Wilkes-barre Twp. - John Heinz Institute

Alex Pawlenok 
Jan. 26, 1994 
Alex Campbell Pawlenok, Infant Son Of Alan And Mara Campbell Pawlenok, Died 
Wednesday At St. Christopher's Hospital For Children, Philadelphia.

By LISA SCHEID; Times Leader Hazleton Bureau Chief
 Saturday, January 29, 1994 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 3A QUICK WORDS: PUBLIC FORUM WILL FOCUS
ON MANUFACTURING SITE 





HAZLETON -- CAN DO Inc. will hold a public meeting this week to answer
questions about a manufacturing site proposed for 600 acres of untouched
forest land in Hazle and East Union townships. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 CAN DO, a local development organization, is competing with Schuylkill Area
Development Corp. in Pottsville for the project, which is sponsored by
Pennsylvania Power &amp; Light. SEDCO wants PP&amp;L to put the site near Frackville. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; PP&amp;L plans to lend one of the development corporations money to acquire and
prepare the site for major manufacturing. PP&amp;L also would help market the
site. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The selected development corporation would build roads and extend water,
sewer and rail lines to the site so that it would be ready for a major
manufacturing company to move in. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 No company has been selected yet for the site. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The utility company has targeted paper, glass, primary metals, structural
metal, pharmaceuticals and communication-equipment manufacturing as potential
site tenants. The land will not be used for a low-level radioactive waste
dump. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Both the Hazleton and Frackville sites have railroads, highways and
industrial parks nearby. The Hazleton site, called the Green Mountain site, is
west of Interstate 81 on Route 924 near the Humboldt Industrial Park. It is
owned by Butler Enterprises. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Frackville area site is located in West Mahanoy and Ryan townships in
Schuylkill County. The 400-acre site is sandwiched between Morea Road and
Interstate 81. About 100 acres are owned by SEDCO and 300 acres by JMB Ltd.,
the parent company of the J.B. Rich Co. Rich owns two cogeneration plants in
Schuylkill County. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 PP&amp;L officials said community support among other things will influence
their decision. So, to help gain the community's support and give Hazleton the
edge, CAN DO will hold a public-information meeting Wednesday night at the
Oneida Civic Center. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "This is a speculative project. There is no guarantee of immediate,
dramatic success," said Bob Behling, a PP&amp;L executive overseeing the project.
"If we don't try, we'll never have the opportunity to succeed." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 PP&amp;L wants to develop a large site to be used by a single manufacturing
company or industry that needs a lot of electricity. The Hazleton area lost
out on locating a Saturn automobile-production plant about five years ago
because it had no site prepared, Behling said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Behling said Hazleton could reap benefits once the site is developed. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "This type of industry broadens the tax base," Behling said. "There aren't
a lot of these types of projects taking place." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 PP&amp;L economists say that for every 100 manufacturing jobs created, a
community sees $2 million in personal income for its residents, $1.6 million
in retail sales, seven new retail businesses and 64 new non-manufacturing
jobs. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "It's kind of like `if you build it, they will come,' " said Martha Herron,
PP&amp;L's Hazleton district manager. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 So far, the project has gained support from the Greater Hazleton Chamber of
Commerce and other business leaders. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 No person or organization has opposed the project yet. But Hazleton Mayor
John Quigley and a local environmental group have expressed "concerns." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Residents of the nearby Valley of Lakes development are interested in how a
manufacturing company would affect traffic and the quality of life in the lush
forested resort community, said Randy Galgon, a member of the Valley of Lakes
civic association. Galgon is also a member of CAN DO's environmental review
committee. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Quigley said he supports the project but worried about increased rail
traffic through the city. He said he hoped the city's problems with railroads
crossing major intersections could be remedied as part of the construction of
the major manufacturing site. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Greenfire Coalition has been cautious about supporting or rejecting the
project. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "It's too early to say which tack we're going to take because we need more
information," said Gerard Hoefling, executive director of Greenfire. He
declined to talk about specifics because the project has not been presented to
Greenfire's few hundred members. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The group generally is interested in a project's impact on animal habitat,
the destruction of wetlands and the importance of the virtually untouched land
as a watershed to the area's creeks and streams, said Gerard Hoefling,
Greenfire's executive director. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Charles Robinson, CAN DO's marketing director, said a wetland crossing may
have to be built, and a nearby strip mine could be reclaimed as a result of
the project. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Herron and Robinson emphasized that whatever industry would come would be
required to conform to federal and state environmental laws as well as local
zoning ordinance. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Greenfire was among the community groups that challenged CAN DO's attempt
to bring a New Jersey Steel mini-mill to Humboldt Industrial Park in 1992.
Ultimately, the state of New Jersey gave the company tax breaks and kept it in
Sayreville. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The mini-mill may have not relocated here, but CAN DO learned from the New
Jersey Steel fight. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "We learned a lot of lessons. One of them is keeping the public informed,"
Robinson said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Robinson said CAN DO is forming a public-advisory committee for the project
and has invited Valley of Lakes residents, Greenfire and local officials to
participate. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I think development forces are becoming sensitive to public outcry,"
Hoefling said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 PP&amp;L is expected to decide by the end of February where to locate the
manufacturing site. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The facts about the meeting &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 What: &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 A public meeting will be at the Oneida Civic Center in the village of
Oneida in East Union Township. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 When: &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Wednesday, 7 p.m. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Why: &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 To discuss CAN DO's proposal to bring a major manufacturing company to a
610-acre site in Hazle and East Union townships.

Public Forum Will Focus On Manufacturing Site 
Can Do Hopes Public 
Support Will Gain Hazleton 
An Edge When Competing 
For A Pp&l Loan To Develop 
Forest Land In Hazle And 
East Union Townships

Public Forum Will Focus On Manufacturing Site Can Do Hopes Public Support Will Gain Hazleton An Edge When Competing For A Pp&l Loan To Develop Forest Land In Hazle And East Union Townships