Lancaster County-based Bank of Bird-in-Hand is seeking shareholder and regulatory approval to form a holding company, a common step for banks as they grow. The holding company would be called GELT Bancorp Inc., incorporating the Amish word for money. The bank also uses the word for its mobile branches, called Gelt buses. Existing bank shareholders would become […]
Lemoyne-based insurance and benefits agency Gunn-Mowery is expanding its footprint in York County The firm has acquired Central Penn Benefits, an insurance and benefits agency in West Manchester Township, York County. Terms of the transaction, which closed May 1, were not disclosed. But Central Penn Benefits will continue to operate under its own name and from its existing […]
LinkBancorp is selling its newly acquired operations in South Jersey for an after-tax gain of about $10.5 million, according to LinkBancorp CEO Andrew Samuel. The buyer is Philadelphia-based American Heritage Federal Credit Union, which has more than 310,000 members and assets of more than $4.8 billion. Expected to close in the second quarter of this year, […]
Harrisburg University of Science and Technology failed to make a monthly loan payment on May 1 in default of its loan agreement, according to a disclosure last week to its bondholders. Under the agreement, monthly payments to the bond trustee roll up into semiannual payments on interest and principal on the university’s bonds. Those semiannual payments are […]
Fulton Bank was on the receiving end on the afternoon of April 26 when state regulators shut down and brokered a sale of Republic First Bank, a troubled Philadelphia-based lender that does business as Republic Bank. As a result, Fulton has acquired most of the assets and branches of Republic First, expanding the Lancaster bank’s footprint in the […]
York County commissioners last week approved the county’s participation in a program that offers specialized financing tools for clean-energy and energy-efficiency projects. The program, offered in partnership with Schnecksville-based Sustainable Energy Fund, is called the Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy program, or C-PACE. How does it work: Commercial and nonprofit property owners tap the program to […]
The chief banking subsidiary of Chambersburg-based Franklin Financial Services has broken ground on a new branch at 4765 Linglestown Road in Lower Paxton Township. It will be F&M Trust‘s first free-standing, full-service branch in Dauphin County. “It’s a natural progression of our growth and activity in the capital region, specifically Dauphin County,” F&M Trust president and CEO Tim […]
Pennsylvania officials are tapping an Allentown-based lender to operate a statewide program funneling money to homeowners who want to make their homes more energy efficient. The program, called the Keystone Energy Efficiency Program, could provide up to $10 million in loans to eligible homeowners in amounts ranging from $2,000 to $25,000. The amounts are generally […]
A private equity-backed holding company is buying a majority stake in Harrisburg’s minor league baseball team from the family of the late Mark Butler, a co-founder of Harrisburg-based discount retailer Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings. Butler, who died in 2019, bought a majority interest in the Harrisburg Senators in 2014. That stake is now being sold to Diamond […]
R.F. Fager Co., a West Shore distributor of plumbing, heating, roofing and other supplies, has a new partner. New York-based private equity firm Tenex Capital Management has made an undisclosed investment in the company. Efforts to reach R.F. Fager and Tenex were not successful, But in a statement to trade publication PE Hub, Tenex managing director Gabe Wood […]
New York-based private equity firm Broad Sky Partners has snapped up Punctual Pros, a regional franchisee for three high-profile consumer-facing brands. Based in East Hempfield Township, Lancaster County, Punctual Pros serves customers across Central Pennsylvania as an operator of One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning, Benjamin Franklin Plumbing and Mister Sparky Electrical franchises. The company is hoping to expand its footprint through acquisitions, […]
Rising interest rates and record inflation stifled mergers and acquisitions last year, leading to an 18% drop in activity compared to 2022 for Central and southeastern Pennsylvania, according to a report this week by accounting and professional services RKL LLP. Lancaster and the capital area bucked the regional decline, which reflected the national scene. Nonetheless, M&A […]
A nonprofit investor that tracks corporate performance on environmental, social and governance issues is asking Sunbury-based Weis Markets to beef up its disclosures on climate change and supply chain risks. The Massachusetts-based nonprofit, The Accountability Board, is seeking a shareholder vote on the issue during Weis’s annual meeting this spring. The resolution calls on Weis to produce a […]
Mid Penn Bancorp is fielding a sports and entertainment division designed to cater to the financial needs of high-profile athletes and entertainers. The unit formalizes an area where Mid Penn already has been making inroads, said Jordan Space, the bank’s COO. Many celebrities have come to know and trust the Harrisburg-based bank through its annual celebrity golf […]
Four months after taking the field, a statewide venture fund is taking its first shots. The so-called GO PA Fund has invested in two companies, a financial technology firm based in Swarthmore and an advertising tech company based in New York, albeit with roots and some operations in Philadelphia. The fintech company is LoanStar Technologies, which […]
