Funding, Incentives & Public-Private Partnerships (Mar 2026)

Funding, Incentives & Public-Private Partnerships (...aka All the Acronyms!)
Economic Development Webinar Series

Economic development doesn’t just happen — it’s built through strategic partnerships, creative funding and long-term collaboration that often takes place behind the scenes. Now, we’re pulling back the curtain.

Join GRCA and our economic development partners for the first installment of a new quarterly webinar series designed to make complex projects and processes more understandable — and more accessible — for our business community.

This session, Funding, Incentives & Public-Private Partnerships, will break down the tools that help bring challenging projects to life in Berks County. From grants and tax incentives to financing programs and cross-sector collaboration, our panel will outline the resources available and explain how these pieces fit together to move projects from idea to reality.

Whether you're a developer, business owner, non-profit leader or simply curious about how economic development works in our region, this conversation will give you a clearer picture of what’s possible — and who helps make it happen.

Meet Our Speakers:
Aaron Gantz | Greater Reading Chamber Alliance (Moderator)
Aaron Gantz serves as the Vice President of Economic Development and Strategy at the Greater Reading Chamber Alliance (GRCA), where she leads strategies that strengthen business growth, talent attraction, and community competitiveness across Berks County. With more than 15 years of economic development experience, Gantz oversees initiatives that support business retention and expansion, drive investment, and foster public-private collaboration. Her team’s work includes guiding industry partnerships, advancing redevelopment priorities, and coordinating strategic marketing and storytelling efforts that elevate Greater Reading’s regional profile.
 
Gantz is a graduate of West Virginia University, where she earned both her B.A. in Political Science and her Master of Public Administration (MPA). She is a committed community leader, having served on the Reading Symphony Orchestra Board of Directors, the Greater Reading Young Professionals Executive Committee and the Economic Development Committees of West Reading Borough and Wyomissing Borough. More recently, she has taken a leadership role with the Wyomissing Girl Scouts.
 
Her contributions to the region have been recognized through numerous honors, including the 2020 Lehigh Valley Business 40 Under 40 Award, the 2018 Reading Eagle 40 Under 40 Award, and the Rising Star Award from the Greater Reading Chamber of Commerce & Industry.


Fadia Halma | company
Fadia Halma serves as Lehigh Valley Regional Director for the Pennsylvania Department for Community and Economic Development. She began her career with DCED in March of 2015.  In this role, she directs grant, loan, tax credit and main street programs for Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, Carbon, Monroe and Schuylkill Counties. She is responsible for spurring economic growth, community revitalization, and job creation throughout 8 counties in the Lehigh Valley region by providing technical assistance, training, and financial resources to help our communities and industries flourish.  She serves as the first point of contact in DCED for federal agencies, businesses, nonprofits, and other organizations in the Lehigh Valley Region.

Before coming to DCED, Halma was the deputy executive director for the Pennsylvania Democratic Party. Prior to that, she was deputy political director for the Obama campaign and the Eastern PA organizer for the Democratic National Committee.  She has a bachelor’s degree in political science from Moravian College, and a master’s degree in Education from East Stroudsburg University.  Halma has a passion for public service and enjoys the impact of her work to transform communities. She currently serves as the America250PA Lehigh County Advisor planning the celebration of America’s 250th birthday.

Deb Millman | Greater Reading Chamber Alliance
Deb Millman is President of the Greater Berks Development Fund (GBDF) and Vice President of Development for the Greater Reading Chamber Alliance (GRCA). Millman began her career in Berks County in the City of Reading’s Community Development Department and has worked for GBDF for the past 25 years. Her experience in community and economic development has ranged from brownfield development to the oversight of the Berks County Keystone Opportunity Zones, the Greater Reading Keystone Enterprise Zones and Greater Reading Keystone Innovation Zone. She has been successful in the obtaining grant funds in excess of $20+ million from state and federal sources to support projects in the City of Reading and Berks County.
 
Current responsibilities as GBDF President include management of real estate holdings, administration of financing programs and implementation of GRCA economic development strategy.
 
Millman graduated from Seton Hall University with a B.S. in Finance and earned her J.D. at Widener Commonwealth Law School. She is a member of the City’s CRIZ Authority, serves on the Berks County Workforce Development Board and is a member of the Board of Directors of the 18th Wonder Improvement Association.

Jeremy Zaborowski | company
Jeremy Zaborowski is Executive Director of the Berks County Industrial Development Authority (BerksIDA). He acts as developer of last resort, playing both primary and supporting roles in acquisition, remediation, entitlements, financing, and construction of many of the biggest and most complicated projects in Berks County. Recent major projects include 500,000 SF of new construction at Berks Park 183 (a former WWII base), $5M in Tax Increment Financing (TIF) funding for construction of 340 homes in Amity Township, acquisition of the long vacant 20-acre former Glidden site in Reading, and creation of a $5M infrastructure loan fund in partnership with Berks County. Recent supporting roles include financing of numerous projects including the Reitnouer Trailer expansion and the $20M remodeling of St. Joe’s Community General, and grant management of a dozen projects representing over $30M in CAPEX for Berks County. In 2025 the Reading-Berks Association of Realtors (RBAR) awarded Jeremy the Grow with Berks Award in appreciation for his significant and positive impact on Berks County, and the Lehigh Valley Business Journal awarded the Glidden Site Redevelopment as a Top Deal in 2026. Prior to moving to Berks County, Jeremy spent over a decade in Austin, TX, working in economic development, site selection and energy markets throughout the country. An Erie native, Jeremy is excited to be back in Pennsylvania to expand economic opportunities in Berks County and the Commonwealth. Jeremy holds degrees from Houghton University, Cornell University, and University of Texas at Austin. In addition to his work, Jeremy chairs the Spring Township Planning Commission and teaches Macroeconomics at Kutztown University. Any time left is filled with chauffeuring and traveling with his wife and three children.


What is Economic Development (ED)?
Economic Development is an intentional effort to improve the economic vitality and quality of life in a community.  Much of the work spans several years (and decades) and is often done behind the scenes.

GRCA is here to dig a bit deeper in this area of work with timely topics and examples of economic development taking place in Berks County. Together, with our economic development partners, we will provide insight into how projects get done and the resources that are available on future initiatives.