Lancaster City Seeks Proposals For Bulova Building, Adjacent City Property

Lancaster city is formally seeking proposals for the vacant Bulova building and adjacent city-owned property in hopes of connecting a stagnant part of downtown.

The city intends to use eminent domain to take the Bulova building at North Queen and East Orange streets. That means the city would pay fair market value for the property and the building’s lien holders would then be paid.

The city issued requests for proposals on Friday.

Randy Patterson, the city’s economic development and neighborhood revitalization director, said the property is in a critical location downtown.

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Lancaster City Alliance Moves Toward New Phase Of Revitalization

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Lancaster County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Stadium: Check.

Arts district: Check.

Convention Center: Check.

Tourism: Check.

Sixteen years after business leaders tried to revive Lancaster city with an economic development plan, many of the plan’s major components have come to pass.

Lancaster is a very different city than it was in 1998.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/news/local/lancaster-city-alliance-moves-toward-new-phase-of-revitalization/article_0c4d62e2-ecee-11e3-a77e-001a4bcf6878.html

Lancaster Is One Of Two Cities Tapped By Pa. For New CRIZ Economic Development Program

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Lancaster County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Within a year, Lancaster city could see the first funding available under a new state program expected to spur economic development.

Gov. Tom Corbett announced Tuesday afternoon that Lancaster and Bethlehem are the first two cities selected for City Revitalization and Improvement Zones.

Lancaster’s application, submitted late last month, promised the program could stimulate $210 million in new investment during its first phase.

“With First Fridays, the burgeoning arts district, new shops and restaurants, there is a success here on which we can build,” state Sen. Lloyd Smucker said Tuesday at a hastily arranged press conference.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/937842_Lancaster-is-one-of-two-cities-tapped-by-Pa–for-new-CRIZ-economic-development-program-.html#ixzz2p0UKjTqW

Details Of Lancaster Revitalization Zone Program Are Unveiled

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Lancaster County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Invoking the spirit of Ronald Reagan, Mayor Rick Gray summed it up best when he quoted the former president, “There is no limit to the amount of good you can do if you don’t care who gets the credit.”

That was the theme of a Wednesday morning press conference, where local elected officials and business leaders gathered to celebrate the passage of a bipartisan revitalization program that could deliver $100 million to Lancaster city.

“In an arena where the habitual reluctance of so many to reach reasonable solutions can be absolutely mind-boggling, today the story changes a bit,” said state Sen. Lloyd Smucker.

Surrounded by about 20 community organizers representing voters on both sides of the aisle, the Republican thanked his colleagues for months of hard work on the program, for which he has been a leading force.

Read more:  http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/870949_Details-of-Lancaster-revitalization-zone-program-are-unveiled.html