Retiree volunteers to lead workforce development efforts May 30th, 2009
Construction underway on Training & Workforce Building May 6th, 2009
Officials happy with bids for workforce building February 12th, 2009
Wallace & Pacher, Inc. - The Green Team! December 29th, 2008
Plans being finalized for training, workforce building November 4th, 2008
City seeking more money for tech center October 10th, 2008
Governor Rendell Brings Money to the Valley August 5th, 2008
IRT selects LindenPointe... July 1, 2008
LindenPointe Awarded Federal Grant June 21st, 2008
Altmire, English Announce $800,000 for Tech Center June 20th, 2008
Tech Park Growing April 8th, 2008
Novocell Semiconductor is creating the future

Retiree volunteers to lead workforce development efforts
City benefits from experience
By Joe Pinchot
Sharon-Herald Staff Writer
May 30, 2009

Paul Young stands at the site where the city of Hermitage is putting up a training and workforce development building in LindenPointe technical business park. Young, a volunteer, has been named coordinator of the city’s efforts at the building.



HERMITAGE —
Paul Young has been retired 1 1/2 years and, while retirement has not been a crisis for him, he ran out of home projects to do after the first year. “The past winter was pretty boring,” he said. “My highest value is being productive.”

Young, 63, said he has no need to supplement his pension, but wanted something important to do that could help him pass the time. When he learned that the city of Hermitage was looking for a way to manage the training and workforce development building it is putting up in LindenPointe technical business park, his ears perked up.

Young approached city officials and offered his services, based on his long tenure as chief executive officer of the Youngstown Developmental Center, Mineral Ridge, a residential program for intellectually disabled adults that serves 15 counties. “He has over 30 years as an administrator, managing a large agency, establishing relationships with local and state governments, other public agencies and the private sector,” said City Manager Gary P. Hinkson.

“We’re thrilled that another Hermitage resident has stepped up,” said Assistant City Manager Gary M. Gulla Wednesday before city commissioners approved an agreement to name Young coordinator of the building. Young will be considered part-consultant, part-employee, who will work “more by what needs to be done than formal structure,” Hinkson said.

“It seems like, at least initially, it’s going to be a regular part of my daily life,” said Young, who lives on South Darby Road, Hermitage. “This will probably be like a job.” City officials had not previously considered a volunteer for the position, Hinkson said. “The city has been considering a management relationship with a training/educational entity or workforce development or economic development agency,” he said. “There has been interest expressed along those lines and the staff has had preliminary discussions with potential partners.”

The position description gives Young duties such as working with city officials, economic development agencies, educational institutions, employers and others to develop programming that will sustain, expand and diversify the local economy. He will schedule use of the building and monitor its operation. Young noted that while the city’s half of LindenPointe is aimed at housing, developing and promoting technology companies, technology is not his thing.

“Workforce development was something dear to my heart,” he said of his time with Youngstown Developmental Center, where he oversaw 240 employees. “I have worked with groups and facilitated the meeting of goals.” The city needs a strong work force and to be able to withstand market fluctuations, he said. “I’m interested in the future of Hermitage and it remaining a viable community,” he said. Although Young is volunteering, he wants his work to meet the goals of the city.

“I want a job description, because I want to be held accountable,” he said he told commissioners. “This has to be something that’s real. Young helped write the job description, and Hinkson said he already expects Young to play a role in assessing long-term operation options for the building. Young has two other volunteer jobs: he works at Community Food Warehouse, Farrell, once a week, and is guardian for an intellectually disabled person. “I think the thing that I miss about work is the sense of purpose,” Young said. “I don’t miss the bureaucracy and other things. I do miss something to be passionate about.”

Hinkson said Young’s stepping forward shows that the spirit of volunteerism is alive and well in the city. “Just another example, although on a larger, more time- consuming and formal scale, of the wide range of residents willing to contribute their time and talents in a positive way to their community,” Hinkson said. More than 70 residents, male and female, younger and older, from all professions and backgrounds serve on 15 authorities, boards and commissions in Hermitage.  “Not to mention our volunteer fire department and the tremendous sacrifice those men and woman make to the community,” Hinkson said.

