Subscribe to our newsletters!

The Latest News

Banking & Finance

Fulton to shutter 19 branches

Fulton Financial is closing 19 branches in southeastern Pennsylvania, South Jersey and New York City three months after the bank’s emergency acquisition of failed Philadelphia lender Republic First Bank, a deal that deepened Fulton’s reach in the state’s largest market. Lancaster-based Fulton is closing 13 of its own branches and six former Republic branches, according to Fulton spokesperson […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Adams, York county banks forge $73.5M deal

After a run of more than 20 years, Traditions Bank in York County has agreed to be acquired by ACNB Corp., a Gettysburg-based institution aiming to push eastward into York and Lancaster counties. The all-stock deal, expected to close in the first quarter of 2025, is valued at $73.5 million. The combined bank would have assets of $3.3 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Orrstown cutting jobs post-merger, but execs see growth ahead

Orrstown Financial Services is shedding about 135 jobs as part of its recently closed merger with Codorus Valley Bancorp, with the majority of the cuts landing in back-office areas such as marketing, technology, finance and risk management, according to bank executives. The cuts stem from overlapping operations of the two banks, Tom Quinn, Orrstown’s president and CEO, […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Stake in Rock Lititz company poised to change hands

Goldman Sachs Alternatives, a private equity arm of New York-based finance giant Goldman Sachs, has agreed to purchase a majority stake in TAIT, a live-entertainment production company based at Rock Lititz in Lancaster County. The seller is private equity firm Providence Equity Partners , which has had a stake in TAIT since 2019. Terms of the deal, which […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

PennSpring-backed firm scoops up virtual paralegal service

Zirtual, a portfolio company of Lancaster-based investment firm PennSpring Capital, is branching out. The virtual-assistant service has acquired Del.Trust, a company that offers virtual paralegal services to attorneys and law firms nationwide. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Del.Trust founder Jaclyn Foster is joining Zirtual as president of its newly established paralegal services division. “She is […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Select Medical’s workplace health unit files for IPO

Concentra, the occupational health subsidiary of Mechanicsburg-based rehab chain Select Medical, filed last week for an initial public offering of stock, though many of the details remain to be filled in — including the timing and share price for the IPO. Nonetheless, the filing presents a fairly detailed overview of Concentra, its operations and its outlook on the […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Startup nonprofit in Lancaster aims to persuade

Drew Mousetis understands the benefits of employee ownership. As a lead consultant for employee-owned software company Cargas in Lancaster, he enjoyed a sense of financial security that allowed him and his wife to purchase a new home in Lancaster County where they are raising their four young children. “You just can’t really put a value […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

House panel OKs controversial swipe-fee legislation

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 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Banks, retailers spar over swipe-fee legislation

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 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Lanco financial firm merges with Denver peer

The slowdown in home lending has challenged banks and mortgage brokers over the last year. But it has created opportunities for the firms that offer them advice and technology to improve their operations. It is those opportunities that helped spur a merger for Teraverde, a financial software and consulting company based in East Hempfield Township Lancaster […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Inch & Co. launches $20M real estate fund

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 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Bank to form holding company

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 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Regional benefits firms merge

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 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Camp Hill bank to shed NJ branches

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, […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Amid improving finances, college misses bond payment

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 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Fulton buys failed Philly bank

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 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

York adopts new financing tool for green projects

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 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

First Dauphin branch in the works for F&M Trust

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 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Harrisburg greenlights residential rehab project

Harrisburg city council this week unanimously approved acompany’s plans to convert a long-vacant building at 100 N. 13th St. into 12 apartments in a renovation project valued at $900,000, according to city records. Erected in 1922, the roughly 11,580-square-foot building is a former publishing company office that has been vacant for decades, according to Jarred […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Townhomes coming to former hospital site

Miami-based homebuilding giant Lennar is ramping up construction of new townhomes on the site of a former Lancaster city hospital. Lennar plans to build 53 townhomes behind a former UPMC/St. Joseph’s hospital on College Avenue in the city’s West End neighborhood. Dubbed The Towns at West End, the townhome community will feature three-story units starting at 1,872 square […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Data center plans roil Dauphin County township

For nearly two years, officials and residents in South Hanover Township, Dauphin County, have been debating ground rules for data centers, large buildings full of computer equipment used in artificial intelligence and related applications. Now, with the ordinance still in draft form, the township is being asked to consider plans for a pair of data centers […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

State grants fund regional housing projects

Harrisburg nonprofit Wildheart is gearing up to break ground next month on a $3.3 million mixed-use project that will bring nine affordable apartments to Allison Hill, one of the state capital’s poorest neighborhoods. The nonprofit is laying plans for a similar project nearby — and just landed $200,000 in state grants as a kickstart. Wildheart is one […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Apartments on tap for West York Borough

York-area developers are nearing the finish line on approvals for building a 60-unit apartment building in West York Borough. The project recently won key zoning variances and could wrap up the land development process by the end of this summer, according to one of the developers, Jordan Ilyes, who has worked on other multifamily projects […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

‘More and more invigorated’: Local exec reflects on new book, ongoing mission

Bob Whalen felt like he was pitching a pipe dream when he first began describing employee ownership to companies he was hoping to fold into HB Global, a Mechanicsburg-based HVAC contractor that has been employee-owned since 2010. But over more than a decade, the pipe dream has turned 30 employee-owners into millionaires and allowed hundreds […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

State loan backs $17.2M office project in Lancaster County

Nearly four months after they started construction on a shared headquarters near Mount Joy, two Lancaster County companies landed a low-interest state loan to cover a portion of the nearly $17.2 million price tag. State officials said yesterday they approved a $2.25 million loan to Strickler Investments LLC, a real estate affiliate of solar installer Paradise Energy […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Carlisle redevelopment project gets more state aid

Pennsylvania is earmarking additional funding for the cleanup of a former industrial site in Carlisle slated for a mixed-use redevelopment. The state has awarded $750,000 toward environmental remediation on the site of the former Frog Switch & Manufacturing plant at 600 E. High St. in the borough. The company closed in July 2023 after more than a […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

York developer unveils $4.6M hotel project

Another boutique hotel is coming to downtown York. Royal Square Development and Construction is unveiling plans for Mural Arts Hotel, a 20-room venue occupying a prominent, five-story building at 1 S. George St. on York’s Continental Square. It’s the first hotel project for York-based Royal Square, which has focused previously on retail and multifamily developments in […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Self-storage coming to former furniture store on West Shore

People used to swing by the former N.B. Liebman store on the Carlisle Pike in search of stuff that they wanted to fit inside their homes. They will soon be able to use the building to store stuff that doesn’t fit. An investor group led by developer Drew Bobincheck paid about $6.7 million for the […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Shapiro seeks conditions on lucrative tax break for data centers

Following up on a promise he made earlier this year, Gov. Josh Shapiro yesterday unveiled the details of a fast track for data centers seeking state permits. In return for a speedier review, developers would have to meet minimum standards for protecting the environment, benefiting communities and creating jobs. The governor’s pitch includes a stick […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

As sales fall, flooring firm files bankruptcy

A Harrisburg-area flooring supplier is heading for liquidation. Frontier Surfaces filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in mid-April after seeing its revenue cut by two-thirds in 2025, according to legal filings. It’s unclear what triggered the filing. Efforts to reach company founder and owner Scott Appel and his bankruptcy attorney were not successful. But the flooring industry, […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Court backs prevailing wages in build-to-lease deal

Pennsylvania’s top court reversed a lower court ruling in a case involving prevailing wages, a form of minimum pay applied to government-funded construction projects Commonwealth Court ruled in 2023 that prevailing wages should not apply to the construction of a building leased to the Pennsylvania State Police. But the decision was overturned this week by […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Township OKs apartments at suburban York mall

Local officials signed off last week on a 98-unit apartment building slated to rise on a parking lot at the York Galleria shopping mall in suburban York. At a meeting Thursday night, supervisors in Springettsbury Township approved subdivision and land development plans for the four-story building, dubbed Signature Flats at Galleria. “We were pleased with […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Mixed-use makeover of former Dentsply campus nets state grant

Projects in Lancaster and York are among a handful that snagged a share of state funding from a $10 million pilot program designed to encourage mixed-use developments with housing components around the state. The Redevelopment Authority of the City of York landed nearly $1.6 million toward the rehabilitation of a sprawling campus along the Codorus Creek that […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Apartment conversion on tap for York city

After converting a former bakery into apartments, a pair of developers are moving on to their next residential conversion in York city. Kinsley Properties and Royal Square are collaborating on a roughly $5.1 million project to transform what was once a refrigerated warehouse into 20 affordable one-bedroom apartments. The project also calls for about 750 square feet of street-level […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Digital marketing firm unveils $10.7M rehab plans for riverfront mansion

Digital marketing agency WebFx unveiled plans yesterday for renovating and expanding into a historic mansion along the Harrisburg riverfront. The Harrisburg-based company plans to spend $10.7 million on the project, which is unfolding inside the former Tracy Mansion at 1829 N. Front St. in the capital city. Based a block away at 1705 N. Front St., WebFx […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Self-storage proposed for vacant Harrisburg office

A former office building at 1171 S. Cameron St. in Harrisburg could soon become a self-storage facility. Building owner Storage Five Harrisburg LLC has filed land development plans calling for conversion of the roughly 118,000-square-foot building into a self-storage facility with about 950 units. The construction work is expected to cost about $6.7 million, according to a resolution […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Can microgrants help fuel Harrisburg rebirth?

