December 2007 - poconobusinessjournal.com

Transcription

www.pbjonline.com
POCONO
Regional Business News & Resources
Pocono Business Journal
Seven Bridge Road, RR# 5 Box 5198
East Stroudsburg, PA 18301
www.pbjonline.com
POCONO
Reflections and Projections
THIS MONTH
• Affordable Housing ....................................p. 1
• Transportation Update ..............................p. 17
• Business Goals 2008................................... p. 16
• County-by-County Project Update........... p. 3
• Tourism Outlook . ...................................p. 15
• Professional Profile: Wall Street West,
Synchrium ..........................................p. 12
• Playing Santa...........................................p. 21
• Op-Ed:
PA Chamber: Holiday Wish List for
Economic Development . ......................p. 4
• PBJ Columnists:
Ask SCORE...............................................p. 7
HR Toolbox...............................................p. 4
In the Commercial Zone..........................p. 5
Leadership Pike.......................................p. 6
Leadership Tips........................................p. 7
Regional Healthcare Report..................p. 10
Sustainable is Attainable.........................p. 5
United Way..............................................p. 9
December 2007, Vol. 3, Issue 12
What American Dream?
How zooming home prices affect Pocono businesses
QUOTE
“PA is missing direct train service to and
from the New York City area which leads
some companies to opt for other sites,
including north Jersey.”
– Full story on Page 14
OBSERVE
1
2
4
25 26
31 Rosa Parks Day
National Pearl Harbor
Remembrance Day
First Night of Chanukah
Christmas
Kwanzaa
New Years Eve
QUESTION
How many people live per
square mile in Monroe County?
See PMCC Business Magazine ad
for the answer on page 10.
www.pbjonline.com
Photo Credit: Pocono Business Journal
- Jim Grogan, Vice President, SunGard
Joe Mackey, president of East Stroudsburg’s Target Homes, says, “A small ranch with a basement, central heat and A/C and a garage for about $150K is a nonexistent entity now, but it’s not impossible if we can resolve the government’s interference with the free market of real estate. We need to remove the unnecessary
government roadblocks to affordable homes, not subsidize or regulate it into existence.”
By Maureen Sangiorgio
When Chef Andrew Moore became manager of the Stone
Bar Inn restaurant in Snydersville, he felt all his hard work
was finally paying off. “It’s every chef’s dream to run his own
place,” says Moore. “I’d worked for so many years at various country clubs, resorts, and restaurants that I had a loyal
clientele that followed me to the Stone Bar.” Needless to say,
business was brisk.
However, as the years went by, Moore noticed a drop in
customers. “I’ve seen cycles in the housing industry that directly affect my business,” notes Moore. “Whenever there’s a
housing boom, my business drops off by about twenty percent.
New homeowners have a lot of expenses. They have to buy
furniture, do some landscaping, and they don’t have a lot of
disposable income. Many of the new homeowners I speak to
in my dining room say they are in their home for about four or
five years before they can afford to go out to a nice restaurant
for dinner.”
Moore also points to the changing face of the average Pocono
neighborhood. “Today, most new homeowners are opting for huge,
mansion-style homes with high mortgages,” he notes. “In order to
pay for those high mortgages, both people have to work long hours,
and they’re too tired to go out to dinner. I also see a lot of commuters moving into the area now from New York and New Jersey. They
don’t get home until eight or nine at night. By that time, it’s too late,
and they’re too tired to go out to dinner at a nice restaurant.”
One Size Does Not Fit All
In the year 2000, a typical single-family home in the Poconos
sold for about $110,000. This year, that same home sells for about
$200,000, or nearly twice as much. “The trend of increasing home
prices in the area has been surreal,” says Cheryl Houseman, director
of the Pocono Mountain Association of Realtors. “We’ve never seen
anything like it.”
see AMERICAN
DREAM page 8
Professional Profile - Subprime Storm May Soak Wall Street West page 12
2
Pocono Business Journal | December 2007
TABLE OF CONTENTS
www.pbjonline.com
POCONO
ARTICLES
Twin Willow Publishing Company
Seven Bridge Road
RR#5 Box 5198
East Stroudsburg, PA 18301-9209
570.421.0100 | fax 570.421.0404
www.pbjonline.com
PUBLISHER/EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Marynell Strunk
EDITOR
Debbie Burke
REPORTERS
Ken Clark
Tracey McTernan
Kathy Ruff
Maureen Sangiorgio
CONTRIBUTORS
Michael Baxter
Chris Grape-Garvey
Richard J. Henley
Sylvia Lafair
Victoria Mavis
Lesley Smith
Craig Todd
Marcy Turkington
Peter Wulfhorst
EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS
Danielle Eberhardt
COPY EDITOR
Joan Groff
PHOTOGRAPHERS
Perry Hebard
Kelly Strunk
Al Zagofsky
Affordable Housing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p.1
Transportation Update. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p.17
Business Goals 2008. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p.16
County-by-County Project Update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p.3
Tourism Outlook. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p.15
Professional Profile: Wall Street West, Synchrium. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p.12-14
Playing Santa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p.21
DEPARTMENTS
• Business Briefs – Who’s Who/What’s What. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 18-19
• Calendar of Events. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 24
• Columnists
Ask SCORE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 7
HR Toolbox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 4
In The Commercial Zone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 5
Leadership Pike. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 6
Leadership Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 7
Residential Healthcare Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 10
Sustainable is Attainable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 5
United Way . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 9
• Editorial – PA Chamber: Holiday Wish List for Economic Development. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 4
• Focus List – Cleaning Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 20
• Register – Deeds, Mortgage Transactions and New Corporations/Fictitious Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 22-23
Advertisers Index
Blue Cross of Northeastern Pennsylvania. . . . . . 6
ESSA Bank & Trust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
SUBSCRIPTION FORM
If you would like to guarantee receiving the Pocono
Business Journal monthly, please mail subscription
form along with check made payable to:
Seven Bridge Road
RR#5 Box 5198
East Stroudsburg, PA 18301-9209
East Stroudsburg University of PA. . . . . . . . . . . 8
First Impression Career Center. . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Greater Pocono Chamber of
Commerce Business Magazine . . . . . . . . . . . 10
HR For Hire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Name:_______________________________
Michael Baxter & Associates
Title:_ _______________________________
SALES
Pennstar Bank. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Address:_ ____________________________
PRODUCTION/DESIGN
Jason Trump
Pocono Commuter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
City:________________________________
[email protected]
CIRCULATION
[email protected]
COPYRIGHT: PBJ is protected under the federal Copyright Act. Reproductions of any part by
any means or facsimiles without the express written permission of the publisher are not permitted. Reprints of PBJ articles are available. For rates and information visit http://www.pbjonline.
com/reprints.html. PBJ cannot be responsible for the return of unsolicited material, manuscripts
and photographs without the inclusion of a self-addressed stamped envelope. Information
in this publication is gathered from sources considered to be reliable, but the accuracy and
completeness of the information cannot be guaranteed. Submission of information does not
guarantee inclusion. PBJ is published monthly from offices located at Seven Bridge Road, East
Stroudsburg, PA 18301. PBJ serves business owners, managers and professionals in the four
county Pocono region: Carbon, Monroe, Pike and Wayne. Subscriptions are available for $30
per year or $60 for two years. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: Pocono Business
Journal, RR#5 Box 5198, East Stroudsburg, PA 18301
Monthly Missive
As 2007 comes to a
close, it’s human nature to
reflect and project. That is
exactly what the PBJ staff has
attempted to provide the reader
for this issue.
Area professionals share
some of their business goals
for the New Year and local stores showcase ideas
for affordable holiday gifts. A full update on regional transportation, an exclusive interview with
the new executive director of PMVB, county-bycounty update and transportation recap await the
eager reader.
But the real story this month is shared between the front page and the center spread. The
Commercial Real Estate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Company:____________________________
Pocono B2B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Phone:_______________________________
Pocono Medical Center. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Pocono Personnel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
RGB Custom Homes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
State:________________________________
Zip:_________________________________
____ 1 year (12 issues): $30.00
____ 2 years (24 issues): $60.00
Sherman Theater. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
TN Printing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Viamedia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Woodloch Resort. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
thread tying the two together is the increasingly familiar term, ‘subprime mortgage.’ As the Wall Street
West story began to unfold for writer Ken Clark, PNC
Bank issued its quarterly economic outlook report.
PNC Bank used major economic indicators to paint a
picture of how small business owners have - so far been experiencing less stress than their larger corporate counterparts, and small and medium businesses
share a more stable outlook for the six months ahead
than Wall Street. That’s the good news.
But on the housing side, the “worst housing market since the Great Depression,” according to PNC
senior economist Robert Dye, is affecting small and
big business alike. “It’s impacting on everything from
real estate to title transfer to hardware store appliances and manufacturing. We don’t expect that to turn
around anytime soon. Maybe well into the second
half of 2008.” PNC issues its next economic report in
April 2008.
Thank you for choosing
Not exactly a pretty picture and not consistent
with the recent commercial growth evidenced in
2007. My guess is that most businesses look to
next year with cautious optimism.
Lastly, everyone at Pocono Business Journal
wants to wish everyone a great holiday and a prosperous New Year.
Marynell K. Strunk
Publisher/Editor
Contact me at [email protected]
3
NEWS
County-by-County Economic
Development Update
By Kathy Ruff
As the population continues to grow throughout the Pocono
region, economic development entities here continue to
work on projects to attract business and industry to complement that growth. Local development experts share a brief
sampling of activities promoted in 2007 and a preview into
what lies ahead for 2008.
CARBON COUNTY:
Carbon County expects its slow but steady growth in
almost every major sector including health care, tourism,
manufacturing and retail throughout the past few years to
continue throughout 2008.
“The Split Rock indoor water park project will be creating new jobs,” says Toni Artuso, executive director of the
Carbon County Economic Development Corporation, Jim
Thorpe. “That should be completed maybe the third quarter
of 2008.”
The county recently attracted Hydra-Tech, an immersible pump manufacturer from New Jersey, to Nesquehoning
and worked with a 5,000 square foot expansion for Palmerton’s Architectural Polymers, a polyurethane mold manufacturer for the concrete industry.
“We are trying to attract all types of businesses in Carbon County,” says Artuso. “We definitely want to increase
the standard of living for our residents, but we would like
more high-paying jobs for our residents so they do not have
to travel outside of the county.”
Those jobs may appear as county planners pursue work
to develop the Packerton Yards Industrial Park in Mahoning
Township. In 2007, the county razed a controversial building on the lot and began moving forward with the project.
“Right now, we’ve been pursuing a public grade crossing over the existing railroad tracks,” says Fred Osifat,
director of the Carbon County Office of Planning & Development, Jim Thorpe. “We have to get that cleared to obtain
the public grade crossing. Once that is accomplished, it will
get into the site design, not just building lots but also your
infrastructure, sewer, water, gas and the whole ball of wax.”
Osifat anticipates movement on the approval by the
middle of 2008. In the meantime, the county will pursue
marketing the property, especially to businesses that may
require rail service.
Penn’s Peak in Jim Thorpe has plans for expansion to
relieve congestion and improve upon several areas of the
complex. The 9,500 square foot expansion includes three
phases, all of which are expected to be completed by March.
Penn’s Peak has also begun work on a new parking lot able
to hold over 300 additional vehicles and a pole building
to house company vehicles and store concert and banquet
equipment.
MONROE COUNTY:
In Monroe County, Johnson & Johnson will soon complete construction of a 1.37 million square foot warehouse
distribution facility, including 30,000 square feet of office
space, for its consumer products in Pocono Mountain Corporate Center West, Coolbaugh Township.
“They are starting to take product into the building
and things are slowly getting together there. They should
be going full-tilt in a reasonably short period of time,” says
Charles Leonard, executive director of the Pocono Mountains Economic Development Corporation, Tobyhanna.
Other projects in the county for 2007 included the July
opening of a new manufacturing facility for Swiftwater’s
sanofi Pasteur. For 2008, the company continues to work on
other expansion projects.
“They are renovating the old flu manufacturing area,”
says Leonard, “and construction of a new sewage system for
the plant.”
In addition to the expansion of existing businesses,
Leonard expects to attract new sectors and growth to the
county.
“It’s likely that we will have some new logistics employers announced over the next two years because that’s
such a significant portion of the marketplace right now,”
says Leonard. “Based on some of the contacts we have had,
I think we will see some manufacturing growth. We anticipate that retail will continue to grow so long as our population continues to grow.”
Leonard also sees potential growth in the financial
services sector as the Wall Street West initiative continues.
“We have a couple of hills to climb before we land a
significant employer in that area, but
we think it’s coming,” he says. “I
have a sense that it probably will be
2009 until we get significant employment out of this effort, maybe a little
later.”
Expansion plans for Mt. Airy
Lodge, Pennsylvania’s first standalone casino which had its Grand
Opening in October, include a new
spa and nightclub for 2008.
PIKE COUNTY:
Pike County plans to pursue marketing efforts to promote the area’s
economic development projects –
including Blooming Grove’s Pike
County Business Park situated minutes from Interstate 84 – in regional,
national and international markets.
“We have signed an exclusive
listing for our business park with NAI
Mertz of Pennsylvania out of WilkesBarre, marketing the whole park or
parcels,” says Rachel Hendricks,
vice president and deputy director
for economic development with the
Pike County Industrial Development
Corporation, Milford. “The park
has roads, sewer infrastructure and
stormwater. There are 21 lots with
320 developable acres in all.”
Hendricks hopes the county’s offerings will attract businesses seeking
sites for back office locations, light
manufacturing, warehousing and
financial service centers.
“At this point, what we are looking to do is leverage resources from a
private developer to take the property
further in the process,” says Hendricks.
Over the next six months, PIDCO
expects to undergo organizational and
strategic planning strategies to better
define future projects to promote
economic development throughout
the county.
WAYNE COUNTY:
Work on Wayne County’s
Sterling Business Park, a 252-acre
economic development project
located off Interstate 84, will continue
through 2008.
“The park is approved for manufacturing, light industry, professional
office and warehouse distribution,”
says Mary Beth Wood, executive
director of the Wayne Economic Development Corporation, Honesdale.
“PennDOT is currently reviewing
our highway occupancy permit, and
we are working on our permit for the
design of the wastewater treatment
plant that will serve the park.”
Wood expects construction, infrastructure development and marketing
of the project to begin during the first
quarter of 2008.
Other economic development
projects in the county include restoration of rail lines from Honesdale to
Lackawaxen, creation of a regional
sewer authority in central Wayne
County and, in the longer term, plans
to develop a proposed ethanol plant in
the Honesdale area.
“Repairing that rail line will open
up the freight and passenger service
along that line,” says Wood. “This
will open the line up for the commercial use again,” including use for the
proposed ethanol plant.
Driven By Excellence
The Dale & Frances Hughes Cancer Center’s
reputation as the regional leader for advanced cancer
care continues to grow. The Center is rated in the top
1% in the country for patient satisfaction, and our
partnership with Varian Systems, the world’s leading
radiation therapy equipment company, makes us one
of the most technologically advanced cancer centers
available. In addition, our clinical affiliation with the
nationally recognized Jefferson Cancer Network
gives us access to the latest research and treatment
options to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer. When
seeking a cancer center with a national reputation
for excellence, the Dale & Frances Hughes Cancer
Center is the right choice for exceptional cancer care
close to home.
www.pmchealthsystem.org
4
EDITORIAL
Holiday Wish List: Good Jobs, Vibrant Communities, Healthy Business Climate
PA Chamber of
Commerce
Lesley Smith
While excited kids of all ages are working on their perfect
holiday wish lists, the Pennsylvania business community knows
what it takes to provide good jobs that offer meaningful professions to our graduates and that create vibrant communities: a
healthy business climate. They don’t need to check their list
twice to find out about the ongoing struggle to operate their businesses here and to remain competitive:
1. Make Business Taxes Competitive
Positive business tax reductions were included in the 200607 state budget. At that time, the cap on net operating losses was
raised from $2 million to $3 million, or 12.5 percent of taxable
income, whichever is greater, and the sales factor for Corporate
Net Income tax apportionment was increased from 60% to 70%.
While successfully preventing nearly $1.2 billion in proposed new and/or expanded taxes on job creators was the focus
this budget cycle, it’s time to build on recent reforms by eliminating the NOL cap and establishing a 100% sales factor. This
would level the playing field for cyclical companies; ensure that
new businesses are able to survive and continue to grow; and no
longer penalize companies for increasing investments in capital
and the hiring of employees.
2. Restore Balance To Legal System
An unbalanced legal system discourages investment in
research and development; restricts or prevents the introduction
of new products; leads to higher prices for consumer goods and
services; and stunts economic growth and job creation. Lawsuit
abuse reforms such as modifying the legal doctrine of joint and
several liability, providing protection for innocent sellers, and
implementing a statute of repose for product liability actions,
among others, are critical steps toward improving Pennsylvania’s job climate and ensuring that all Pennsylvanians have a
balanced, commonsense legal system working for them.
3. Reform Unemployment Compensation System
In terms of the overall cost of its UC system, the Commonwealth consistently ranks worse than its competitor states
in many areas. Because the number of individuals who are unemployed and receiving benefits on a long-term basis is not decreasing, employers and claimants continue to realize increased
taxes in order to fund the UC system.
Changes are needed to Pennsylvania’s UC law to bring
these costs in line with other states and ensure predictability and
consistency for employers, while offering fairness for Pennsylvanians.
4. Ensure Affordability, Accessibility of Health Care
According to the PA Chamber’s 17th annual Economic
Survey, 80% of respondents said healthcare costs are a major
deterrent to business growth and job creation.
Effectively solving the Commonwealth’s healthcare crisis
will mean accomplishing this goal without making things worse
for all parties that have a vested interest in an effective solution.
In order to create a more cost-effective system that ensures
access to quality and affordable healthcare, lawmakers should
consider options that would enable greater competition among
private health-care providers; focus on consumer-driven health
care; and control the cost-drivers of health care, including coverage mandates and lawsuit abuse.
