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Web.com brings marketing savvy to CAN DO

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Know your parks: There are 3 types in area

<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Teri Ooms, executive director of The Institute for Public Policy &amp; Economic Development at Wilkes University, said many of the region&#8217;s industrial/business parks came to fruition during a time when private investment in Northeastern Pennsylvania was lackluster at best.</p><p>Ooms said non-profit economic development organizations began to emerge as the primary real estate developers of the area and CAN DO, Inc. &#8212; the subject if this Times Leader special publication &#8212; made real estate investments that span Carbon, Luzerne and Schuylkill Counties.</p><p>&#8220;These business have proven to be true economic development engines, boosting livelihood throughout southern Luzerne County,&#8221; Ooms said.</p><p>The CAN DO business and industrial parks &#8212; four in total &#8212; represent diverse and lucrative hubs of economic activity.</p><p>&#8226; They are home to 112 manufacturing, distribution, office, and service companies employing more than 14,000 individuals.</p><p>&#8226; About nine million square feet of space is dedicated to distribution, with over eight million square feet dedicated to manufacturing.</p><p>&#8226; The number of employees is almost equally split between manufacturing and distribution, and nearly 25 percent of the workers from 11 companies are in the food processing industry.</p><p>Ooms said the future of the CAN DO business parks looks even brighter. Recently, The Hershey Company broke ground on a $60 million expansion project at the Humboldt Park. That&#8217;s also where IRIS USA, a manufacturer of top-quality clear plastic storage containers, pet products, and furniture is investing $84 million in a manufacturing and distribution facility.</p><p>&#8221;This kind of commitment only solidifies the value of the location, the community, and the workforce,&#8221; Ooms said.</p><p>Ooms said a high-level impact analysis shows that the manufacturing sector in the CAN DO business parks supports an additional 3,000 jobs in a number of other local sectors, and that the economic impact &#8212; direct, indirect, and induced &#8212; to the area is over $2.4 billion.</p><p>She said distribution industry supports an additional 2,000 jobs in other sectors and generates nearly $112 million in economic impact &#8212; direct, indirect, and induced.</p><p>The business parks house both domestic and international firms. CAN DO&#8217;s list of companies includes a number of familiar brands such as Amazon, American Eagle, Autozone, Bimbo Bakeries, Burger King, Cargill, Dial, Fed Ex, Hershey, Penske, PPL, and Web.com.</p><p>&#8220;The locations of these business parks are ideal due to the proximity of the intersection of Interstates 80 and 81 and the capacity to reach a number of major markets with product in less than one day&#8217;s time,&#8221; Ooms said.</p><p>Furthermore, Ooms said the businesses support employees from all over Northeastern Pennsylvania.</p><p>&#8220;These individuals have the earnings not only to support themselves and their families, but to funnel through other businesses in the area,&#8221; Ooms said. &#8220;The ripple effect on NEPA&#8217;s economy is unmistakable. In sum, the investment by CAN DO and the greater Hazleton community in the business park infrastructure has truly been an asset to the increasingly vibrant region.&#8220;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Ooms </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/web1_Teri-Ooms-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Ooms </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Bill O&#8217;Boyle</p><p>boboyle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Bill O&#8217;Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Ooms: Parks ‘economic development engines’