After closing more than 200 branches in 2023, PNC Bank said yesterday it is aiming to spend $1 billion over the next four years to renovate 1,200 branches nationwide and open 100 new ones in some of the country’s fastest-growing cities Banks are cutting branches. But they also have been opening them in markets where they see […]
Fulton Financial has named an interim CFO following the resignation last week of Mark McCollom, who had been the bank’s finance chief since 2018. A regulatory filing and press release issued Friday did not disclose the reason for McCollom’s departure. Lancaster-based Fulton has named Beth Ann Chivinski as interim CFO while it conducts a formal search process to fill the […]
A bumpy financial road is prompting local banks to tap the brakes on lending. Banks are still making loans. However, they may not be as aggressive in courting new business. Nor are companies eager to add debt, with interest rates still elevated and the economic outlook uncertain. A quarterly survey of bank loan officers by the […]
Soon after founding West Shore Home nearly 20 years ago, B.J. Werzyn envisioned turning the home-remodeling business into a nationwide brand. It was not a vision that was readily embraced, given the company’s humble beginnings in an industry long dominated by local contractors. “When you’re one location here in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, with 50 employees and […]
Lebanon-based construction company Arthur Funk & Sons Inc. is teaming up with a Wisconsin-based developer to build a 48-unit affordable apartment complex on a roughly five-acre plot along Mount Pleasant Road in South Annville Township, Lebanon County A formal groundbreaking is scheduled for July 15, but site work already is underway, said Matthew Padron, managing director […]
A controversial effort to tweak Pennsylvania’s prevailing-wage law has cleared a key hurdle. The Democratic-controlled state House this week passed a bill containing the tweaks on a vote of 125 to 77, sending it to an uncertain future in the GOP-controlled Senate. What are the tweaks: The legislation, House Bill 2153, would apply prevailing wages […]
An affiliate of the nonprofit developer Harristown Enterprises is carving up a pair of vacant rowhomes at 104 and 106 Walnut St. in Harrisburg into four apartment units, ranging in size from 910 square feet to 1,690 square feet. The Harristown affiliate, Charming on Walnut LLC, bought the two Depression-era buildings in December 2023 in a […]
Contractors and some lawmakers are pushing back against efforts to change how Pennsylvania officials apply prevailing wage law, which sets a floor for wages on publicly funded construction projects. Their target is legislation before the state House and Senate that critics argue will drive up costs for public works. “It’s simply the wrong solution for […]
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case involving application of prevailing wages to a $17.2 million build-to-lease project for a State Police barracks and training center in Luzerne County. Administrative rulings sought to apply prevailing wages to the project, based on the notion that the state’s 20-year lease for the property essentially […]
After 15 years of leading York-based Royal Square Development and Construction, Josh Hankey is stepping into a new role at the company he founded in 2009. Hankey is poised to become CFO and pass the CEO baton to Dylan Bauer, who joined Royal Square in 2014. In an interview, Hankey said the two executives had been […]
Senior-living provider Landis Homes plans to erect 35 villa-style residential units on the western edge of its campus in Manheim Township, Lancaster County. The $27 million project reflects continuing demand for retirement living — 34 of the units have already been pre-sold — said Corey Hamilton, CFO for the nonprofit. The units, mostly two-bedrooms, will range in […]
Rock Lititz, the live-entertainment campus in Lancaster County, is erecting a twin in Nashville, the longtime capital of country music and home to the Grand Ole Opry. Rock Lititz announced May 1 that it broke ground last month on Rock Nashville, a 40-acre campus that will feature 514,000 square feet of rehearsal space for touring musicians, […]
As they broke ground yesterday on a new “mini hospital” in southern York County, WellSpan Health officials identified the next two locations for the small-format medical centers: the Carlisle area and northern York County. The regional health system is opening the three mini hospitals — in partnership with Texas-based specialty operator Emerus — to bring […]
The chief banking subsidiary of Chambersburg-based Franklin Financial Services has broken ground on a new branch at 4765 Linglestown Road in Lower Paxton Township. It will be F&M
R.F. Fager Co., a West Shore distributor of plumbing, heating, roofing and other supplies, has a new partner. New York-based private equity firm Tenex Capital Management has
On March 8, 2022, a fire ripped through a Penn Waste recycling facility in Manchester Township, York County, knocking it out of commission. Now, three Penn Waste insurers are suing local contractors involved in building the facility and installing its sprinkler system. The insurers, which include Connecticut-based XL Insurance, are seeking to recover $26 million in damages from […]
A Harrisburg-area engineering firm has added two new offices, including its first-ever location in Maryland. HRG has opened offices in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, and Hagerstown, Maryland, hoping to make greater inroads in both areas. The additions bring the firm, based in Swatara Township, Dauphin County, to a dozen offices, with 10 in Pennsylvania and one each […]
