HARRISBURG – Rep. Aaron Bernstine (R-Beaver/Butler/Lawrence) today announced the Commonwealth Financing Authority awarded a $2 million Business in Our Sites grant and a $3 million Business in Our Sites loan for the development of the Stonecrest Business Park located in New Beaver Borough, Lawrence County.
The Lawrence County Economic Development Corporation (LCEDC), in cooperation with Stonecrest Business Park (SBP), plans to develop a former golf course into the Stonecrest Business Park. The site consisting of 213 acres, 110 acres of which is developable, is accessible to Interstate 79 and the Pennsylvania Turnpike and is 30 minutes north of the Shell Cracker Plant.
“The development of the Stonecrest Business Park in the southern part of the county will build upon other developments already happening in Beaver County and around the Pittsburgh International Airport,” said Bernstine. “This will create more businesses and a significant amount of new jobs, which adds up to strengthening the economy. Approximately 3.3 million Pennsylvanians, including thousands from our area, find themselves looking for work due to the coronavirus pandemic. This project will help the unemployed tremendously. It is anticipated this will result in the creation of more than 1,000 jobs.”
SBP plans to develop up to 1.5 million square feet of commercial and industrial space. In addition, Business in Our Sites loan funds will be used for site excavation, grading construction of roads, streets and engineering. The grant funds will be used to bring utilities to the site. The total cost of the project is almost $7.5 million.
“By building a local hub for businesses to grow, we can expand our tax base and lessen the burden on homeowners,” said Bernstine. “This is a model we can duplicate for all of our communities across the 10th District.”
The Commonwealth Financing Authority Business in Our Sites funding empowers communities to attract growing and expanding businesses by helping them build an inventory of ready sites. This program is for speculative projects only. Funds cannot be used for projects that are primarily residential or recreational. Sites must be previously used property or undeveloped property that is planned and zoned for development.