Fay-Penn secures loan toward building at business park
Fay-Penn Economic Development Council has been approved for a $254,000 loan from the state Building PA fund toward its $1.2 million project to develop a commercial building in front of the Fayette Business Park near Smithfield. Barry Seneri, Fay-Penn economic development manager, said the organization is getting about 25 percent of the funding for the 10,000-square-foot building and land from the Commonwealth Financing Authority.
“The $1.2 million includes purchasing 2.3 acres of land from the Fayette Industrial Fund,’ Seneri said.
The low-interest loan of 5.5 percent will help Fay-Penn get the project under way, possibly next month, Seneri added.
“Right now, we essentially have Fay-Penn board approval to start the project once we had 40 percent of the building pre-leased. We have gotten five or six inquiries and have one we can say is definite, which means we have the building about 20 percent pre-leased right now. We will seek approval Friday to at least get started with site preparation,’ he said, referring to Fay-Penn’s quarterly board meeting today at Uniontown Country Club.
Fay-Penn began looking for retail and commercial businesses to serve nearly 1,000 workers and 10,000 residents surrounding the business park in spring.
Fay-Penn, Seneri said, is implementing plans to develop Big Six Plaza directly in front of the business park, and sent letters to retail and commercial businesses advertising the property.
Fay-Penn said that with last year’s announcement that Johnson Matthey, a world leader in emission control catalyst, will locate a plant in the business park, creating 110 new manufacturing jobs, there soon would be more than 1,000 employees working out of the park in Georges Township.
There also is an approximate population of about 10,000 residents within a five-mile radius of the park, which is located off Exit 8 of Route 43, according to Fay-Penn.
“We are looking for food services, banking operations, day-care centers, medical offices and other commercial or retail opportunities that are interested in establishing their businesses within this location,’ Seneri said.
This will be the first commercial/retail plaza of this type south of the Walnut Hill exit.
Fay-Penn also said there will be continuous growth opportunities in this area with the completion of Route 43 between Uniontown and Morgantown, W.Va.
Businesses interested in more information can call Fay-Penn at 724-437-7913 and ask for Seneri, Mike Jordan or Dana Kendrick, economic development specialists, or e-mail requests for information to barrys@faypenn.org, mikej@faypenn.org and danak@faypenn.org.
In announcing the loan, Gov. Edward G. Rendell said the investment will advance the project in Fayette County and help create new jobs.
The Commonwealth Financing Authority is a seven-member board that was created to administer and fund projects from programs created by Rendell’s economic stimulus package.
In addition to Building PA and Business in Our Sites, the CFA also oversees PennWorks, the Tax-Increment Financing Guarantee, PA Venture Capital Investment, New Pennsylvania Venture Guarantee and the Second-Stage Loan programs.
Building PA was created to provide the final piece of funding companies often needed to jump-start viable projects and local economic development. Loan recipients must match their financing with private investment or other funding sources.