5. Establish Sound Environmental Policy
Pennsylvania and the federal government should work
towards implementing truly comprehensive energy and environmental policies, avoiding regulatory schemes at the state level
(i.e. the state-specific mercury rule) that do nothing for human
health or the environment while adding costs for consumers and
threatening jobs and job creation.
Examining Roles Within The Organization
Help You Plan for 2008
HR Toolbox
Victoria Mavis
www.pbjonline.com/blog
For most employers, December is a busy time; it marks a
time to plan for the coming year. But what should employers
consider?
All business owners and employers should conduct a
business review that evaluates the changes the business encountered over the past year and how those changes may affect
how you conduct business and your human resource needs for
the coming year.
But planning strategies are as unique as the business
itself, and can change depending on the lifecycle and circumstances of the business.
A new business owner might need to consider how to add
its first employee in anticipation of increased sales. And he or
she might have to hire two or three more employees the next
year with the introduction of additional products and a projection of doubling sales.
But if sales have declined due to market conditions, an
employer might then need to evaluate how to downsize and
adjust employee responsibilities to compensate for business
lost.
Loss of business can happen in unpredictable circumstances. Take for example a company which recently learned
that a school district intends to invoke its right of eminent
domain for expansion purposes - a move that would force
the company to relocate its business. This business owner’s
planning not only requires the company to look at repercussions on its entire operations but also at its human resources
component. In this case, since the business partially relied on
walk-in traffic, it must consider whether it will continue to sell
the same product line if the new location does not offer good
walk-in opportunities. In addition to the infrastructure planning, the employer may need to revamp its travel allotments
for sales people, reassign duties and recruit new personnel to
replace those not choosing to remain with the company.
Another example would be if a company hires a general
administrative person with a variety of duties and a transition
now requires a full-time bookkeeper. Will the employee feel
uncomfortable in that new role? Or what about a sales person
whose job focused primarily on inside calls and servicing
existing clients, who can feel ill-prepared to get new accounts
and make cold calls?
In such cases, an employer should consider which employees will be needed to perform new tasks. Recognize that
roles can change and can be part of your plan for transferring
knowledge or additional training.
No matter what your business situation, it remains critical
to plan and budget for training and professional development
to ensure your company maintains a competitive edge in 2008.
Consider performing an annual review to assess your human
resource needs and financial risks as they exist today. Human
resource assessments can enlighten you on potential compliance issues and problems areas, and can assist in reducing
financial and legal exposure as you plan for the New Year.
Victoria Mavis is the President/CEO of Core People Resources, LLC, a Web-based human resources expert system designed
to help small employers reduce the risk of financial exposure
associated with employment issues. The company is located
in Wind Gap. Vickie has over 17 years of experience and her
expertise is in providing businesses with practical and affordable approaches to their ‘people’ problems through the use of
Internet technology. Email [email protected]
or visit www.corepeopleresources.com.
|
PBJ READER’S RESOURCE
http://www.futurist.com
Futurist.com brings you current and timely
ideas of what the global community will
look like in 2008 and beyond. For business, it offers articles on such topics as
Future Challenges for CEOs, Eliminating Future Shock, and more, providing
a glimpse of what we can expect in the
workplace and in the world of business.
Futurist offers a blog, Web and in-person
presentations, and recommends books
and other resources to help you meet the
upcoming challenges in business.
Debbie Burke
Lesley Smith is the director of communications for the
Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry, the state’s
largest broad-based business association, with a membership
representing more than 50 percent of the private workforce.
More information is available on the Chamber’s Web site at
www.pachamber.org.
New Features
New Corporations/Fictitious Names
Find out who’s NEW in biz with our newest
addition to the PBJ Register: New Corporations/
Fictitious Names on page 23 of this issue
Legislative Roundup
What YOUR legislators are saying that affect
YOUR business in Carbon, Monroe, Pike and
Wayne Counties, starting in the January edition
New Distribution
Check out our Web site at www.pbjonline.com
and click on “Newsroom/PBJ News” for our
distribution points throughout Carbon, Monroe,
Pike and Wayne Counties
PLUS new columnists and contributors for
2008 providing more coverage on healthcare,
manufacturing, economic development, Leadership
programs, and Chamber of Commerce news
Corrections/Additions
Due to a printing error, the second item in the Business
Lawyer column which had been omitted should have read:
“Second, try to consider a conviction in the context of the
overall merits of the applicant. Inflexible rules not only
may result in potential claims under the criminal records
law, but might also result in the loss of a potentially good
employee.”
5
EDITORIAL
If History Repeats Itself, Let’s Learn the Lessons
Sustainable is
Attainable
Craig Todd
The natural systems and processes that sustain us, in every sense of the word, are much like the components found under the hoods of our cars. Having just graduated from college
in the 1970’s, I knew what was under the hood and I thought I
knew everything there was to know about the workings of our
environment. The dynamics of our environment are changing
and becoming far more complex as we become a greater part
of the equation.
Try to imagine a few hundred years ago before settlers
came to Pennsylvania. The landscape was predominantly
forested, dominated by a rich diversity of fauna and flora with
trees five feet in diameter. It was said a squirrel could climb
a tree in Philadelphia and travel via the canopy to Pittsburgh
without touching the ground.
In the early 1800’s, passenger pigeons, a close relative
of the mourning dove, numbered in the billions. One migrating flock was documented as being a mile wide and 240 miles
long, and took four hours to fly by. It was estimated that the
flock numbered two billion birds. By 1910, they were extinct
primarily due to market hunting.
By the early 1900’s, buffalo, mountain lions, wolves,
beavers, elk, moose, deer, waterfowl, bald eagles, osprey,
peregrine falcons and turkey were either gone or almost gone.
A change was definitely in order. Government, the private
sector and the public’s recognition of reality resulted in change
through education, science and the enactment of policies
and regulations that stemmed the loss of important wildlife
resources. They also provided for habitat and species management that resulted in the recovery of many of the species lost.
In the post-World War II era, our behaviors and government policies impacted our environment in much more dramatic ways. Industry spewed untreated discharges into rivers
and streams. The solution to pollution was dilution and we
were living better through chemistry. Rivers on fire, undrinkable water and unfishable lakes and streams were the norm in
many parts of the country.
Again, change was called for. Again, through joint efforts
of government, the private sector and the public, the degradation of resources was stemmed.
Now that we are approaching 2010 it looks like another
paradigm shift is in order. Current growth patterns, population increases, consumptive
behaviors, complex pollutants,
and carbon emissions all make
problem-solving, and the discussions that get us there, much
more challenging.
The U.S. Climate Action
Partnership (USCAP) is an
emerging group that is stepping up to meet the challenge of
global warming. This organization recognizes that our actions
have an impact on the collective
whole. USCAP seeks to effect
significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions through
public policy.
Locally, we should be
encouraging discussion and
participation. Synergy, among
the private and public sectors and academia, is necessary for
a successful and meaningful paradigm shift. Inclusion, not
exclusion; a collective approach to environmental protection;
and economic growth governed by principles of sustainability
and a shared future are all good ways to start the process. We
did it in the early 1900’s and again post-World War II. It’s time
to do it again.
Craig Todd is the district manager for the Monroe County
Conservation District. Todd shares this column with his colleagues from Pike and Carbon counties to discuss environmental issues and how they relate to business development in the
region. Readers can reach Todd at [email protected].
The Glass in the Poconos is Half Full
In The
Commercial Zone
Michael Baxter
You can’t read the newspaper or watch television
these days without hearing about how the national
economy is experiencing a “slump.” The challenges
faced by consumers in 2007 have most people wondering what 2008 will bring and I hear questions every
day regarding the recovery of the housing market, the
concern that we are headed into a recession, continued
commercial development and the future of interest
rates.
Well, count me as one of those people who is
completely optimistic about the future of our area. I
have always believed that the Pocono Mountains are
very unique. We live in a beautiful, popular vacation destination which is close enough to New York
and Philadelphia to attract businesses and residents
who are willing to commute to enjoy our exceptional
quality of life. Interstates 80 and 380 make our area a
gateway for millions.
We have been fortunate to have experienced a
longer than usual boom market. In my opinion, what
we are experiencing now isn’t a slump as some would
believe, but a natural course of a real estate market
“correction.” We have enjoyed a market that appreciated for more than twice as long as the traditional
real estate cycle! It had to level off eventually and,
although it doesn’t feel like it right now, it is healthier
careers elsewhere.
in the long run that it did.
All these strides have resulted in a much more
Our proximity to New York and Philadelphia and
diverse economy for our region. We no longer have to
the lifestyle offered in the Pocono Mountains have
depend solely on the resort industry and now have a
helped to spur economic development. The Wal-Mart
full “four season” economy. This has caused a funDistribution Center, the Johnson and Johnson project
damental shift in the socio-economics of our region,
and most recently the opening of the Mt. Airy Casino
bringing more affluent and experienced consumers to
Resort are examples of companies which bring signifiour area. I believe this provides cause for optimism
cant job growth to our area. The forward progress of
as we look forward to a prosperous 2008 and demonthe Wall Street West initiative could potentially bring
strates why the Pocono Mountain’s glass is “half full”.
even more, higher paying, white collar jobs to our area.
With these additions to the Pocono Mountain economMichael J. Baxter, CCIM is the Broker/Owner of
ic base comes the need for continued commercial retail
Michael Baxter and Associates located in Tannersville.
development, which in turn adds yet more retail jobs.
You can BLOG him at www.pbjonline.com/blog.
Because of my position as a commercial real
estate broker, I know that even
more large projects are on the
horizon. The public may not
hear about them right away because it sometimes takes years
of careful negotiation and
regulatory work on the part of
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6
NEWS
Leadership Pike Graduates Second Class of “Smarties”
Peter Wulfhorst
The 2nd Class of Leadership Pike
convened its graduation recently. The
class of 2007 started its journey in
April with a session on Understanding Leadership, when the students
described the characteristics of an
individual who that they considered
a leader, and examined their personal
leadership philosophy. The monthly
sessions continued with team building
activities at the Pocono Environmental
Education Center, followed by Managing Conflicts, Communication Skills
and Meeting Management.
As part of the program, the students were asked to work on a group
project that would benefit the citizens
of Pike County. They chose to develop a pamphlet for new residents of
Pike County. The pamphlet, “Living
in Pike County for Smarties, Almost
everything you need to know about
living in Pennsylvania’s beautiful Pike
County!” was created to assist new
residents in adjusting to the uniqueness of Pike County.
The graduation ceremony recognized organizations that contributed
funds for scholarships to assist some
students in the program. The current class has representatives from
local Realtors, Grey Towers National
Historic Landmark, Wallenpaupack
School District, Wachovia Bank, Newton Memorial Hospital, an abstract
company, Early Care and Childhood
Coalition of Pike County and the Boathouse Restaurant.
The graduates look forward to
discovering how the skills learned at
Leadership Pike have prepared them
for future leadership roles in our community. The program has provided the
groundwork by giving individuals the
opportunity to develop and sharpen
leadership skills, a chance to network
with existing and future leaders and to
learn about Pike County’s assets, and
introduced participants to the major issues and challenges facing the county.
The next Leadership Pike class is
scheduled to start in 2008.
For more information on Leadership Pike, please contact the Penn
State Cooperative Extension at 570296-3400.
Peter Wulfhorst AICP is an Economic
& Community Development Educator
with Penn State Cooperative Extension
in Pike County and is on the Leadership Pike steering committee. He can
be reached at 570-296-3400 or ptw3@
psu.edu.
Leadership Pike recently graduated its second class
at a ceremony held at Ehrhardt’s Waterfront Resort in
Hawley. Graduates and facilitators included, from left,
speaker Kim Coon, Mary Stanley, Jody Canfield, Jim
Simpson, Christine Scrofano, Peter Wulfhorst (Penn
State Cooperative Extension, Pike County), Laura Santelli, Lynn Dennis, Keith Gunuskey, Joann Featherman,
Rep. John Siptroth (D, 189), Dana Wojciechowski and
John Drake (Northampton Community College).
Leadership Pike
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7
NEWS
Creating Excitement at Work for 2008
Leadership Tips for
Today’s Leaders
Sylvia Lafair, Ph.D.
As we reflect on the past year, one of the big
questions being asked over and over is: what do
people need to be happy at work? Research indicates that it’s truly more than just getting fatter
paychecks.
In fact, it really is the other way around. Employee satisfaction influences the bottom line so
there is more money for higher salaries. The old
mantra of “show me the money” stands on a fragile
foundation.
Creating an environment where people are inspired to express their creativity and potential wins
every time. We human beings are programmed to
explore new ideas and become our best possible
selves.
So often people are whispering to each other
about their boredom on the job; the lack of challenge; and all this while complaining they are
overworked. Anyone who has ever been in the
flow of forging a new path, be it on the shop floor,
the marketing arena, or the sales territory knows
the feeling of contentment for a job well done. In
today’s workplace, there is more opportunity for
personal contribution than ever before. It means
showing up and speaking up.
The work place of old is gone. No more command and control. In most companies employees
have the opportunity to express their needs and
desires, without penalty or reprisal.
Being happy at work doesn’t mean walking
around with a silly grin and nodding, “have a good
day” to everyone you see. It means being acknowledged and appreciated. It means acknowledging
and appreciating others. It means finding ways to
work through the annoyances, hurts and disappointments together. It means celebrating successes,
from the smallest to the largest.
Being happy at work is a two way street. Leaders who create an environment of openness invite
participation and feedback. And employees who
participate fully and enthusiastically offer solutions
and innovation. Everyone wins.
Yes, there are always challenges at work. Yes,
change can be scary and yes, we are finally at a
place as we end 2007 to show the younger generation that work is where we continue to grow, to
learn about ourselves, to have fun and to develop a
shared sense of community.
Sylvia Lafair, Ph.D. is the President of Creative
Energy Options, Inc. and the developer of Total
Leadership Connections™, an innovative leadership forum. She is an executive coach and consultant to family firms and global corporations. She
is presently writing a book, “The Gotcha Game:
Helping Leaders Decode Office Politics”™. For
more information or comments email [email protected] or call (570) 636-3858
Smooth Out Your Seasonal Sales Bumps
If you operate a seasonal business and are starting to wonder if the uneven revenue streams and
stress-filled crunch times are worth all the hassle,
take heart. Millions of small businesses post the
bulk of their annual sales during a short season or
cycle.
For many retailers the holidays are boom time.
Fitness centers soar in January and sag with the
summer exodus. Some businesses sell more when
the weather warms, the tax or wedding season
arrives or tourists travel. Others thrive on cold or
times when kids are in school. No matter what type
of seasonal business it is, the common thread is the
need to succeed in a short time. Issues such as cash
flow, burnout and seasonal help are magnified.
To help smooth the bumps it will be important
to create a tight budget and stick to it throughout
the year. Create a special cash reserve account for
use only in leaner months. Set money aside whenever you can. Creating a cash flow forecast will
help you identify patterns and see what you are up
against. Include a worst-case plan to anticipate any
nasty shocks.
Operating a seasonal business also requires that
you plan and use your time more efficiently than
other business owners. Some periods may call for
only 25-hour workweeks, while others go far beyond that. To make sure everything gets done and
also avoid burnout, you’ll need to schedule your
time carefully.
Put slower times to good use by updating your
Web site, catching up on maintenance, strengthen-
ing customer relationships or writing marketing
plans. You may want to employ only a small corps
of permanent workers and use temps or interns to
fill in. Consider offering off-season sales or rates,
and look for ways to generate revenue during quieter periods.
CAPlines seasonal lines of credit are SBA-guaranteed short-term loans that help small businesses
survive the ups and downs of sales due to seasonal
changes. To qualify, your business must have established a definite pattern of seasonal activity. You’ll
find complete details and information on these
credit lines in the Special Purpose Loan Programs
section at www.sba.gov/financing.
Contact PBJ
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e-mail: [email protected]
POCONO
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For more ideas on growing your business, contact
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8
NEWS
AMERICAN DREAM... cont. from page 1
Granted, high home prices are great for a Realtor’s
commission or a builder’s bottom line, but it can make
buying a new home out of reach for those employed at the
lower end of the pay scale. “A lack of affordable housing
makes it difficult for certain businesses to attract low to
middle wage positions,” notes Houseman. “The Poconos
are known as a resort community, and you need wait staff
and cleaning personnel to keep them up and running.
Where are these people going to live?”
“We would like to see more multiple-family units
built in the area, but it’s not likely to happen anytime
soon,” says Chuck Leonard, executive director of the
Pocono Mountains Economic Development Corporation.
“Builders are stymied at the local level. Whenever builders approach city councils and zoning commissions to
begin the process, the public comes out in force to try and
block their efforts.”
According to Leonard, clusters of large, single-family
homes are the preferred living style here. “A lot of local
residents don’t want rows of townhouses, condominiums,
or apartment buildings anywhere near them. But we feel
they have a negative perception of multiple-family housing. It’s been a real struggle to construct affordable housing,” he says.
ments impose a school impact fee on builders to cover the
cost of these new schools.”
According to Eisenberg, sometimes, these fees are so
high, some builders are discouraged from building homes
in an area, and take their business elsewhere. “When a
builder decides to pull out of developing in an area, that
has a ripple effect on local business,” notes Eisenberg.
“Now, the local lumberyard and hardware stores lose out,
not to mention appraisers, lawyers, and all the people
involved in building a new home.”
Eisenberg also noted that school impact fees are
eventually passed on to the home buyer, who now has less
disposable income to spend on local businesses. “If a new
home owner has a high mortgage, he’s not going to spend
his spare time treating his family to a fun night out. He
just might pick up a pizza on his way home from work.”
Pocono Builders Association President Robert Brown
agrees. “As new housing prices go up, we feel the pain
of a new homeowner because we live and work in the
Poconos also,” notes Brown. “Something needs to be done
to curtail the skyrocketing school taxes. If they keep going
up, we’re not going to be as attractive to people who want
to move into the area.”
