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Penn-Northwest Helps Lead Rebound of Mercer County
HERMITAGE, Pa. -- Mercer County has turned the corner and is rebounding economically, in no small measure, because of efforts led by Penn-Northwest Development Corp. to attract and keep businesses.
This is reflected in the recognition Monday that Penn-Northwest accorded the five companies with New-Industry Economic Impact Awards and nine local companies presented Economic Impact Awards.
New-Industry awards went to Boise Cascade Co., Hi-Crush Partners LP, Penn Stainless Products, Pocono ProFoods and Springfield Commons. Recognized for economic impact were American Cap Co., Autosoft Inc., CCL Container, Ellwood Crankshaft & Machine Co., First National Bank of Pennsylvania, Hodge Foundry Inc., Integrated Fabrication and Machine Inc., Jamestown Coating Technologies and Supreme Manufacturing Inc.
At its annual meeting Monday, the president and CEO of the county’s lead economic development agency, Randy Seitz, and the chairman, Lew Kachulis, provided a stream of statistics that reflect the comeback in the making. Their statistics also reflect an improving quality of life, which include residents’ greater academic achievement, higher income per capita and a falling crime rate.
Regardless, much remains to be done and Seitz expressed optimism because out-migration has been stemmed in-migration has taken hold. “Between 2008 and 2012, there was more inbound migration than outbound migration,” Seitz related. “However, deaths exceeded the number of births, which offset any gains in population and the county experienced a net loss in population.”
Mercer County has suffered a loss in population of 4.4% since 2000 while Pennsylvania has seen its population grow 3.8% and the United States 10.7%. Since 1970, the decade the domestic steel industry began to retrench, Mercer County has lost 7,288 residents. The catch is that 5,016 of that number left after 2000.
Moreover, the median age of a county resident has risen to 42.8 from 39.6 in 2000.
The manufacturing centers -- in the Shenango Valley and Greenville-Reynolds -- have not recovered their population and the two fastest-growing areas are Springfield Township, home of the Shops at Grove City, and Lakeview.
After Seitz became CEO of Penn-Northwest, he laid out an ambitious (2012-13) “Program of Work.” He reviewed the results of the second (2013-14) Monday and laid out the third for 2014-15.
For 2013-14, Penn-Northwest played a role in capital investment within Mercer County of $188,877,369 (new and local industry projects), which led to 354 new and 933 retained jobs, says its 2013-14 annual report.
For 2014-15, the goals are to create 500 or more jobs, “to convince 20% of all prospects to participate in a site tour of Mercer County and to persuade 15% of those to invest.”
Penn-Northwest also intends to increase its membership -- it set up its first membership committee last year -- and committee chairman Doug Riley reported it’s one-third of the way to its goal of increasing membership by 20%. Riley is chairman of the Mercer County Industrial Development Authority.
A vote of the confidence the Mercer County Board of Commissioners gave Penn-Northwest is doubling its annual appropriation to $150,000 from $75,000 in support of staff efforts to recruit new businesses, noted Jim Grasso, chairman of the finance committee. Grasso is vice president of finance and administration at Liberty Steel.
Grasso also reported Penn-Northwest has reduced its annual operating budget by $80,000.
New Industry Economic Impact Awards
Boise Cascade established a distribution center in Wheatland last July, spending $600,000 so it can take advantage of Interstate 80 to distribute its engineered wood products, plywood, lumber and particleboard. It has hired five so far, manager Beau Dunkerly accepting the award, and expects to hire more “in the near future.”
Hi-Crush constructed a fracking-sand distribution center in Greenville, choosing the site because of access to CN Rail.
Penn Stainless Products bought 17 acres last June just off Interstate 79 in Jackson Center to build a 30,000-square-foot distribution center. It will spend $3 million to build the center where 30 will be hired to work. Jim Seward, president of Penn Stainless accepted the award.
Pocono ProFoods is a family-owned distributor of “quality food and equipment” to restaurant chains and large organizations such as colleges, It opened a transfer and distribution center last July in Grove City, spending $200,000 to do so and create four jobs. Its president, Terry Snyder, accepted the award.
Springfield Commons acquired 50 acres near the Grove City Premium Outlets for a mixed-use development in Springfield Township. When completed, it will offer a TownePlace Suites, a hotel by Marriott, and three strip plazas that include restaurants and retail shops. “This development will yield an overall capital development of $50 million and the creation of up to 300 jobs,” Penn-Northwest says. Accepting the award was Joe Deluca, lead partner of JBCD.
Economic Impact Awards
American Cap Co. acquired new equipment -- a capital investment of $1.3 million -- and expanded its workforce by 50%, creating 40 jobs. Todd Diehl and Jessica Vavithes accepted the award.
Autosoft, based in Mercer County, employs more than 100 in Pennsylvania and 150 in the United States, a 50% increase in its workforce. It completed a multi-million-dollar expansion last month. Bryce Veon accepted the award.
CCL Container, a division of CCL Industries, is in the midst of a $60 million expansion that created 50 jobs.
Ellwood Crankshaft has invested $37.3 million to expand in Hermitage and build infrastructure and a foundation for its new forging complex in Sharon. Accepting the award were President Brian Taylor and Mark Devincentis, director of finance.
First National Bank renovated and remodeled five of its branches at a cost of $15 million, which resulted in 53 new full-time jobs and 93 part-time jobs. Scott Free, treasurer of the bank, accepted the award.
Hodge Foundry used a $525,000 Rail Freight Assistance Grant toward building a 460-foot rail siding on the CN/Bessemer and Lake Erie Railroad Co. mainline. Cost of the project was $760,000 and 18 jobs resulted from the effort. Joe Banas, business development manager, accepted the award.
Jamestown Coating updated its computer software system at a cost of $152,000 and hired two more employees as a result. CEO Mike Walton accepted the award.
Supreme Manufacturing spent nearly $1 million to acquire buildings, equipment and other assets at Stoneboro and increased its workforce by 12 full-time employees. Earl Mook, marketing manager, and Dave Sapala, manufacturing and sales consultant, accepted the award.
For the second year, Kachulis and Seitz awarded four Improvement Movement Team Champion awards. This year’s recipients are John Thigpen, general manager of Ilsco, Doug Thomas, owner and president of Thomas Construction Co., Marc Buskirk, vice president of sales at Yourga Trucking Co., and Grasso.
Pictured: Randy Seitz is president and CEO of Penn-Northwest Development Corp.
Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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