BUCKS COUNTY, PA

Authority to Dissolve After Successful Conversion of Naval Air Warfare Center

The Federal Lands Reuse Authority of Bucks County, PA is set to dissolve this year following the group’s success in creating 2,000 jobs and selling more than $10 million in property at the former Naval Air Warfare center. After considerable efforts to navigate the unusual buildings originally built to be top-secret military facilities, the authority was able to develop the county’s largest brownfield. It expects to have 3,600 employees in the next two years, which is more than the number of employees who once worked at the base.

BURLINGTON COUNTY, NJ

New Science Incubator Opened in Burlington County

Burlington County College (BCC) recently unveiled its new $3.5 million Science Incubator designed to nurture life science business startups from 24 months to four years.  The new facility provides 600-square-foot labs, that each include fume hoods, acid storage and jets for air, gas and suction. In addition, there is more than 3,000 additional square feet that can be built to suit tenants. The Science Incubator is the 14th in the state and, like other incubators, was built to support entrepreneurs with attractive rents, and assistance with grant proposals, training, micro loans and business development. Rents at the BCC science center will average $2,000 a month for a 600 square foot space.  BCC already has a successful High Technology Incubator. The Science Incubator has been funded through money from the county and the state and it recently received $80,000 from the New Jersey Commission on Science and Technology.

CAMDEN COUNTY, NJ

Camden County Receives Grants to Perform Studies

The Camden County Improvement Authority has received several grants to evaluate different parts of the county.  The New Jersey Department of Transportation has awarded the Improvement Authority with $75,000 to evaluate the feasibility of acquiring the county’s only airport.  Operated by the Kleinberg family since 1954, the airport is located on approximately 65 acres of land.  Separately, the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission awarded the Improvement Authority with two grants totaling $168,000.  One grant will be used to study the “Golden Triangle” of the county encompassing the area in Cherry Hill that lies between Haddonfield Road and New Jersey routes 38 and 70.  The other grant will be used to create a cohesive redevelopment plan for eight towns along the Black Horse Pike, including: Audubon, Audubon Park, Bellmawr, Brooklawn, Haddon Heights, Haddon Township, Mount Ephraim and Runnemede.

CHESTER COUNTY, PA

Growing Season for Queens Farm

Queens Farm started as a backyard market garden on Street Road between West Chester and Kennett Square. Despite the less than one acre of growing area, Xiuqin Qin and Zuohong (Ed) Yin put their Chinese agricultural degrees to work to serve more than 100 customers who came to their farm weekly. They drew their initial customers from the Asian community with some families traveling from as far as New York to purchase specialty produce that is often not available except in imports. Customers were drawn to the freshness and high quality, as well as to the fact that Xiuqin and Ed grow their produce without use of herbicides and pesticides. In the Fall of 2005, they approached the Chester County Economic Development Council (CCEDC) in search of more land to meet their customer demand. They located some farmland that was preserved through the Chester County Farmland Preservation Program and CCEDC was able to connect them with local agricultural lenders and also provide some low-interest financing for the farm purchase through the First Industries Agriculture – Small Business First program. Two seasons later, Queens Farm is producing enough to sell their Asian-style produce at area farmers’ markets, including the Headhouse and Clark Park Farmers’ Markets in Philadelphia and the West Chester Farmers’ Market, as well as to the steady stream of devotees who make the trip to their farm.

DELAWARE COUNTY, PA

Delaware County Retains Large Local Business

After searching extensively throughout the suburbs of Philadelphia and Wilmington, DE, the Project Management Institute (PMI) signed a 10-year lease for a full 70,000 square foot building in Newtown Square, PA.  Later this year, it will move its world headquarters into this newly-leased space, from its existing building in the same complex.  PMI publishes standards related to project management and manages levels of certification for project management professionals.  It has more than 220,000 members and 240 local chapters in 67 countries.

GLOUCESTER COUNTY, NJ

New Facility Brings 100 New Jobs to County

Advanced Drainage Systems (ADS), a manufacturer of high-density polyethylene pipes for underground drainage systems, will soon begin production on a $12 million facility in Logan.  The new facility will also bring 100 new jobs to the county from plant managers to truck drivers with hopes for expansion in the future. ADS said that it selected the site because of its strategic geographic location and access to a skilled labor force.  The organization will manufacture pipes for the New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland and Washington, D.C. markets.

MERCER COUNTY, NJ

Princeton Therapeutics Developer to Receive $5 Million Payment

Pharmacopeia will receive a $5 million payment from GlaxoSmithKline for its work in achieving a discovery milestone.  This payment comes as part of a collaboration agreement between the two companies in March of 2006 and Pharmacopeia could receive further payments if the companies decide to pursue any drug development program.  Based in Princeton, Pharmacopeia is a developer of novel therapeutics.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, PA

Unisys Receives $28 Million Department of Defense Contract

Unisys recently received a one-year, $28 million contract from the Department of Defense to implement a radio frequency identification system for tracking military supplies. The government could exercise three additional option years, which would bring the contract to $112 million. Unisys tracks about 125,000 supply shipments each week, which include ammunition, food, rations and water, medical supplies, vehicles, vehicle parts and aircraft. 

PHILADELPHIA COUNTY, PA

University City Celebrates Report Card Results, Job and Retail Growth

Philadelphia’s University City District, a service agency funded by donations, recently issued a 40-page annual report card, touting job growth of 10 percent since 2004, climbing apartment and home prices, a growing number of newly constructed residential units and expanding retail, office space and space available for start-up technology companies.  This success story is the result of a 12 year-long collective revival effort on behalf of big institutions, small businesses and residents, which addressed crime, filth and other problems affecting the prominence of their renowned institutions. These institutions - University of Pennsylvania, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Drexel and others - have all played prominent roles in this revival by investing in the neighborhood and expanding their existing facilities.

NEW CASTLE COUNTY, DE

$35 Million Research Center Opened in New Castle County

A $35 million research center has been opened in Newark, Delaware by French industrial- and medical-gas company, Air Liquide.  One of three research centers owned by the company, the Newark facility will initially employee 80 scientists and support staff with plans to expand to 150 in the next two years. The research performed at the center will include clean fuel, food processing, electronics and health care.