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Construction Underway on the Training and Workforce Development Building @ LindenPointe

$800,000 Federal Grant Secured

From City of Hermitage Spring 2009 Newsletter (May 5, 2009)


 

Bill Finzel, President of the City of Hermitage Board of Commissioners (right), reviews the grading and site plan for the new Training & Workforce Development Building.

Construction started this month on the Training & Workforce Development Building in the LindenPointe Innovative Business Campus. The United States Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration (EDA) provided an $800,000 grant towards the project. The purpose of the EDA project is to develop a strategically located center at LindenPointe to provide training to develop a workforce to support the retention, expansion and attraction of the electronics industry cluster in Mercer County, as well as, Northwest PA and Eastern Ohio.

With the Federal funding for the project in place training could begin as early as the 3rd Q 2009. The building is part of a regional economic development strategy to stimulate the technology, advanced manufacturing and research industries in the Ohio – PA Interstate Region. A section of the facility will be dedicated to training for the electronics industry; however, the facility has been designed to be flexible to meet a number of employer driven workforce needs.

Several years ago, the city in a partnership effort with the Mercer-Lawrence Workforce Investment Board, Mercer County CareerLink, Penn Northwest Development Corporation and the Hermitage Community and Economic Development Commission completed a detailed conceptual design and feasibility analysis on the benefits of a “Center of Excellence” based economic development initiative. Electronics manufacturing was identified as an emerging industry segment in Mercer County, Northwest Pennsylvania and Eastern Ohio. The private sector electronics industry cluster, regional education and training providers, economic development agencies and a number of other key partners provided substantial and invaluable input during this process. It was determined that the facility would play a valuable role creating a favorable business environment to support business growth, to attract private investment and to provide an opportunity to diversify the regional economy. The Northwest Pennsylvania Regional Planning and Development Commission played an integral role in the application for federal funding. Denise McCloskey, Executive Director of the Northwest Commission, said, “The City of Hermitage has developed an excellent planned technical park at LindenPointe. The Center of Excellence will compliment the amenities offered by the park and serve the businesses in the Mercer County and surrounding areas. It was a pleasure to work with Gary Gulla and the City of Hermitage in the development of this excellent project.”

The Training & Workforce Development Building is located at 3050 Prosperity Place adjacent to the site for the planned “Technology Innovation and Development Center” project, for which the city has received a $1,250,000 grant from Governor Ed Rendell through the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP). These technology center of excellence resources are strategically planned economic development efforts driven by regional economic development and workforce partners to develop facilities at LindenPointe to meet the workforce training needs to support the retention, expansion and attraction of the regional electronic industry cluster and improve the ability of the region to compete in the global market place. Sam Giannetti, Executive Director, Mercer-Lawrence West Central Job Partnership said, “The concept of establishing the site as a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) center of excellence advancing skills for a 21st century economy is right on point. The STEM skill sets are essential for our transitioning workforce.”

Implementation of the training programs will be undertaken in a coordinated effort led through a regional network consisting of the Workforce Investment Board, the CareerLink and training facilitators in response to the training needs of the private industry cluster. These agencies will assist by coordinating the appropriate provider from the training consortium to set up the training programs. The training providers will have the opportunity to have specific “condominium type” leased space agreements or a right to a shared access on an “as available” basis. The training programs will be funded through direct employer charges, tuitions and state and federal training resources available through the WIB and CareerLinks.

One of the primary objectives of the facility is to address the training needs of the electronic industry partnership. The programming will include accredited general curriculum courses, as well as customized certificate level courses directed to meet private employer needs. The programmatic uses will continually develop to meet the identified workforce needs of the region. Based on information generated through multi-county industry cluster analysis, future economic development efforts will be directed in the areas of software and bio-medical clusters.

