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NANTICOKE — A contingent of area officials gathered near a massive new building under construction Thursday to heap praise on Missouri-based NorthPoint Development for its $209.4 million project on former mine-scarred land across from Luzerne County Community College.
Three buildings at the 342-acre tract known as “Hanover 9,” which spans into into Hanover Township, are projected to create 1,548 new jobs with an average salary of $41,000 and annual payroll of $63.4 million, officials said during a groundbreaking ceremony.
An e-commerce company will be moving into the first 612,560-square-foot building that has started taking shape, with an announcement identifying the tenant expected soon, said Brent Miles, NorthPoint’s economic development vice president.
Miles said the second 1.4 million-square-foot building, located in Hanover Township, will be the largest commercial structure in Northeastern Pennsylvania. He expects it to be occupied by a “very well-known company” that would attract national publicity when a deal is announced. Officials familiar with this company have declined to release details, saying they have signed confidentiality agreements.
The first two buildings should be completed within a year, Miles said.
Hanover 9 runs along Route 29 on the east side and will be accessible from both the new South Valley Parkway and Kosciuszko Street.
NorthPoint also brought Chewy.com, Adidas and Patagonia Inc. to its first 172-acre project in Hanover Township, and the company is finalizing its third project on 150 acres it plans to buy from Earth Conservancy and the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce along Dundee Road in the township.
Chewy.com is hiring 200 more employees, which will bring its local staff count to 1,600, the company recently announced. Patagonia is now operational, and Adidas is expected to open in June, NorthPoint representatives said.
Officials weigh in
With earth moving equipment rumbling in the background, state Sen. John Yudichak, D-Nanticoke, told the group NorthPoint is pumping more than $1 billion into the regional economy.
“The investments, the jobs and the sheer pace of development driven by NorthPoint is changing the economic conversation in Pennsylvania, and it is bringing national attention and national companies to our doorstep here in Luzerne County,” Yudichak said.
Hanover 9 is among 2,000 acres of prime real estate in the South Valley that sat idle for decades because mining left a blighted “moonscape” that repelled private commercial investors, Yudichak said.
Fueled with government funding, the nonprofit Earth Conservancy performed reclamation at the NorthPoint project sites, making them more marketable, he said.
The state’s funding of the $90 million South Valley Parkway opened up 7,000 acres, including Hanover 9, for residential and commercial development, he said. The parkway was the “most significant reason NorthPoint has so generously invested its corporate resources” in the county, he said.
Miles said his employee-owned company based its decision on the availability of accessible sites and workers and cooperation from area officials.
“We truly believe that capital goes where capital is welcome, and we’ve been welcomed with open arms here,” Miles said.
The community has been “building the cake” needed to attract development to the NorthPoint sites for two decades, he said.
“We’re simply the icing on top,” Miles said. “We wouldn’t be here to do that last piece if you hadn’t put in the hard work.”
The rapid construction of part of the first building at Hanover 9 has surprised passersby on Kosciuszko Street, several attendees said.
U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright, D-Moosic, jokingly said he initially thought the structure was a colosseum for the nearby community college.
Hanover 9 and NorthPoint are worthy of attention because the large-scale project will create sustainable wages and strengthen the regional economy, he said.
“With economic development, spurred by NorthPoint and the Hanover 9 project, we will see more people able to stay in Northeastern Pennsylvania and build their lives here and raise their families,” he said.
Cartwright credited the region’s hard work ethic.
“These things run deep in Northeastern Pennsylvania, and I know as these national corporations hire our workers, they’re going to see the unparalleled benefits of bringing their businesses here.”
Purchase details
NorthPoint purchased the first 85-acre section of the Hanover 9 site from Earth Conservancy for $2.83 million in September.
Earth Conservancy sold the remaining 257 acres to NorthPoint for $7.165 million, according to a deed recorded this week.
Because both purchases involve only portions of some existing parcels, the county must create separate new parcel identification numbers and calculate the assessed values for real estate taxation purposes for the NorthPoint acquisitions — a process that is still underway.
Elected officials approved a tax break for the Hanover 9 project at the start of the year that will provide full real estate tax forgiveness on new construction for seven years, 90 percent exemption in the eighth year, 80 percent in the ninth and 70 percent in the 10th and final year.
NorthPoint must pay full taxes on the land throughout the break, and the land has been tax exempt under Earth Conservancy ownership.