“We are willing to do our part and pay a reasonable impact fee, such as several thousand dollars,” notes
Brown. “But we feel higher fees are excessive. For
every thousand dollars a builder must pay in impact fees,
hundreds of potential home buyers are knocked out of the
market. That fee must be passed on in the price of that
home, making it out of reach for some buyers.”
Brown said they also are exploring other avenues that
would share the burden. “We are currently working on
a proposal that would result in incentives for builders to
construct more dense clusters of homes, such as fifty-five
plus communities. That way, there are more residents per
square mile paying school taxes.”
across the nation lately, and the Poconos are no exception.
The number of foreclosures in Monroe County jumped
from 120 in 1990 to 925 foreclosures in 2002, which is a
whopping 700% increase over twelve years. Many new
homeowners experienced problems with inflated appraisals and mortgage servicing. Some were also victims of
subprime mortgage deals, where borrowers with less-thanperfect credit get mortgages riddled with hidden fees and
high interest rates.
“Some of these subprime lenders practiced deceptive
marketing, strapping homeowners with a high mortgage
regardless of their ability to repay,” notes Houseman. “A
good rule of thumb is to make sure you limit your housing
payment to no more than thirty percent of your income.
For example, in order to afford a $200,000 home, you
should earn an income of at least $70,000 per year.”
So how do foreclosures affect local biz? “It’s fairly
well documented that as foreclosures are driving people
out of their homes, you’re getting into a situation where
they can’t afford to live locally,” says Leonard. “When
people are struggling to keep their homes, they do not
spend at local businesses.”
Help Is On the Way
In response to abusive mortgage lending practices,
Congressman Paul Kanjorski (D, 11) recently introduced
H.R. 3837 to help protect consumers (Kanjorski is chairSchool Impact Fee Woes
man of the House Financial Services Capital Markets,
Currently, Pocono builders do not have to pay school
Insurance, and Government Sponsored Enterprises
impact fees. However, many builders across the country
Subcommittee.) Recently, it received unanimous approval
are required by local government to pay these fees in
to incorporate the bill as an amendment into H.R. 3915,
order to defray the costs of new schools. Many industry
the Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act of
insiders feel it’s just a matter of time.
2007. H.R. 3915 was then adopted in the House by a vote
“As families move into a community, you have to
of 291 to 127. Another bill, HB 2033, requires brokers and
provide educational services to accommodate those new
bankers to obtain written consent from a consumer before
children,” explains Dr. Elliot Eisenberg, senior econoan offer of credit could be extended in the consumer’s
mist with the National Association of Home Builders in
name; it also increases penalties for violations. HB 2033 is
Washington, D.C. “In order to provide quality education,
currently before the House Commerce Committee.
A Word About Foreclosures
you have to keep classroom size as small as possible. So
Studies by Pennsylvania officials have determined
There has been an epidemic of foreclosures sweeping
eventually, you have to build new schools. Local governthat many of the foreclosures in Monroe County affected homes with inflated
property values. For example, one family
purchased a home for slightly more than
$150,000 and moved from Brooklyn to
the Poconos. Fourteen months later when
they decided to sell their house, the same
property was appraised at just $77,000.
H.R. 3915 promises to enhance appraisal
quality and oversight, improve mortgage
servicing, and require escrows for certain
mortgage loans.
Also, last July, the Pennsylvania
Housing Finance Agency launched a loan
program that helps homeowners with
deceptive loans switch to a traditional 30year fixed mortgage at competitive interest
rates. Called Refinance to an Affordable
Loan, or REAL, the program combines
100 percent financing with flexible credit
underwriting. For a list of participating
lenders by county, call 800-822-1174 or
go to www.phfa.org.
HUD offers free or very low-cost housing counseling. For more information, call
Students earning a graduate degree at East Stroudsburg University
800-569-4287. The National Association
of Mortgage Professionals operates a free
are among the most qualified, best educated candidates for today’s job market.
mortgage helpline at 888-680-6267.
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Housing Starts
So how do the Poconos stack up compared to the rest of the state on new
home construction? Check out these stats
of single-family building permits issued
so far this year:
Monroe County had 611 permits, and
Pike County had 500 permits, ranking
them in the top twelve counties in the
state (out of a possible 66)
Carbon County had 315 permits, ranking
it in the top twenty
Wayne County had 52 permits
Source: Pennsylvania Builders Association
9
NEWS
Area United Ways in the Home Stretch to Reach Goals
By Chris Grape-Garvey
What do the area’s United Ways have in common?
They are all trying to make their goals by the
end of the year.
With two of the state’s fastest growing counties
in the Poconos, it’s no wonder that the area’s health
and human service needs keep growing. In Carbon
County, the 2007 goal is $70,000. “We are halfway
there,” said Donna Lennon, vice president of the
campaign and an officer on the board of directors.
Carbon County United Way held its first celebrity roast at the end of November at Split Rock
Resort in Lake Harmony, with Carbon County
Commissioner Wayne Nothstein as the “roastee.”
Split Rock Resort sponsored the event, along with
Keystone Nazareth Bank and Trust and Jim Thorpe
National Bank. To get involved with the campaign
or volunteering, call the Carbon County Action
Committee at (610) 377-6400.
In Wayne County, the goal is $50,000, up from
2006’s goal of $42,000. Although Wayne’s United
Way is a division of Lackawanna County’s United
Way, all the money raised in Wayne County stays
in Wayne County. As of mid-November, money
raised for the campaign was at the halfway point.
Dime Bank, Wayne Bank, and Weis Markets are
among the businesses which support the campaign.
Donors who give in Wayne County have the chance
to win a Caribbean cruise; employees can qualify
for as little as $1.50 each pay period. For more
information call (570) 343-1267.
The United Way in Pike County is looking to
raise $175,000, which represents $25,000 more
than last year. A sign hanging across Hartford
Street in Milford advertises the goal, and the goal
thermometer is located in the Rite Aid parking lot.
United Way of Pike County has also been collecting coats for those in need this winter. Wachovia
Bank is accepting coats at its five local branches,
and the donated items will be taken to Bushkill
Outreach Center for distribution. For more information, visit www.unitedwaypike.org or call (570)
296-9980.
This is the second year the United Way of
Monroe County (with its 2007 campaign goal of
$1,225,000) has joined the “Commuters Care”
coat drive, which is being held with the assistance
of Pocono Commuter, Inc. and Martz Trailways.
Coats are being dropped off at Martz locations in
Mount Pocono, Delaware Water Gap, and East
Stroudsburg. [Also, see the Calendar of Events in
this issue about a United Way event on December
13 at Sycamore Grille.] For more information on
the United Way of Monroe County, visit www.
unitedwaymonroe.org or call (570) 629-5657.
Chris Grape-Garvey is the community outreach
and special events director for United Way of Monroe County.
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10
NEWS
Reflecting on the Philanthropy of Others
Regional Healthcare
Report
Richard J. Henley,
FACHE, FHFMA
At our annual Public Board Meeting held this
past October, Pocono Medical Center had the privilege of sharing some of our truly remarkable achievements with the community. Successfully launching a
Heart & Vascular Institute, being named a “Top 100
Performance Improvement Hospital” and attaining
patient satisfaction scores within the top 1% nationwide were just a few of the highlights presented at
the meeting. While we are extremely proud of our
accomplishments, we realize that none of this would
be possible without the many members of the community and the PMC family who have supported our
organization.
Our gratitude is especially heartfelt during this
time of year, when thanksgiving and reflection are
the hallmarks of the season. Looking back on our
organization’s nearly 100-year history, it is humbling
to know that so many individuals had the faith and
determination to make Pocono Medical Center the
hospital it is today: a progressive, excellence-driven
organization that continues to provide high-quality
patient care. Since 1906, when a group of local physicians came together to open the area’s first hospital,
which eventually became the General Hospital and,
later, Pocono Medical Center, philanthropy has been
the lifeblood of our organization.
Over the years, countless men and women have
continued to devote their time, energy and talents
towards enhancing the healthcare services for their
community. From the committed members of our
Hospital Auxiliary, who spend time away from their
families to plan various hospital fundraisers, to the
generous donors throughout our community who support these events, PMC is fortunate to have so many
caring and committed friends.
Today, our interdependent relationship with the
community is stronger than ever. The nearly 350
individuals who recently attended our annual Gala,
which raised over $80,000 for the development of a
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at PMC, exemplify the
strong philanthropic spirit that continues to nourish
our organization.
The true foundation of PMC has been, and
continues to be, the people who support us. The
volunteers who comprise our Board of Directors, for
instance, play an increasingly active role in advancing
our hospital.
I encourage you to give the ultimate gift this
holiday season: the gift of better health. Whether this
means scheduling that long-overdue check-up with
your physician, encouraging your employees to make
healthier choices or donating your time or gifts toward a cause for better healthcare, every effort toward
building a healthier future is a worthwhile effort.
Richard J. Henley, FACHE, FHFMA is the president
and CEO of Pocono Medical Center and Pocono
Health System. He has more than 25 years of experience in healthcare, executive leadership, strategic
planning, and operations and finance. Henley also
serves on the Board of Governors of the American
College of Healthcare Executives, an international
professional society of 30,000 healthcare executives
who lead hospitals, healthcare systems and other
healthcare organizations.
www.pbjonline.com
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11
Innovators in our Midst
By Debbie Burke
In a small African village in Togo, population 5000,
midwives have recently been able to discard their flashlights
in favor of more traditional lighting in order to deliver babies,
thanks to Pennsylvania inventor Guy Lestician. The East
Stroudsburg resident has sent over 25 of his fluorescent lights
(powered by batteries that are charged by the sun) to the
village, powering their medical clinics. And now for the first
time, those facilities can store antibiotics and anti-venom with
this gift of electricity.
Back at home in Monroe County, Lestician’s company,
DMI Manufacturing Inc., produces the EBU (Energy Bank
Unit), a new technological innovation that conservatively
saves at least 11% on electricity bills. By utilizing a “power
factor correction” (timing the incoming peak amperage and
voltage in a beneficial way to the user), Lestician says the device – which comes in various models from household to large
industrial application – takes 2 years or less to pay for itself.
According to his partner and Chief Financial Officer Steven
Whitcomb, the power companies in Pennsylvania “will have to
spend $12 billion to pay for new capacity.” The EBU greatly
reduces the resources needed, thereby presenting DMI not as
a competitor but as welcome relief to the overburdened power
companies struggling to fill a growing need.
Rep. John Siptroth (D, 189) recently held a press conference to announce a new partnership between DMI Manufac-
turing and Burnley Workshop in Stroudsburg. Burnley’s
consumers (staff) will start assembling about 20 EBUs
per week; after a month this will be increased to 40. Says
Richard Petersen, executive director at Burnley, “This
match-up is fantastic. It allows a non-profit organization
to partner and collaborate with a profit-making company,
fulfilling two missions. The first is to provide employment for adults with disabilities. The second benefit is
being part of a company that will help address our country’s energy needs.” Rep. Siptroth added: “I encourage
municipalities, state government offices and schools to
give this technology their full consideration…I’ve seen
far too many manufacturing jobs leave us for foreign
soils. I’m proud to help with a product with a label that
says ‘Made in Monroe County, Pa.’ ”
The EBU is now sold and distributed by Stroudsburg-based Friedman Electric, which also does the
installation. As DMI expands its distribution network,
the devices will be available in other markets. Those
markets are expected to show significant interest in the
DMI offering at the Electric West trade show coming to
Las Vegas at the end of February. It will be hard to miss
DMI, as the company will be strategically located on
the convention floor -- immediately in front of General
Electric.
“We built our business on a platform that was extremely strong, seven
generations over 166 years,” says Jay Montgomery (right), owner
of Calkins Creamery and recipient, with Emily Montgomery, of the
WEDCO 2007 Innovator of the Year award. The Honesdale-based
business is using new technology involving stainless steel pipes to
improve and enhance the cheese-making process. At left is David Hoff,
CEO, Wayne Memorial Health System.
SkillsUSA Comes to the Poconos
Photo Credit: Provided by SkillsUSA
At the recent ribbon cutting announcing
the new partnership between Burnley
Workshop and DMI Marketing were,
from left: Rep. John Siptroth (D, 189);
Daniel J. Desmond, Dep. Secy. for
the PA Department of Environmental
Protection; Burnley’s Executive Director
Richard Peterson; Guy Lestician (DMI);
Burnley Workshop Board President William McCabe; and DMI’s CFO Steven
Whitcomb.
To Light a Village
NEWS
Students from the SkillsUSA Council who hail from the region’s
vocational-technical high schools recently participated in a mock networking event at Caesars Brookdale in Scotrun. Besides exchanging
business cards, students also shared their career hopes and dreams.
John Tice, in the Computer Repair and Security at Monroe Career and
Technical Institute in Bartonsville, said, “I love this. I go in the lab
and play around.”
12
PROFESSIONAL PROFILE
Subprime Storm May Soak Wall Street West
By Ken Clark
In 1996, then Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan issued his now famous warning of “irrational exuberance” on the part of a financial community embroiled in a
roaring bull market on Wall Street. Now, eleven years later,
some financial analysts say that term legitimately might be
applied to Wall Street West as a dark sea change, driven by
winds of the growing subprime mortgage storm, sweeps
over a project so confidently launched over two years ago.
Boosters of Wall Street West said major banks and brokerages, urged to establish back office operations to replicate
data and guarantee business continuity in the event of
another terrorist attack, soon would establish such operations in Northeastern Pennsylvania -- specifically, in the
Poconos. Jobs would be created, proponents claimed; tax
revenues would soar and a new prosperity would bless the
region.
With Wall Street East in turmoil, however, Steven
Levine, chairman of Mountainhome’s The Hoot Group, a
consultancy specializing in credit and global margin problems, says none of that is likely to happen now for a long
time.
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“It’s getting worse, not better,” Levine said. “This [subprime] problem isn’t going to go away this year. It’s going
to go on into 2009 or 2010.”
Levine said as billion-dollar losses pile up for such
financial giants as Citicorp, Merrill Lynch and Bank of
America, they are closing their mortgage divisions and laying off “thousands of people” in the face of what the
Associated Press reports as “more than $500 billion of potentially worthless paper” on their once-prosperous balance
sheets.
“They have no choice; they’re boxed
in,” Levine said. “Coming here is not even on
their minds right now.”
Raymond Holland, vice chairman of
Triad Securities Corp. in New York City
agrees, but says many of the biggest players
on Wall Street already have established back
office operations as far away as Florida and
California and have no intention of relocating
to Northeastern Pennsylvania anyway.
“Moving back office operations is no
small task,” he said. “It’s a big deal to move
that many people -- to move computers and
set up systems and get rid of the space you’re
occupying now. Is it something that could
work? Yes, it could work, intellectually, but
you’d have the issue of moving people and hiring more people. What does a firm like Merrill
Lynch have to gain?”
And what about the Securities and Exchange Commission’s recommendations that
back offices be confined to a corridor no
farther away from New York City than 125
miles? Holland, whose own firm has established a back office in San Francisco, said
distance is not binding so long as data replication facilities are outside the blast zone of New
York City in the event of nuclear attack.
“The Bank of New York owns Pershing,
which is a big clearing firm, and they’ve
already moved over 200 people from New
Jersey down to Tampa,” he said. “They
obviously feel they can do a lot of back office
processing from that location.”
Holland did offer one ray of hope for
Wall Street West, when and if the current subprime mortgage crisis abates.
“If one major firm, like a Fidelity or a
Merrill Lynch, made a move out here, then you
would certainly attract more people,” he said.
“It happened in Jersey. Firms were moving out
to Jersey City because they were getting tax
grants and abatements and all sorts of things
locals do when they want to attract business.”
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Trading Big For Little?
Dan Summa, president of SECCAS LLC
(Secure Electronic Communication Compliance Archival Systems), the first - and so far
only - New York City financial institution to
announce establishment of a back office in
the region, offers one more ray of hope. In the
drive to court Wall Street firms for Wall Street
West, he says “big” may be beautiful, but
“small” may be smarter.
Summa, who will soon open his back
office in Scranton, runs a small firm with big
clients for whom he manages the complex
rules of statutory compliance, and while he
says they eventually will be on their way west,
the “little guys“ are going to get here first.
“When I talked to the Wall Street West
people, I said it’s good that you’re going
elephant hunting, but you should also look at
some of these smaller guys, because we can
move quicker,” Summa said. “Big firms are
thinking about it, but they have larger plans
and it takes them more time to move. There
are hundreds of small to mid-tier financial
firms in the New York City area that are looking to back up their data. Quite frankly, we
consider it just good business.”
Following the 9-11 terrorist attack that
brought down the World Trade Center, the
U.S.A. Patriot Act mandated that banks and
13
brokerages on the eastern seaboard back their data, via
fiber optic cable, and be able to continue the core business
instantly in the event of another catastrophe.
Accordingly, the SEC told all entities that feed and support the New York Stock Exchange to set up satellite operations outside the metropolitan target area. SEC guidelines
specified that such operations should be located between 50
and 125 miles away from the world’s financial capital in an
area with a watershed, a power grid and communications
and transportation systems separate from those of New
York City.
Wall Street West, a state and federally funded program
designed to develop and promote just such a system, was
then formed, and a major drive to lure such economic powerhouses to the area was launched.
The U.S. Labor Department issued a $15 million grant
aimed at training a local workforce. Monroe County’s Larry
Simon, who gave up his post as CEO of LTS Builders in
Shawnee-on-Delaware to lead his new Synchrium Group,
announced plans to construct a 300,000-square-foot office
and data storage facility to accommodate them. That was
over two years ago, and so far, though top secret negotiations with the major players still are assuredly continuing,
no firms have yet signed up.
Boosters Undismayed
Jim Ryan is director of Outreach and Network Development for Wall Street West, an initiative that includes
economic development forces like Ben Franklin Technology Partners in the Lehigh Valley. His primary mission is
to publicize what Pennsylvania has to offer and lure Wall
Street firms to office parks and facilities such as the one
Synchrium is building. Ryan says the big firms are coming around in undisclosed negotiations, but he agrees with
Summa that small- to mid-sized firms (only a few of which
need the instant backup of data via fiber optic cable) are a
rapidly developing viable market.