Business groups are decrying a recent directive from Gov. Josh Shapiro designed to increase the state’s use of project labor agreements, deals that generally require the use of union labor on public projects. Issued last week, the directive calls on state agencies to review contract solicitations for capital projects to determine which ones would be good fits […]
Everything is bigger in Texas, including spending on roads, bridges, pipes and other infrastructure. “It’s the place to be in our world,” said Bob Scaer, CEO of engineering firm Gannett Fleming. “And you can’t penetrate that by hiring a person to start growing. The only way in is acquisition.” For Camp Hill-based Gannett Fleming, that acquisition […]
About a dozen years ago, several members of East Chestnut Street Mennonite Church in Lancaster banded together to start a nonprofit focused on creating affordable housing, with a focus on people experiencing homelessness. Their first project was the purchase and conversion of a single-family home at 639 E. Chestnut St. Over the next decade, the […]
Efforts to redevelop the former Red Lion Country Club in York County have taken a second hit. At a meeting on Feb. 27, zoning officials in York Township voted 3-2 to deny a developer’s request for a special exception to allow age-restricted housing under the property’s current zoning, which is for commercial office. “I don’t […]
Niche Electronics, an electronics manufacturing services company, has restructured its leadership team. The new framework elevates a new vice president and creates four directors who will oversee important facets of the growing Shippensburg-based business. Yancey Strickler has been promoted the new role of vice president. He has 20 years of industry experience: 16 as a […]
EQT, a Radnor-based real estate investment firm, said it has acquired a portfolio of 11 warehouses that includes two buildings in a recently constructed industrial park north of York city. An EQT spokesperson declined to disclose the terms, and no deeds were available online as of the end of last week. The York-area warehouses are […]
Pennsylvania voters will decide tomorrow whether to retain three Supreme Court justices in what has become one of the state’s most expensive and partisan judicial races ever. Those arguing in favor of retention, including Gov. Josh Shapiro, warn that “no” votes could jeopardize abortion and voting rights. Those arguing against retention argue that the three justices in question […]
Projections suggest that rising costs will dissuade Pennsylvania residents from buying health insurance through the state’s Obamacare exchange, known as Pennie. Those forecasts will now face a real-world test. Pennie’s open enrollment period starts tomorrow, Nov. 1, for people who want coverage in place for 2026. Enrollment through Pennie has been growing over the last […]
Hanover may be the snack capital of the world. But the largest snack market in the U.S. is California, and Hanover-based Utz Brands wants to bite off a larger chunk. Utz said yesterday it acquired store delivery routes in the Golden State — and portions of the Midwest — from Colorado-based Insignia International. Terms of the transaction were not […]
David Chick has been hired as senior counsel in the appellate advocacy group of Lancaster-based law firm Saxton & Stump. He also is serving as a senior consultant with the firm’s human resources affiliate, TREW HR. Based in Harrisburg, Chick worked most recently served as deputy judicial clerk for both the Supreme Court and the […]
The state’s high court this week rejected an appeal from a State College contractor accused more than four years ago in a high-profile case of wage theft. The contractor, Glenn O. Hawbaker Inc., challenged a state agency’s authority to bar it from state contracts based on alleged violations of Pennsylvania’s prevailing wage laws. In March, a lower […]
Harrisburg-based law firm McNees Wallace & Nurick has hired lawyers for its offices in Maryland and suburban Philadelphia. Katherine Takhounts Bonato has joined the firm’s Frederick, Maryland, office as an attorney in the real estate group. Before joining McNees, Bonato worked with title companies in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C. Bonato has a law degree […]
A New York state business leader and philanthropist has bestowed $50 million on Penn State Health Children’s Hospital in what is being described as a “transformative” gift. But the gift, announced yesterday, is about more than just money. The 156-bed hospital in Derry Township, Dauphin County, is joining a new alliance of children’s hospitals named […]
Suzy Teter has joined Pennian Bank as an assistant vice president and relationship banker based in the bank’s Lemoyne office. Teter, who lives in Duncannon worked most recently serving as a financial center manager for Mid Penn Bank. “Suzy’s commitment to serving as a trusted resource to businesses and organizations, as well her dedication to […]
A federal court has officially named a trustee to oversee the assets of Daryl Heller, the Lancaster County business owner who declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February after the collapse of an ATM network he led. Heller also faces federal charges alleging he defrauded investors in the network, which did business as Paramount Management Group. The trustee […]
Regional accounting and professional services firm Boyer & Ritter has hired seven staff members for a variety of roles. Darren Bailey joins Boyer & Ritter’s tax department as a supervisor. He worked most recently as a senior tax accountant with a York-based firm. He has a bachelor’s degree in business administration with concentrations in accounting […]