Plenty of people are willing to debate what it will take to rejuvenate downtown Harrisburg. Others may want to pick up a hammer or paint brush and make a concrete contribution to the revitalization effort that has been gathering steam over the last year. City and regional leaders hope to inspire the latter group through […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

PNC economist sees tests for consumer, corporate resilience

It will be no surprise if the Federal Reserve keeps interest rates flat after it ends a two-day meeting today. There is nothing flat about the rest of the economy, with oil prices spiking and U.S. tariffs still above their historical average. The risks, however, are primarily to the downside, according to Jay Hawkins, senior […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Caution greets tariff whiplash in wake of court ruling

As tariffs went up throughout 2025, sales went down for JLS Automation, a York County company that assembles automated packaging lines for the food industry. The company is expecting a rebound in 2026. But the comeback faces renewed uncertainty after a Supreme Court ruling Friday that struck down the bulk of President Donald Trump’s tariff regime. […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Leaders race to craft plans for closing Penn State campuses

As classes continue this year on Penn State‘s branch campus in York County, students aren’t the only ones with homework. Economic development leaders are racing to craft options for reusing the campus after it closes in May 2027. “Whether it’s Penn State or the community, the longer that the campus sits there with no active use, […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Forecaster sees tailwinds, headwinds buffeting US economy

The economic outlook for 2026 depends on a range of variables ranging from tariffs to the strength of the boom in artificial intelligence, according to Curtis Dubay, chief economist in the economic policy division at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “If we could ever get tariffs down, we get a better immigration system, we could really […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

PA population growth slows as immigration tumbles

Pennsylvania’s population grew a negligible 0.1% for the year ending July 1 as international immigration plummeted, according to initial estimates released yesterday by the U.S. Census. The data is the first from Census to show the impact of the Trump administration’s tightened approach to border security. Nearly 27,000 people came to the Keystone state from other […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Data center boom could squeeze labor supply, raise costs

Data centers need a lot of electricity. But they also need electricians — and pipefitters and steelworkers and HVAC specialists and general laborers, among others — to get them up and humming. Thus, the boom in data center construction is likely to squeeze the supply of labor in areas like Lancaster, where data center projects […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Apparel distributor shuttering York County warehouse

A specialty clothing distributor is shuttering a warehouse and laying off 128 workers in northern York County just over a year after taking over the building from its former owner. In a notice to state and local officials, Illinois-based S&S Activewear said it plans to close its distribution center at 600 Industrial Drive in Fairview Township by […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Distributor clears path to employee ownership

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 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

New visa policy could have local impact

Confusion is giving way to a bit of clarity as employers wrap their heads around a new Trump administration policy enacting steep fees on visas allowing foreign-born workers to hold jobs in the U.S. When the policy was announced on Friday, employers worried they might have to pay to bring current visa holders back into the […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Regional jobless rates tick up

As uncertainty over tariffs froze customer orders in the spring, JLS Automation in York County laid off 10% of its workforce. Business began to come back over the summer, JLS president and CEO Craig Souser said in an early August interview. The York-area company, which employs about 130 people, assembles automated packaging lines for food companies. “It’s […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

GOP lawmaker sets sights on ‘reasonable’ wage hike

A higher minimum wage could be moving to the front burner in Harrisburg thanks to a Republican state senator who is hoping for action on the issue this fall. It is not a new issue for the lawmaker, state Sen. Dan Laughlin of Erie County. He has backed increases in the past. But with economic […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Higher water, sewer rates sought

The York Water Co., which serves more than 212,000 people in Adams, Franklin, Lancaster and York counties, is asking state regulators for permission to raise rates for water and sewer service. Under the proposal, residential water customers would pay an additional $14.16 per month, while sewer service would go up by an average of $35.85 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Effort underway to boost downtown Harrisburg

State lawmakers, city officials and the Capital Region Economic Development Corp. are launching a joint effort to revive downtown Harrisburg, which has yet to recover fully from the Covid-19 pandemic. The partners plan to assemble a steering committee that will begin work “immediately” on a downtown revitalization plan. “Everyone agrees that we need to provide some […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Chamber plan ‘a starting point for collective action’

Pennsylvania’s economy has been shaken by the rise of manufacturing in China and a shift in the U.S. population to the South and Southwest. But there are still levers the state can pull to boost its fortunes, and that’s where the focus is for Luke Bernstein, president and CEO of the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Economic uncertainty weighs on regional M&A

Regional dealmakers came to life in the second half of 2024 as interest rates came down. Nonetheless, the volume of mergers and acquisitions in Central and southeastern Pennsylvania fell last year for the third year in a row, according to an annual report by professional services firm RKL LLP. This year began on an active note, according […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Shapiro, lawmakers ramp up push for energy plan

State lawmakers yesterday began to put some legislative meat on the bones of an energy plan unveiled in January by Gov. Josh Shapiro. The lawmakers issued a series of memos seeking sponsors for elements of the six-point plan, which is designed to lower prices, speed up construction of new power sources and encourage environmentally friendly forms […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Tariff uncertainty rattles factory sector

When tariffs took effect last week, leaders at JLS Automation decided to hold off a few days on importing a piece of equipment due in from Canada. It was not the threat of the tariffs as much as it was the potential for congestion at the border as shippers tried to avoid the extra charges, said Craig […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Supply deal bolsters wood-to-gas startup

As it finalizes plans for its first refinery, a Pennsylvania startup aiming to make vehicle gasoline from wood has forged a key agreement with a regional fuel supplier. Tioga County-based Woodland Biomass Innovations has signed a memorandum of understanding with Shipley Energy committing the York-based distributor to buy and distribute up to 100% of Woodland’s output for five years. […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

AI meets executive coaching

As leadership coach Chad Harvey came to grips with the potential for AI to change everything, he started learning as much as he could about the technology. Then he started using it to build tools. “Not just your standard chatbot-type things but really investing in the technology in ways that meaningfully enhanced the work that […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Lancaster-area startup brings better data to racquet sports

When John Weinlader was learning to swing a golf club, simulators generated plenty of information that helped him hone his approach and figure out if he was making progress. Tennis, not so much. “I had no way of knowing if I was improving,” Weinlader said. After he and his brother sold their two Lancaster-area companies […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Lancaster beverage startup plots recovery after production setback

Dr. Jordan Balencic raised nearly $1.7 million for ERApeutics LLC, a Lancaster-based beverage startup he co-founded in 2018 with his wife, Tessa. But after a costly series of production setbacks, exacerbated by the post-pandemic supply chain squeeze of the early 2020s, he didn’t think he could raise more. Nonetheless, he was not ready to pack it […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Collaborative seeks coordinated system to bolster innovation, entrepreneurship in PA

Keystone Innovation Collaborative, a York-based nonprofit that aims to sweep away barriers frustrating entrepreneurship in Pennsylvania, held a launch event last week at its new home, a former coworking space overlooking Continental Square in downtown York. The nonprofit’s general goal is to make it easier for entrepreneurs statewide to find the capital, connections and other resources they […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Beyond bankruptcy: Cookie entrepreneurs pin hopes on protein, ice cream, ecommerce

In fall 2024, Doug and Sara Taylor traveled to Philadelphia to open the first of two stores in the city for their Lancaster-based cookie company, Taylor Chip. The stores were opening 18 months later than expected, and the Taylors had taken on seven–figure debt to keep things moving. But they were hopeful it would all work […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

West Shore Home launches in New England

Mechanicsburg-based home improvement contractor West Shore Home is moving into New England with the opening of its first branch in the region. The office in the Boston suburb of Franklin, Massachusetts, will cover an area encompassing most of Massachusetts as well as parts of Connecticut, New Hampshire and Rhode Island. Founded in 2006, West Shore […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Recycling biz expands York-area operations

Over the last several years, Utah-based waste collector recyclops has been sending plastic to a small plant in York city that converts the waste into a building material. In September, recyclops launched its own operation in the region. “We just needed more space to move our elbows,” said recyclops founder and CEO Ryan Smith. Where is this […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

York-area entrepreneurs plan indoor climbing gym

A small retail building near the York Galleria mall in Springettsbury Township, York County, is heading for a makeover. Entrepreneurs Hale and Kate Milano are converting the property at 1955 Whiteford Road/1201 Memory Lane into one of the region’s first dedicated indoor rock-climbing facilities. It’ll be called Off Grid Climbing & Fitness. Avid climbers, the Milanos […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Startups supporting seniors, caregivers draw spotlight

