around Hazleton.

Free registration is open to the first 75 businesses to sign up for the Luzerne County Recovery Job Fair, which is a virtual opportunity for businesses of all sizes hiring for full and part-time positions

The Luzerne County Chambers of Commerce, PA CareerLink Luzerne County, and Junior Achievement of Northeastern Pennsylvania are partnering to provide a free opportunity for businesses looking to hire in Luzerne County through the Luzerne County Recovery Job Fair, which will take place on a virtual platform on December 15^th. This opportunity is made possible through funding from the CARES Act to assist businesses during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Greater Hazleton Chamber announces new programs to assist small business

Working together with local partners through the Recovery & Resiliency Task Force formed earlier this year, the Greater Hazleton Chamber announced that it was awarded more than $240,000 in grant funding from Luzerne County to undertake economic development initiatives designed to help small businesses recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and also spur the local economy. The funds are part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act funding the County received from the state, and complements other initiatives being undertaken by the Greater Wilkes Barre Chamber and its partners.

Project EVOLVE to better support businesses during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chamber Evolve The Greater Wilkes-Barre, Greater Hazleton, Greater Pittston, and Back Mountain Chambers of Commerce have launched a new economic development initiative called Project EVOLVE.

Project EVOLVE is an initiative designed to identify solutions and align external innovation to assist local businesses as they adjust to, and thrive in, the new post-COVID economy. EVOLVE leverages the innovation, products, and services already located in Northeastern PA, as a means to provide cross-industry solutions to help businesses adapt to new methods of doing business.

Project EVOLVE utilizes a systematic approach to identify COVID-generated challenges within the top ten industries in Northeast PA. These industries, chosen based upon the number of establishments and percentage of overall employment, are: health care and social assistance, retail trade, accommodation and food services, manufacturing , construction, transportation and warehousing, other services except public administration, wholesale trade, professional and technical services, and finance and insurance. By addressing one industry at a time, then leveraging the network and strength of local economic development partners, the Chambers will identify and deliver innovative solutions to help businesses “evolve” and thrive in the new, post-COVID business environment.