Nonprofit preservation group Lancaster Conservancy paid $3.5 million for a roughly 180-acre tract of forested land in Chanceford Township, York County, according to county deed records. The seller was a partnership called Stone Fence Acres LP, linked to Jeff Koons, an internationally acclaimed artist and York County native. The purchase price reflected the land’s appraised value, […]
There were times it seemed too complicated to pull off. But after five years, the owners of Lancaster-area logistics business Founders Market & Co. found a way to start selling company shares to their employees. The owners — Scott Martino, Matt Stargel and Alex Thompson — began contemplating some form of employee ownership after they took […]
Bill Fredericks and Len Bradley have been named principals of RGS Associates, a landscape architecture, land planning and civil engineering firm based in Lancaster. Fredericks, previously a client manager, has more than 15 years of experience in land development projects, including senior living communities, commercial developments and industrial sites. Bradley, previously an engineering supervisor, has […]
Maple Donuts has hired a CEO following its sale in June to a consortium of private investors led by Swander Pace Capital. The new chief is Greg Somerville, who worked most recently as president and CEO of Savencia Cheese USA, a subsidiary of a French company. Somerville has more than 25 years of leadership experience in consumer goods, including […]
The shutdown of the federal government is stalling a critical pipeline for loans to small businesses. Like the rest of the government, the U.S. Small Business Administration has been closed since Oct. 1. As a result, the agency is unable to formalize its guarantee to repay loans if small-business borrowers cannot. The guarantees encourage lenders to […]
The Central Pennsylvania Food Bank. The nonprofit has added two executives to its C-suite. Ted Simes joined the regional food bank in July as COO. The Lancaster County native worked most recently as a branch manager for logistics and engineering company CTDI. He also was previously director of operations and food safety at Reading-based food ingredient distributor Lentz […]
In a roughly 50-minute speech yesterday afternoon at a York factory, former President Donald Trump argued that, if elected for another term, he would usher in a U.S. manufacturing boom driven by higher tariffs, lower taxes, better trade deals and a reduction in energy costs. “Together, we will reclaim our nation’s destiny as the No. […]
York County manufacturer AMZ Manufacturing has struck a deal settling federal allegations that it failed to take adequate action after two women complained about sexual harassment at one of its plants. The charges, filed last year, alleged violations of Title VII, the federal law barring discrimination based on race, color, sex, national origin or religion. According to the […]
A controversial effort to tweak Pennsylvania’s prevailing-wage law has cleared a key hurdle. The Democratic-controlled state House this week passed
Federal funds are boosting plans to transform the banks of the Codorus Creek in York. The York County Economic Alliance has landed a $15 million infrastructure grant to help pay for the transformation plan, known as the Codorus Greenway project. “It’s certainly a big chunk, and it definitely helps propel the project,” said Kevin Schreiber, CEO of […]
Insurers could soon be facing a new requirement if they want to sell policies through Pennsylvania’s subsidized health insurance marketplace, known as Pennie. The operator of the marketplace is proposing a regulation that would require insurers to become accredited in health equity. The Pennsylvania Health Insurance Exchange Authority argues that health equity is a “well-recognized […]
A state review panel signed off June 20 on rules designed to make it easier for people with criminal records to earn professional licenses. The approval is one of the final steps needed before the rules take effect. The Department of State, which oversees professional licensing in Pennsylvania, first proposed the rules in 2022. They […]
A state agency is showering about $7.4 million on Central Pennsylvania developers and nonprofits aiming to alleviate the shortage of affordable housing and combat homelessness. The grants announced this month by the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency range in size locally from less than $50,000 to an award of $500,000, which is being given to a construction company […]
Accenture, which has landed some big-ticket state contracts, has opened an office in downtown Harrisburg at 20 N. Second St. The international professional services firm is leasing about 3,100 square feet on two floors of the building, which is also home to lobbying and communications firm Bravo Group. Accenture, which also has an office in Philadelphia, […]
In a party-line vote, a House panel approved legislation on June 12 to exempt Pennsylvania sales taxes from so-called swipe fees — the fees assessed to process transactions involving credit cards. Fourteen Democrats on the committee voted for the legislation, House Bill 2394, while 11 Republicans were opposed. The exemption would mean that on a $1 […]
Pennsylvania banks and credit unions are pushing back on proposed state legislation that would exempt the sales-tax portion of retail purchases from so-called swipe or interchange fees — the fees charged by financial services companies for processing credit card payments. The fees are typically 1% to 3% of a transaction. Under the exemption, on a […]