After a sealed, competitive bid process, which was approved by the EDA the following companies were awarded construction contracts: Hudson Construction, Inc., Hermitage, PA; D & G Mechanical, Inc., West Middlesex, PA; D. J. Hannon & Sons, Inc., New Castle, PA; and, Penn-Ohio Electrical Company, Masury, OH.

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Hermitage, PA
Officials happy with bids for workforce building
Sharon-Herald - February 12, 2009
By Joe Pinchot, Herald Staff Writer

A rendering shows the planned training and work force development building at LindenPointe technical business park, South Hermitage Road. It is expected to be used by colleges and training agencies.  Photo:  Sharon-Herald

An employee of an out-of-town plumbing firm glanced at the list of 18 firms who had picked up general construction bid packets for the Hermitage training and work
force development building project.

“Is this one of those bids where it’s who missed the most screws?” he told another contractor. While only 10 firms actually submitted general construction bids, they were on top of the four heating, ventilation and air conditioning contractors, eight plumbing contractors and three electrical contractors who also turned in
sealed proposals.

“I think this is the biggest bid-opening crowd we’ve ever had,” Assistant City Manager Gary M. Gulla told the audience of about two dozen contractor representatives Wednesday. Officials expected a lot of interest in the project because of the state of the economy, and were pleased with the bids. They were working with a 2-year-old estimate of $1.2 million for construction, and the apparent low bids totaled $1,276,670.

The bids included items that could be deducted — including skylights, sun shades,
an operable wall and compressed air and vacuum systems — to help get the project within the $1.2 million available.

The apparent low bids were submitted by:

Hudson Construction Inc., Hermitage, $839,000 base bid for general construction.
Other bids ranged from $840,333 to $1,145,172.

D&G Mechanical Inc., Shenango Township, $98,100 for heating, ventilation and air condition. The other bids ranged from $114,251 to $119,976.

DJ Hannon and Sons Inc., New Castle, $63,750 base bid for plumbing. The other
bids ranged from $66,600 to $113,000.

Penn-Ohio Electric Co., Masury, $275,820 for electrical work. The other bids were $309,000 and $323,262.

The bids will be reviewed by HHSDR Architects/Engineers, Sharon, and the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration, which is contributing $800,000 for the project. Commissioners likely will
award a contract later this month.

The 5,272-square-foot building in LindenPointe technical business park, South Hermitage Road, is expected to be used by colleges and training agencies. It will have a 20-seat computer lab, a 32-seat lecture room, a 20-seat electronics lab, two offices, a reception area, restrooms and a student lobby, said HHSDR Project Manager Jeffrey G. Meyers. “It has the most modern electric systems with provisions for distance learning,” said Meyers, adding that local and regional high-tech firms and colleges and universities were tapped during the design process.

Construction is set to start March 16 and be completed by Oct. 1. Gulla said officials are talking about how to manage the building.

The building will go up adjacent to a lot set aside for a technology center that would house business incubator suites and a testing laboratory for high-tech firms. The state has committed $1.25 million for the center, but city officials are seeking another $1 million.

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HERMITAGE, PA
Green Team - Wallace & Pancher, Inc.
Sharon-Herald Business Chronicle January 2009 - published December 29th

An engineer and an environmental scientist partner to make the world a better place, 1 project at a time.

Read the article here.

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HERMITAGE, PA
Plans being finalized for training, workforce building
Sharon-Herald - November 4, 2008

If all goes well, the first training sessions in the Hermitage training and workforce development building could be held in the fall or winter of next year. With federal funding for the project in Hermitage’s Linden- Pointe technical business park secured, design is being completed and city officials hope to seek bids in February, said Assistant City Manager Gary M. Gulla. Federal officials must approve the plans before bids can be sought.