“In eyeball-to-eyeball communications with some of
these big premier companies -- and I’m not able to name
them specifically for you because of confidentiality reasons
-- are all very interested,” Ryan told Pocono Business
Journal. “We’ve been able to show them a number of site
availabilities within Monroe and Northampton Counties
specifically for the synchronous data replication. But the
other good thing is there are a lot of firms that do not need
that data replication. They’re looking quite seriously at
other locations: Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, and the Arcadia
Business Park up in Monroe. There are a number of clients
that have evinced interest.”
Ryan said smaller firms with need to back up data, but
not in the milliseconds required by brokerages and banks,
include credit card companies, health care institutions and
insurance agencies. He added that Summa, an enthusiastic
supporter of Wall Street West, has introduced him to several major firms, as well as a number of small to mid-sized
operations, all with an interest in northeastern Pennsylvania
operations.
It is the small firms that put the spotlight on a concept
common in the Midwest, but as yet unheard of in the Poconos: the business condo.
A New Approach
According to the Hoot Group’s Levine, a condominium, built to order for a firm to purchase and own rather
than rent, is ideal for the small operation because an owner
can accelerate depreciation and shelter income under new
tax laws. With proper zoning, says Levine, a company can
use a condo to house not only office and data storage space,
but also the people who will operate it.
“These are high-priced working people who will
come here and a lot of their income will spill over into the
economy, especially when they bring their families here,”
he said.
Bob Starrett, associate broker for Michael Baxter Commercial Realty, already is working on the business condo
concept, though he views it as having more appeal to doctors, dentists, lawyers and other professionals than to Wall
Street. Still, Wall Street, too, may show interest once the
facilities are on the market.
“It’s essentially a function of need,” Starrett said.
“Lease rates have gone up to around the $15 per square
foot point. Mathematically, that simply makes it more
possible to own the office than it does to rent. The condo
concept means they can renovate and build out the building
to their standards. They get exactly what they want and
their accountants will love it because they get all the tax
advantages of ownership.”
see NYC WEIGHS
IN page 14
Photo Credit: Perry Hebard
PROFESSIONAL PROFILE
Engineers drilled to test core samples at the site of Synchrium’s Penn Regional Business Center on Route 209 in Smithfield Township.
Execs say Synchrium is seeking to qualify for LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification by the U.S. Green
Building Council.
Synchrium Digs for
Tenant Commitment
By Ken Clark
Mark Twain complained that, “Everybody talks
about the weather, but nobody does anything about it.”
These days, in the Poconos, that proposition arises in
reverse.
Here, nobody talks -- at least in public -- about
candidates for Wall Street West, but apparently, those
high-powered financial firms expected to populate the
area with back office operations are doing a lot about
it. It’s just that they’re doing it silently, well below the
media radar.
To date, not a single Wall Street bank or brokerage
has signed up for space in the nearly 300,000-square-foot
Penn Regional Business Center which the Synchrium
Group is building for them off Seven Bridge Road in
East Stroudsburg. But Donald DePete, Synchrium’s
Chief Operating Officer, says that doesn’t mean the pot
isn’t getting close to a boil.
“The companies we’re talking to would be very uncomfortable (if they were identified) before the decision
is made,” he told Pocono Business Journal. “They’re not
going to let anyone know until a decision is made for a
couple of reasons. One is that there are major financial
implications and second of all, what if their people don’t
want to be here? If you put it in the newspaper that we’re
talking to XYZ Corporation, every employee would be
calling human resources saying, ‘Are we moving out to
the Poconos?’”
That, of course, is exactly what promoters of Wall
Street West hope will happen. And when it does, Larry
Simon, the CEO of Synchrium, will be ready to offer
them office and data storage space, wired with fiber optic
cable, to set up the operation that will keep a Morgan
Stanley or a Bear Stearns running without so much as a
hiccup if central headquarters in New York are taken out
by terrorism or a violent act of nature.
Companies that opt to join Simon’s PBRC facility
would be relocating data, administrative, trading and
executive functions in constant synchronous communication with their home offices, making it possible
for on-site personnel to instantly take over in the event
of disruption. Simon estimates that once his proposed
facility is up and running, it will support 1,300 jobs, with
average salaries of $50,000 a year, generating up to $400
million a year in local revenue and $4 million annually
for the county in resulting income taxes.
Last month, Synchrium completed on-site drilling of
core samples needed to test the stability (and check for
aquifers) of the proposed complex. DePete, backed by
John Coté, senior engineer of Langan Engineering, said
construction will be done at no tax cost to the county or
township and with maximum sensitivity to environmental issues.
“We don’t take any shortcuts when it comes to testing from an environmental point of view,” DePete said.
“Anything less would be irresponsible.”
“Keep in mind that at the county level, and the state
DEP level, they govern your preconstruction activities
for maintaining whatever conservation efforts are in the
proposed design,” Coté said. “They change your thinking because you have material selection and an energy
management system, all geared toward reducing consumption. Ultimately, you come out with what is called
a Class A office building.”
According to Coté, water for PBRC will be piped
into the site from Route 447 along Route 209, and both
water and sewer lines will be completed at Synchrium’s
cost.
DePete added PRBC is working hard to qualify for
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification by the U.S. Green Building Council,
the universally acknowledged standard for measuring a
building’s environmental sustainability. But that coveted
badge of honor is not the sole reason to strive for certification. DePete said LEED certification will allow him
to prove to prospective clients that steps to protect the
environment ultimately will come back to reflect favorably on their bottom line. “It gives me the opportunity
to deal with some of the specifics on why it is good business to deal with these environmental conservationist
enhancements,” he said.
Meanwhile, the WIRED initiative, designed to fund
the training of a workforce for Wall Street West, announced that the second round of applications for Innovation Investment grants of $1 million per year, for two
years, is open. Would-be recipients must file by Dec. 31,
2007.
In the first round for WIRED funds, the only Pocono
recipient was Right Reason Technologies. The Wayne
County Economic Development Corporation applied
in the first round, but failed to make the cut. WEDCO
Executive Director Mary Beth Wood said her agency
will apply again. Grant recipients will be announced this
coming February. (EDITOR’S NOTE: More information
on WIRED follows in the January issue.)
14
PROFESSIONAL PROFILE - continued
PA is “Attractive”
NYC Weighs In
NY Firms Staying Put
“The safety of the citizens of the city is of paramount importance to the Bloomberg Administration. We obviously understand that, in our uncertain
world, businesses need to plan for all eventualities.
However, we continue to believe that New York
City is and will be the world’s financial center and
that the hundreds of thousands of industry jobs
located here indicate that the private sector agrees
with us and has sufficient confidence in our security measures.”
David Doctoroff
NYC Deputy Mayor for Economic
Development
“The city is always working to retain the corporate presence here. We think we’re a very broad,
geographically diverse city with lots of resources
to offer companies and it may be possible for many
companies to locate their backup sites within the
five boroughs. We have the resources available that
nobody else has – emergency response services,
energy and water – that we believe are second to
none in the world. Anybody concerned about business continuity and redundancy is well-served to be
located here.”
Bruce Regal
Sr. Counsel, NYC Law Department
Many New York firms are at least considering such
back-up locations, and northeastern Pennsylvania
is an attractive possibility: it’s outside of the New
York blast zone, but less than two hours’ drive from
the city and close enough to allow for synchronous
data transmission. Whether Wall Street West will
live up to its name upon completion of the fiber
network remains to be seen. But financial institutions should be aware of alternatives that may
enable them to replace or supplement a back-up
physical office.
Ashley Evans
Insurance Analyst, Celent LLC
Boston, MA
Client Base Exists, But PA Must Market
Effectively
“All the compliant large scale businesses under
the SEC or adhering to Sarb-Ox (Sarbanes-Oxley)
have already built, staffed, and populated their alternate sites as required. To lure a corporation from
their billion dollar investments without a business
justification doesn’t seem like a feasible plan. Having multiple firms in a single known location also
introduces other concerns. These sites did not bring
high-paying local jobs because companies opted to
transfer their existing staff using the IRS relocation
expense reimbursement. Any long-term employment generated within these new locations has
resulted in low-paying cleaning and maintenance
jobs. Could a site like this be successful? Possibly.
The final answer depends on how it’s marketed. I
see serious flaws in the general assumptions regarding the need for these types of facilities as planned.
There is an obvious client base. Let’s just hope they
target them before it’s too late.”
Robert Temple
Information Technology Consultant for NYC-based
Securities Firms
East Stroudsburg
PA is Viable
“SunGard has been in the business of helping
organizations locally and around the world with
their information availability strategies for nearly
30 years. Companies are attracted to Northeast
Pennsylvania because of its close proximity to
New York City, while also providing enough geographical distance to serve as a temporary worksite
should employees need to recover the business
remotely in case of a major disruption at home
base. There are some challenges – for example, PA
is missing direct train service to and from the New
York City area – which leads some companies to
opt for other sites, including north Jersey. However, Northeast Pennsylvania is certainly a viable
option for many organizations based in New York
that want to meet standard best practices for business continuity.”
Jim Grogan
Vice President, Consulting Product Development
SunGard Availability Services
Wayne, PA
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15
NEWS
Photo Credit: Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau
Tourism Outlook: Changes at the Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau
Reflecting Back, An
interview with Bob
Uguccioni
Bob Uguccioni is the former
executive director of the
PMVB, an organization he has
headed since 1967.
Pocono Business Journal:
What are the top successes
you are the most proud of
that came out of your role at PMVB?
Uguccioni: Promoting tourism in the four counties and
keeping them together as a destination. We’ve passed some
legislation, like the more money for tourism promo, and
received more recognition for tourism in Harrisburg and
even in Washington. I think there’s more of a realization and
respect for the industry than when I first started.
PBJ: As you look back on your experience, what do you
see as the number one challenge facing PMVB now and
into 2008?
Uguccioni: It’s a question of staying the course. We have a
rapidly growing area, and we have to have a better way to
manage growth. We get diverted by events and by downturns in business, but we have to continue to promote the
area for all businesses.
PBJ: What is the biggest change that has occurred in
PMVB’s recent history?
Uguccioni: I think competition is so intense today. Years ago
most people from New York and New Jersey would go to
the Poconos, Atlantic City, Niagara Falls, and Lake George,
but not Paris or Alaska. That was for very rich people. But
that’s since changed. With the discretionary dollars that
people have today at all levels of the economy, they are not
limited to the Poconos. They can go to Hawaii and Europe.
It’s a bigger world now.
PBJ: What do you see as the business community’s biggest strengths or advantages that Mr. Wilgus will be able
to utilize to help grow our economy?
Uguccioni: We are fortunate to have many owner-operators
who have lived here for many years; there is not a lot of
absentee ownership. And so, when you are talking to the
owners- the CEOs and the members of our board- you have
the ability to get things done. That’s why the PMVB has
been successful.
PBJ: Any regrets?
Photo Credit: Idaho Department of Commerce
Uguccioni: Lots. Every day I think of things we could have
done differently. It’s important to look back to evaluate the
mistakes you made in the past, but it’s more important to
look at what you do now.
Projecting Ahead An interview with
Carl Wilgus,
Incoming Executive
Director PMVB
Carl Wilgus, who last month
took the helm as the new
executive director of the
Pocono Mountains Visitors
Bureau, said his decision to
relocate here was made, in part, because the mountains and
greenery of the Poconos reminded him of where he grew up
in western Washington State. He comes to the Poconos from
the Idaho Department of Commerce where he served as
administrator since 1987.
Pocono Business Journal: What successes are you the
most proud of that came out of your role as administrator at the Idaho Dept. of Commerce?
Wilgus: One, that state tourism has been funded by the
lodging tax since 1982. With the exception of 2001, we
have been able to grow that revenue pot every year, some
years up 16% or 18%. The second thing is that over the
past twenty years tourism has become acknowledged as the
driver of Idaho’s economy. Tourism used to be the “Rodney
Dangerfield” of economic development. Jobs have been created, and we’ve increased economic vitality. Also, we have paid
attention to trends in the industry and adjusted our marketing
programs by making our product offering customer-geared.
Lastly, over twenty years, technology has changed dramatically, and we’ve done a good job of staying in tune with that.
workforce opportunities, finding land, etc. Tourism isn’t just
for the visitor but as much for the resident; maybe even more
so. Our industry has a vital role and needs to be at the table in
terms of economic issues.
PBJ: What failures or shortcomings were the best lessons
learned that you can apply going forward in your new
position?
Wilgus: Recreational offerings, for one. We are more sensitive to obesity, the importance of exercise, and other health
issues. Also, being on top of environmental issues, with fresh
air, clean water, and green spaces as opportunities to revitalize
ourselves.
Wilgus: In the late ’80s we initiated an international marketing
program; we assumed incorrectly that based upon geography,
the Asian market would be the easiest and best market for us.
We spent three to four years in the Japanese market because
they were buying real estate in the U.S. We basically spun our
wheels and found that Europe would be a much stronger market for us. So, be careful of your assumptions, and do your due
diligence. Also, we’ve attempted to do some co-op marketing
programs with the private sector, but that wasn’t nearly as successful as it could have been. We thought it was a win for the
state but it wasn’t for the local business owners themselves.
We’ve backed off on this push in co-op marketing until we
make sure it’s a win-win for everybody.
PBJ: What are the top challenges that PMVB now faces?
Wilgus: It’s premature to say. My first ninety days, I will be
living at various properties throughout the four counties to understand the product more fully and learn about the communities. I’m going to be reaching out to find out what others think
are the strengths and weaknesses we are facing.
PBJ: How does the current mix of businesses in this region - from corporate entities and franchises to the many
smaller entrepreneurial companies and “Mom and Pop”
shops - factor into how you will market this region?
Wilgus: We’ve found that tourism is increasingly becoming a
niche market. When I grew up,
your vacation was Mom and
Dad and the kids in the back
of a station wagon, and you
saw the U.S.A. from the back
windows. The issue of tourism
marketing has changed. There
is a variety of lodging now, and
different groups will be drawn
to different accommodations.
There is an incredible amount
of corporate business out there
and re-energizing the product
will help us gain a stronger
foothold in the marketplace, but
it will take some time.
PBJ: How will PMVB’s
successes directly affect business owners here who are
not in the travel and tourism
industry?
Wilgus: An incoming tide floats
all boats. If the tourism sector
of your economy is strong, it
will put more money in local
banks, mean more business for
accountants, and you grow the
entire business community. If
we can grow tourism, we can
be a bigger player in growing
economic development for the
entire region.
PBJ: What level of interaction do you plan to have with
the economic development
entities in the four counties
of Carbon, Monroe, Pike and
Wayne?
Wilgus: I have a unique perspective being from the Department of Commerce. Tourism
IS economic development. We
have found one of the important ingredients for business
relocation is related to lifestyle:
PBJ: What are the top two things you will need to accomplish to make the Poconos even more of a magnet?
PBJ: What influence will the Mt. Airy casino have upon
enhancing this region’s appeal?
Wilgus: Its appeal is in the fact that it provides an additional
offering to the recreational inventory. It will bring its own
people interested in gaming but also entertainment to those
coming into the area. The challenge for PMVB will be how
to get those coming for gaming alone to stay longer and learn
about the area, enjoy it, and find out what else there is to do.
PBJ: How do you think the new branding of PMVB itself,
and by extension of the Pocono region, will strengthen
economic development in 2008?
Wilgus: I’m impressed by the time and effort to come up
with their new brand and theme, “It’s Time for the Pocono
Mountains.” I think it works very well. The issue is not what
the brand is; it’s how well we execute the marketing of that
brand. That falls on me and my staff. The second part is that
branding is all about making a promise and delivering on that
promise. Visitors need to get that recharging and renewal that
we promise them as part of our message. We need to fulfill
those expectations. The work has just begun.
16
NEWS
Business Goals, 2008
Regional professionals were asked about their business goals for the New Year. Here, they share their observations of
the past year and their hopes for 2008.
Jeannie Genzlinger
Owner/Operator
Settlers Inn
Hawley
“In the 20 years we’ve been
in business, we’ve had
growth every year. I know
we’ll continue to grow
based on our future event
business for 2008. For the
physical plant, I’m hoping
to do some major landscaping and close our back
porch by adding a roof or an awning. The largest goal
is to maintain the great service and the staff. I want to
focus on more staff education and training.”
George Bushta
Certified Public Accountant
Stroudsburg
“After 37 years in business, I feel it is time to
slow down just a little bit.
This year I intend to begin
streamlining my practice
and will limit my services
to income tax preparation
solely. Of course, I will
continue my dedication to provide quality service to
my clients by staying current with changing tax laws
and codes. I will also continue to represent my clients
before the IRS, if needed.”
Jessica Goward
Membership Director
Commerce
Stroudsburg
“My main goal is to
promote new membership development for the
Commerce. We would also
like to provide local businesses with the valuable tools necessary in becoming
a successful, prosperous business by showing members how much of an asset we can be.”
John Drury
President
Mauch Chunk Museum and
Cultural Society, Inc.
Jim Thorpe
“Our goal is to maintain our
present status so that we
are able to continue using
people from Rural Opportunities, Inc. in an attempt
to save expenses. Another
goal is to make more frequent use of our ballroom for
weddings and events to generate more income. We
want to be more proactive in consulting with potential renters and buyers about their plans and we want
to increase the quality and diversity of some of the
shopping in town.”
Al Gallucci
Owner
Ductz Indoor Air
Professionals
East Stroudsburg
“As the only professional
air duct cleaning company
in this area, we are anticipating extremely fast
growth both in our company and in the field in general. In 2008, I hope to have a second truck and two
more employees. Our business is 50% residential and
50% commercial. On the commercial side, we serve
anybody who’s concerned about indoor air quality.”
