MARKET STREET BRIDGE, WILKES-BARRE, PENNSYLVANIA MARKET STREET COMMUNITY PROFILE COMMUNITY NORTHEASTERN PENNSYLVANIA NORTHEASTERN MERICLE COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE SERVICES COMMUNITY PROFILE TABLE OF CONTENTS LOCATION & DEMOGRAPHICS SHOPPING SPORTS & CULTURE & INTRODUCTION TRANSPORTATION LABOR & COST OF LIVING CLIMATE SAFETY EDUCATION HEALTHCARE & DINING RECREATION ENTERTAINMENT 01 03 09 15 17 18 19 23 27 33 45 MERICLE COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE SERVICES COMMUNITY PROFILE INTRODUCTION Comprised of cities like Wilkes-Barre, Pittston, in both sports are held here. But more than that, Scranton, Hazleton, and hundreds of smaller NEPA offers important advantages for everyone. communities, Northeastern Pennsylvania (NEPA) is a unique combination of modern businesses This Community Profile was prepared by Mericle and historical sites—a place that is open to Commercial Real Estate Services, NEPA’s premier, new ideas, but brimming with deep rooted full-service commercial real estate company. traditions. You can choose an urban life in a loft Mericle has developed approximately 19 million apartment or in a Victorian home in the city, a square feet of industrial, office, flex, and medical suburban life in an established neighborhood or space in NEPA. Those buildings provide homes in a brand new development, or a rural life with for hundreds of companies that together employ acres of beautiful land. All these choices are more than 13,400 people. within minutes of each other. Mericle is very proud to call NEPA home and A low cost of living You can live an active life in NEPA — our sports would be pleased to help you locate your business Short, stress-free commutes (20 minutes on average) venues and outdoor recreation sites prove it. here. Just call 570.823.1100 or visit mericle.com. The region is home to the AAA affiliate of the Crime rates much lower than most of the nation New York Yankees and the AHL affiliate of the Affordable housing, transportation, and healthcare Pittsburgh Penguins. Fans of golf and NASCAR Great educational opportunities — we have 17 colleges here are equally satisfied as national competition An abundance of outdoor recreation opportunities Great venues for shopping and dining A vibrant musical and theater scene Quick access to major cities such as New York and Philadelphia 02 MERICLE COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE SERVICES COMMUNITY PROFILE LOCATION & TRANSPORTATION One of NEPA’s greatest assets is its excellent transpor- tation network. Five major highways – I-81, I-80, I-84, I-380, and I-476 – meet here and provide quick access to the Northeast’s major metro areas. There are no major bridges or tunnels in the region to delay truck traffic. The average commute to work is about 20 minutes. More than 51 million people live within 200 miles of NEPA and more than 83 million live within 400 miles. New York City, Philadelphia, and Harrisburg can all be reached in about two hours. NEPA, also known as the Northern I-81 Corridor, is quickly accessible to most major seaports along the East Coast, which are predicted to experience increased volume once infrastructure upgrades to the Panama Canal are com- plete. Upgrades to the Canal will allow for the passage of “post-Panamax” ships with a capacity to carry 14,000 con- tainers (three times more than a ship can currently carry through the Canal). In addition to its excellent highway network, NEPA is served by several airports, a nationally known bus line, and several main line and short line railroads. 04 MERICLE COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE SERVICES COMMUNITY PROFILE LOCATION & TRANSPORTATION DISTANCE FROM CENTER OF NEPA TO KEY CITIES MILES 67 73 96 113 116 126 128 152 194 198 237 290 301 368 Allentown, PA Morristown, NJ Harrisburg, PA New York, NY Baltimore, MD Washington D.C. Boston, MA Binghamton, NY Philadelphia, PA Port Newark, NJ Syracuse, NY Hartford, CT Pittsburgh, PA Cleveland, OH 05 06 MERICLE COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE SERVICES COMMUNITY PROFILE LOCATION & TRANSPORTATION AIR SERVICE NEPA’s main airport is the Wilkes-Barre/ Scranton International Airport (AVP), which RAIL SERVICE is located in Avoca, between Scranton and NEPA receives freight service from Class One and short line railroads. Wilkes-Barre. AVP offers approximately 40 Numerous business parks are served by rail. Providers include: daily arrivals and departures to seven major hubs with one-stop service to more than 450 CLASS ONE RAILROADS destinations worldwide. AVP provides direct Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) provides transportation daily flights to Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, in 22 states and operates more than 20,000 route miles. In Detroit, Newark, Orlando, Philadelphia, addition, NS provides service to the major Eastern seaports and Tampa. Carriers include Allegiant, Delta