Hermitage Planning Commission Monday recommended approval of a land development plan for the 5,272-square-foot building, which will be adjacent to the technology center that will be built later with state money. City commissioners will vote on the land development plan later in the month.

Both buildings are part of the city’s effort to stimulate the technology and research industries with classrooms, training capabilities, and business incubator sites. A section of the workforce building will be dedicated to the electronics industry,
Gulla said. Designers for the workforce building are incorporating the comments of technology companies, he said.

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HERMITAGE, PA
City seeking more money for tech center
Sharon-Herald - October 10, 2008

Although the state has committed $1.25 million for Hermitage to build a technical center at LindenPointe technical business park, it’s $1 million short of what city officials had asked for. Officials are looking for additional state funds, but will have to decide in about three to six months whether to
build a scaled down version of the project. “Our preference would be to do full buildout of the project, instead of a scaled down design,” Assistant City Manager Gary M. Gulla told Hermitage Community and Economic Development Commission Thursday.

The state money is separate from an $800,000 federal grant the city has received to build a training and workforce development center building on a neighboring property. The tech center would house incubator suites for startup companies, a testing
laboratory for high-tech industries and a learning center. The training center would be
open to educational institutions to offer classes and training. Gulla said the governor’s August announcement about the $1.25 million grant has generated a lot of interest, particularly from education providers.

Contractors were hired in June to build a road and extend utilities onto the tech and
training center lots.

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Hermitage / Sharon, PA
Governor Rendell Brings Money to the Valley
Sharon-Herald - August 5, 2008
LindenPointe, Lofts projects funded
By Courtney L. Anderson, Herald Staff Writer




Gov. Ed Rendell arrives in downtown Sharon Monday morning to deliver more than $4 million for development
in Mercer County.
Photo: Sharon-Herald

Gov. Ed Rendell stopped by downtown Sharon Monday with more than $4 million for development in Mercer County. Rendell presented Sharon Mayor Bob Lucas with $3 million to help revitalize the downtown riverfront through construction of the eight-story Lofts at Centre City at Shenango Avenue and Pitt Street. The funding is from the Rural Community Assistance Program, which also paid for improvements along Shenango Avenue and the Shenango River in recent years.

The Governor gave a $1.25 million grant to the city of Hermitage for the Tech Innovation and Development Center being planned for LindenPointe technical business park. He said the hope is that the center will create 250 jobs in the area. “We want to arm our workers with the skills to remain competitive in the knowledge-based workplace,” said Eric M. Karmecy, assistant director of workforce development for West Central Job Partnership, which is involved in developing the center. Construction could begin in early 2009, said Hermitage assistant city manager Gary Gulla. “We’re pretty excited about it,” Gulla said of the regional project that will help the area compete in the global economy. Butler County Community College at LindenPointe is part of the development, too, and President Nick Neupauer said the college can serve as a niche for workforce development.

Shenango Associates partner Greg Koledin said they plan to break ground next month on the building, which will include retail, office and apartment space. Koledin said the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry will be a tenant of the building. Mercer County Commissioner Brian Beader is Koledin’s partner in the development which is part of a $32 million, five-year plan to revitalize the area along the Shenango. The grant announced Monday combined with a $500,000 Housing and Redevelopment Assistance grant and $500,000 from the state’s Growing Greener program will supplement $8 million in private funds and conventional loans to build the Lofts, Koledin said. The building should be finished next spring, he said. Koledin said they’re on a tight schedule and construction got delayed by the permitting process and gathering funding for the project.

A foot bridge from downtown to the Shenango Campus of Pennsylvania State University and other streetscape improvements in the area will be done at the same time. Other upcoming projects include a new roadway to divert truck traffic through downtown and upgrades at the city parking garage, Koledin said. There’s an industrial component in the works, but Koledin declined to disclose details.