All photos courtesy of interviewees unless otherwise noted
Richard W. Blake
Customer Service Manager
Patterson Kelly
East Stroudsburg
“2008 will be my last year
with Patterson Kelly. I will
be retiring after 37 years
with the company. At PK
my goal this year will be to
finish up my work and to
prepare for the day I will be
turning my position over to a replacement. Personally, my goal for the coming year is to purchase a retirement home and to organize personal investments
and pension plans to prepare for retirement.”
Maria Hafler
SkillsUSA Advisor
Monroe Career and
Technical Institute
Bartonsville
“My goal for the students
is to allow them to network
and develop the skills needed to meet future employers
and to become productive
and responsible citizens. I
just want my students to be able to use the skills that
they have learned here to allow them to reach all their
personal goals. I want them to be able to go out an
open their own business; to seize opportunities and
take advantage of them.”
Luke Ketterhagen
Yoga Director
Himalayan Institute
Honesdale
“We are going to be expanding our program to
include lunchtime classes
in stress management, yoga
meditation and basic relaxation. We’re going to add a
lot more weekend programming and workshops too. The biggest addition will
be a yoga training teacher program which is going
to start in the middle of next year. There’s no training in this area and we’re looking forward to getting
into that market; hopefully people will expand their
awareness of how great yoga and meditation are for
life’s well-being.”
Chuck Leonard
Executive Director
Pocono Mountain
Economic Development
Corporation
Mt. Pocono
“We will continue our work
to attract and develop new
businesses to our community and create new jobs and
opportunities for Monroe
County residents This includes targeting one more
new business to the area and to continue moving
forward on existing projects with Pocono Corporate
Center East, Arcadia North Business Park and with
the development of Wall Street West, in which we are
deeply involved and are supplying necessary infrastructure information to make that a big reality.”
Sal Maiolatesi
Owner/Operator
Maiolatesi Wine Cellars
Hawley
“To build a new winery,
because mine just burned
down. My business plan is
to get back on my feet. We
had thirty different wines.
We’re probably going to cut
that back a little in the first
year; it’s probably going to be close to twenty varietals. We will have a partial inventory starting in July,
then a bigger inventory come August and September.
They’re all bottled by me, from grape to bottle. I’m
most definitely coming back. This is all I know how
to do.”
Gail Tucker
Executive Director
Greater Honesdale
Partnership
“The Greater Honesdale
Partnership’s goal for 2008
is to increase the volume
of tourism to our town,
enabling an even greater
number of people to experience the wonderful stores,
restaurants, and service providers the Greater Honesdale area has to offer. We plan to offer informative
seminars that will help our businesses increase their
sales. We will also double our efforts to make our
streetscape more attractive, which in turn will make
historic Honesdale an even nicer place to be.”
VISIT US ONLINE
@
www.pbjonline.com
17
NEWS
The Better Road: Transportation Outlook for 2008
By Ken Clark
On Aug. 1, a bridge collapsed in Minneapolis, plunging dozens of cars into the Mississippi River and killing 13 people. As events go, it was far less horrific than
Hurricane Katrina or the raging wildfire sweeping across
southern California, but it sent out a shock wave far more
inclusive.
Almost overnight, a whole nation awoke to the
fact that our over-aged and over-stressed bridges and
highways are crumbling beneath the very wheels of the
automobiles that take us places and the 40-ton trucks that
bring things to us. As though it was a new revelation, inspectors suddenly were swarming over and under bridges,
probing cracks in the concrete and rust on the trusses, and
fretting about pot-holed and washboarded highways from
coast to coast. Politicians, meanwhile, demanding that
something be done, loosened the purse strings and started
advancing some very expensive proposals.
Senators Arlen Spector and Bob Casey are pushing
through Congress a $35.5 million federal grant to fund
various transportation projects throughout the state, $2
million of which will pay for preliminary engineering on
passenger rail service from Scranton to Hoboken where
commuters can take a PATH train into Manhattan.
Meanwhile, the Pennsylvania State Legislature
proposes to turn Interstate 80 into a toll road to pay for a
massive infrastructure upgrade. Both projects have their
critics, but Joe Brimmeier, CEO of the Pennsylvania
Turnpike Commission, defends the tolling of I-80 as the
least painful solution to repair the battered highway and
its bridges.
“The transportation infrastructure has to be repaired,
or it’s just going to continue to decay,” he said. “The
alternatives are: raise the gasoline tax, raise the fees and
registration, and raise the sales tax or even the income tax.
There is a number of ways that it could have been funded,
but the wave of the future is going to be tolling the roads.
Let people who use the road pay for the road.”
The legislature passed and Gov. Ed Rendell signed
Act 44, authorizing tolling of the 300-mile stretch of
highway from the New Jersey to the Ohio border in July,
but approval by the Federal Highway Administration still
must be obtained.
Brimmeier declined to estimate what tolls will be or
how much money might be raised in the course of the 50year lease of the highway from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. He said all monies raised at a
maximum of 10 toll booths will go for repair of I-80, and
he denied reports that any surplus will go to fund mass
transit projects.
“That’s a complete fallacy,” he said. “We made it part
of the lease agreement with PennDot that none of the tolls
on I-80 can be used for mass transit. Unfortunately, we
have a few elected officials who are fear-mongering their
constituents, pitting parts of Pennsylvania against each
other, and that’s just absolutely wrong.” Any surplus, after
I-80 repairs, he said, will go to the repair of roads and
bridges in the Poconos and other rural areas of the state.
Mass transit rumors are not the only ones being whispered in the background of the tolling project. Others say
truckers, unhappy with the increased costs they will have
to pay to cross the state, may take back-country roads to
avoid the toll booths, and that the booths, themselves, will
cause major traffic jams as vehicles line up to pay. Brimmeier shot down both claims.
“In the trucking industry, time is money,” he said,
adding that the average trucker “won’t like it, but he’ll
pay it because it’s the fastest way for him to get from
Ohio to New Jersey.”
Fortunately, he won’t be risking bridge collapse along
the way. At a recent audio teleconference, state bridge
inspector Susan K. Sprague said no bridges in the commonwealth are closed, and none are in critical condition.
Bridge conditions in the Poconos range from poor to serious, but none are in danger of imminent failure.
As to congestion, Brimmeier said tolls will be collected automatically by electronic detection, similar to the
E-ZPass system used on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, and
that cash tolls will be collected at booths off the sides of
the highway or at central islands isolated from the main
traffic flow.
But it is the passenger rail line along the Lackawanna
cutoff through New Jersey that is generating the highest levels of controversy, not to mention price tags. The
proposed line, with stops in Tobyhanna, Mount Pocono,
East Stroudsburg and Delaware Water Gap, will cost an
estimated $551 million and is expected to carry 6,000
commuters a day by 2030, at which time Monroe County’s population will have swollen to nearly 300,000.
Larry Malski, Chief Operating Officer of the Pennsylvania Northeast regional Rail Authority, said railroads, in
decline for decades, are staging a comeback.
“The big railroads are starting to make the money
they need to start adding capacity,” he said. “For years,
they’ve been abandoning trackage. They’ve finally turned
a corner, and they’re actually starting to lay more track.”
Malski said that while “all everyone wants to talk about
is the passenger project,”
a more important aspect is
freight.
“What we do is really for economic development,” he said. “Freight
is doing very well. We’re
very involved in bringing
new industry into the area,
and that’s picking up faster
than we can keep track. A
lot of industries are coming
back to rail because of all
the problems with highway
transportation -- congestion
and higher freight rates.”
Still, passenger service
remains the darling of its
supporters. Pennsylvania
Representative Paul E.
Kanjorski (D-11) wants to
take the project up a notch,
to the level of a high-speed
“Maglev bullet train”
capable of achieving a speed of 320 mph, cutting the commute time from the Poconos to New York to 20 minutes.
He said the project would cost a staggering $5 billion, but,
in terms of moving people, it would be “the equivalent of
a 36-lane highway.”
Not all politicians are behind such a move. State
Senator Bob Mellow (D-22) said he admires the highspeed train he recently saw in Taiwan, but that he doubts
if the funding necessary to replicate it here ever will be
forthcoming. In fact, he isn’t even sure the conventional
Lackawanna project will see fruition.
“I’m not convinced that we’ll ever see regular rail
service between Scranton and New York City,” he told
Pocono Business Journal. “It’s a project that’s going to
cost hundreds of millions of dollars, and New Jersey isn’t
going to be there (as a supporting entity).”
Malski shrugged off the forecast.
“That’s his opinion, and obviously he’s a major
player here,” he said. “But the people we’ve been working
with in New Jersey are all strongly for it. New Jersey
Transit, which is the operating entity over there, is saying
they’re not sure where the money is going to come from.
I don’t feel it’s a question of ‘if,’ it will be a question of
‘when.’ If you could guarantee the funding and the financing and all the other approvals we need, it could happen
within five years, but that, very clearly, is the best case
scenario.”
Highways and railroads, however, are not the only
transportation entities growing in the Poconos. Greg
Christine, Chairman of the Monroe County Airport Authority, said the main runway at Mount Pocono’s airport
is being extended to 4,500 feet to accommodate the large
corporate jets company executives use to reach Johnson
and Johnson, sanofi Pasteur and other entities in surrounding business parks. He said the airport also is being
surveyed for establishment of a new instrument approach
system that will make the facility “a precision airport.”
18
BUSINESS BRIEFS
WHO’s WHO
BOGART
FRITSCHIE
MARTIN
Bogart - Caesars Pocono Resorts has announced the promotion of MaryLee Bogart to reservations supervisor. In her new
position, Bogart will be responsible for evaluating reservation
personnel and providing ongoing employee training to continuously enhance the booking process. Her daily responsibilities
will also include developing educational programs and updating
contacts at all four Caesars Pocono Resorts properties about
departmental innovations and improvements. Bogart joined the
Caesars Pocono Resorts Reservations Department in September
2005 as a reservations agent.
Bush - MJ Bush, President of Advantage Abstract & Realty
Services, has been elected vice-president of the Kiwanis Club
of Delaware Valley for the year beginning October 1st.
Fritschie - Sharon Fritschie of Dingmans Ferry has successfully completed the course to become an Accredited Buyer
Representative (ABR). Fritschie works at the Dingmans office
of Wilkins & Associates and joined the company four years
ago. She completed the course at the Pocono Real Estate Academy and said the information she learned gives her an edge,
especially in today’s market.
Freeman – Douglas Freeman, a Realtor® with Realty World
Becky Freeman and Associates, has been awarded the 2007
PREF Scholarship. Freeman is one of 15 award-winning
recipients. He will use the scholarship money for designation
courses offered by the Pennsylvania Realtors Institute and other
Realtor® schools.
Gamboni - Jill Gamboni, director of Child Care Information
Services of Pike County, has been elected president-elect of
the Kiwanis Club of Delaware Valley for the year beginning
October 1st.
Gunderman - Dorie Gunderman, Realtor® for Wilkins & Associates, has been elected as club treasurer of the Kiwanis Club
of Delaware Valley for the year beginning October 1st.
Keeley - Joseph Keeley recently held a press conference about
his company, College Nannies & Tutors, Inc. He started the
RIVERA
SCROFANO
company seven years ago, while still in college, as a way to
supplement his income. College Nannies & Tutors is a staffing and placement firm that partners with local companies to
provide work-life balance programs for their employees and
specializes in providing educationally-focused child development specialists as nannies and tutors. Today, there are 55+
franchises throughout the U.S. including one in Tannersville.
Kunz - Experienced Realtor Keith M. Kunz has joined the Tannersville office of Weichert, Realtors® - Acclaim. He offers a
full range of real estate services with emphasis on commercial
properties and land development. He serves clients in Monroe,
Pike, Carbon and North Hampton Counties as a member of the
Pocono Mountains Association of Realtors®.
Martin – Our House Publications, LLC, has announced the
appointment of Thomas J. Martin to the newly created position
of advertising director. Martin, who was most recently director
of operations of Creative Structures, is responsible for securing
advertising sponsors for the regional consumer title and for
building and managing a sales team. Our House is a regional
home and leisure consumer magazine targeting 10 counties
along the Delaware Valley.
Merlino – Annette Merlino has been named Branch Manager
of the new Pennstar Bank in the Crossroads Mall on Route
611 in Bartonsville. She will work with Regional Manager Raymond Ceccotti and commercial lender Jeff Reimer to develop
new business in the Bartonsville market.
Rivera - Lindsay Rivera, an Administrative Assistant with
NEPA Management Associates in Stroudsburg, was promoted
from an Administrative Assistant to a Property Manager at
Wilkins & Associates Real Estate in Stroudsburg. In her new
position, she will be responsible for the long term rental division of NEPA Management Associates.
Schramm - Catherine Schramm, Therapeutic Support Staff
for Youth Advocate Program, was elected as club secretary of
the Kiwanis Club of Delaware Valley for the year beginning
October 1st.
SURIANI
SWINGLE WILGUS
Scrofano - Christine Scrofano, vice-president and sales manager for Wilkins & Associates Real Estate, has been elected
president of the Kiwanis Club of Delaware Valley for the year
beginning October 1st.
Suriani - Shannon Suriani, MS CCC SLP, has just been added
to the staff of Riverside Rehabilitation Centers as a full time
speech therapist. Suriani is responsible for evaluating and
treating adult and pediatric patients with deficits in speech, articulation, language, voice, swallowing and cognition resulting
from brain injuries, strokes, and other neurological and auditory
processing disorders.
Swingle - Sophia Swingle has joined the Mount Pocono office
of Wilkins & Associates Real Estate Inc. A life-long resident
of the Poconos, Swingle has a bachelor’s degree in Business
Administration with a minor in Finance and Management from
Wilkes University. She worked in the banking industry for 29
years at Wachovia and PNC Banks, and as a Realtor® for the
last seven years with Kathy Louis and ERA Anderson. She also
served for three years in the United States Marine Corps, where
she was honored as Marine of the Month. She has been active
in Monroe County in the Builders’ Association, Chamber of
Commerce, United Way, Junior Achievement and The Pocono
Summit Business and Professional Women’s Club, who named
her Woman of the Year.
Wilgus - The Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau has named
Carl Wilgus, former Idaho state tourism director and assistant
deputy director of the Idaho Department of Commerce, as
PMVB’s executive director. Wilgus, a 33-year industry veteran,
was appointed state tourism director for the Idaho Department
of Commerce in 1987; under his guidance the staff nearly tripled, and he grew the annual budget by nearly four times. His
accomplishments include overseeing international, cooperative,
multi-state marketing efforts, expanding visitation from Europe,
developing niche marketing efforts to promote the Idaho Golf
Trail, enhancing culinary tourism and implementing geotourism
initiatives. (See feature article in this issue.)
WHAT’s WHAT
The Duck Harbor Company, based in Equinunk, was named
Pennsylvania’s Developer of the Year by the Pennsylvania
Builders Association during the association’s inaugural Builders Gala at the Nemacolin Woodlands Resort. In selecting
the Duck Harbor Company, judges applauded the company’s
dedication to mixing natural elements into neighborhoods and
focusing on maintaining the region’s natural beauty when creating developments. Judges also noted the company’s reputation
for building safe neighborhoods that are planned around community involvement and open green space. In addition to being
a PBA member, the Duck Harbor Company is a member of the
Wayne County Builders Association.
Thirty-eight universities including East Stroudsburg University and six other Pennsylvania State System (PASSHE)
institutions participated in the 14th annual Compact for
Faculty Diversity Institute in Arlington, Va. Representing East
Stroudsburg University were Dr. Peter Hawkes, dean of arts
and sciences; Dr. Kimberly Adams, assistant professor of political science; Dr. Alberto Cardelle, interim associate provost;
and Dr. Sussie Eshun, associate professor of psychology. The
primary aim of this institute is to increase the number of minority students who earn doctoral degrees and become college and
university faculty.
East Stroudsburg University honored employees for years
of service, as follows: 40 Years of Service: Pauline Lance,
cataloging library technician, Kemp Library. 35 Years of
Service: Richard Amori, professor of computer science; Elzar
Camper, Jr., professor of media communication and technology; Carolyn Gallagher, lithograph & press operator 2; Barbara
Harrison, secretary, athletic training; Mamadou Kane, associate
professor of economics; Suzanne Mueller, professor of physical education; George Thompson, Jr., professor of philosophy
and religious studies; Valerie Widdoss-Novack, administrative assistant, admission office. 30 Years of Service: Joseph
Ashcroft, distinguished professor of communication studies;
Barbara Collins, professor of sociology; Patricia Graham,
professor of intercultural and interdisciplinary learning; Charles
Kagel, operations manager, University Store; Robert Miller,
distinguished professor of music. 25 Years of Service: Wayne
Colabaugh, maintenance repairman, facilities management;
Madeline Constantine, program director, Stony Acres; James
Duden, library assistant/interlibrary loan, Kemp Library;
Joanne Eagleson, fiscal technician, payroll office; Deborah
Fisher, library assistant/catalog clerk, Kemp Library; Felix
Friedman, professor of computer science; Fred Gersbach, associate director of administration, administrative computing;
Raymond Howey, semi skilled laborer, grounds and landscape;
Dawn Y. Kohl, director, human resources management; Terry
Miller, stock clerk, receiving and distribution center; John
Terwilliger, assistant football coach. Others were honored for
10, 15, and 20 years of service, and retirees were also honored.