By 2030, the youngest baby boomers will be 65 years old. With 74 million people in this group, coupled with a worsening physician shortage, the need for tech innovation to address care gaps is critical. To address this need, Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Central and Northern Pennsylvania (Ben Franklin CNP) hosted the AgeTech Techcelerator […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Plastics recycler cleans up at York ballpark

Fans at WellSpan Park this summer found new places to pitch their plastic spoons, water bottles and other plastic items. The home of the York Revolution baseball team set up bins to collect plastics under a partnership with CRDC Materials, a Costa Rica-based plastics recycler with an operation in York city. CRDC takes the plastic to its plant, shreds […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Lititz yogurt maker closes seven-figure seed round

Painterland Sisters, an organic yogurt maker based in Lititz, just raked in a seven-figure sum from a bevy of investors, according to company spokesperson Chloe Schwartz. Schwartz declined to share the precise amount raised in the seed funding round, which was disclosed yesterday. But the money will provide working capital to support innovation and operations for […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

West Shore startup lands venture funding

Mark Small and Brad Curran quit their day jobs in 2022 so they could devote more time to their Mechanicsburg-based startup, which is developing cutting-edge strength-training equipment. The company, Poseidon Strength, closed its first sale in May 2024 and has now landed its first financing outside of friends and family. York-based venture capital firm White Rose Ventures has […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Spring Grove firm tees up software for national sales

After nearly a decade of fine tuning, a Spring Grove software company believes its main product is ready for prime time. CFA Solutions debuted an early version of the software — designed to root out errors in the manufacturing process — in 2017. The company spent the last few years testing it with local manufacturers. But […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

York winemaker partners with Harrisburg-area distiller

The expanded opportunity to sell canned cocktails in Pennsylvania has lured another player into the market. Carl Helrich, owner of York County-based Allegro Wine Co. LLC, has become a minority partner in Spring Gate Spirits LLC, a Harrisburg-area distillery founded by entrepreneur Martin Schoffstall. Helrich has been named president of the distiller, and its operations are moving […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Urban greenhouse firm tied to York project among winners in new PA grant program

Local farms and businesses — including a Harrisburg-area company involved in an urban greenhouse in York — landed thousands of dollars in state grants from a new program designed to spur innovation in agriculture. The grants were unveiled yesterday by state officials during a press conference at a Lancaster County farm. Why is this happening: […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Startup aims to bring soccer back to Harrisburg

Professional soccer is returning to Harrisburg’s City Island. A startup called Capital City Sports Group is launching a team called the Capital City Islanders that will compete this spring in a division of the United Premier Soccer League, a semiprofessional development league. The idea was born from conversations among people who missed seeing outdoor pro soccer in […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Regional lawn-care company sold

Green Image Lawn Care, a regional lawn-care company with offices in York and Lancaster counties, has been acquired by LawnPRO Partners, a platform backed by HCI Equity Partners, a private equity firm based in Washington, D.C. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Green Image is led by Luke Zimmerman and Ryan Freed, who are continuing to […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Another reporting requirement looms for PA biz

Business owners are slowly waking up to a new reporting requirement in Pennsylvania. Under the requirement, businesses of nearly every stripe must report annually to the Pennsylvania Department of State their names, addresses and principal officers, among other things. It is separate from the federal reporting requirement enacted under the Corporate Transparency Act — a law […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Investment Real Estate Group of Companies

Anagerlie Pichardo has been named a senior staff accountant at the Investment Real Estate Group of Companies, a York-based operator of self-storage facilities. Pichardo will support Kyle Eichelberger, the company’s controller, as well as train and develop staff accountants. She also will maintain financial procedures and confirm financial compliance while building cross-functional relationships throughout the […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Saxton & Stump

Sara Arndt has been promoted to vice president of success and operations at Lancaster-based law firm Saxton & Stump. She had been senior director of success and integration. In her new role, she will continue to support the firm’s growth, including a focus on lateral recruiting. She also will work directly with the CEO and […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Energy Association of Pennsylvania

Andrew Tubbs has been named president and CEO of the Energy Association of Pennsylvania, a Harrisburg-based trade group that represents regulated electric and natural gas distribution companies. Effective Jan. 27, he succeeds Terrance Fitzpatrick, who retired after 15 years with the association. Tubbs has more than 20 years of experience in the energy industry, including […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

CEO departs Mechanicsburg-based donut chain

Four years after taking the helm at Duck Donuts, Betsy Hamm has resigned. Hamm had led the Mechanicsburg-based donut shop franchisor as CEO since it sold a majority stake in April 2021 to NewSpring Capital, a private equity firm based in Radnor. “Duck Donuts appreciates Hamm’s leadership she provided throughout her years with the company,” said a company […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

PA joins new deal to settle opioid claims against Purdue, Sacklers

State attorneys general, including Pennsylvania’s newly installed Dave Sunday, are taking another crack at settling opioid-related claims against bankrupt drugmaker Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family that owns it. In an announcement yesterday, Sunday and other attorneys general said they reached a $7.4 billion settlement in principle with the company and the family. The deal does not […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Developer backs off solar project in suburban Harrisburg

A Boston-based developer has withdrawn plans for a small solar array on a vacant tract in Lower Paxton Township, Dauphin County, according to a township spokesperson. Nyes Run LLC, a subsidiary of Boston-based solar developer BlueWave, was pitching a 3-megawatt solar array for a vacant tract south of Devonshire Road and east of Jonestown Road. But the […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Penn State Health

Teresa Swenson was named administrative vice president of musculoskeletal services at Penn State Health effective Dec. 16. Swenson will oversee strategic initiatives for the musculoskeletal service line alongside physician leader Dr. April Armstrong, chair of the orthopedics and rehabilitation department at Penn State Health. Swenson will collaborate with hospitals and medical groups in the regional […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Fulton closing 15 branches

Fulton Financial is closing 15 branches this spring, including three in York County, in a move described by a Fulton spokesperson as aligning the bank’s services with trends in customer behavior. Like its peers, the Lancaster-based bank is seeing growth in the use of online and digital tools — reducing the need for physical branches […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Regulators spurn requests to revisit permit for hydro project

In a brief notice yesterday, federal energy regulators denied petitions asking them to reconsider their approval of a preliminary permit for a controversial hydroelectric project in York County. The permit was issued last fall to York Energy Storage, a Reading-based company proposing a $2.3 billion pumped-storage energy facility along the Susquehanna River in Chanceford Township. The permit gives […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Bank claims could complicate recovery for ATM investors

Investors hoping to recover money from Lancaster-based ATM operator Paramount Management Group are facing a new hurdle. In a legal filing this month, a Berks County bank claims it has a stake in some of Paramount’s ATMs, as well as any revenue they may be generating. Customers Bank is asking a Lancaster County judge to stay an earlier […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

York firm buys self-storage properties in NY state

Investment Real Estate LLC, an arm of the York-based Investment Real Estate Group of Companies, has acquired three family-owned self-storage sites in Rome, New York — which is near Syracuse. The company plans to operate the new facilities under its Moove In Self Storage brand. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The three sites add 659 storage units and 83,380 square feet […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Boyer & Ritter

Regional accounting and advisory firm Boyer & Ritter promoted nine staff members, including two new managers, two new supervisors and five new senior associates. James Farano and Geneka Zechman were promoted to manager. Farano, who joined Boyer & Ritter in 2019, provides accounting and auditing services for government clients. He has an associate degree in […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Saxton & Stump

Christopher Conner, a former chief judge for the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, has joined Saxton & Stump as a shareholder and co-chair of the law firm’s investigation and criminal defense group and its appellate and post-trial advocacy group. He also will help clients as a mediator for Saxton & Stump affiliate Optimal […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Apartment-ready tract near E-town fetches $8.7M

One of the nation’s largest apartment operators has scooped up a development-ready tract in northwestern Lancaster County. An affiliate of Greystar paid nearly $8.7 million for the tract, which is poised to house an 11-building, 280-unit apartment complex, according to county deed records. The seller was 1376 Campus Road Associates LLC, an affiliate of Catalyst Commercial Development, a West […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Brown Plus

Accounting and advisory firm Brown Plus promoted nine team members effective Jan. 1. Kyle Bushong was promoted to audit manager. He has more than seven years of public accounting experience providing audit services to governmental entities, school-related entities and nonprofit organizations. He has a bachelor’s degree in accounting and an MBA from Shippensburg University. He […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Saxton & Stump

Kathryn Maza Courtney has been promoted to senior counsel at Saxton & Stump, a Lancaster-based law firm, effective Jan. 1. Courtney contributes to the firm’s healthcare litigation, appellate and post-trial advocacy, and investigations and criminal defense groups. Before joining Saxton & Stump, she worked at Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP. Before moving into […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Trout CPA

Robert Firely joined Trout CPA as a partner effective Jan. 6. Firely was most recently a senior vice president at M&A advisory firm Murphy McCormack Capital Advisors. Before that, he was CFO and chief administrative officer for Triose, a healthcare-focused logistics company in Berks County. He has a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Penn State and has […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Millions in state grants land on local projects

After a hiatus of about 20 months, Pennsylvania is back in the RACP business. That would be the Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program, a grant initiative that regularly hands money to high-profile community and economic development projects around the state. State officials disclosed the latest round of grants yesterday. The last RACP announcements came in November 2024. […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Lawmakers topple barrier to Penn State campus sales

Soon after Penn State announced last year that it would close seven branch campuses across Pennsylvania, questions swirled about what was next for the properties. A question also arose about Penn State’s freedom to divest the campuses, at least to something besides another school. While the larger question of “what’s next” remains unsettled, state lawmakers answered the narrower […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Township hits pause on data centers

At a meeting this week, supervisors in a York County township passed an ordinance saying they will not accept any applications from data center developers for the next 180 days. The moratorium in Conewago Township comes amid speculation about potential data center development in the municipality, as well as efforts to draft rules to fill […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Court upholds rejection of West Shore warehouse expansion

Officials in Silver Spring Township were justified in denying plans to expand a warehouse on a former IBM campus between Carlisle and Mechanicsburg, a state appeals court ruled this week. The owner of the roughly 478,000-square-foot warehouse at 180 Kost Road, just off Carlisle Pike, wanted to tack on another 210,000 square feet. But the request was […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Data center plans roil Dauphin County township

For nearly two years, officials and residents in South Hanover Township, Dauphin County, have been debating ground rules for data

Can microgrants help fuel Harrisburg rebirth?

