Envision Prince George's County

(Via email) from Samuel J. Parker, Jr., Chairman, Prince George’s County Planning Board, Maryland National Capital Park and Planning Commission

The Prince George’s County Planning Board and Planning Department of The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, along with the Prince George’s County Economic Development Corporation and County government, invite residents, students, business and community leaders and anyone interested in helping shape a community-wide dialogue on the future direction of the County to join them for a one-day economic outlook forum on Friday, October 3, 2008.

Called Envision Prince George's, the event will feature keynote addresses by nationally recognized government and business leaders, including Maryland Lieutenant Governor Anthony G. Brown; regional economic expert, Stephen Fuller, Director of the Center for Regional Analysis and professor of public policy at George Mason University; and thought leader and best selling author, Richard Florida, professor of Business and Creativity at the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto and author of “The Rise of the Creative Class”.

Other conference events include presentations on Prince George’s County’s economic position and progress by county officials – including County Executive Jack Johnson and Council Chairman Samuel Dean - and panel discussions by local business and community leaders and entrepreneurs on issues such as advancing education and technology development; capitalizing on geographic location; attracting, developing and retaining workforce talent; and emphasizing cultural diversity.

The one-day conference will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the University of Maryland University College Inn and Conference Center, 3501 University Boulevard, East, Adelphi, Maryland. A networking reception will follow at 4 p.m.

The October 3 event will kick-off Envision Prince George's, a longer collaborative effort to bring county stakeholders together for a community-wide dialogue to plan for the future of Prince George’s County and help develop a common vision that outlines the key steps for shaping the county’s growth in a positive way.

The participation of all segments of our community will be crucial to the success of this effort. We are excited about this opportunity to bring together all segments of our community to help chart the direction the county should follow in the near future, and we hope that this initiative will stimulate an effective and robust discussion that brings forth new viewpoints and ways of thinking.

In the coming months you will be hearing more about this initiative, but in the meantime, we encourage you to go to the Envision Prince George's website to learn more about how you can participate in helping to set the future course for Prince George’s County.

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Ironically, in 2005, I had a job interview in a PG Route 1 community. I didn't get the job (for a community development manager position for one of the cities) but it was the best job interview I ever did. One of the points I made is that in PG County (and they told me that people in PG County don't refer to it as PG...) they look for creative energy to come up from DC via Route 1, but that they need to look at the University of Maryland, one of the top 50 research universities in the U.S., as a source of creative energy that can center development and creativity up and down Route 1 as well. At that time, if you did a Google search for "creative class" and "Prince George's County" there were fewer than 100 hits.