Business Assistance Services

The Pike County Economic Development Authority endeavors to provide an easily accessible and comprehensive suite of resources for businesses of all stages and sizes in our community! Available assistance includes:

Business Retention & Expansion Program (BREP)

Pike County participates in the Business Retention and Expansion Program (BREP). Through BREP, local economic development professionals conduct outreach to local businesses to:

• Build relationships with the owners and key decision makers of local businesses
• Proactively identify opportunities to deploy economic development resources
• Provide opportunities for business to give feedback to Pennsylvania on what would enhance growth of their business here and;
• Thank them for doing business in Pike County.

The EDA staff always has an open door to discuss opportunities to work with local businesses of all types and sizes. Call to discuss the needs of your business today!

Seminar Programs

The EDA frequently offers seminar programs on a wide range of business topics such as:

• First Steps to Opening a Business
• Financing
• Customer Service
• Cash Flow
• Opening & Operating a Home Based Business
• Understanding municipal regulations
• Marketing
• Accessing the Pennsylvania workforce training grant program

See our events page for a list of upcoming programs!

Entrepreneurial Resource Center

The EDA maintains a library of business resources in its office and offers a computer station dedicated for use by local entrepreneurs. Available reference materials include:

• Subdivision and Land Development Ordinances (SALDO) and Zoning Ordinances, the Milford Borough Historic and Architectural Review ordinance
• GrantStation database access which showcases federal, state and charitable grant opportunities as well as information on seeking and writing successful grant applications.

Contact us to get on our weekly grants e-newsletter list or to make an appointment to search this database in our office.

Reference books
Looking for financial benchmarks for your industry? How about basic information on a franchise or industry you’re considering going into? Or specific market demographics such as how many pet owners are in the area? The printed reference materials in our library can get you the answers.

Demographic profile
The EDA produces a comprehensive and up–to-date profile of the demographics of our community which is available electronically or in print form.

Property assistance

The EDA staff connects landlords with tenants and buyers with sellers. If you have available space for sale or lease, make sure our staff has the details! To check out available space in our community, see our Available Properties page!

Expansion/new site assistance

Whether your business is expanding and needs on site expansion or has outgrown its current location, the EDA staff is ready to assist with finding appropriate locations as well as advocating for your business throughout the municipal processes that may be required.

Partner Organizations

The Pike County Economic Development Authority partners with numerous organizations to maximize services available to businesses in our community. The EDA is available to help businesses access the services they need to grow.

Small Business Development Center at the University of Scranton

The Pike County EDA is the local outreach location for the University of Scranton Small Business Development Center (SBDC). The EDA provides basic information to would-be entrepreneurs detailing the legal steps of properly opening a business, provided by the SBDC. The EDA also partners with the SBDC to offer seminar and one-on-one counseling services for both start-up and existing businesses conveniently in our office in Milford.

Main Street Network

The EDA is a member of the Main Street Network, an initiative of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Main Street News is distributed by the EDA to those with key roles in downtown development in the Boroughs of Matamoras and Milford.

The EDA partners with members of the Milford Business Council and the Pike County Trust for Historic Preservation to market historic Milford as a heritage travel destination on Gozaic.com. Gozaic is an initiative of Heritage Travel, a subsidiary of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Northeastern Pennsylvania Alliance (NEPA)

The Northeastern Pennsylvania Alliance is the regional local development district for Northeastern Pennsylvania. NEPA offers many resources for area businesses including:

• Government Procurement
• International Business Development
• Demographic material
• Economic impact statements
• Non-profit resource center
• Loan Programs – for more information see our Financial Incentives page.

MetroAction

MetroAction is a regional microlender dedicated to improving opportunities for small business throughout the Northeastern Pennsylvania area. Microlenders provide flexible financing opportunities in markets banks are unable to serve.

Ben Franklin Technology Partners

Ben Franklin Technology Partners has a longstanding tradition of providing in-kind assistance and seed capital to early stage high technology businesses.

Northeastern PA Industrial Resource Center (NEPIRC)

The Northeastern Pennsylvania Industrial Resource Center provides assistance to small and mid-size businesses in the region. Types of assistance include: improving productivity and efficiency, six sigma certifications, ISO and quality measures, human resources, new product development and much more!

Pennsylvania Technical Assistance Program (PennTap)

The Pennsylvania Technical Assistance Program serves businesses throughout Pennsylvania by providing technical and human capital solutions to businesses. Areas of expertise include safety, food processing, environmental regulations, IT, and product development and commercialization.