Woodward Rusnock Consulting is an innovative economic development consulting firm based in the Greater Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania. The firm has worked with some of the area's largest real estate developers on a variety of projects in and around the region. Our unique approach to development is rooted in a balance of communication and planning which allows us to consult on a variety of business challenges, including urban and suburban planning, public finance, government relations and project management, marketing, public relations and social media. We give our clients the ability to take back control of their project by specializing in these areas...so they don't have to.
who
WE ARE.
WR was launched in 2014 by Irene Woodward and Bekah Rusnock. The company's philosophy is that the challenges communities face in economic development are the same, what sets us apart is our approach to overcoming those challenges. To be successful today, you need to be creative, and we know how to do just that in order to align with your goals.
We pride ourselves on building strong, long-term relationships with our customers. The skills and experience of our team provide us with the ability to develop and implement comprehensive, customized, and attainable solutions that meet our customers' needs. We invite you to browse our site to learn more about the wide array of services we offer.
Irene Woodward
President
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Irene Woodward, AICP, is a nationally certified city planner with vast experience in community and economic development. While working for the City of Bethlehem, PA, Woodward was an integral part of the team that turned the largest brownfield in the country into a diverse campus of education, entertainment, office and warehouse facilities. Woodward managed $60 million in state Redevelopment Assistance Capital Project funding which were leveraged to build projects at Bethlehem Steel, Lehigh University, Majestic Bethlehem Center and the Historic Bethlehem Partnership. In additional, she implemented an annual $2.5 million HUD allocation which was used to fund nonprofit and subsidy programs to improve the lives of Bethlehem residents. Woodward is president and co-founder of Woodward Rusnock Consulting LLC where she specializes in public financing, business development and government relations. She earned her Master of City Planning from the University of Pennsylvania.
Irene Woodward, President
I have had the pleasure of working with Irene and Bekah on multiple projects, and every deliverable is professional, high quality, and extremely productive for us. We would highly recommend using this team.
-Past Client
Bekah Rusnock
Creative Director
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Bekah Rusnock is an internationally published, award-winning journalist and a Top 50 user on Buzzfeed (one of the most popular websites in the world). An expert in guerrilla marketing, she has a knack for developing viral content over a variety of mediums, including stories, photos, video, graphic design, animation and memes. Early in her career, Rusnock helped launch the Bethlehem Press, a hyper-local weekly newspaper, where she also worked as the editorial assistant, writing front page features on the gaming industry, city government and local politics. Before co-founding WRC, Rusnock worked for the City of Bethlehem, Pa. where her responsibilities included marketing, speech writing and media management. She also developed, built and managed Pi: Partnership for Innovation, a tech center built inside a 100-year-old silk mill. Rusnock is a regular volunteer with Cops ’n’ Kids, a national nonprofit which promotes children’s literacy.
Our mission is to forge long-term relationships that produce sustainable
economic prosperity for communities and companies alike.
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Bekah Rusnock, Creative Director
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