Plenty of people are willing to debate what it will take to rejuvenate downtown Harrisburg. Others may want to pick

Data center standards squeeze through House panel

State lawmakers moved yesterday to give some teeth to standards that Gov. Josh Shapiro proposed last month for data centers, including conditions on a lucrative tax break enjoyed by the facilities. The House Finance Committee narrowly approved legislation giving developers speedier state permit reviews in return for meeting minimum standards for protecting the environment, benefiting […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Clock ticks on state budget, gaming regulation

Thanks to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, state lawmakers now face two deadlines: one to pass a budget and one to figure out whether and how to regulate and tax skill games. Skill games — slot-like devices said to require some element of skill in order to win — have been operating in legal limbo for […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

State grants fund regional housing projects

Harrisburg nonprofit Wildheart is gearing up to break ground next month on a $3.3 million mixed-use project that will bring nine affordable

Paid-leave bill clears Senate hurdle

Legislation to create a paid family and medical leave program in Pennsylvania sailed through a Senate committee yesterday. The Senate Labor & Industry Committee approved the legislation on a vote of 9 to 2, overriding strenuous objections from the business community. The bill is sponsored by state Sen. Devlin Robinson, an Allegheny County Republican. The […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

House OKs bill offering tax credits for health plan costs

The state House gave near-unanimous approval yesterday to a measure that would award tax credits to small businesses that help their employees buy individual health insurance. A small-business lobbyist expressed support for the bill as it moved through a committee vote earlier this month, noting that incremental change is better than no change when it comes […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Lawmakers set to vote on paid family leave

A Pennsylvania Senate panel is slated to vote this morning on legislation creating a statewide paid family and medical leave program. The move comes nearly three months after the state House narrowly passed a similar program, albeit with some differences. What’s the difference: One of the biggest is who pays for the program — whether […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Mandate for tax-collection software advances in PA House

The state House approved legislation yesterday that would require special tax-collection software at businesses that are behind on sales taxes. The measure, which passed on a bipartisan vote of 153 to 48, would allow tax collectors to require the use of automated tax-payment software by businesses that are behind by at least $5,000 on sales […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

House panel OKs small-biz tax credits for health plan costs

A state House panel yesterday passed legislation authorizing tax credits for small businesses that help their employees pay for health insurance. The legislation, which was adopted on a party-line vote, is designed to offset higher costs faced by people buying insurance through the Affordable Care Act. How would it work: Under House Bill 2550, businesses with […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Agency shelves controversial tax proposal

Pennsylvania’s tax collectors have dropped a controversial proposal designed to clarify the corporate income they believe should be taxed. Put forward in spring 2024, the proposed rule aimed to settle long-running sources of friction between the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue and corporate taxpayers by defining just what kinds of business income are subject to taxation […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Case over property tax appeals divides high court

Pennsylvania’s top court split over a landmark decision allowing school districts to appeal property valuations based on the amount of fresh tax revenue the appeals might generate. The appeals are most likely to affect higher-value commercial, industrial and multifamily properties. But as long as school districts pick properties based on a policy designed solely on […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Carlisle redevelopment project gets more state aid

Pennsylvania is earmarking additional funding for the cleanup of a former industrial site in Carlisle slated for a mixed-use redevelopment.

Shapiro seeks conditions on lucrative tax break for data centers

Following up on a promise he made earlier this year, Gov. Josh Shapiro yesterday unveiled the details of a fast

Doc drops retaliation case against UPMC

A lawsuit brought against UPMC by a cardiologist who alleged he was fired after reporting alleged conflicts of interest involving the health system’s president and CEO has been dismissed. The dismissal follows a resolution of the matter, though the details are unclear. A UPMC spokesperson said no money or other compensation was paid to the cardiologist, Dr. […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Carlisle-area cannabis biz sold to workers

Nearly a decade after co-founding one of Pennsylvania’s first medical marijuana businesses, Mark Toigo has handed the keys to employees. Toigo and Jaime Toigo, his wife and co-owner, have sold 100% of Organic Remedies to its 450-plus workers through an employee stock ownership plan, or ESOP. The company had been courted by growing multistate cannabis operators, but […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

State authority wrestles with fraud in ACA marketplace

A wave of fraud has been hitting Pennsylvania’s Obamacare marketplace amid an upsurge in suspicious activity in marketplaces nationwide. The state’s market overseer, the Pennsylvania Health Insurance Exchange Authority, has tightened controls over the last few months in an effort to block fraudulent insurance enrollments. State lawmakers also are looking to clamp down, with one measure […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Ruling clarifies ban on doctor self-referrals in work comp

In 1993, state lawmakers passed workers’ comp reforms barring doctors from referring injured workers to a menu of services in which the doctors have a financial stake. What’s on the menu has been the subject of a lengthy legal dispute settled last week by Pennsylvania’s highest court. In a 5-2 ruling, the state Supreme Court […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

House OKs bill offering tax credits for health plan costs

The state House gave near-unanimous approval yesterday to a measure that would award tax credits to small businesses that help their employees buy individual health

UPMC denies retaliation, says local doc fired for cause

Healthcare giant UPMC is firing back at a prominent Central Pennsylvania doctor who claims he was fired after complaining about an alleged conflict of interest involving the health system’s CEO and offensive text messages exchanged between other colleagues. The Pittsburgh-based health system said it fired the physician, Dr. Hemal Gada, for cause “based on deficient clinical performance […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

House panel OKs small-biz tax credits for health plan costs

A state House panel yesterday passed legislation authorizing tax credits for small businesses that help their employees pay for health insurance. The legislation, which was

Health insurer bucks decline in ACA market

High premiums have squeezed enrollment this year in health insurance plans sold in Pennsylvania under the Affordable Care Act, a federal law designed to make individual health plans easier to afford. The decline has been attributed primarily to the expiration of enhanced federal tax credits that lowered premiums for thousands of people. Other federal credits remain […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Enrollment drops in ACA plans in Pennsylvania

Fewer state residents are enrolling in health plans sold under the Affordable Care Act in Pennsylvania. As of April 9, enrollment in the plans stood at 462,751, down nearly 5% from 486,577 at the end of the open enrollment period on Jan. 31, according to a spokesperson for Pennie, aka the Pennsylvania Health Insurance Exchange Authority. The authority […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Suit claims health system fired local doc for complaining about offensive texts, alleged CEO conflict

The former head of UPMC‘s heart institute in Harrisburg is suing the health system, claiming he was fired last year after raising concerns about an alleged conflict of interest involving the system’s CEO. The fired executive, Dr. Hemal Gada, also alleges his termination followed his complaints about allegedly racist text messages sent by other leaders at the UPMC […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Regional health system chief sets retirement plans

After more than seven years on the job, Roxanna Gapstur is planning to retire from her role as president and CEO of WellSpan Health, a regional health system operating a dozen hospitals. Gapstur has not set a date but plans to step down once a leadership transition is complete. WellSpan has hired executive search firm Korn Ferry to […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Western PA health system joins WellSpan-led network for Medicare

Penn Highlands Healthcare, a health system based in DuBois, is joining a regional network formed by WellSpan Health to improve medical care and lower costs for people on Medicare, a network known as an accountable care organization, or ACO. ACOs work to better coordinate treatment for Medicare patients. If they can deliver higher quality care at a […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Select Medical co-founder leads consortium in $3.9 billion buyout

Mechanicsburg-based rehab giant Select Medical Corp is going private in a buyout deal valued at $3.9 billion. The buyer is a consortium led by Select Medical co-founder and executive chairman Robert Ortenzio; Martin F. Jackson, Select Medical’s senior executive vice president of strategic finance and operations; and private equity firm Welsh Carson Anderson & Stowe. The buyout prices outstanding shares […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