State officials are taking another crack at finalizing proposed rules that would make it easier for Pennsylvania residents with criminal records to earn professional licenses in fields ranging from accounting and nursing to cosmetology and real estate. The Department of State, which oversees professional licensure, issued a revised version of the rules this month after an earlier draft […]
Contractors and some lawmakers are pushing back against efforts to change how Pennsylvania officials apply prevailing wage law, which sets
In a ruling handed down last week, a Pennsylvania court overturned an effort by health officials to recall hundreds of vaping products previously approved for use in the state’s medical marijuana program. The controversial recall, ordered in February 2022 by the Pennsylvania Department of Health, was tantamount to a regulation, according to the ruling in […]
In a regulatory proposal published this month, Pennsylvania tax collectors are offering up a revised definition of business income, a move that sounds innocuous on its face. But observers question whether the new definition would do more than just clarify which corporate profits are subject to state taxation. The proposed changes, the observers say, could […]
An Atlanta-based IT staffing company has settled federal claims that it failed to protect confidential health information after Pennsylvania officials hired the company to oversee contact tracing during the Covid-19 pandemic. The company, Insight Global LLC, has agreed to pay $2.7 million to resolve allegations that its handling of data violated the federal False Claims Act, […]
Following a flurry of comments from customers and consumer advocates, state utility regulators altered the penalties imposed on electric utility PPL Electric Utilities over billing issues that led to overcharges for some customers, among other problems. In a 3-2 vote on April 25, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission approved a settlement agreement requiring PPL to provide more […]
State officials may be taking another swing at drafting rules designed to make it easier for people with criminal records to earn professional licenses in Pennsylvania. That’s because a regulatory review panel gave the latest version a thumbs down at a meeting last week. Members of the Independent Regulatory Review Commission were concerned about some […]
A Harrisburg lobbying firm has formed a business affiliation with a Philadelphia-area law firm. Under the arrangement, lobbying shop The DT Firm and law firm Lamb McErlane will refer clients to each other, said Joel Frank, chairman and managing partner of Lamb McErlane. While many law firms have created in-house lobbying divisions over the last few years, Lamb McErlane […]
The bankrupt property owner trying to sell Governor’s Square apartments in Harrisburg has complained in the past that the city of Harrisburg is thwarting its sales effort, and it’s now asking a bankruptcy judge to intervene. In a court filing last week, Maryland-based Uptown Partners LP asked a judge to order the city to “cease and desist from […]
York County Judge Steven Stambaugh has been suspended without pay in the wake of federal allegations that he orchestrated an unemployment fraud scheme at his York-based personal-injury law firm, Stambaugh Law PC. The suspension was handed down yesterday by the state’s court of judicial discipline following a motion from the state judicial conduct board, th “The […]
A potential deal is on the table for Spring Gate Winery in suburban Harrisburg. A buyer named Nitin Patel has offered $2.8 million for the winery, whose parent company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in May, according to court records. The offer sets a floor for other potential bidders in a bankruptcy auction slated to unfold this […]
Inch & Co. is appealing a York County court ruling that blocks the company from building a warehouse on land south of Route 30 in Manchester Township. The move continues a nearly two-year-old battle over the 52.7-acre site, which borders the Prospect Hill Cemetery. Some neighbors have opposed the warehouse plans since they became public, […]
Insurers do not have to cover lost revenue for businesses that were forced to shut down during the early weeks of the Covid-19 pandemic. That’s according to a ruling handed down yesterday by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in a class-action lawsuit originally filed in Allegheny County court by a dental practice. The decision resolves conflicts between lower […]
The bankruptcy sale of Spring Gate Winery is facing some headwinds. In legal filings this month, two lenders came out against the reorganization plan filed by the Harrisburg-area winery’s parent company, Schoffstall Farm LLC. At issue is the distribution of the proceeds from a sale of the winery, should a buyer be found. One lender, Horizon Farm Credit, is objecting to […]
The city of Harrisburg is asking a federal court to dismiss the bankruptcy case of Uptown Partners LP, the Maryland-based owner of the Governor’s Square apartment complex in uptown Harrisburg In a filing last month, the city argues that the deteriorating apartment complex is “unlikely” to find a buyer and that state court would be a […]
Noncompete clauses were the focus when federal regulators moved to outlaw most of them earlier this year. But there are other employment provisions that can have the same “functional effect” as noncompetes, according to the Federal Trade Commission. And one subtype of those provisions is coming under scrutiny in Pennsylvania. They are provisions that require […]