Also, fourteen ESU faculty members and one administrator were honored at the university’s third annual University
Authors Book Reception. The honorees and the titles of their
books are: Dr. Susan Amirian, assistant professor of media
communication and technology, Create Your Digital Portfolio:
The Fast Track to Career Success; Co-authors Dr. Domenico
Cavaiuolo, associate professor of special education and rehabilitation, and Dr. Daniel Steere, professor of special education and rehabilitation, Growing up: Transition to Adult Life
for Students with Disabilities; Dr. Barbara Collins, professor
of sociology, Crisis and Trauma: Developmental-Ecological
Intervention; Dr. John Dublanica (pen name: John Stephens),
adjunct professor of professional and secondary education,
Rude Promenade; Dr. Gregory Dwyer, associate professor
of movement studies and exercise science, ACSM’s Metabolic
Calculations Handbook; Dr. Michael Gray, assistant professor
of history, The Business of Captivity: Elmira and its Civil War
Prison; Dr. T. Storm Heter, assistant professor of philosophy,
Sartre’s Ethics of Engagement: Authenticity and Civic Virtue;
Co-author Dr. Kenneth Mash, professor of political science,
A Novel Approach to Politics: Introducing Political Science
through Books, Movies, and Popular Culture; Dr. Robert
McKenzie, professor of communication studies, Comparing
Media from Around the World; Dr. Fred Misurella, professor
of English, Lies to Live By: Stories; Co-author Dr. Stephanie
Romano, associate professor of reading, a co-editor with Dick
Heyler, Linda Reilly, and Diane Skiffington Dickson, The Oral
History Project: Connecting Students to their Community,
Grades 4-8; Co-authors Dr. Edith Miller, professor, academic
enrichment and learning, and coordinator of disability services,
and Dr. Julianne Albiero-Walton, professor, academic enrichment and learning, and disabilities specialist, UDL: Universal
Design in Learning for Educators. This year’s administrative
honoree is co-author Dr. Peter Hawkes, dean of the school of
arts and sciences, for his book with John Desmund titled Adaptation: Studying Film and Literature.
George Roberts Productions has moved into the Buff Nauman building at 745 Main Street in Stroudsburg. The offices are
in Suite 204 and include space for TV production as well. The
new telephone numbers for the company are (570) 424-8385,
(570) 992-4842 and (800) 782-7710.
19
BUSINESS BRIEFS
WHAT’s WHAT
The Greater Pocono Chamber of Commerce announced its
2007 Annual Award recipients: Businessperson of the YearJames Becker, Access Office Technologies, Inc.; Citizen of the
Year- Grace Marks, office of Senator Patrick Browne; Humanitarian of the Year- Bruce Denlinger, Allstate Insurance; Frank
Schoelch Community Commitment Award- Thomas & Camille
Breslauer (retired); ATHENA Award- Denise Cebular (Penn
Security Bank & Trust Co.); Chairman’s Award- Robert Uguccioni, Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau.
Herbert, Rowland & Grubic, Inc. (HRG) has been named
to the 2007 Hot Firms List published annually in The Zweig
Letter by Zweig White Information Services, a leading management consulting and research firm serving the architecture,
engineering and construction industries. The Zweig Letter 2007
Hot Firm List is based solely on gross revenue for both fiscal
year 2003 and fiscal year 2006, as verified by financial statements or income tax returns reviewed by third parties.
The Inn at Pocono Manor has enhanced and increased its
outdoor activity programs to include exciting new events and
features for its guests and the public to enjoy throughout the
year, adding ATV Rental Tours through specially designated
trails on the 3000 acre resort. The Inn at Pocono Manor also
proudly offers The Laurel Spa, one of the premiere spas in the
Pocono Mountains, with over 8,500 square feet and state of the
art spa equipment. A new archery range, basketball courts and
children’s playground and picnic area are among The Inn’s new
amenities. The Inn has also recently restored and signed three
of its original historic hiking trails, which offer anything from
an easy stroll to a two hour challenging hike over rough terrain,
leading to beautiful hidden waterfalls.
State Rep. Keith McCall and State Sen. Ray Musto were joined
by Gov. Ed Rendell in October to announce that Lehighton
borough will receive a $750,000 grant from the Pennsylvania
Department of Environmental Protection’s Energy Development Authority to help build a hydroelectric power plant at the
Beltzville Dam. The funding is part of a $10 million statewide
initiative investing in alternative energy, with special emphasis
on renewable energy sources based in the commonwealth.
LTS Development LLC’s Mountain Manor project in Smithfield Township (Monroe County) has received preliminary
recognition by the Delaware Valley Smart Growth Alliance
(DVSGA), for its proposed 418-acre town center community.
Mountain Manor is designed to have 857 homes and 400,000+
square feet of commercial space with a mix of restaurants,
shops, business and medical offices. The development will
also provide a new library, town hall and community center.
LTS Development is currently in talks with the Monroe County
Transit Authority to provide bus service to the site.
The students of the Cosmetology Department of the Monroe
Career & Technical Institute recently held a Mentoring
Breakfast to help bridge the gap between industry and education. Mr. Leonard Piccini the Cosmetology Instructor organized
the event, the seventh annual mentoring breakfast.
Tripadvisor.com users recently ranked Mount Pocono in sixth
place among the top ten hottest U.S. destinations for 2008.
Tripadvisor users showed a strong interest in green destinations and the type of outdoor activities offered in the Pocono
Mountains region.
New York Style Women’s Clothing recently opened in the
Mr. Z’s plaza in Marshalls Creek. Denise Hodges, owner, is a
former employee of the New York City Police Department. The
shop sells shoes, hand bags, jewelry, tops, dresses and suits.
Pennstar Bank recently opened its sixth office in Monroe
County. The new branch is located in the Crossroads Mall,
Route 611, Bartonsville. The new office features 5 teller stations, 2 drive-up teller windows, four offices and a conference
room. In addition, the office offers an expanded drive up area
including a drive-up ATM and Night Depository. A handicapped accessible safe deposit viewing booth and teller area
completes the office.
The Pennsylvania Northeast Regional Railroad Authority
celebrated its receipt of the 5th Annual John J. Luciani Award
for Regionalism at a recent board meeting with NEPA President
Ernie Preate and Executive Director Jeffrey Box in attendance. The total contract price is $665,021.00 and includes the
installation of a 700 ft. rail siding at Excel Storage Products,
the installation of 5500 crossties on the Pocono Mainline, the
installation of an eflex grade crossing surface at Hill Street in
Archbald and surfacing, as well as bolt tightening of 13 miles
of track on the Pocono main.
The Pocono Health Foundation held two holiday fundraisers to help make the season brighter for children and cancer
patients: the annual holiday tree lighting with proceeds from the
sale of light bulbs on the tree to benefit children’s programs in
the community, and also a partnership with Finishing Touches
Fine Jewelry to raise funds for the Dale and Francis Hughes
Cancer Center.
Pocono Medical Center announced that a Neonatology
Intensive Care Unit (NICU) is being created so that mothers,
and their newborns, can receive care. Liztech Jewelers of East
Stroudsburg has designed a pin exclusively for the Auxiliary
of the Pocono Medical Center to raise funds for the NICU. All
proceeds from the sale of the pins will go towards the NICU.
The custom handcrafted pin symbolizes Pocono Medical Center
as the “Heart of the Community.” Pocono Medical Center and
SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania, the union representing approximately 500 service and maintenance employees at the hospital,
announced an agreement on a three-year contract which extends through October 31, 2010. SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania
is the state’s largest and fastest growing health care workers
union, with over 20,000 members in hospitals, nursing homes,
home care, and state health care facilities.
The Pocono Mountains Association of Realtors® (PMAR)
presented checks to five individuals running for area offices
during “Meet the Candidates” night held recently for its membership. Recipients included Donna Asure and Robert Nothstein, both Republicans who ran for County Commissioner,
$750 each; Steve Carey, Republican running for Smithfield
Township Supervisor, $500; Russell Fisher, a Democrat
running for Chestnuthill Township Supervisor, $200; and
Jamie Keener, a Republican running for Tobyhanna Township Supervisor, $200. PMAR also supported Daryl Eppley, a
Democrat who ran for Stroud Township Supervisor who does
not accept campaign contributions. Also, PMAR has honored
three individuals, Eileen Chaladoff, president elect of the board
of the Pocono Mountains Association of REALTORS® and
a REALTOR with Prudential Associates Real Estate; PMAR
member Doug Freeman with Realty World Becky Freeman and
Associates; and PMAR board member Patti Hein with Bobhay.
com, with the PMAR Recognition Award for their commitment
and work on Gulf Coast recovery efforts. This past August, the
three traveled to the Gulf Coast as part of a National Association of Realtors® contingent to aid in recovery efforts. The past
president of PMAR, Len Ferber, was on hand to share in the
award and present a video.
More than $463,000 was raised to benefit St. Jude Children’s
Research Hospital during the BG US Challenge in October.
The Pocono Mountains was the only host destination in the
United States for the 2007 calendar year. The Pocono Mountains Convention & Visitors Bureau and partners, including
hotels, state parks, retail outlets and other businesses made
the event possible by hosting the fundraiser at various venues
including Camelback, Skytop Lodge, The Inn at Pocono
Manor, The Chateau Resort & Conference Center, Big
Pocono State Park, Hickory Run State Park and Promised Land
State Park.
The Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau is now offering
Beautification Grants to qualified groups who are interested
in improving their area’s curbside appeal. Grant awards have
a maximum amount of $500 each. Qualified groups include
chambers of commerce, civic clubs, community groups, Rotary
and Lions clubs, youth groups and other nonprofit organizations located in the Pocono Mountains region of Carbon,
Monroe, Pike and Wayne Counties. Deadline for submission is
December 7, 2007. The project must be completed and funds
exhausted by June 30, 2008.
Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau held its Annual Report
Dinner at the Ridgecrest facility at Stroudsmoor Country Inn
in Stroudsburg and announced its new board officers. Andy
Forte, former president, will now assume the role of chairman of the board. Ed Mayotte, former vice president of the
board, has been selected as the new president. Mayotte has
over 30 years of experience in the hospitality industry. Since
1994, Mayotte has served as president and general manager of
Skytop Lodge. The remaining board members continue in their
positions, with Andy Worthington of Bushkill Group, Inc. and
John Kiesendahl of Woodloch Pines as vice presidents and
Barth Rubin of the Budget Inn & Suites as treasurer.
PPL Electric Utilities Corporation recently presented a
$5,000 Platinum Partnership check to CCCC. Such partnerships allow CCCC to continue its successful events, programs
and projects.
RGB Custom Builders has received one out of every five
awards presented at the annual Pocono Builders Association’s
2007 Building Awards. Judged by building professionals from
the Building Industry Association of Northeast Pennsylvania
in Luzerne County, RGB Custom Builders’ 15 awards included
first place recognition for quality of construction, overall
architectural design, specialty rooms, specialty features, custom
finishes and overall interior design. RGB award winning homes
ranged in size from 2,067 square feet to 5,009 square feet.
Since the inception of the Pocono Builders Association awards
in 2002, RGB has received some 60 awards including several
“Best in Show” honors.
The Rock & Gem Heaven & The Tri-State Jewelry Exchange LLC have just opened their doors on 601 West Harford
Street in Milford. The jewelry wholesale store buys, sells and
repairs jewelry and offer rocks, minerals, crystals, sculptures
and decorative items for sale.
Sanofi Pasteur employees recently collected hundreds of items
for families in need and donated them to Monroe County Head
Start. The truckload of items included boots, food, clothing,
and food/grocery gift certificates for Head Start families. The
company also recently presented the record-breaking results of
its 2007 United Way campaign at Stroudsburg’s Best Western
Pocono Inn. Sanofi pasteur is consistently the largest contributor to the United Way of Monroe County’s campaign.
Strunk-Albert Engineering of East Stroudsburg and Herbert,
Rowland & Grubic, Inc. of Bartonsville have been chosen
to design Northampton Community College’s new campus
in Pocono Township. The two firms will work with MKSD
Architects of Orefield in doing the engineering for the new
campus. Herbert, Rowland & Grubic, ranked as one of the
“Top 500” engineering firms in the country by the Engineering News-Record, will handle civil/site and environmental
engineering. Strunk-Albert will provide mechanical, electrical,
plumbing, fire protection, technology and security engineering.
NCC hopes to be able to secure local and state approvals by
next fall, to bid and select contractors and begin site work the
following spring (2009), and to be ready to move to the new
campus in the fall of 2010. The 71-acre tract of land on which
Northampton Community College’s new campus will be situated is located in the geographic center of Monroe County, near
both Route 715 and Route 80.
Tick Tock’s, a restaurant in Honesdale, has just completed a
new addition of 2000 square feet to accommodate the increase
in Friday and Saturday evening customers. Tick Tock’s specializes in casual fine dining.
Tobyhanna Army Depot was presented with the Shingo Gold
Medallion (Public Sector) on Oct. 11 for dramatic improvements to the AN/TPQ-36 Antenna Transceiver Group mission. The presentation took place at a Shingo Prize ceremony
at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City, Ronald Reagan National
Airport. The Shingo Prize program recognizes private and
public sector organizations that successfully apply Lean Six
Sigma techniques to improve the quality and efficiency of their
operations. It is regarded as the premier manufacturing award
recognition program for North America. As part of the Shingo
Prize mission and model, the Prize highlights the value of using
Lean/world-class manufacturing practices to attain world-class
status. Also, the Depot has announced that due to growing
mission requirements, there are now openings for more than
350 personnel. The primary requirement is in electronics, with
the depot seeking qualified personnel with associate degrees
in electronics, related degrees or equivalent experience. The
depot also has the need for personnel in industrial trades such
as electricians, painters, painter helpers, electroplaters and sheet
metal workers.
Wayne Bank recently donated $30,000 to the Wayne County
Community Foundation which will be used to support students
in Wayne Highlands, Western Wayne, Forest City and Wallenpaupack Area School Districts. Wayne Bank has also donated
$15,000 to Pike County Public Library.
Reps. Mike Peifer (R-Wayne/Pike/Monroe) and Sandra Major
(R- Susquehanna/Wayne/Wyoming) announced that Wayne
County was awarded a $46,598 recycling performance grant
from the Department of Environmental Protection. The grant
was made possible through the Recycling Performance Grant
Program, which provides incentives to help communities
increase the amount of materials recovered through recycling
and promote economic growth through job creation and market
expansion.
Wayne Memorial Hospital will hold a ribbon cutting this
month to introduce its newest site for outpatient services’ rehabilitation and laboratory, at the Route 6 Mall.
The Dingmans Ferry Chili Cook-off at October’s Delaware
Township Harvest Festival was sponsored by Wilkins & Associates Real Estate. Teams were comprised of local businesses. Winning chili entries came from Advantage Abstract
& Realty Services, Rimby’s Restaurant, Yetter Insurance
Team, Friends of Ileana, The NEPA Management Team and
the Delaware Valley Ambulance Corps. The event was held at
Camp Akenac in Dingmans Ferry.
Please send all press releases for
consideration to [email protected]
20
FOCUS LIST
CLEANING SERVICES
Company
Address
Phone/Fax
Web site
Years in
Business
# Employees
Services
Business Contact
Aardvark Cleaning
PO Box 525
Effort, PA 18330
(570) 629-8652
www.aardvarkcleaning.net
20
4
Offices, medical offices, dry carpet cleaning
service, sanding, floor
stripping
Michael Sollitto
Affordable Dumpsters,
Inc
600 East Second Street
Weatherly, PA 18255
(570) 427-4976
www.affordabledumpsters.com
5
3
Waster removal, estate
clean-up, fire/water/mold
damage clean-up, hauling
Michael Sanfilippo
Bio-Haz Solutions, Inc.
531 Seneca Road, Ste 2
Lehighton, PA 18235
(570) 386-5130
(570) 386-5132
www.bio-haz.com
N/A
N/A
Medical waste removal
David E. Henritzy
(570) 251-8111
(570)251-9778
www.bulldogmaintenance.com
14
100+
Industrial and warehouse
cleaning, carpet cleaning, marble and tile
restoration, construction
cleaning
www.cleanforceone.net
18
N/A
Carpet cleaning
Rob & Sue Lyons
General home and office
cleaning, construction
clean-up, before and after
moving
Ray Lintner
Bulldog Maintenance
910 Maple Avenue
Honesdale, PA 18431
Clean Force One
RR1, Box 74A
White Haven, PA 18661
(570) 443-8508
Clean Rite
515 Church Street
Honesdale, PA 18431
(570) 253-2495
(570) 253-2495
23
3
Deborah Kleckner,
Construction Clean-up
355 Peter Avenue
Palmerton, PA 18071
(610) 377-2076
N/A
N/A
Ductz
208 Eagle Valley Mall
Store #233
East Stroudsburg, PA
18301
(570) 421-2930
(570) 504-5506
www.ductz.com
Less than
1 year
3
Air duct cleaning and
sanitizing, high-efficiency
filtration
Al Gallucci
Integra-Clean
PO Box 29
Sterling, PA 18462
(570) 992-1553
(570) 676-4775
N/A
15
2
Waterproofing, mold
remediation, restoration,
carpet and upholstery
Michelle Apholz
Kerry Clean
P.O.Box 1527
Albrightsville, PA 18210
(570) 722-0885
(570) 722-0885
Service Master
Cleaning Services
11 Eli Street
East Stroudsburg, PA
18301
(570) 420-0223
Squeaky Clean
HC 1 Box 1A19
Lackawaxen, PA 18435
(570) 685-5389
(570) 695-1075
www.kerryclean.com
N/A
N/A
10
Deb Kleckner
N/A
5
Commercial, rental
property, hot tub and spa
maintenance,
“green clean”
Kerry or Angelo
Dubravski
Commercial office
cleaning
Jack Fossett
Residential/commercial
cleaning, specializing
in new construction
clean-up
Warren Toder
Disclaimer: If your company is located within Carbon, Monroe, Pike or Wayne counties in northeastern Pennsylvania and was not included in the listing, please contact Pocono
Business Journal so we can include your company in future editions of this focus list.
Employer-Assisted Housing Can
Cement Worker Commitment
Greater Pocono Chamber
2007 Annual Awards
If every cloud has a silver lining, then it follows that
every silver lining must have a cloud. Various experts in
the field of affordable housing brought both concepts to
Monroe County last month at a day-long housing summit at
Shawnee Inn.
Charles Buki, founder of czb Consulting, a Virginiabased organization which has surveyed housing trends
in northeastern Pennsylvania, told about 150 developers,
Realtors and community leaders in his opening address that
both Monroe and Pike Counties already face problems for
which neither is prepared to deal.
“Households are losing ground,” he said. “The disparity between wages and home prices is growing. It is going
to be a perfect storm.”