WellSpan mini hospital poised to open

WellSpan Heath is preparing to admit the first patients to Newberry Hospital, the first of three mini hospitals being developed by the regional health system. Located next to the Newberry Commons shopping center in Newberry Township, York County, the small-format hospital is set to open in early March, according to WellSpan leaders, who offered a behind-the-scenes look […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Officials urge enrollment in ACA health coverage ahead of deadline

At a press conference in Lancaster yesterday, state and local officials urged eligible Pennsylvania residents to enroll in health insurance through the Affordable Care Act before a deadline coming at the end of January. At the same time, officials acknowledged that thousands of state residents are facing higher premiums thanks to the expiration of enhanced […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Co-founder pitches deal to take rehab chain private

Robert Ortenzio is looking to put the rehab company he cofounded with his late father back into private hands. Ortenzio proposed this week to buy out shareholders in Select Medical Corp., which is based in Mechanicsburg but operates healthcare facilities around the U.S. In a letter to the company’s board, Ortenzio described himself as “uniquely positioned” […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Uncertainty surrounds shopping for health plans

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 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Penn State hails ‘transformative’ $50M gift to children’s hospital

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 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Doc drops retaliation case against UPMC

A lawsuit brought against UPMC by a cardiologist who alleged he was fired after reporting alleged conflicts of interest involving the health

Court upholds rejection of West Shore warehouse expansion

Officials in Silver Spring Township were justified in denying plans to expand a warehouse on a former IBM campus between Carlisle and

Feds allege engineer parlayed inside scoop on TMI restart into stock gains

Federal authorities charged a former Constellation engineer with using inside knowledge of plans to restart an idled nuclear reactor on Three Mile Island to trade on the company’s stock. The alleged insider trading scheme earned the engineer, Casey Muggleston of Wilmington, Delaware, about $1.4 million, according to a complaint filed this week by the U.S. Securities and […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Ruling clarifies ban on doctor self-referrals in work comp

In 1993, state lawmakers passed workers’ comp reforms barring doctors from referring injured workers to a menu of services in

Guilty plea lodged in broadband subsidy fraud

The owner of a Lititz-area wireless company pleaded guilty yesterday to defrauding a federal program that subsidized broadband internet access during the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Krandon Wenger allegedly claimed falsely that hundreds of his company’s customers lived on tribal lands, enabling it to collect […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Case over property tax appeals divides high court

Pennsylvania’s top court split over a landmark decision allowing school districts to appeal property valuations based on the amount of

Court orders regulators to reconsider sewer merger

A decision by state regulators to block a utility deal involving Mechanicsburg-based Pennsylvania American Water is headed for a do-over. In a ruling last week, Commonwealth Court vacated the decision and asked regulators to take another look at the deal. The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission relied on outdated legal precedents when it nixed Pennsylvania American’s roughly […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Court backs prevailing wages in build-to-lease deal

Pennsylvania’s top court reversed a lower court ruling in a case involving prevailing wages, a form of minimum pay applied

West Shore broker sues to end state’s real estate office requirement

Should licensed real estate agents in Pennsylvania be required to keep a physical office? A lawsuit from Kevin Gaughen, a real estate agent based in Lemoyne, argues that they should not. Backed by a Virginia-based public interest law firm called the Institute for Justice, Gaughen filed a lawsuit this week in Commonwealth Court in hopes of […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Fight over York County winery continues

The neighbors who have spent nearly a decade seeking to shut down a York County winery are not buying the venue’s last-ditch plea to end a court order keeping it closed. Moon Dancer Vineyards & Winery is asking a York County judge to lift the order following a vote in March by neighbors in its section of Lauxmont Farms […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Deal expands York-based law firm

York-based CGA Law Firm has acquired the Red Lion-area practice of Eveler & DeArment, a three-attorney firm with expertise in business and real estate law, estate planning and administration, and family law. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The new additions to CGA are attorneys Andrea Eveler Stanley, Claudia DeArment and Kristine Eveler, and paralegals […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Winery bottled up by court order launches bid to reopen

A York County winery is uncorking a new legal push to resume operations. Moon Dancer Vineyards & Winery was forced to close last year after it was sued by neighbors claiming its business violated restrictions imposed on their section of the upscale Lauxmont Farms subdivision in Lower Windsor Township. Now, the winery is asking a York […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Court rules state university is exempt from stormwater fee

In a highly anticipated ruling, a divided state Supreme Court last week said West Chester University does not have to pay a stormwater management fee imposed by West Chester borough. The fee is a tax, the court ruled, and state entities are exempt from taxes. The 33-page ruling caps about eight years of litigation over the fee, […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Court ruling tackles issues raised by state consumer protection law

In a ruling last week, the state’s highest court waded into questions about what kind of notice people need to give when canceling contracts with home improvement companies. At issue was a perceived conflict between two of the state’s cornerstone consumer protection laws: the Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law and the Home Improvement […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Capital-area vape shop prevails in state tax case

A Pennsylvania court has rebuffed state efforts to tax tobacco products made and sold by a Harrisburg-area vape shop In a 13-page ruling last week, a seven-judge panel of Commonwealth Court acknowledged that East Coast Vapor LLC appeared to be exploiting a loophole in state law. But the remedy is to change the law, not side with […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Lender wants sheriff’s sale for shuttered music venue in Harrisburg

A Las Vegas lender is pursuing a sheriff’s sale of the Harrisburg Midtown Arts Center alleging that the partnership that owns the music venue has made only sporadic payments on a $3.72 million loan it took out in 2019. The partnership, 1110 HBG LLC, repaid nearly $400,000 between 2019 and 2021 but nothing since, according to a foreclosure […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Court rejects city tree ordinance in ‘extremely rare’ case

Public notices for a proposed amendment to Lancaster’s shade tree ordinance did not adequately explain what the amendment would change, a state appeals court said yesterday in striking down the measure. The ruling from Commonwealth Court upholds a 2024 decision from a Lancaster County Court of Common Pleas judge, who also found fault with the […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Regional bank, property investor clash over building loan

Fulton Bank is embroiled in a legal dispute with a Washington, D.C., real estate investor who has been hit hard by the weakened office market in the U.S. capital. Lancaster-based Fulton sued the investor, David Schaeffer, in February over an alleged default on a $4.7 million loan associated with an office building about half a mile […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Defense contractor builds on York-area footprint

A defense contractor with two plants in the York area has added a third. San Diego-based Kratos Defense & Security Solutions said yesterday it opened a 167,000-square-foot factory on the former York International campus at 631 S. Richland Ave. in Spring Garden Township. Kratos did not disclose its total investment in the plant, which will support the company’s […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Lancaster-area startup brings better data to racquet sports

When John Weinlader was learning to swing a golf club, simulators generated plenty of information that helped him hone his

Data center demand drives growth for Lancaster firm

The hunger for cooling products is heating up, and a Lancaster-based specialty manufacturer is vying to meet the need. Advanced Cooling Technologies plans to add 50,000 square feet of space to support high-volume production of cold plates used in liquid cooling, a newer technology rapidly being adopted by data center developers. The expansion is the first […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Co-founders of manufacturing company tap uncommon exit strategy

After several would-be buyers took a pass on their manufacturing business, Tim Horning and Greg Kimble found an option that appealed to them far more than closing up and walking away from the company they built over a quarter century. Horning and Kimble decided to sell Signature Vacuum Furnaces to its roughly 15 employees. “It just seemed […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Flooring maker axes production line at Lancaster plant

Flooring manufacturer AHF Products plans to cease production of sheet vinyl at its plant in Lancaster effective June 28 Based in West Hempfield Township, Lancaster County, AHF will continue operating the Lancaster plant but shift focus to its other chief product, luxury vinyl tile, which is in greater demand. A company spokesperson did not disclose how many […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Package maker closing plant, laying off workers amid business decline

Prompted by dwindling volume, a packaging company is closing a plant in Cumberland County and laying off 83 workers effective July 6, according to a notice sent to state and local officials. Nearly half of the workers are line operators, with the rest including forklift operators, production managers and quality control inspectors, among others, according […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Layoffs triggered by end of vitamin production at York-area plant

More than a decade after expanding production of gummy vitamins at its factory in York County, a New Jersey-based consumer products company is shutting it down. As a result, Church & Dwight Co. Inc. expects to lay off up to 195 people at the plant, which is in West Manchester Township just north of Route 30. Why […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

York manufacturer sold amid demand for its nuclear industry products

A major defense contractor has agreed to buy Precision Components Group LLC, a storied York manufacturer with a foot in the nuclear power industry. Indeed, Precision’s nuclear business is part of the attraction for the buyer, Lynchburg, Virginia-based BWX Technologies Inc., or BWXT, which supplies nuclear components and fuel to the U.S. Navy and commercial reactors. Precision’s products […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

York-area saw manufacturer sold

A Canadian company has acquired Oleson Saw Technology, a saw-blade manufacturer in Manchester Township, York County. The buyer, Comact, provides equipment and services for wood-processing industries. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Comact plans to maintain the business, which employs about 35 people and makes blades used in sawmills, according to Comact spokesperson Anne-Marie […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Growth-minded Ohio firm buys York-area chain manufacturer