The governor’s visit was part of a five-day bus tour announcing$642 million in state grants and loans to expand businesses, improve communities and repair bridges across the commonwealth. The move is expected to spur more than $1.3 billion in private and local investments to keep Pennsylvanians working, Rendell said. About 80 people stood in the heat under tents at the site of the Lofts to hear the governor speak. Lucas introduced Rendell, lauding the governor’s work in recent years. “Our governor — who was mayor of Philadelphia — understands the struggles of a small city,” Lucas said. “On behalf of my small city … we appreciate the governor and what he knows and what he does.”

“Our national economy is in trouble,” Rendell said, adding that he and state legislators decided to do something to stimulate the economy in Pennsylvania. Between April and June the United States lost about 200,000 jobs, Rendell said, while Pennsylvania gained 6,800. “That’s good news and we want to make sure that the good news continues here,” Rendell said. Rendell also spoke about a plan to fix 411 bridges across the state — projects that require enough steel to build four Eiffel Towers — with a total investment of $1 billion including federal funding. He said that Pennsylvania has the highest number of structurally deficient bridges in the country and that an accelerated repair program will fix some that would have had to wait longer for renovation.

The state is spending $13 million to repair 13 bridges in Mercer County. Those include spans in Sharon and Findley, French Creek, Sugar Grove, Lackawannock, Perry, Springfield and Liberty townships. Rendell said 14,000 jobs across the state are supported by the bridge repairs.

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IRT selects LindenPointe to serve Customers around the Country and around the Globe
City of Hermitage Newsletter - July 2008

Information Resource Technology, Inc. (IRT) is a Wexford, PA based software developer that has had offices in the Shenango Valley area for over 20 years - the last 15 of which have been in the City of Hermitage. IRT provides software products and services to book selling retailers, as well as, to the book publishing community. Recently IRT moved into their new facility in the LindenPointe Innovative Business Campus.

IRT’s primary products are Point of Purchase software tools that enable the retail stores to efficiently conduct sales activity. This suite of software programs also enables the retailer to maintain accurate inventory positions and reorder stock in an intelligent and timely manner. Client retailers exist all over the US as well as the UK, Australia and Pacific Rim countries. Besides the Wexford, PA and Hermitage, PA offices, IRT maintains an office in San Francisco, CA.

IRT also provides a sales data collection software service for book publishers in the US and Canada. Sales data is collected weekly at the Hermitage office from thousands of retail locations in the US and Canada. This product, which provides publishers access to the aggregated sales data over a secure web connection, requires IRT to maintain fast and reliable Internet availability.

IRT President David Walton commented on the move to LindenPointe, “We had to either find new offices in the Hermitage area or relocate the operation to our Wexford, PA, or alternatively, our San Francisco offices. Our local landlord, though extremely accommodating, needed the space we were occupying. After considering all options on a regional and national basis, as well as, the available lease space, we quickly decided that having our own building in LindenPointe was preferable. With our dependence on our reliable web access, we wanted to have the facility under our control.”

Working with the City of Hermitage and the Shenango Valley Enterprise Zone Corporation (SVEZC) a suitable arrangement was worked out that enabled IRT to construct new offices in LindenPointe at a reasonable cost. Said Walton, “Everyone was very cooperative. The project couldn’t have been done without the help of all involved. This building, and the new high technology environment the City is building, should enable us to become a permanent part of the community and enable our business to thrive.”

James Cardamon, SVEZC Coordinator, lauds the project as an example of the SVEZC partnership success. He said, “The project is the economic development system at work…The zone is proud to collaborate on a project of this nature to provide IRT the necessary assistance to develop quality employment opportunities for the area residents”.

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HERMITAGE, PA
LindenPointe awarded federal grant

Sharon Herald – Saturday, June 21st

The final piece of funding for a Hermitage technology center fell into place Friday when the project was awarded an $800,000 federal grant. Funds for the $1.2 million project at LindenPointe Innovative Business Campus were awarded through the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration, said U.S. Reps. Jason Altmire, D-4th District, and Phil English, R-3rd District.