and various river and lake ports. Connection, United Express, and US Airways Express. AVP is also served by Aviation Tech- Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) provides transportation nologies, Inc., one of the finest fixed base to numerous major cities on the East Coast of the United operators in the Northeastern United States. States and many in Canada. CPR is an independent compa- For more info, visit flyavp.com. ny that spans across 14,000 miles. Other airports serving the area include: • Hazleton Municipal Airport SHORT LINES also known as , has • Lehigh Valley International Airport Luzerne & Susquehanna Railroad LSX grown to maintain 2,200 carloads annually. LSX operates • Nicholson Airport more than 60 miles of track in NEPA. • Pocono Mountains Municipal Airport • Seaman’s Airport/Endless Mountain Air, Inc. is the • Wilkes-Barre Wyoming Valley Airport Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad largest privately owned railroad in the Commonwealth. It operates a 320-mile regional rail system in nine counties in Eastern Pennsylvania. BUS SERVICE Martz Trailways is headquartered in PA Northeast Regional Railroad Authority operates a 100+ Wilkes-Barre and operates six major mile regional rail system with freight service across NEPA. motor coach companies. Martz has bus *In November, 2014, Norfolk Southern Corp. (NS) and the Delaware & Hudson Railway Co. (D&H), a stops at several locations in NEPA includ- subsidiary of Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) announced a proposed transaction under which NS would ing Downtown Scranton, Downtown acquire 282.55 miles of D&H rail line between Sunbury, PA, and Schenectady, NY, including the segment Avoca, PA that serves Northeastern Pennsylvania. The transaction was completed in May 2015. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport (AVP), Wilkes-Barre, the Wyoming Valley Mall (suburban Wilkes-Barre), and the Poconos. 07 08 MERICLE COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE SERVICES COMMUNITY PROFILE LABOR NEPA is nationally known for its dedicated and highly productive workforce. In fact, esteemed national site selection consultant John Rhodes of Moran, Stahl & Boyer said, “ It’s almost like Northeast PA defines what work ethic is. People come to work with an eagerness and a willingness to get the job done. ” SECTOR PERSONS EMPLOYED Healthcare & social assistance 44,142 Retail trade 31,210 Manufacturing 25,064 Accommodation & food services 20,110 LABOR MIX Educational services 19,955 Transportation & warehousing 18,317 NEPA has a fairly diversified employ- 16,741 ment breakdown. The following are Admin, support, waste mgmt, remediation 2014 statistics for both Lackawanna Wholesale trade 10,139 and Luzerne counties. Finance & insurance 9,760 Public administration 9,009 Construction 8,827 Professional, scientific, & technical svc. 7,653 Other services (except public admin.) 6,745 Information 4,593 Management of companies & enterprises 2,950 Arts, entertainment, & recreation 2,607 Utilities 2,316 Real estate rental & leasing 1,575 Mining 536 Forestry, fishing, & related activities 161 Source: paworkstats.geosolinc.com 10 LABOR MERICLE COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE SERVICES COMMUNITY PROFILE MANUFACTURING COMPANIES WITH AT LEAST 250 EMPLOYEES COMPANY PRODUCTS COUNTY Arlington Industries Electrical fittings Lackawanna BAE Systems Combat helmets, armor Lackawanna Bemis Company, Inc. Polyfilm Luzerne Bimbo Bakeries Bakery products Luzerne Bridon American Corp. Wire and wire rope Luzerne Cargill Meat Solutions Meat processing Luzerne Certech Ceramics Luzerne Cornell Iron Works Steel rolling doors Luzerne CPG International Polyethylene slabs Lackawanna Fabri-Kal Corp. Packaging Luzerne First Quality Nonwovens Nonwoven fabric Luzerne Lackawanna General Dynamics Military tanks, shells OFFICE COMPANIES WITH AT LEAST 250 EMPLOYEES Gentex Corp. Protective products Lackawanna WAREHOUSING & DISTRIBUTION COMPANIES WITH AT LEAST 250 EMPLOYEES Gertrude Hawk Chocolates Chocolate Lackawanna Golden Technologies Home healthcare, scooters Lackawanna COMPANY PRODUCTS COUNTY Molded chocolate Luzerne Hershey Company Altria Food products Luzerne Anodized extrusions Luzerne Indalex Bank of America Financial services Lackawanna COMPANY PRODUCTS COUNTY InterMetro Industries Corp. Wire storage, storage Luzerne Cigna Insurance Co. Health insurance Lackawanna Amazon.com Various Luzerne Lockheed Martin Nuclear components Lackawanna EDM Americas Document management Lackawanna American Eagle Outfitters Apparel Luzerne Maid-Rite Specialty Foods Portion control meats Lackawanna Frontier Communications Telecommunications Luzerne AutoZone Auto parts, supplies Luzerne Mission Foods Tortillas Luzerne Geisinger Health Systems Healthcare Lackawanna Benco Dental Supply Dental supplies Luzerne Offset Paperback Book printing Luzerne Genpact Financial information Luzerne Bradley Caldwell