York County manufacturer Campbell Chain & Fittings has been acquired by Hillman Solutions Corp., a Cincinnati-based company looking to expand its industrial and commercial chain business. Campbell had been owned by Apex Tool Group LLC, which has been struggling to manage its debt in the face of weak revenue in some tool categories, according to S&P Global Ratings. Terms of the […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

State funds cover solar installs at local manufacturers

Three businesses in Central Pennsylvania are installing solar systems thanks to grants from a state program designed to cut carbon emissions from factories and other industrial concerns. The grants are some of the first authorized under the program, dubbed Reducing Industrial Sector Emissions in Pennsylvania, or RISE PA. Engle Printing & Publishing Co. Inc. is receiving $493,114 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Production boost planned at York-area snack plant

Say hello to Hello Panda. Snack manufacturer Meiji America plans to invest $65 million into its York-area Stauffer’s plant in an effort to boost production of Hello Panda cookies, one of the company’s signature products. Meiji America currently feeds U.S. demand for the cookies from a West Coast plant. But the company wants to bring production capacity to the […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Lancaster firm sells stake to investment giant

One of the largest investment firms in the U.S. is buying into a Lancaster County company at the leading edge of trends in energy efficiency. New York-based Blackstone is planning to acquire a majority stake in Advanced Cooling Technologies Inc., whose portfolio includes products that help keep data centers from overheating. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed, […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Company to up yogurt processing at Shippensburg plant

A global dairy processor plans to pour nearly $133 million into expansion of a plant in western Cumberland County. Green Bay, Wisconsin-based Schreiber Foods aims to boost yogurt processing at the Shippensburg plant and add at least 47 jobs, according to the Shapiro administration, which is backing the project with a $1 million grant. State […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

State funds expand school-to-work programs

The Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry is awarding grants of more than $4.1 million to support 17 projects that help students graduate with a clear career path. The grant dollars support partnerships among school districts, career and technical centers, employers, workforce boards and training providers. Regionally, grants were awarded to: Harrisburg Area School District ($250,000) – to […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Armstrong World snaps up specialty fabricator

Building products manufacturer Armstrong World Industries Inc. said yesterday that it acquired a Chicago-based company called Eventscape Inc., which specializes in designing, making and installing complex architectural features. Terms of the transaction — which continues a multiyear string of deals for Armstrong — were not disclosed. Based in Toronto and New York City, Eventscape employs 150 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Is a sale in the works for Steelton plant?

Executives at Cleveland-Cliffs said this week they have buyers for some of their idled plants, a group of assets that includes a massive factory in Steelton. On a conference call with stock analysts, company execs said they expect to generate $425 million from selling the idle plants — and that the Ohio-based steelmaker already closed on one deal […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Metal fabricator adds space as demand takes off

When Brian Greenplate acquired Precision Cut Industries Inc. in 2004 the company had 25 employees and annual revenue of about $3 million Yearly sales for the contract metal fabricator have grown to about $50 million, and they are expected to jump again this year thanks to demand from customers in energy, commercial construction and data centers, […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Digital marketing firm unveils $10.7M rehab plans for riverfront mansion

Digital marketing agency WebFx unveiled plans yesterday for renovating and expanding into a historic mansion along the Harrisburg riverfront. The Harrisburg-based company

Longtime employee buys Camp Hill marketing/production agency

Travis Snyder has gone from employee to owner of Triscari Productions Inc., a Camp Hill-area marketing company doing business as Triscari Video | Web | Marketing. Snyder became the company’s owner in December, taking over for its late founder, Sebastian Triscari. Triscari, who launched the company in 1983, died in April 2025. In an interview, Snyder […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

West Shore Home inks $50M deal for Beaver Stadium naming rights

Over the last few years, Mechanicsburg-based West Shore Home has been striving to build a national brand in the historically fractured home improvement business. The company took a major step yesterday toward raising its profile: A 15-year, $50 million deal with Penn State University to stamp the West Shore Home name on Beaver Stadium. The venue is […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Merger unites Lancaster marketing firms

Two Lancaster-based digital marketing agencies have come together as one. But for now, they are continuing to operate under their existing names. The firms are YDOP and WTM Digital, which offer similar services but for different clients. YDOP, which trademarked the term “near-user marketing,” works primarily with companies around ther U.S. seeking locally focused digital marketing. WTM Digital, […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Harrisburg marketing firm files bankruptcy

Merit Marketing, a Harrisburg-based advertising and marketing firm, filed last month for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, setting it on a path to liquidation. “The economic times are such the company is unable to survive and operate profitably,” Merit owner Adam Vasquez wrote in an email to biznewsPA. Vasquez has owned the company since 2015, when the […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

CPA giant snaps up Harrisburg’s Andculture

Harrisburg-based Andculture is poised to become part of Chicago-based accounting and advisory firm RSM US LLP. RSM said Thursday it has reached an agreement to buy Andculture, which specializes in marketing strategy, design and technology, Terms of the deal were not disclosed. But it is expected to close June 1, according to a press release. RSM was […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Regional marketing firm changes hands

Fourteen years after launching her own marketing agency, Julie Lando-Cross has sold it to one of her first employees, Lissa Taylor, the agency’s COO and creative director.

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Specialty distributor sells Elizabethtown-area warehouse after downsizing

Palmyra-based specialty distributor DAS Companies Inc. has sold an Elizabethtown-area warehouse where it laid off workers at the end of 2024. A real estate partnership linked to Chicago-based investment firm Industrial Outdoor Ventures paid $15.1 million for the 86,000-square-foot warehouse on a 17.5-acre tract at 48 Industrial Road in West Donegal Township, Lancaster County, according to county deed records. […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Lawmakers topple barrier to Penn State campus sales

Soon after Penn State announced last year that it would close seven branch campuses across Pennsylvania, questions swirled about what was next

Hanover bank buildings sold

A pair of former bank buildings on Carlisle Street in downtown Hanover were sold in separate transactions expected to bring new life to both. According to county deed records, the Hanover Area Historical Society paid $550,000 for the building at 25 Carlisle St. The classical early 20th-century building was a branch for the former Bank of Hanover, which […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Dunkin’ franchisee buys former bank office

Machines will soon be dispensing coffee instead of cash at a former Fulton Bank branch in eastern York County. A Dunkin’ franchisee paid $975,000 for the shuttered Fulton branch at 599 W. Market St. in Hellam Township, York County, according to county deed records. The franchisee, GN Realty Hallam LLC, plans to convert the branch into a Dunkin’ donut shop […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Developer buys scrapyard at center of environmental dispute

A York-area scrapyard at the center of an environmental dispute is under new ownership. An affiliate of York-based developer Inch & Co. has acquired the property of J&K Salvage, a metal recycling operation shut down by a state order in March following a fire. The affiliate, Codorus Creek Renewal LLC, paid $2.7 million for J&K parcels at 1099 and […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Seed distributor pays $10M for Lanco industrial property

King’s AgriSeeds, a seed distributor based in East Lampeter Township, Lancaster County, is moving to new quarters after a real estate affiliate of the company paid $10 million for a nearly 100,000-square-foot warehouse in Upper Leacock Township. Scott Bradbury, senior vice president of Lancaster-based brokerage U.S. Commercial Realty, facilitated the sale. The warehouse is at 43 Graybill […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

West Shore broker sues to end state’s real estate office requirement

Should licensed real estate agents in Pennsylvania be required to keep a physical office? A lawsuit from Kevin Gaughen, a

Harrisburg-area golf course could change hands ahead of schedule

The Dauphin County General Authority has tweaked the agreement governing the pending $45.6 million sale of the Dauphin Highlands Golf Course to Dallas-based data center developer Provident Realty Advisors. In a vote yesterday, the authority — which owns the 228-acre course in Swatara Township and Steelton — amended the agreement to allow the sale to close earlier than the original date […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Appearing closed, Wolf company warehouse on the market

A warehouse used by a prominent York-based building products supplier is on the market. Formerly emblazoned with the name of Wolf Distributing Co., the nearly 340,000-square-foot building at 3400 W. Market St. in West Manchester Township is listed for sale or lease by real estate firm CBRE. No prices or rates are listed. But a brochure indicates the potential […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Sheriff’s sale looms for suburban Harrisburg hotel

A Harrisburg-area hotel is heading for a sheriff’s sale in June after allegedly defaulting on its debt. The owners of Holiday Inn Harrisburg East in Swatara Township, Dauphin County, a New Jersey-based partnership called Shri Sai Middletown LLC, owe nearly $11.3 million, according to a foreclosure notice filed last fall by its lender, Oregon-based Standard Insurance Co., […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Planners narrow options for reusing Penn State York campus

After months of research and community engagement, the York County Economic Alliance is narrowing the list of options for reusing the campus of Penn State York after its scheduled closure in May 2027. The three leading contenders include a healthcare/higher education hub, a conference/hospitality hub and a vo-tech/workforce development hub, YCEA chief strategy officer Silas […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Prominent Harrisburg law firm relocating to West Shore