The legal roller coaster continues for a York County winery fighting with neighbors over its ability to continue operating. In a ruling last week, a York County judge allowed Moon Dancer Vineyards & Winery to reopen this past weekend while the fight plays out in a state appeals court. It is the second time the winery has […]
Harrisburg officials are allegedly hindering the sale of a beleaguered apartment complex in the city’s uptown neighborhood, according to claims raised in federal bankruptcy court by the complex’s owner, Uptown Partners LP. At issue is a list of roughly 600 crucial code violations at the affordable-housing complex, known as Governor’s Square City officials have not shared […]
A York County winery overlooking the Susquehanna River is being forced to close for the second time this year following new rulings in a long-running legal dispute with neighbors who argue the winery violates restrictive covenants governing use of the property. Moon Dancer Vineyards & Winery must cease operations by July 18, according to an order […]
McNees, a regional law firm based in Harrisburg, has named Sara Reohr as its CFO, a new leadership role for the firm. A CPA by training, Reohr was previously a vice president and division controller for Select Medical, a Mechanicsburg-based rehab chain. At McNees, Reohr will oversee strategic financial initiatives. “As a growing and evolving firm, […]
Moon Dancer Vineyards & Winery is poised to reopen this weekend following a court order rescinding an earlier ruling that closed the 50-acre winery and event venue overlooking the Susquehanna River in Lower Windsor Township, York County. The winery shut down June 9 after it lost a six-year land-use battle with neighbors who claim the business violated restrictive […]
Moon Dancer Vineyards & Winery, a winery and event venue overlooking the Susquehanna River in Lower Windsor Township, York County, was forced to close as of June 9 as the result of a court order in a six-year-old legal battle between winery owner Jim Miller and neighboring homeowners Matthew Balsavage and Amanda Perko. In a […]
In a lawsuit filed May 31, a federal consumer watchdog is alleging that the Harrisburg-based Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency misled student borrowers into thinking they still owed money after their student loans were discharged through bankruptcy. The crux of the lawsuit is a distinction between two types of student loans — those that can […]
In a ruling handed down last week, a Pennsylvania court overturned an effort by health officials to recall hundreds of
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case involving application of prevailing wages to a $17.2 million build-to-lease
A Dauphin County winery and related businesses have filed for bankruptcy as they look for a buyer for their operations. Spring Gate Winery parent company Schoffstall Farm LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on May 14 after experiencing six-figure losses in 2021 and 2022, according to a petition before U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of […]
As it gears up for a move to Philadelphia, Harsco has unloaded its longtime Wormleysburg headquarters this year for $4.3 million. However, the roughly 42,000 square-foot building will remain a corporate headquarters.A partnership that includes Lemoyne-based Rhodes Development Group bought the building and plans to move there, along with two of its operating divisions, according to Larry Kluger, president and […]
Graham Engineering, a York-based equipment maker, has purchased a Berks County company with a complementary business. Graham Engineering makes machinery used in producing — or extruding — plastic parts ranging from car bumpers to catheters.Its new acquisition, Birdsboro-based Kennedy Tool & Die, specializes in making molds and tooling used in plastics-manufacturing processes called blow molding, rim […]
The bankruptcy case of Armstrong Flooring is nearing its end. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Mary Walrath approved the sale yesterday of the company’s North American assets to Mountville-based flooring manufacturer AHF Products and Boston-based Gordon Brothers. An AHF spokesperson said yesterday the company hopes to close on the $107 million deal by next Friday, July 22. Then what: AHF will […]
After disclosing buyers for some of its operations in North America, Armstrong Flooring has unveiled deals to sell its remaining businesses. In a news release July 11, the company identified buyers for its operations in Australia and China. Who: The Australian assets — including a factory in Braeside, Victoria — are going to a group of companies identified […]
After two months in bankruptcy, Armstrong Flooring is on the verge of dealing its way out. The Lancaster-based manufacturer said yesterday it has agreed to sell its North American assets to a consortium that includes AHF Products, a former division of Armstrong Flooring. Mountville-based AHF and Boston-based Gordon Brothers have agreed to pay $107 million in cash and assume unspecified liabilities […]
Armstrong Flooring has once again pushed back the deadline for wrapping up a sale. The Lancaster-based manufacturer now expects to finalize a sale by a court hearing slated for Tuesday, July 12.In a statement issued early on Friday, July 8, a company spokesperson said the company has finalized a deal to sell its operations in […]
Mobile Climate Control, which already has a distribution Center in York County, is consolidating all of its U.S. operations at a new facility in West Manchester Township.
