Bethlehem’s CRIZ Not Living Up To ‘Shovel-Ready’ Billing; Officials Explain Why

Bethlehem received a coveted City Revitalization and Improvement Zone because its application for the state economic development tool was chock-full of shovel-ready projects.

The incentive was expected to allow for plans for a Bass Pro Shops, convention center and second hotel at Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem to be approved by the middle of last year. Plans for the long-stalled redevelopment of Martin Tower also were supposed to be completed by mid-2014.

But now 16 months after Bethlehem’z CRIZ designation was awarded, most of the projects the incentive was supposed to springboard are still stalled.

Officials say anticipated redevelopment has been slowed by having to start a new city authority, getting answers from the state and by the fact that the CRIZ economic development benefits pale compared to Allentown’s Neighborhood Improvement Zone.

Read more:

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/bethlehem/index.ssf/2015/04/bethlehems_criz_so_far_not_liv.html

Glassboro’s Downtown Tries Again For Revitalization

Map of New Jersey highlighting Gloucester County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In Glassboro’s historic downtown, the story of one building chronicles the district’s past – and, perhaps, its future.

A colorful storefront at 11 E. High St. that now houses an artsy glass business previously held a short-lived studio and art gallery, a locally owned coffee shop, and, as far back as the mid-1900s, a neighborhood grocery store that was reportedly the first in the town to sell frozen food.

Once thriving and serving the everyday needs of nearby residents, this downtown district is the subject of a revitalization campaign as borough officials try to build on the success of nearby Rowan University and create a vibrant arts community.

A blacktop connection, Rowan Boulevard, which is a new roadway and $300 million redevelopment project, broke ground in 2009. But a vacant lot between the boulevard and the longtime downtown area – described by one person as the “gray area” between the old and new – testifies to the work still to be done.

Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/news/local/20140526_Glassboro_s_downtown_tries_again_for_revitalization.html#41Wr7GLgC8h42IM6.99

Peduto Makes Pitch For New Housing In Pittsburgh

A map of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with its neighborhoods labeled. For use primarily in the list of Pittsburgh neighborhoods. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Whether it’s Oxford or Ralph Falbo, Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto has a message for developers — give me housing and lots of it.

And that applies to the North Shore, too, where you will find lots of offices and bars and even a hotel, but not a single place to call home.

In meetings with developers, Mr. Peduto is making it clear that there is a new administration with a new agenda in town — one that places a premium on housing and neighborhood business districts.

“Retail follows rooftop. That’s what [the late mayor] Bob O’Connor used to say. We don’t need to TIF retail centers. We don’t need to put public dollars behind big box. They’ll come. What we need to do is to build up the population that will shop there and then the retail would never need public subsidy,” he said.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/local/city/2014/02/06/Peduto-makes-pitch-for-new-housing/stories/201402060184#ixzz2saXXgnKv

Bethlehem Economic Development Zone Would Create $300 Million In New Construction, Officials Say

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

A Pennsylvania City Revitalization and Improvement Zone in Bethlehem would create at least $300 million of new development in the city, officials said today.

Bethlehem’s application for the new state program will consist almost exclusively of private development, including a proposed convention center at the former Bethlehem Steel Corp. site, officials said.

The emphasis on private development should give Bethlehem a distinct advantage over the eight other cities expected to apply for the special economic development tax incentive, the officials said at an announcement this afternoon in Town Hall.

Only two applicants will be granted the incentive in the next couple of months, and many of them will likely have major public projects, which make them riskier and less fruitful for the state, said state Sen. Lisa Boscola, D-Northampton/Lehigh/Monroe.

Read more: http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/bethlehem/index.ssf/2013/10/bethlehem_criz_economic_develo.html

Jobs In Lehigh Valley Hit New Peak

After more than three years of sluggish job growth, the Lehigh Valley has replaced all of the roughly 25,000 jobs wiped out during the country’s worst economic crisis in generations.

The region had 351,400 jobs in April, a new high, according to data released Wednesday by the state Department of Labor and Industry.  The old record of 350,200 was set in June 2007, just before the Great Recession hit, bringing 2 1/2 years of plant closures and cutbacks that put the local labor market in a tailspin.

The number of jobs in the Valley hit a recessionary low of 324,700 in January 2010 and has since been slowly recovering.

The private sector is driving job growth.  Gains in warehousing, tourism and business services were partially offset by cuts in government and public school jobs.  Warehousing and business services — a broad jobs category that includes bookkeepers, janitors, landscapers and engineers — both hit new highs in April.

Read more:  http://www.mcall.com/news/breaking/mc-lehigh-valley-jobs-april-20130529,0,2958420.story

Senator Smucker Drafts Redevelopment Plan For Lancaster City

Whenever he holds a meeting in his office on the seventh floor of Lancaster County‘s administration building, at 150 N. Queen St., Commissioner Scott Martin said people always look out the windows and remark on the sweeping view of the city.

“Then, they look down,” Martin said, referring to Lancaster Square, the vacant Bulova Technologies building and the Hotel Brunswick, part of which has been condemned.

The public square and the surrounding buildings are an island in the city. The area has steadfastly resisted redevelopment even as much of the rest of Lancaster city has flowered with restaurants and art galleries in recent years.

On Thursday, state Sen. Lloyd Smucker announced a proposal to help Lancaster city and four other similar-sized cities in Pennsylvania to redevelop problem areas.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/735135_Smucker-drafts-redevelopment-plan-for-Lancaster-city.html#ixzz26SJampk0