For nearly six decades, McNees Wallace & Nurick has occupied a prime piece of Harrisburg real estate — a nine-story office building overlooking the Susquehanna River. But sometime in 2027, the law firm expects to cross the river into somewhat smaller digs in East Pennsboro Township, Cumberland County. McNees has inked a 20-year lease for a roughly […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Local warehouses sold as part of multistate $575M deal

Warehouses in Cumberland and Franklin counties are changing hands as part of a larger $575 million deal involving a string of 25 warehouses stretching from Connecticut to Florida. The buyer is Radnor-based EQT Real Estate, an active player in the regional market for warehouse space. The seller is Mapletree Investments, a Singapore-based real estate investment firm managing […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Rock Lititz lands corporate HQ for Nashville campus

Rock Lititz’s Nashville business has snagged an audio equipment manufacturer as the latest tenant for its Rock Nashville campus. Sennheiser, based in Germany, has tapped the Tennessee campus as the site of its Americas headquarters, which is currently in Old Lyme, Connecticut. The move, representing an investment of $2.5 million, will add at least 25 jobs to […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Bank sheds admin building in sale-leaseback deal

With fewer employees reporting the office, Lancaster-based Fulton Financial Corp. sold its administrative services building in East Petersburg and is leasing back a little less than half of the space. The building at 1695 State St. in the Lancaster County borough spans about 100,000 square feet, according to Fulton spokesperson Steve Trapnell. It houses a range […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Capital-area farmland sold. Data centers could follow.

A company that develops data centers is doubling down on the Harrisburg area. Last summer, Dallas-based Provident Realty Advisors agreed to pay $45.6 million for the Dauphin Highlands Golf Course, a 228-acre property west of Route 283 in Swatara Township and Steelton where Provident is expected to build data centers. In late January, the company paid $50 million […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Carlisle-area warehouse fetches nearly $142M

One of the biggest warehouses in Cumberland County has changed hands. An arm of California-based investment firm PCCP LLC paid $141.6 million for a 1.2 million-square-foot building at 3419 Ritner Road off Interstate 81 in West Pennsboro Township, according to real estate firm JLL, which represented the seller, an affiliate of Radnor-based Exeter Property Group. Exeter paid $85 million for […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Area mobile home parks fetch millions of dollars

A trio of Lancaster County mobile home parks changed hands over the past month in deals totaling more than $20 million. A Florida-based investor called Nebula Realty Trust sold parks in Earl and Penn townships for a combined $14.55 million, while a Conestoga-based partnership sold a Providence Township park for nearly $6.9 million, according to county deed […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Discount retailer buys former Big Lots leases

Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings is scooping up leases for seven former locations of its bankrupt rival, Big Lots. The stores include one each in Georgia, Illinois and Louisiana and four in Wisconsin, according to court documents. The price is about $620,000, subject to potential adjustments by the landlords. “These stores are the right size, located in […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Harrisburg-area mall sold for $8.8M

A Massachusetts-based developer is acquiring the Colonial Park Mall, an aging retail complex that local officials hope to see rejuvenated. A partnership headed by the developer, Zi Qian “John” Zhang, paid nearly $8.8 million for the mall, which is at 4600 Jonestown Road in Lower Paxton Township, according to county deed records. Zhang is still […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Ollie’s to roll out loyalty credit card

Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings Inc. is launching a co-branded Visa credit card in partnership with Los Angeles-based fintech Sunbit. The card is designed to build on Ollie’s loyalty program, Ollie’s Army, which has about 14 million members. The card’s features include a $10 statement credit for signing up and extra Ollie’s Army points on purchases at Ollie’s and […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Lanco startup builds on viral moment: ‘You don’t want it to just be that’

When you’re shipping a $100,000 engagement ring, you don’t take any chances. That’s how Simone Kendle found herself on a plane to Toronto over the Memorial Day weekend. “Delivery person” may not be part of the job description for Kendle, the CEO of Wove, a startup custom jewelry company founded and based in Lancaster. And […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Ollie’s poised to buy stores from bankrupt retailer

A court order is paving the way for Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings Inc. to purchase 11 stores in Texas from discount retailer 99 Cents Only Stores, which filed for bankruptcy in April. A Delaware bankruptcy judge this week approved Ollie’s as a stalking-horse bidder for the properties as part of a court-supervised sale, meaning the company is […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Shippensburg-area plaza sells for $6.6M

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 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Feds target hiring practices at Sheetz

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is suing Sheetz, arguing that the company’s use of criminal background checks in hiring is discriminatory. The agency noted that Sheetz was not motivated by race in making hiring decisions. However, the agency claims that the convenience-store chain’s hiring practices disproportionately screened out job applicants who are Black, Native American, […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Apple auto biz to be sold

The Stewart Companies has agreed to sell its Apple Automotive dealerships to a Lehigh Valley company, as the York-based holding company focuses on its other businesses, The buyer is Allentown-based Ciocca Dealerships, which operates 42 dealerships and 12 collision centers in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, including in the Harrisburg and State College markets. Apple operates 10 dealerships, six collision […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Regional fireworks retailer sold

One of Pennsylvania’s most illuminating companies is under new ownership. Keystone Fireworks, which has stores across the region, has been acquired by Argonne Capital Group, a private equity firm based in Atlanta. The transaction closed earlier this year, according to an Argonne spokesperson, who declined to provide additional details. Financing was provided by Alignment Credit, a New York-based […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Report: PA lags on innovation, entrepreneurship

Pennsylvania has many of the ingredients for an economy powered by innovation and entrepreneurship, according to a report released today by Brookings Institution, a prominent think tank in Washington, D.C. However, the state has struggled to bake them into a dynamic, high-growth economy, putting large swaths of Pennsylvania at risk of stagnation, said the report, which offers […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Bertram to leave Giant, Ruane stepping in

The Giant Co. president Nicholas Bertram is leaving the company Aug. 31 to pursue “new opportunities,” the regional grocery chain’s parent company announced yesterday. Bertram, who has been president of Carlisle-based Giant since 2018, did not disclose what those opportunities might be. Giant spokesperson Christy Phillips-Brown described it as a personal decision. John Ruane, Giant’s chief […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Ollie’s hit with overtime lawsuits

Ollie’s Bargain Outlet has joined a string of retailers accused of improperly denying overtime pay to people who hold management jobs in their stores. Two salaried employees in New York have filed lawsuits claiming Ollie’s should have paid them overtime since their duties were “virtually indistinguishable” from those of hourly workers. The suits, filed in a […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Former N.B. Liebman store sold

A prime Carlisle Pike property has changed hands. A New York-based partnership paid nearly $5.5 million in June for the former home of N.B. Liebman Furniture at 4705 Carlisle Pike in Hampden Township, according to Cumberland County deed records. The site — which was owned by members of the Liebman family — was once eyed […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Giant unveils Amazon-style marketplace

The Giant Co. is adding new aisles to its virtual supermarket. The Carlisle-based company unveiled a new Amazon-style service yesterday that brings tens of thousands of new items to its online shoppers.Called Ship2Me by Giant, the new service is an online marketplace developed by sister company Peapod Digital Labs. The marketplace features items not normally found on […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Regional grocer grabs supply chain by the horns

For centuries, farmers planted seeds and fed animals – and then hoped they would find a market when their produce and livestock were ready to sell. Agribusiness entrepreneur Larisa Miller has been pitching a different model – and she found her first taker in Karns Foods, the Cumberland County-based grocery store chain.

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

AI meets executive coaching

As leadership coach Chad Harvey came to grips with the potential for AI to change everything, he started learning as

Saxton & Stump establishes new AI role within the firm

As more organizations explore the practical implementation of machine learning and artificial intelligence models to solve real-world business problems, law firms are taking note. Phil Saunders, the CEO of Relativity, a legal data intelligence company, noted in an interview with Law360 that, “AI has become a defining part of how legal tasks get done.” Regional […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Capital-area farmland sold. Data centers could follow.

A company that develops data centers is doubling down on the Harrisburg area. Last summer, Dallas-based Provident Realty Advisors agreed to pay

Can regulators prevent sticker shock over data centers?

