Scranton, Lackawanna County, PA -
Since 1945, the Greater Scranton Chamber of Commerce has worked to drive industrial and economic development in what is Pennsylvania's sixth largest city. In recent years, however, the organization has taken more of a hands-on role by working directly with national partners to spur the development of industrial properties, a rarity for a chamber of commerce.
“Our business model is what makes us special,” says Amy Luyster, assistant vice president at the Greater Scranton Chamber of Commerce. “In the last five to seven years, we have seen a shift where we are partnering with national developers to identify land for development. Our program is unique in that we have the knowledge and leadership to partner with a developer in various aspects. That includes siting future development, infrastructure development, municipal approvals and zoning, workforce development, incentives, demographics and marketing.”
The organization - which boasts a membership of more than, 1,400 businesses - to date has built 15 business parks, developed 3,000 acres and constructed eight buildings in the Lackawanna County/Northeastern Pennsylvania market, which includes Scranton.
The economic development component of The Greater Scranton Chamber of Commerce includes two affiliates: the Scranton Lackawanna Industrial Building Company (SLIBCO), a not-for-profit industrial development corporation; and The Scranton Plan, a marketing arm for the organization.
The greater Scranton area has become an attractive business location due to its close proximity to major metros. Located at the crossroads of five interstate highways, Scranton is within a 500-mile radius of 99 million people and is less than a two-hour drive from Philadelphia, New York, Northern New Jersey, Harrisburg and Syracuse.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport is also located 10 minutes from downtown Scranton and offers direct flights to a number of cities including Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, Detroit and Philadelphia.
“Enhanced by a vast interstate highway network, many companies have chosen to locate major manufacturing, back-office and distribution facilities here,” says Luyster. “Lackawanna County sits in a prime location along the I-81 Corridor, allowing us to service Maine to Virginia and west to Ohio. For companies requiring rail service, Scranton also offers a rail freight system.”
Another factor driving the tremendous growth in the greater Scranton area is an influx of manufacturers currently located in New Jersey and New York. Relatively low vacancy rates coupled with healthy rent growth in these markets have caused businesses to look elsewhere for industrial space. In the past year, five companies from the aforementioned areas have purchased property in Scranton, where the cost of doing business is much lower.
The chamber's industrial development affiliate, SLIBCO, recently broke ground on a 1,300-acre tract for a mixed-use business park that will be developed in three phases: The Jessup Small Business Center, Valley View Business Park and the recently completed Valley View Professional Plaza.
The business park has earned the Keystone Opportunity Expansion Zone (KOEZ) designation from the state of Pennsylvania, which allows eligible tenants to be exempt from state and local business taxes through 2024, depending upon the site designation. Tenants at the park currently include TMG Health, McLane Co., LBP and Cardinal LG.
The Pennsylvania Economic Development Association (PEDA) recognized SLIBCO as the Economic Development Large Agency of the Year in 2016. The award recognized the organization's accomplishments in economic development, business attraction and growth related to the announcement and completion of 22 projects in Lackawanna County during 2015 and 2016.
Those projects resulted in the creation or retention of 2,140 jobs, including 1,100 construction jobs, as well as a total community investment of more than $1.25 billion. SLIBCO also received the award in 1994 and 1998.
Areas of greater Scranton that have experienced the most growth in the past few years include the downtown core, suburban business parks with large parcels that can accommodate logistics companies with large footprints and older, single-tenant buildings in the city that are being purchased by manufacturing end-users.
“As a whole, greater Scranton has seen tremendous growth recently, no one specific location stands out,” says Luyster.
Luyster is bullish on the future growth of Scranton's industrial market. Over the next five to 10 years, she expects to see the additional adaptive reuse of vacant properties in the downtown core, the redevelopment of entire city blocks in the center of the city and the re-purposing of land for additional developments to accommodate large projects.
“There's as much growth here in the past five years as I've ever seen,” says Luyster. “It's a prime time to be looking in northeastern Pennsylvania, and specifically Scranton. We are open for business and we'll help in any way to bring jobs and investment here.”