With federal funding now earmarked to construct the 5,000-square-foot building, the learning center could open as early as the fall of 2009, said Gary Gulla, coordinator of the project. Architects will now begin work on completing the building’s design. Other funding sources included the city of Hermitage and the Appalachia Regional Commission. The concept of the center is for various teaching institutions –– such as Thiel College, Penn State, Butler County Community College and Precision Manufacturing Institute –– to offer courses and job training in electronics. In the first year of operation, the goal is to train 250 to 300 students.

One possibility for the center is to offer video conference classes whereby students are seated in a classroom at the Hermitage center while watching a teacher lecture from another campus on a monitor. Over a four-year period, there has been a 38 percent increase in electronics jobs in Mercer and Lawrence counties, Gulla said. “We felt this was an area that could reward us with business expansions and good-paying jobs that are competitive in a global market,’’ Gulla said. “It would also be a magnet to attract new industries in the electronics field. There are pretty much endless opportunities here.’’

LindenPointe Training & Workforce Development Building
Conceptual Building Elevations

Click here for larger picture.

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Altmire, English Announce $800,000 for Hermitage Technology Center

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 20, 2008

CONTACT:
Tess Mullen (Altmire), 202-225-2565 Julia Wanzco (English), 202-225-5406

ALTMIRE, ENGLISH ANNOUNCE $800,000
FOR HERMITAGE TECHNOLOGY CENTER

(Washington, D.C.) -- U.S. Congressmen Jason Altmire (PA-04) and Phil English (PA-18) today announced that Hermitage is receiving $800,000 in federal funding for the construction of a technology innovation and development center at the LindenPointe Innovative Business Campus. These funds were made available through the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration. The funding is expected to lead to 200 new jobs and $2 million in private investment for the project.

"The construction of a technology innovation and development center at LindenPointe will create jobs and spur economic growth in Mercer County," Altmire said. "This federal funding will help develop this proposed center into a valuable asset for the community and an anchor that can draw new businesses to the area."

"Today's announcement is a real win for Mercer County and the surrounding region," English said. "This critical funding will bolster the development of a technology innovation and development center at LindenPointe, helping to boost economic development and create more good paying jobs for local residents."

LindenPointe is a 115-acre innovative business campus designed to draw more small and medium-sized businesses to Mercer County. The new center receiving the funding that Congressmen Altmire and English announced today will provide training opportunities to enhance the emerging semi-conductor / electronics and biomedical / biotechnical clusters being housed at LindenPointe.

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Tech Park Growing
Office building to go up at LindenPointe
By Joe Pinchot
Herald Staff Writer
April 8th, 2008

This drawing by HHSDR Architects of Sharon shows what the new two story office building in LindenPointe technical business park in Hermitage will look like when completed. The building’s developer, Hudson Holding Co. of Hermitage, is calling the building Hickory Court.

 

Hudson Holding Co. is planning to put up a medical and professional building in the LindenPointe technical business park in Hermitage.

Monday, Hermitage Planning Commission recommended approval of a land development plan for the project.

The two-story, 15,856- square-foot building, named Hickory Court, will have a conference room, lobby and restrooms available to all tenants.

“We had a couple of clients that were interested in that location,” Eric J. Hunter, partner in Hudson Holding Co., Hermitage, said of the company’s decision to build.  He called the site at Presidential Boulevard and Innovation Way “one of the nicest” in the city because of its location near South Hermitage Road and visibility from that road.

The company has no space available in its other buildings, Hunter added. Hudson has verbal commitments from a couple of potential tenants, but Hunter said he cannot name them because the project is not far enough along for leases to be signed.

Even if those clients sign leases, there will be rentable space available in the building, and Hudson will complete those portions of the building
to suit the needs of clients, Hunter said. The building will face the corner and have a trail on its south side.

Hudson plans to start construction in May. Work will take about seven months. The company bought the property from Frederick George’s KAKE Inc. for $153,000.

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