State regulators are crafting guidelines designed to address one of the chief risks of the data center construction boom — that Pennsylvania residents and businesses get stuck with a hefty tab for building out the substations and power lines that feed electricity to the centers. The guidelines, proposed by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, are currently […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Local law firm hit by data breach

A data breach struck a Lancaster law firm this fall, exposing personal information on about 2,200 people, according to a notice filed with the Maine Attorney General’s office. Law firm BCGL LLC discovered the breach in October after identifying suspicious activity in its network, according to the notice, which the firm filed this month. The firm said it […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Lancaster, developer forge deal over data center standards, community benefits

At a press conference yesterday, Lancaster Mayor Danene Sorace unveiled an agreement between the city and Chirisa Technology Parks, the Virginia-based company spearheading development of data centers on the site of former printing plants in the city. The 32-page community benefits agreement requires Chirisa to meet standards in areas such as noise, power and water usage for […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Is there a middle way for data centers? Team PA bets on it

Advocates embrace data centers as engines of economic opportunity and a symbol of Pennsylvania’s appeal to high-tech industries, drawn, in part, by abundant supplies of energy. Critics are fighting back, citing the centers’ potential harm to the environment and quality of life in the communities where they are being proposed. Team Pennsylvania is hoping to […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Harrisburg-area golf course sold to data center developer

A suburban Harrisburg golf course is preparing to swap drivers for data. The Dauphin County General Authority voted yesterday to sell the Dauphin Highlands Golf Course for $45.6 million to a Texas company planning a data center on the 228-acre property in Swatara Township and Steelton. But there’s time for a few more rounds of golf. The […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Data center plans provoke debate over impact, process

At a meeting last night, developers shared more details on their plans for a $15 billion data center complex near Carlisle. Residents shared a barrage of doubts. Over two hours, they questioned how much water and electricity the centers would use. They questioned how the developers picked the 700-acre tract of farmland in Middlesex Township where […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Costs seen mounting for data center tax exemption

In 2022, Pennsylvania waived sales taxes for computer equipment purchased for use in data centers, provided the centers met certain requirements. Following a slew of announcements about new data center projects around the state, the price tag for that exemption may be going up. The Pennsylvania Department of Revenue is revisiting its forecasts on the […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Data center boom redefining industrial real estate

A few years ago, the phrase “industrial real estate” likely conjured an image of massive warehouses spreading across the open fields of Central Pennsylvania. Now, the phrase might just as easily bring up images of data centers — buildings packed with computer servers composing your emails and delivering answers to your ChatGPT queries. The announcement of more […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Developer details data center plans

One of the companies behind a $6 billion data center project in Lancaster is filling in some of the blanks surrounding the project. Early reports indicated data centers would be constructed at two former printing plants, at 216 Greenfield Road and 1375 Harrisburg Pike. The developers are Virginia-based Chirisa Technology Parks and New York-based Machine Investment Group, […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Where’s the data? Firms mum on York County data center plans

It’s been a week since New Jersey-based investment firm Energy Capital Partners announced it was planning a $5 billion data center in southern York County. But the precise location remains unknown, even to the manager of Peach Bottom Township, where the data center is widely expected to be built. “Your guess is as good as mine,” township […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Demo approved, sites confirmed for Lancaster data centers

The dust is still settling on the flurry of announcements for massive data and energy projects proposed this week for Pennsylvania. Actual dust could soon start flying on one of those projects — a $6 billion data center investment in Lancaster. The city has issued demolition permits for the first phase of the project, according […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Big tech showering billions on local data, energy projects

Major tech companies yesterday disclosed billions of dollars in new investment in Central Pennsylvania, though some key details remain to be filled in. Data center giant CoreWeave said it plans to sink $6 billion into developing a data center in Lancaster in partnership with a company that recently acquired two former printing plants in the city. A […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Amazon bringing more data centers to PA amid growing concerns over cost

The data center boom made a big bang yesterday in Pennsylvania. Tech giant Amazon said it plans to invest at least $20 billion to build data centers in Pennsylvania, starting with a pair of locations in eastern Pennsylvania. The Shapiro administration described the company’s move as the largest private-sector investment in state history. “This is not just […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Authority tees up potential golf course sale amid data center demand

A suburban Harrisburg golf course is the latest plot of land in the region to draw attention from developers of data centers, power-hungry computing facilities that are vital to the growth of artificial intelligence. Would-be buyers with data centers in mind have shown an appetite for the Dauphin Highlands Golf Course, according to Jeanette Krebs, […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Heller-linked IT firm sells unit to California company

A California tech firm has acquired portions of a Lancaster-based IT company co-founded by Daryl Heller, the business owner at the center of a legal vortex. The Lancaster company is AVAIL Technology Solutions, which traces its roots to a venture called Premier Management Group. Premier was founded in 1990 by Heller and entrepreneur Bob Horst. But the […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

What great leaders notice first

Column by Brandon Rogers The longer someone leads, the less impressed they become with raw talent alone. Experience has a

Dauphin County CASA

Beth Siegfried has been named executive director of Dauphin County CASA, a Harrisburg-based nonprofit that provides volunteer advocates for children in foster care. She succeeds Kim St.Clair, who had been acting executive director and continues as program supervisor. Siegfried has more than two decades of experience in communications, advocacy and nonprofit leadership. She worked most […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Prominent Harrisburg law firm relocating to West Shore

For nearly six decades, McNees Wallace & Nurick has occupied a prime piece of Harrisburg real estate — a nine-story office building

United Concordia Dental

Jake Lewis has been named vice president, government programs and strategy, for Harrisburg-based dental insurer United Concordia Dental. In this new role, he will oversee the strategic direction and execution of the company’s government relations and contracting efforts. Lewis worked most recently as the acting deputy assistant administrator for acquisition and business services at the […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Pennsylvania doesn’t need the next Silicon Valley. It needs an ecosystem that actually works.

Column by Jayamohan Ecosystems aren’t designed. They emerge. We learn this early in biology (thanks to my son who is

Beyond bankruptcy: Cookie entrepreneurs pin hopes on protein, ice cream, ecommerce

In fall 2024, Doug and Sara Taylor traveled to Philadelphia to open the first of two stores in the city

Foundation leader steps up as grantmaking capacity swells

Over the last three years, Robin Stauffer has overseen a dramatic growth in resources at one of Lancaster’s County’s largest charities. Effective Jan. 1, she has a new role to match. Stauffer, the longtime executive director of the High Foundation, has been named its president and CEO. “For more than two decades, Robin has led High […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Regional bank agrees to $354M sale

Camp Hill-based LinkBancorp opened in 2018 following a round of consolidation that took out several banks in Central Pennsylvania. Now, with bank mergers again on the upswing, LinkBancorp is on the sell side. Alexandria, Virginia-based Burke & Herbert Financial Services Corp. has agreed to buy the bank in an all-stock deal valued at $354.2 million. The transaction, expected […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Leadership resolutions for the New Year

Column by Richard Randall As 2025 comes to an end, leaders will naturally be thinking about how to position their

Pennian Bank

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 […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

New chief to run paper company in turnaround mode

A Spring Grove paper maker is tapping a new CEO as it works to turn around its finances. Pixelle Specialty Solutions has named Julie Schertell as its CEO. She succeeds Ross Bushnell, who led the company for two years but is leaving for undisclosed opportunities. He is staying on through September as an adviser to Pixelle’s board. The […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Winery loses appeal in fight to stay open

A state court rejected an appeal from a York County winery fighting orders that it shut down. The decision last week by Superior Court of Pennsylvania forestalls one of the last legal avenues available to Moon Dancer Vineyards & Winery in its long-running battle with neighbors who want the venue to cease operations. The neighbors — Amanda […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Museum complex slated for $55M upgrade

The State Museum of Pennsylvania is getting a facelift. State officials yesterday unveiled plans for a $55 million makeover of the 62-year-old museum complex on state Capitol grounds. The goal is to modernize exhibits, displays and storage areas, while creating an environment matching the expectations of 21st-century visitors. Planned changes include creation of a large-scale […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

State House advances controversial tax policy

State lawmakers are plowing ahead once again with tax changes that have long drawn the ire of business lobbyists but never made it into law. The changes would subject more corporate profits to taxes in Pennsylvania by curtailing the ability of companies to report those profits in other states. Two committees in the Democratic-controlled state […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Barley Snyder

Alice Solomon has joined the Malvern office of Lancaster-based law firm Barley Snyder. With a background in environmental, energy and land use law, she is a member of the firm’s real estate and litigation practice groups. Before joining Barley Snyder, Solomon worked at an environmental law firm based in the Philadelphia suburbs. She has a […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Consumer advocates want do-over for price-spiking power auction

Consumer advocates in Illinois, Maryland and New Jersey are asking federal regulators to rerun an auction that is sparking a hike in electricity prices set to take effect in the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest — including Pennsylvania — starting June 1. At issue is the auction process used by regional power grid operator PJM to set the price of electricity […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

Elizabethtown beverage brand, distributor sold

T.J. Foltz founded Humankind Beverage in 2011 with a goal of funneling profits from sales of bottled water into a charity bringing clean water to poverty-stricken areas of the world. He’s hoping to make a lot more sales now that the Elizabethtown-based brand — and its regional distribution arm — have been acquired. The buyer is Odeko, a […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

West Shore warehouse complex moves forward

Developers have acquired land off the Carlisle Pike in Cumberland County where they plan to build three warehouses. The warehouses will span nearly 2 million square feet under plans approved in 2023 under the previous owner of the property, part of Hempt Farms in Silver Spring Township. The developers — a joint venture between New York-based Rockefeller […]

To access this post, you must purchase biznewsPA Subscription or biznewsPA Team Subscriptions.

The Latest News

Banking & Finance

Construction

Economy

entrepreneurship

Food

Government

Health Care

Legal