The Conrad Co. is the name of a new holding company unveiled this year by Penn-Air & Hydraulics Corp., a growing manufacturing services company based in Springettsbury Township, York County. The holding company encompasses PennAir, a company acquired by PennAir in 2019 and three other companies acquired since then, according to Seth Bray, the CEO of PennAir and […]
A state court has delivered a partial win for Pennsylvania in a year-old lawsuit seeking damages from ag giant Monsanto and related enitities over PCBs. An 84-page Commonwealth Court ruling on Dec. 30 swept aside six of Monsanto’s nine objections to the state lawsuit, paving the way for the next phase of litigation. Judges, however, did uphold two […]
After 15 years of leading York-based Royal Square Development and Construction, Josh Hankey is stepping into a new role at the
The former Bishop McDevitt High School in Harrisburg is on the market amid a dispute between its owner and its chief tenant, a development company led by a former NFL player. Owner Jeremy Hunter of William Penn Holdings Inc. announced the building was for sale in a Facebook post on May 24. The post has led […]
After a bruising legal battle to develop their land in Manheim Township, Lancaster County, the Hurst family has sold it to another developer. The family, which owns the Oregon Dairy supermarket and restaurant, sold the store’s land and building on May 10 to Jerry Horst and his sons, Mark and Chad, who operate Manheim Township-based Vanguard Development Group. […]
Adam Maust poured millions of dollars over the last four years into the Atlas Building, an edifice in Uptown Harrisburg that had fallen into disrepair by the time Maust bought it in 2020. He is now passing the torch to a new owner, a Harrisburg-based nonprofit called the Pennsylvania Social Equity Land Trust, which paid $14.5 […]
The founders of Inch & Co. are looking to raise $20 million from investors interested in backing the York-area company’s forays in multifamily housing. For the last 15 years, the company has leaned on its own resources, buttressed by capital from friends and family, said Jeff Inch, a co-founder and co-owner of Inch & Co. “Now […]
A new twist is complicating the bankruptcy case of Uptown Partners LP, the Maryland-based owner of Governor’s Square apartment complex in Uptown Harrisburg. The company managing the affordable-housing complex, Landex Management LLC, is asking the court to void its contract with Uptown Partners, arguing that the owner is not providing enough resources to manage the beleaguered property […]
A buyer with a growing portfolio of Pennsylvania shopping centers has added another one. A partnership led by Leo Ullman of New York-based retail developer Vastgood Properties paid $6.63 million at the end of April for Shippensburg Marketplace, according to Brad Rohrbaugh, executive vice president and retail director for York-based Bennett Williams Commercial. Rohrbaugh and […]
The potential buyers of a Lancaster County-based tiny-homes company are taking a new tack. Chase Packaging Corp., a New Jersey-based shell company, had been planning to take Tiny Estates LLC and two related entities public through a merger. The companies are led by CEO Abby Shank, a former KPMG auditor who started a tiny-home community outside Elizabethtown in 2018. But […]
When Penn Center Harrisburg hit the market in summer 2022, the asking price for the three-building complex was $22 million. The half-vacant property in the 2600 block of North Third Street ended up selling for $1.45 million late last month following the bankruptcy of its owner, Penn Center Harrisburg LP. The buyer is an affiliate of Pennmark, […]
Over the last few weeks, real estate agents have begun bracing for the end of a common practice in home sales. It’s not the 6% commission, which agents argue is something of a misconception. It is the ability to signal that a homebuyer’s agent will be paid from the proceeds of a sale along with […]
It could be another four weeks before a bankruptcy court decides the fate of the beleaguered Governor’s Square apartment complex in uptown Harrisburg. The court had been scheduled to hold a hearing April 2 on a proposed sale of the 222-unit complex But the hearing has now been moved to April 30 at the request of the […]
A regional nonprofit is poised to spin off its senior-living operations to a larger peer based in Missouri. Topton-based Diakon, which has a finance and support center in Middletown, has agreed to merge its senior-living subsidiary into St. Louis-based Lutheran Senior Services. Terms of the transaction, expected to close this summer, were not disclosed. “This was a […]
