Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation’s Annual Meeting on March 17 
will feature a panel discussion with leaders who will explain what it took to land Eli Lilly and Company's $3.5 billion manufacturing campus, the largest investment ever in the Lehigh Valley.
"The effort involved a dream team of public- and private-sector partners, from Gov. Josh Shapiro to Lehigh Carbon Community College and local utilities, who racked up thousands of collective staff hours working behind the scenes in a multi-year process," said Don Cunningham, President & CEO of LVEDC.
Registration is required to attend the meeting, which will be held from 3:30-5 p.m., at ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks in Bethlehem. Register here.
Lilly’s pharmaceutical manufacturing campus will be the largest life sciences project in Pennsylvania. It will employ 850 people, create 2,000 construction jobs, and is projected to drive $14 billion in total economic activity.
Panelists who will explore the project will be:
Jay Biggins, Executive Managing Director, Biggins Lacy Shapiro & Co.
Don Cunningham, President & CEO, LVEDC
Ben Kirshner, Pennsylvania Chief Transformation & Opportunity Officer
Dan VonDielingen, Senior Vice President-Global Parenteral Network Expansion, Eli Lilly and Company
The panel discussion will be moderated by Grover Silcox, a long-time television personality and five-time Emmy Award winner.
Other partners who were part of the “Dream Team,” including leaders from property owner Jaindl Land Development and Upper Macungie Township, will appear in a video produced by LVEDC that examines the lengthy process. The group worked together to meet Lilly’s infrastructure, utility, and workforce needs to ensure the project can be completed on time.
LVEDC’s Annual Meeting will celebrate a record setting 2025 in economic development, driven by Lilly. The 90-minute program will share how LVEDC and its partners are working together to continue the momentum and position the region to meet its challenges and continue its success.
The meeting also will feature a Lehigh Valley Trivia Contest, hosted by Silcox. Attendees can participate using their smartphones to answer questions and see how they score in real time.
Capital Blue Cross is the Presenting Sponsor of LVEDC’s Annual Meeting. Cocktail Sponsors are BSI Corporate Benefits and Fitzpatrick Lentz & Bubba. Gold Sponsors are Alvernia University, B. Braun, Community Bank, Crayola, Fulton Bank, Jaindl Land Development, PenTeleData, Steamfitters Union 420, and WFMZ. Silver Sponsors are Evans Wealth Strategies, Hatzel and Buehler, HNL Lab Medicine, Lehigh Valley Health Network, part of Jefferson Health, Peoples & Co., St. Luke's University Health Network, Suites at 462 Main by Hotel Bethlehem, Whiting-Turner Company, and Wind Creek Bethlehem. Community Sponsors are ADVANCE at Cedar Crest, Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania, CLA, Ethosource Office Furniture, H.T. Lyons, Lesavoy Butz & Seitz, Moravian University-University Partnerships, OraSure Technologies, Inc., PPL Electric Utilities, RESPEC, and Servpro Team Davis.
Sponsorships are available. For sponsorship information, contact Nadya Rachid, LVEDC’s Program Manager, at nrachid@lehighvalley.org.
The Lehigh Valley has long been one of America’s manufacturing centers. Manufacturing is the largest part of the region’s economy with more than 700 manufacturers making products that touch every corner of American life. As America celebrates the 250th Anniversary of its founding, the Lehigh Valley enters a new chapter in its history with the manufacturing of medicines.