Buki used the alpine village of Snowmass, Colorado,
as an example of what he thinks the Poconos could become
if steps to narrow the gap between the wages of service
workers and home prices is not addressed. He said the
village of 4,000 near Aspen saw wages averaging $20,000
per year in 1995 rise to only $23,000 today. Over the same
period, average home prices exploded, from $390,000 to
$1.1 million, effectively shutting out firefighters, policemen, waiters, teachers and other service people needed for
community continuity.
He said the same thing is happening in the
Poconos as commuting home buyers of means from
New York and New Jersey buy into the area, inflating
prices and driving people of modest means out of the
housing market. Buki urged adoption of zoning ordinances mandating that 15% of homes in new housing
developments be priced within reach of residents of
modest income.
Throughout the day, workshops offered solutions
ranging from establishment of community land trusts,
to home ownership and rental assistance programs, to
employer-assisted housing. Under the latter system,
employers agree to pay closing costs and offer other
financial assistance to employees buying homes if
the employees agree to remain on the job for a given
period of time. In return, the Pennsylvania Housing
Finance Agency will make available below-market interest rates and financial counseling to any employee
buying a home under the system.
“If you help an employee buy a home he
otherwise could not afford, that employee is yours
forever,” said Dona Stewart, business development
manager for PHFA, which is promoting the program.
Photo Credit: Kelly Strunk
By Ken Clark
Shown are the winners of the Greater Pocono Chamber of
Commerce’s Frank Schoelch Community Commitment Award,
Camille and Thomas Breslauer (retired). Other award winners
included Businessperson of the Year, James Becker, Access Office Technologies, Inc.; Citizen of the Year, Grace Marks, Office
of Senator Patrick Browne; Humanitarian of the Year, Bruce
Delinger, Allstate Insurance; ATHENA Award, Denise Cebular,
Penn Security Bank & Trust Co.; and Chairman’s Award, Robert
Uguccioni, Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau.
21
NEWS
Playing Santa on Short Notice
Photo Credit: Al Zagofsky
Business gifting- even when it’s done at the last
minute- need not break the bank. For around $50 you
can find something that’s right on-target; something
comfortably appropriate, neither stodgy and bland nor
too familiar. Some ideas for those who wish to say
“thanks for a great year” to staff, clients, customers
and colleagues… Happy shopping!
By Debbie Burke
Photo Credit: Al Zagofsky
Holiday Sparkle Wreath
$45.99
Regina Farms
Rt. 209/5181 Milford Road
East Stroudsburg
(570) 223-8358
European-Inspired Woman’s Knit Top
$68
Marianne Monteleone Design
97 Broadway
Jim Thorpe
(570) 325-3540
Italian Extravaganza
$50
Misc. Essentials
IGA Shopping Center
Route 6 and Route 590
Hawley
(570) 226-8962
Umbrella Doll
$45
Hawley Antique Center
318 Main Street
Hawley
(570) 226-8990
“Pike County...Naturally” Coverlet
(proceeds benefit conservation education
programs of the Pike Conservation District)
$53
Pike County Conservation District
556 Route 402
Hawley
(570) 226-8220
also:
Carol Ann’s Linen Closet
317 Milford Street
(570) 296-7703
Majolica Bead
$60. Additional $5 for leather lanyard
or $20 for a silver necklace
Nic East Design
10 Flagstaff Road
Jim Thorpe
(570) 325-0216
Photo Credit: Players Row Music
Chocolate Overload
$50
Greene-Berry’s
2035 Milford Road
East Stroudsburg
(570) 424-9400
Photo Credit: Pike County Conservation District
Jim Shore Snowman Family
$59.95
Milford Craft Show
120 East Hartford St.
Milford
(570) 296-5662
Polish Delicacies
$50
Elizabeth’s Polish American Deli
215 Main Avenue
Hawley
(570) 226-2570
22
PBJ REGISTER
Deeds
Kidder Township North
Richard Henry & Sons LLC to S&H Holding Co, $250,000.
Fawley to James and Mary Burke, $265,000. Matzel Development
at Greenwood to Mariano and Maria Ortiz, $291,700. Thomas and
Sandra Reed to James and Deborah Radwanski, $300,000. James
and Jean Waygood to Michael and Carolyn Tierney, $950,000. Jim
Bidwell to Timothy and Linda Greim, $405,000. Matzel Development at Greenwood to Jose and Patricia Castillo, $312,537. Mary
and Robert Baxter to Kush and Sunny LLC, $550,000. Michael
Magro and Marjorie Wetherill to Michael and DOneen Stanek,
$264,000.
Kidder Township South
Thomas P Carney Inc to Leonard Leto, $459,000. John Scully to
Marjorie Cooper, $390,000. Brian Fox to MP Realty Inc, $275,000.
Donald Childers to Morris Treadway, $266,000. Sean O’Connor
to Michael Scott, $291,000. Etta Spielmann to Mehrnaz Vahid,
$300,000.
Tunkhannock Township
David Wengerd to Norell and Bernice Robinson, $299,900. William and Denise Weiss to Faina Volis, $255,000. Helene Legros to
Thomas Sawoe and Maria Celestino, $303,000. Michael Garafola
to James Waiters, $310,000. Suk Hee and Blake Kim to Tunkhannock Township, $275,000.
Carbon County
Franklin Township
Jacob Smith to Walter Waits, $260,000.
Lower Towamensing Township
Walter Beers to James White, $270,000.
Penn Forest Township
Larry Iaquinto to Ernest Eadeh, $660,000. Falcon Crest Homes
Inc to Aleksandr Gershteyn, $285,000. Falcon Crest Homes Inc to
Kaisha Williams, $463,792.
Pike County
Blooming Grove Township
Sol Lorenzo to Thomas and Penny Schiffer, $605,000. Elizabeth II
Inc to Terry Schoenmeier, $305,000. Diane Hiller to Edward and
Janis Pfuhler, $314,000. Robert and Dolores Labarge to Sandra
and Harry Krapsho, $350,000. Margaret McKiernan and Thomas
O’Rourke to Saudeva Properties, $380,000.
Towamensing Township
Penn Pro Builders Inc. to Craig Fallon, $250,000. Penn Pro Builders Inc to Timothy Himmelwright, $260,000.
Delaware Township
James Gerichten to Janet Wexler, $333,000. Benjamin and Sharon
Ahern to Harold and Josephine Hayes, $295,000. John and Caterina
Falcone to Urica Edwards, $425,000.
Barrett Township
Vincent and Sharon Keegan to Stuart and Mary Yarbrough,
$570,000.
Dingman Township
Anthony and Joann Mosca to Peter and Sandra Cossu, $312,500.
Robert and Sandra Avery to Richard and Melissa Hillman,
$380,000. Meadow Lake Partners to Andrew Meloi, $390,000.
Mark and Debra Schoenbach to James and Kimberly Seul,
$310,000. Michael Mein to Carol Stefanik, $315,000. CM Mechanical of Orange County to Edwin and Darlene Cortez, $290,000.
Monroe County
Chestnuthill Township
Kevin and Maxine Scheller to Royal Investments, LLC, $525,000.
John and Helen Vinck to Maria Inman, $280,000. James and Josephine Hall to Nazar ands Natalya Kulynych, $300,000. Josephine
Kennedy to Robert and Agnes Benson, $279,900. Anthony and
Leslie Novak to Andrew and Christine Smith, $252,500. Nicholais
and Lori-Ann Konawalik to Robert Dekleine and Suzanne Gadomski, $259,000. John Beresch to Joshua and Jaime Fincke, $290,000.
Franciszek Piwowarczyk to Alton Samuels, $265,000.
Coolbaugh Township
Stephen and Frances Podlesney to Patrick, Leah, James and Neena
Tierney, $330,000. Arcadia North Associates No. 1 LLC to Arcadia
North Land LLC, $14,000,000. Danny Kogan to Robert Moya,
$299,000. Jacob and Michelle Rybner to Elizabeth Rivas, $264,995.
Antonio and Leonora Andujar to Shawn Corcas, $305,000. Richard
and Anne Alloway to Seth and Kim Miller, $460,000. Marc and
Kathleen Osgoodby to Douglas and Lisa Bailey, $265,000.
Delaware Water Gap Borough
Wayne and Ruth MacWilliams to William and Leslie Nagy,
$624,500. Ralph Bond and Carol Dorshimer to Philip and Carol
Matheson, $275,000.
East Stroudsburg Borough
M Elizabeth Bergman to Eileen and Davis Bantz, $285,000. LTS
Development LLC to Frank and Jan Urgo, $331,800.
Eldred Township
Jacqueline Mock to Eldred Township, $510,000.
Hamilton Township
Dennis and Susan Carroll to Robert and Karen Hosko, $433,000.
John and Teresa Derosa to Pensco Trust Co/Andrew Brewer,
$285,000.
Jackson Township
Sandra Christiansen to Elizabeth Davis, $285,000. James Lynch to
Jackson Township, $1,051,538.
Middle Smithfield Township
NVR Inc/Ryan Homes to Christopher and Tamara Swiney,
$415,475. LTS Development LLC to Tyrone and Yolanda Robinson, $386,200. Gerardo Moreno to Anthony and Maryann Distasio,
$325,000. Toll PA IV to Vincent and Teresa Foley, $283,115.
Edward and Jennifer Domanski to Cartus Financial Corp, $500,000.
Cartus Financial Corp to Gerardo Moreno, $410,000. Parkside
Homes Inc to Paul and Heather Villanova, $308,000. NVR Inc/
Ryan Homes to Vasper and Patricia Phillips, $358,176. Heidemarie
Hafner to Juliette Stephenson, $269,900. Toll PA IX to James and
Carolyn Metaxas, $279,534. Robert and Angela Thomas to Cuiyu
Li and Hong Zhang, $485,000.
Stroudsburg Borough
Barry Thomas to Leroy Chester, $450,000. LTS Development LLC
to Charles and Indira Redhead, $539,900. BML at MOuntainview
LLC to Barry Thomas, $360,000.
Stroud Township
LTS Development LLC to Kevin and Shaquila Castle, $372,760.
James and Diana Bowers to Adalberto and Ann Marie Guerra,
$370,000. NVR Inc/Ryan Homes to Orlando and Nicole Hernandez, $332,890. NVR Inc/Ryan Homes to Bennett Lipitz and Rosalie
Folts, $415,398. NVR Inc/Ryan Homes to Roger and Lourdes Orellana, $426,060. Carl and Dotlin Kelly to Duy Hoai and Jennifer Le,
$300,000. Citicorp Trust Bank FSB to Imam Elbadawy, $324,900.
Steven and Marianne Fischer to RLR Property LLC, $290,000.
NVR Inc/Ryan Homes to Brunildo Febles and Luisa Jaquez,
$288,555. NVR Inc/Ryan Homes to Michael Martino, $338,855.
Joseph Gerry to Joseph Colucci, $450,000. LTS Development LLC
to Lalta and Mahendra Dhanantwari, $421,895. LTS Development
LLC to Michael and Nazeela Jagdar, $368,800. Donna Ackerman
to Keith Hinkle, $324,000. LTS Development LLC to Constantine
Hart and Michelle Ann Adlam, $408,800.
Tobyhanna Township
Forrest and Eileen Glass to Steven Amend, $250,000. David
Wengerd to Diana Honeghan, $269,900. Christian Charity Foundation to Joey Jacob, $250,000. Dariusz and Barbara Ziemrowski
to Dominick and Elissa Dimeo, $320,000. Mary Anne Torino to
Daniel and Karen Casey, $380,000. John and Heather Iacono to
Christine Plywaczewski, $320,000. George and Eileen Beluch to
Danny Benau and Reeva Golub, $725,000. Blue Ridge Real Estate
Company to A&M Real Estate LLC, $750,000. John and Ann
Penn Forest Township
Anthony Elias, Citizens Bank, $288,000. Ernest Eadeh, MERS,
$417,000. Aleksandr Gershteyn, MERS, $256,500. Vincent Conte,
MERS, $293,335. Mary Nuttall, PNC Mortgage, $285,000. Mary
Nuttall, Housing and Urban Development, $285,000. Penn Forest
Entertainment LLC, Harleysville National Bank, $7,000,000. Evelyn Estates LLC, Harleysville National Bank, $7,000,000. Maury
Road Properties LLC, Harleysville National Bank, $7,000,000.
Towamensing Township
Robert Drewes, Keystone Nazareth Bank & Trust, $325,000. Sean
Klotz, Keystone Nazareth Bank & Trust, $510,000. Jack Green,
New Tripoli Bank, $392,000.
Monroe County
Chestnuthill Township
Maria Inman, Wells Fargo Bank, $252,000. Nazar and Natalya
Kulynych, MERS/E-Loan Inc., $270,000. Petro Semenyuk, Wells
Fargo Bank, $294,500. Daniel and Deidre Tichy, ESSA bank,
$295,520. Thomas and Toyin Ajibola, MERS/HSBC Mortgage,
$350,000. Robert Dekliene and Suzanne Gadomski, MERS/Citizens
Community Bank, $259,000. Julia Mikhelzon, JP Morgan Chase
Bank, $268,000. Samuel and Usha Ramnit, Keystone Nazareth
bank 7 trust, $281,000. Anthony Holding and Elizabeth FrancoisHolding, Household Finance Consumer Discount Co., $276,058.
Daniel and Solange Sanchez, MERS/Provident Funding, $252,000.
Lehman Township
Kalian at Poconos to Carlos and Liza Diaz, $270,000.
Coolbaugh Township
Patrick, Leah, Neena and James Tierney, MERS/Wachovia,
$264,000. Arcadia North Land, Lasalle Bank, $7,425,000. Linda,
Lisa and Gerard Griffith, MERS/Financial Equities, $272,000.
Martin and Annie Muneshar, GMAC Mortgage, $274,550. Pocono
PA GCC LP, Countrywide Commercial Real Estate Finance,
$16,000,000. Robert Moya, National City Bank, $299,000. Marilyn
Furtak, PNC Mortgage, $300,000. Marilyn Furtak, Housing and
Urban Development, $300,000. Seth and Kim Miller, ABN Amro
Mortgage, $368,000. Rosemary Llinas and Ana Cuesta, Household
Finance Consumer Discount Co., $277,589.
Matamoras Borough
Mary and Andrew Abraczinskas to Joe Hakaj, $275,000.
Milford Borough
Schneider Limited Family Partnership to Community Building
Projects, $538,950. John and Heather Dibble to Randolph and
Socorro Bologna, $399,000.
Palmyra Township
Elizabeth II Inc to Terry Schoenmeier, $305,000. Peter Pasquale
to George and Mary Harrigan, $290,000. William and Mary
Ann Schmalzle to Donald and Helaine Brown, $433,000. Daniel
and Paula Patriarcia, $375,000. Rudolph and Deborah Japchen
to Anthony and Laura Lee Visco, $369,000. Charles and Janice
Kinahan to Anthony Maula, $299,800. Paul E. and Gail S. Caruso
to Steven and Rochelle Murtaugh, $480,000. Randi Borger to
Kenneth and Brenda Kratz, $349,000. Patricia Paolucci to Jeanne
Miller, $290,000.
Shohola Township
Patrice Tanaka to Gary and Megan Tubman, $395,000.
Westfall Township
Ronnie Lantz to Michael and Gretchen Irwin, $320,000. Delaware
Highlands Properties to Joan Susen, $269,000. Judith Tsukroff to
Laura and James Given, $260,000. Bernard Barnett to Sussex Bank,
$325,000.
Wayne County
Damascus Township
Robert and Monique Brownfield to Anna Zownir, $462,500.
Smithfield Township
LTS Development LLC to Alvin and Rose Zweifler, $314,900. John
and Dawn Noto to Willis and Gail Reeves, $260,000. Charles and
Elaine Osei to Donna Smith, $390,000.
Lower Towamensing Township
James White, JP Morgan Chase Bank, $270,000.
Lackawaxen Township
Thomas and Christina Salmon to Angelo and Joan Postiglione,
$312,000. Henry and Betty Grundman to Michael and Deborah
Parisa, $325,000. G Anderson Homes to Mark and Kathryn Dalton,
$259,500. G Anderson Homes to Elizabeth and Shlomo Gross,
$274,000. Aspen Homes North to Eric and Jennifer Trenaman,
$535,000. James and Gerard Castro to Edward and Diane McClary,
$339,000. John Blaine to Timothy Kowles, $324,000. Excell
Homes Inc to Michael and Jeannie Remy, $300,000. Excell Homes
Inc to Sergejs Olhovika, $255,000. Woodloch Pines Inc. to Aaron
and Cindy Dobrinsky, $255,000.
Paradise Township
Jacks and Holly Lee to Charles and Michele Barzydlo, $389,000.
Edward and Lori Battisfore to Joseph Cordero, $348,000.
Ross Township
John and Susan Stanjeski to Robert and Jean Duda, $375,000. William and Karen Yoost to Lawrence and Barbara Mahl, $280,500.
Kathleen and Donald Letts to Joseph and Debra Yost, $269,000.
Kidder Township South
Joseph Maier, Mauch Chunk Trust Co, $417,000. Marjorie Cooper,
MERS, $370,500.Michael Gray, MERS, $278,000. Beth Hurley,
MERS, $256,500. S&H Holding Company, ESSA Bank & Trust,
$250,000. James Allie, MERS, $296,000. Stephen Messina, Wachovia Bank, $386,000.
Barrett Township
Stuart and Mary Yarbrough, Wells Fargo Bank, $300,000. Wendell
and Elizabeth Ehinger, Bank of America, $270,000. Innovations,
Skylands Community Bank, $290,000. Thomas and Kathy Calcaterra, MERS/Fremont Investment, $275,000.
Buckingham Township
Kevin Schrader to TNTI Limited Partnership, $1,800,000.
Polk Township
Zabdiel Velez and Eileen Felix to Verdinia Grayson, $262,500.
Kidder Township North
Zalepa Custom Builders LLC, Sun National Bank, $360,170.
