ALLENTOWN, Pa., Aug. 7 Rendell-bus-tour-PA
12th Stop on 25-County Bus Tour Celebrates Investments to Repair Bridges, Improve Communities, Expand Businesses
ALLENTOWN, Pa., Aug. 7 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- On the 12th stop of a five-day, 16-stop bus tour, Governor Edward G. Rendell today announced $28 million in new state investments in Lehigh and Northampton counties that will leverage $252 million in private and local funding, create and protect 2,200 jobs, improve public safety, grow the economy and build stronger communities.
The Governor's statewide bus tour is announcing $642 million in new state investments in 25 counties that will leverage more than $1.3 billion in private and local investments to keep nearly 30,000 Pennsylvanians working.
"Our national economy is continuing to pose enormous challenges for our working families," Governor Rendell said. "We cannot afford to wait for help from Washington, or for the situation to grow worse. That is why we are moving forward with a Pennsylvania solution to grow our own economy and create jobs for Pennsylvania workers.
"We know this strategy will work because we have proven it before," he said. "When I took office in 2003, Pennsylvania was trailing the nation in job growth and had spent most of the prior four years with a higher unemployment rate than the nation's jobless number. I worked with the General Assembly to create an economic stimulus plan that attracted new employers and improved our cities and towns.
"Our investments paid off. Even in these tough economic times, Pennsylvania has added jobs in four of the past six months - while the U.S., as a whole, has consistently lost jobs - and our unemployment rate is lower than the nation's.
"With today's announcement we will have invested $705 million in new state funds in Lehigh and Northampton counties since 2003. The counties now have 16,700 more people working than in January 2003, and unemployment has dropped in both counties."
COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENTS/BUSINESS EXPANSIONS
Overall in Lehigh and Northampton counties, today's announcement of $28 million in new state investments in bridges, businesses and community projects will attract $252 million in private economic activity. Including bridge work, these projects will keep more than 2,200 Pennsylvania residents working.
The Governor announced the availability of $24.1 million in state funds for business growth and community development in Lehigh and Northampton counties, including:
-- $2.88 million to Boston Beer Co./Sam Adams PA Brewery to make repairs to an 855,000-square-foot Breinigsville brewery, which it purchased from Diageo for $55 million.
-- $2.5 million for ICO Polymers to make leasehold improvements and buy new equipment for its new operation in Upper Macungie Township, Lehigh County.
-- $2.2 million for American Atelier Inc. to relocate to the former General Mills facility in Allentown. American Atelier now operates in two locations in the city.
-- $2 million for Weyerhaueser to relocate from Bridgewater, New Jersey. The company has located a 30-acre, rail-served site in Forks Township, Northampton County, where it is also building a 100,000-square-foot facility to warehouse and distribute wood products.
-- $1.5 million to improve Allentown's 19th Street Corridor with new street lighting, sidewalks and relocated utilities.
-- $5 million to help a development team build a public walkway along the Lehigh River for Lehigh Landing Office Building - Riverfront Revitalization (Lehigh County).
-- $5 million for SteelStax (Northampton County) to undergo an adaptive re-use of existing buildings on nine acres of the former Bethlehem Steel industrial site.
-- $3 million to build a parking garage near the Historic Hotel Bethlehem at the south end of Main Street in Downtown Bethlehem. The garage will contain approximately 800 parking spaces and will support additional development contemplated by Moravian College.
BRIDGE REPAIRS
Despite nearly tripling spending on bridge repairs in the past five years, Pennsylvania has the highest number of structurally deficient bridges in the nation. This year's budget provides $466 million in new state funds to accelerate repairs to 224 bridges in the 25 counties on this tour. Overall, the commonwealth will invest nearly $1 billion this fiscal year to repair or replace as many as 611 bridges.
"The bridges in this year's accelerated repair program will require enough concrete to build 16,000 homes, which would be equal to a 60 percent increase in new home construction," Governor Rendell said. "In addition, that bridge work will demand enough steel to build four Eiffel Towers."
The Governor announced that six bridges in Lehigh and Northampton counties will be repaired under his accelerated program:
Bridge Replacements in Lehigh County
-- Lower Milford Township -- Hosensack Bridge over Hosensack Creek
-- Upper Saucon Township -- Landis Mill Bridge over Tumble Brook
-- Upper Saucon Township -- Saucon Creek Bridge over Tributary of Saucon Creek
-- Upper Saucon Township -- Center Valley Bridge over Tributary of Saucon Creek
Bridge Replacements in Northampton County
-- Lower Saucon Township -- Lower Saucon Valley Road Bridge over Bull Run
-- Bushkill Township -- Henry Woods Bridge over Bushkill Creek
"Pennsylvania is primed for continued growth," Governor Rendell said. "We can lead the way out of the national economic crisis by continuing to invest in jobs and business expansion, a safe infrastructure, strong communities and the resulting gains in productivity."
The Rendell administration is committed to creating a first-rate public education system, protecting our most vulnerable citizens and continuing economic investment to support our communities and businesses. To find out more about Governor Rendell's initiatives and to sign up for his weekly newsletter, visit: www.governor.state.pa.us.
EDITOR'S NOTE: The Governor's weeklong tour will end on Friday in Reading. For the details of his schedule, visit www.pa.gov.
CONTACT:
Chuck Ardo
717-783-1116
SOURCE Pennsylvania Office of the Governor
