By Wayne Laepple
It could be six or more months before any developments spur job creation in the Valley, a regional development official said.
Engineering firms, for example, are working on projects that could benefit the Valley economy, said Maria Culp, president and chief executive officer of the Central Pennsylvania Chamber of Commerce in Milton.
“But by the time the financing gets done and contracts are let, it will be next summer before we see anything happening,” Culp said.
Charlie Ross, executive director of the Greater Susquehanna Valley Chamber of Commerce in Shamokin Dam, thinks more jobs may come sooner than that.
“The amount of activity we’ve seen shows a lot of positive aspects,” Ross said of potential buyers of vacant industrial sites that are for sale.
The problem, Culp said, is that most are in the hands of industrial real estate brokers outside the Valley.
“They don’t have any ties to the area, so that doesn’t play into their thinking,” she said.
The former Crest modular home factory in the Milton Industrial Park is a case in point, she said.
“There was some interest in the site last summer, but we’ve had no word at this point,” she said.
In her role as president of the Milton Area Industrial Development Association, Culp is marketing vacant land in the Milton Industrial Park as well as buildings. In addition to the Crest property, a 5,000-square-foot building is available, along with 18- and 42-acre plots of undeveloped property.
Culp said she’d love to see a new business take over the former Istill facility in Milton, a brownfield site.
“They’re doing some cleanup and so on at that site, but I don’t know what the plans are,” she said.
Jim King, Northumberland County’s industrial development director, has four industrial buildings and two undeveloped sites available. The buildings range from 130,000 square feet to 334,000 square feet, along with substantial acreage surrounding each.
“I try to represent buildings that are not represented by brokers,” King said. “They don’t get much exposure.”
In the current economy, it’s a buyer’s market, King said. That makes the job of marketing more difficult because there are so many sites and properties for sale right now.
Two buildings formerly occupied by the Fleetwood recreational vehicle plant near Paxinos are on King’s list. One is 225,000 square feet with 70 acres of land, and the other includes 334,000 square feet on 53 acres. The former Paper Magic plant near Elysburg, with 264,000 square feet, is another one of King’s projects.
He’s also working with Culp to market the Crest facility in the Milton Industrial Park.
“We’ve actually had three lookers,” King said. “Two were regional companies, but we haven’t had any interest recently.”
Ross said the former Phillips Products building in Selinsgrove has attracted interest from a number of sources. Ross recently met with several site selectors who are on the lookout for available manufacturing sites, and all were interested.
“These would be full-fledged occupants,” Ross said.
Part of his job, he said, is to generate leads for manufacturing in the region.
Both the former Valu City property along Route 11-15 in Hummels Wharf and the former Giant Food Store in the Orchard Hills Shopping Center have been scrutinized recently.
“We’ve also had interest in Pawlings Station sites,” he said. “In fact, we hope to close on some land there soon.”
Pawling Station is along Route 522 in Penn Township.
The Chamber Report, a monthly newsletter for members of the Central Pennsylvania Chamber of Commerce, carries a full page of listings for commercial and industrial sites and buildings in the region. These range from office suites to 100-acre sites and large manufacturing buildings.
Culp said industrial development officials in the region stay in close touch with each other.
“We all want to see jobs in the area,” she said. “We’re all keeping our eyes open, and we keep talking.”
n E-mail comments to wlaepple@dailyitem.com.