About a dozen years ago, several members of East Chestnut Street Mennonite Church in Lancaster banded together to start a
A court hearing on the bankruptcy sale of Governor’s Square apartment complex in uptown Harrisburg had been scheduled for Feb. 29. However, it has been moved to April 2 per an order from Chief Bankruptcy Judge Henry Van Eck of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. Why is this happening: The […]
Federal housing officials are objecting to the proposed sale of Governor’s Square, a beleaguered Harrisburg apartment complex whose owner declared bankruptcy last year In a court filing this week, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development argues there are not enough guarantees that the potential deal will preserve the complex’s status as affordable housing. […]
A tiny-home startup in Lancaster County is poised for the big time. A publicly traded shell company has agreed to buy Tiny Estates LLC and two related companies, Endeavor Tiny Homes LLC and Tiny Communities Fund LLC. The companies are led by CEO Abby Shank, a former KPMG auditor-turned-entrepreneur who started a tiny-home community outside Elizabethtown in 2018. Shank, who went on to […]
Lancaster-area officials, nonprofit executives and business leaders gathered yesterday to mark the next step in a nearly four-year journey to redevelop the former UPMC Lancaster campus along College Avenue. Nonprofit developer HDC MidAtlantic broke ground Feb. 7 on the first phase of redevelopment — a $23 million, 64-unit affordable-apartment building at 213 College Ave., the site of a vacant […]
As part of his budget proposal for the state’s next fiscal year, Gov. Josh Shapiro is offering a remedy to the shortage of ready-for-business industrial spaces in Pennsylvania. It is a $500 million, bond-funded expansion of PA SITES, a program the governor rolled out last year on a pilot basis with $10 million in funding. […]
Over the last decade, Anne Kirby transformed The Candy Factory from an object of curiosity into a beacon of community. This year — the 10th anniversary of the Lancaster coworking space — was poised to be its best yet, she said. Then, in mid-March, Kirby began the difficult process of winding it down, even before […]
The consultants at Work Wisdom were used to the video-conferencing app Zoom, the instant-messaging service Slack and other tech tools that connect people remotely. The team at Work Wisdom in Lancaster, from left: Mary Alice Fallon Feskey; Jamie Arroyo; Kate Coleman; Donunshae Sanders; Kedren Crosby; Kimberlee Peifer; Sarah Colantonio; Randy Berridge; and Anne Parmer. (PHOTO/SUBMITTED) […]
Sam Beiler and Jared Neff had been drawing up growth plans for their Lancaster-based startup, but the Covid-19 pandemic dashed their forays into raising outside capital. Now, their goal is to begin generating a profit more quickly. “That’s kind of the mindset of any startup right now,” said Beiler, co-founder and CEO of a social […]
Among the first to raise alarms for JPL was its small staff in New York City. As the first cases of Covid-19 were appearing in the Big Apple in early March, JPL’s four New York employees said they wanted to work from home. Luke Kempski is president of JPL, a multimedia production and marketing company […]
Carl Helrich enjoys a glass of wine among the barrels at Allegro Winery in Chanceford Township, York County. PHOTO/SUBMITTED Carl Helrich took over Allegro Winery on Sept. 10, 2001. Family and hard work got him through the economic contraction that followed the terrorist attacks the very next day. He has been having flashbacks to those […]
In early March, as the coronavirus spread into Pennsylvania, Wolfgang Confectioners beefed up its already strict regimen for sanitation and cleaning. Employees at work in a Wolfgang Confectioners plant in Loganville, York County. PHOTO/SUBMITTED “People are constantly washing their hands. We have uniform changes on a regular basis, so there’s a lot of things that […]
A warm winter this year was good for business at Bill Anskis Co. Inc., a construction firm based in Elysburg, a little more than an hour north of Harrisburg. Mark Anskis stands outside the closed offices of Bill Anskis Co. Inc., a construction firm based in Elysburg, north of Harrisburg. He is a co-owner of […]