Richard Dipasquale, MERS, $270,000. Kripa Motel Group LLC,
PNC Bank NA, $3,300,000. Kripa Motel Group LLC, PNC Bank
NA, $3,300,000. S Lachette LLC, Keystone Nazareth Bank &
Trust, $1,092,000.
Greene Township
Maple Properties Associates to Brenda Cabrera, $269,000. Scott
and Rhonda McLaughlin to Prudential Relocation, $299,500.
Thomas and Carol Stark to Kim Ruska, $350,000.
Mount Pocono Borough
QSM LLC to Jeff Greene, $1,038,847.
Pocono Township
Patricia and David Krauser to Malack Amenya and Janeth Mutai,
$280,000.
Harry Rimbey, Bank of America, $250,500. Harry Rimbey, Housing and Urban Development, $250,500. Dorothy Moser, Financial
Freedom Senior Funding Corp, $300,000. Dorothy Moser, Housing
and Urban Development, $300,000.
Dyberry Township
Honesdale to Glass Pond One, $1,400,000. Brian Oldham to Timothy and Deborah Cartmell, $607,500.
Honesdale Borough
All Tyme Inc. to Sunrise Terrace Management, $2,200,000. Robert
and Alice Katz to John and Jennifer O’Reilly, $315,000.
Lake Township
Shawn and Holly Murphy to James and Michele Tickner, $250,000.
Lebanon Township
Gary and Marlene Hoffman to Joseph Giordano, $390,000. Joseph
and Nancy Harcum to Michael and Marie Crocco, $425,000.
Paupack Township
Gregory and Barbara Farthing to Phyllis Swan, $520,000. Harry
Ferguson to Mitchell and Sarah Wilson, $1,125,995. Barbara Hase
to Nancy Dever, $700,000. Patricia Przywara to Mark and Cherylnn
Tompkinson, $330,000. David and Agnes Balas to Ulrich Taglieber,
$780,000. Bruce and Sharon Brinker to Noel and Halina Reinhart,
$429,000.
Preston Township
Kevin Schrader to TNTI Limited Partnership, $1,800,000. Charles
and Gertrude Dailey to John Tsimaras, $390,000.
Salem Township
Hamlin Shopping Plaza Inc to Hamlin Plaza, $2,300,000. Louis
and Doris Steiner to Charles and Janice Kinahan, $290,000. David
Hefferman to Viktor and Susanna Moroe, $350,000.
South Canaan Township
Walter Hauck to Philip, Robert and Patricia Meleo, $258,000. Rose
and Kurt Moller to Canaan Bible Chapel, $250,000.
Texas Township
Kevin and Kellie McGinnis to Walter and Barbara Mihelic,
$355,000.
Mortgages
Carbon County
Franklin Township
Lawrence Higgins, Quakertown National Bank, $580,000. Lighthouse Baptist Church of Lehighton, Jim Thorpe National Bank,
$950,000.
Jim Thorpe Borough
East Stroudsburg Borough
Washington Street Associates/William Viechnicki/Joseph Gaspari/
Thomas Kilareski, Lafayette Ambassador Bank, $250,000.
Lawrence Zaccaro, Housing and Urban Development, $300,240.
Lawrence Zaccaro, Hometown Security Mortgage, $300,240. Frank
and Jan Urgo and Keith Hofferber, GMAC Mortgage, $251,800.
Hamilton Township
Gary Burkhart, Wachovia Bank, $400,000. Steve and Kristy Griffith, MERS/Lendingtree, $314,000. Jerome and Kathleen Hudson,
MERS/Countrywide, $252,000. Robert and Karen Hosko, ESSA
Bank, $346,000.
Jackson Township
Connie and Stephen Brooks, MERS/Suntrust Mortgage, $354,900.
Douglas and Ursula Myers, JP Morgan Chase Bank, $296,000.
Lamorris Cromartie, Bank of America, $277,000.
Middle Smithfield Township
Alan Glynn and Paula Fitzpatrick, Citizen’s Bank of PA, $395,250.
Manfred-Adjin-Tettey, MERS/Countrywide, $336,800. Tamara
and Christopher Swiney, MERS/Suntrust, $415,475. Tyrone and
Yolanda Robinson, National City Bank, $347,580. Gerardo Prieto
Moreno and Janna Gronrous-Prieto, Bank of America, $360,000.
Paul and Heather Villanova, Picatinny Federal Credit Union,
$292,600. Vasper and Patricia Phillips, MERS/NVR Mortgage,
$286,450. Juliette Stephenson, Wells Fargo Bank, $255,500. James
and Carolyn Metaxas, MERS/HSBC Mortgage, $417,000. Cuiyu
Li and Hong Zhang, MERS/Countrywide, $363,750. Tracie and
William Osborne, GMAC Mortgage, $264,955. James and Violet
Tedesco, World Savings Bank, $300,000.
Mount Pocono Township
Tyrone and Ishoma John-Peters, MERS/Countrywide, $261,000.
Paradise Township
Joseph Cordero, JP Morgan Chase Bank, $278,400. Kent and
Adrienne Cox, Wayne Bank, $350,000.
Pocono Township
Debra and James Raneri, Wachovia Bank, $250,000. Thomas and
Beverly Cannon, MERS, $360,000. Kelly and William Wall, Wells
Fargo Bank, $342,163. DE&S Properties, Citizens and Northern
Bank, $600,000. Matzel Development at Pocono Township,
Amboy National Bank, $11,521,750. Jeffrey Wert, Wachovia Bank,
$630,000. Meadowbrook Holding, Lester Abeloff, $450,000.
Reginald Brown, MERS/Precision Financial, $330,000. George and
Jennifer Stapleton, Citicorp Trust, $269,880. Malack Amenya and
Janeth Mutai, National City Bank, $266,000. Wayne and Colleen
Forrester, MERS/Countrywide, $348,500. Hamilton Township
properties, Community Bank and Trust, $1,092,000. Ransha Associates, ESSA Bank, $3,500,000. Beverly Briggs, National City
Bank, $265,500. JP Ertle Development / Crossroads AMll Corp,
Scott and Teresa Kramer, $300,000. Crossroads Mall Corp, Scott
and Teresa Kramer, $300,000. DE&S Properties, Citizens and
Northern Bank, $600,000. Sergie and Serena Kashefska, MERS/
Americas Wholesale Lender, $342,000. Van Wright and Winette
Campbell Wright, Chase Bank, $250,000. Donnell and Angelina
Grantham, MERS/Somerset Investors Corp, $293,250.
Polk Township
Christine and James Mwaikambo, MERS/Countrywide, $324,000.
Price Township
Barbara and Rafael Martinez, PNC Mortgage, $285,000. Barbara
and Rafael Martinez, Housing and Urban Development, $285,000.
Diane Nieves and Jorge, Daniel and Elizabeth Sarria, MERS/
Wilmington Finance, $263,700.
Ross Township
Ricky and Amelia Meixsell, MERS/Concord Mortgage, $290,700.
Smithfield Township
Alvin and Rose Zweifler, JP Morgan Chase Bank, $270,000.
Andrew and Karen Johnson, MERS/Amtrust Bank, $270,000.
Townhomes at Ivy Ridge, ESSA Bank, $400,000. Frank Riccobono,
First National Community Bank, $450,000.
Stroud Township
Kevin and Shaquila Castle, GMAC Mortgage, $354,122. Joseph
and Alourdes Jeanty, MERS/Quicken Loans, $334,375. Adalberto
and Ann Marie Guerra, Prosperity Mortgage, $333,000. LTS
Development, First National Community Bank, $4,000,000.
Bennett Lipitz and Rosalie Folts, MERS/NVR Mortgage Finance,
$280,000. Roger and Lourdes Orellana, Wells Fargo Bank,
$340,848. Imam Elbadawy, MERS/Quicken Loans, $292,400.
Israel Nieves and Charmaine Hamilton, American Financial
Mortgage Corp., $281,500. Brunildo Febles and Luisa Jaquez,
MERS/NVR Mortgage, $251,500. Michael Martino, MERS/NVR
Mortgage, $271,050. Timothy Armstrong, MERS/Homecomings
Financial Network, $277,600. Barry Thomas, MERS/Summit
Home Mortgage, $288,000. Raied Sawalhi, MERS/Indymac Bank,
$365,000. Christopher and Colleen Hoffman, Countrywide Bank,
$261,760. Hari and Pamela Asthana, Bank of America, $276,800.
Stanley and Laureen Mieziewski, MERS/Ditech, $266,000.
Edward and Patricia Clause, Interim Capital, $443,367. Edward
and Patricia Clause, Interim Capital, $443,367. Lalta and Mahendra
Dhanantwari, MERS/Countrywide Bank, $331,863. Michael and
Nazeela Jagdar, JP Morgan Chase Bank, $313,400. Keith Hinkle,
Chase Bank, $275,400. Constantine Hart and Michelle Adlam, JP
Morgan Chase Bank, $316,000. Stephan and Sandrine Belier, Wells
Fargo Bank, $267,000.
Stroudsburg Borough
Robert and Dorothy Gonzalez, Washington Mutual Bank, $260,000.
William and Judith Miller, PNC Bank NA, $475,000. David and
Karen Schlorholtz, PNC Bank, $475,000. Leroy Chester, ESSA
Bank, $360,000. Wesley and Stacey Wojtanowicz, PNC Bank NA,
$250,694. Charles and Indira Redhead, JP Morgan Chase bank,
$417,000. John Schnaitman, Pocono Community Bank, $1,200,000.
525 Main, Pocono Community Bank, $1,200,000.
Tobyhanna Township
Alfred Lutz, Landmark Community Bank, $300,000. Daniel and
Karen Casey, MERS/HSBC Mortgage, $304,000. Marc Gresack,
ESSA Bank, $315,000. Christine Plywaczewski, MERS/PHH
Mortgage, $256,000. Danny Benau and Reeva Golub, PNC Mortgage, $417,000. David and Diane Carbone, MERS/Indymac Bank,
$348,500. Howard and Samantha Wallace, ESSA Bank, $250,000.
A&M Real Estate/ The Fountainhead Development Group,
Wachovia Bank, $750,000. A&M Real Estate/ The Fountainhead
Development Group, Wachovia Bank, $750,000. Mariano and
Maria Ortiz, Wells Fargo Bank, $277,115. Stephen and Christine
Nickles, Keystone Nazareth Bank & Trust, $250,000. Lucas and
Tara Bray, MERS/First Tennessee Bank, $357,000. Diane Lake and
Dena Tromello, National City Bank, $256,000. Michael and Carolyn Tierney, JP Morgan Chase Bank, $417,000. Fam Bros Construction, Penn Security Bank and Trust, $500,000. Timothy and Linda
Greim, Citadel Federal Credit Union, $324,000. Jose and Patricia
Castillo, Wells Fargo Bank, $289,750. Kush and Sunny, M&T
Trust, $360,000. Raul Torres, MERS/Amtrust, $278,000. John and
Rosemary Brooks, MERS/First Tennessee Bank, $319,458.
Tunkhannock Township
Kelly and William Wall, Wells Fargo Financial, $342,163. Thomas
Sawoe and Maria Celestino, MERS/Amnet Mortgage, $283,100.
Carol Cooney, National City Bank, $282,130. James Waiters,
MERS/Indymac Bank, $263,500.
Pike County
Blooming Grove Township
Leonard and Adele Tuzman, Countrywide Bank, $290,000. Thomas and Penny Schiffer, Sol Lorenzo, $515,000. Freddie Smallwood,
MERS/Countrywide, $261,870. Harry and Sandra Krapsho, Wells
Fargo Bank, $280,000. Saudeva Properties, Dime Bank, $258,000
Delaware Township
Thomas Zoschak, Pensco Trust Co, $263,000. Independence Drive
Associates, Dime Bank, $325,000. Douglas and Penney Luhrs to
Sydney and Ruth Fluck, $515,520. Janet Wexler, MERS/GMAC
Mortgage, $266,400. Natalya and Igor Kalish, Bismark Mortgage,
$250,000. Urica Edwards, MERS/First Horizon Home Loans,
$403,550.
Dingman Township
Carol Stefanik, MERS/First Horizon, $303,738. James and Sabrina
Roe, Countrywide Bank, $284,200. Edwin and Darlene Cortez,
JP Morgan Chase Bank, $275,000. Andrew and Justine Jorgensen,
MERS/USAA Federal Savings Bank, $372,000. John Mania, Sussexmortgage.com, $286,000. Peter and Sandra Cossu, Wells Fargo
Bank, $296,875. Richard and Melissa Hillman, MERS/Weichert
Financial, $300,000. Michael Bulger, MERS/Amerisave, $255,000.
Vannatta Realty and Builders, Sussex Bank, $360,000. Andrew
Meloi, MERS/Indymac, $370,500. Shenandoah and Kelly Seminuk,
MERS/First Horizon Home Loans, $284,926. Evelyn Ruff, Housing
and Urban Development, $442,500. Evelyn Ruff, Home Consultant
Inc, $442,500. Lorraine King, 1st Mariner Bank, $283,500. Lorraine King, Housing and Urban Development, $283,500. Patrick
and Kim Grillo, MERS/American Federal Mortgage, $263,000.
Jorge Gallego, Bank of America, $289,750.
Greene Township
Paul and Anne Marie Winters, Honesdale National Bank, $253,000.
Kim Ruska and Steven Warshawsky, $264,000.
Lackawaxen Township
Michael Parisa, Chase Bank USA, $260,000. Eric and Jennifer Trenaman, Wells Fargo Bank, $417,000. Cummins Creek Contractors,
Sussex Bank, $1,200,000. Michael and Jeannie Remy, Wells Fargo
Bank, $268,200. Gary and Roseanne Trobe, Chase Bank, $300,000.
Vincent and Maria Pfeifer, $250,000.
Lehman Township
Nadesa and Loyola Tejada, ABN Amro Mortgage, $290,000.
Edward and Janis Pfuhler, MERS/Quicken Loans, $275,000. Mill
Pond Unit Owners Association, Communitybanks, $857,000. John
and Marilyn Rivera, MERS/Countrywide, $269,990.
Milford Borough
Mark Copeland, Wells Fargo Bank, $285,000. Community Building
Projects, Dime Bank, $1,596,000. Randolph and Socorro Bologna,
MERS, $347,130. Cecilie Koch, Washington Mutual Bank,
$301,500.
Palmyra Township
William Goodwin, Honesdale National Bank, $624,601. Peter and
Charlotte Collaso, Financial Freedom Senior Funding, $475,500.
Peter and Charlotte Collaso, Housing and Urban Development,
$475,500. Donald and Helaine Brown, MERS/Merrill Lynch Credit
Union, $346,400. George and Mary Kachmar, JP Morgan Chase
Bank, $870,000. Steven and Rochelle Murtaugh, MERS/American
Partners Bank, $300,000. Kenneth and Brenda Kratz, Wells Fargo
Bank, $279,200. Doris and Leonard Baluta, Wells Fargo Bank,
$391,500. Doris and Leonard Baluta, Housing and Urban Development, $391,500.
Porter Township
Barbara Moor, MERS/Equity One, $435,000.
Shohola Township
Norman and Anne Vergara, First Mariner Bank, $686,000. Gary
and Megan Tubman, JP Morgan Chase Bank, $316,000. Francis
and Karen Reome, Citicorp Trust Bank, $253,291. Nada Acevedo,
MERS/Citimortgage, $284,000.
Westfall Township
23
PBJ REGISTER
Annie Taylor, Wells Fargo Bank, $560,800. Michael and Gretchen
Irwin, JP Morgan Chase Bank, $288,000. Tristan LP, Dime Bank,
$300,000.
Wayne County
Buckingham Township
TNTI Limited Partnership, M&T Trust, $3,690,000.
Cherry Ridge Township
Stanley and Janice Kowalczyk, PNC Mortgage, $300,000.
Stanley and Janice Kowalczyk, Housing and Urban Development,
$300,000. John and Dina Lyons, MERS, $310,400.
Damascus Township
Douglas, Jesse and Karen Miller, Dime Bank, $304,000. Douglas
and Karen Miller, Dime Bank, $304,000. Andre and Anna Zownir,
Citizens Savings Bank, $260,000.
Dreher Township
Farid Jaber, MERS, $417,000. Robert Schwartz, Alycia Schwartz/
MERS, $278,000.
Dyberry Township
Timothy and Deborah Cartmell, Wayne Bank, $400,000.
Honesdale Borough
Sunrise Terrace Management, Mid Penn Bank, $2,200,000. Andrew
and Christine Krompasky, Honesdale National Bank, $260,000.
Lake Township
Philip and Ann Eckel, Pennstar Bank, $250,000. Joseph and Ann
Marie Hyer, Columbia Bank, $900,000.
Lebanon Township
Joseph and Karen Giordano, MERS, $305,000.
Lehigh Township
John McAndrew, Washington Mutual Bank, $306,200.
Mount Pleasant Township
Francesco Guastella, MERS, $325,000.
Paupack Township
Agnes and Edward Golo, PNC Mortgage, $300,240. Agnes and
Edward Golo, Housing and Urban Development, $300,240. Phyllis
Swan and Peter Horvat, LA Mortgage Services, $416,000. Dante
and Marian Giammarco, MERS, $295,000. Sarah and Mitchell Wilson, MERS, $999,000. Mark and Cherylnn Tompkinson, MERS,
$330,000. Mitchell and Sarah Wilson, Harry Ferguson, $378,750.
Frank Harris, Home Consultant Inc., $270,000. Frank Harris,
Housing and Urban Development, $270,000. Herbert and Robin
Mitschele, MERS, $318,675.
Preston Township
TNTI Limited Partnership, M&T Trust, $3,690,000. John Tsimaras,
Affinity Federal Credit Union, $312,000. Billie Prince and Penny
Francis, Community Bank, $283,500.
Salem Township
Hamlin Plaza, Community Bank and Trust, $1,800,000. Amy McCloskey Tobin, MERS, $296,000. Susanna and Viktor Moroz, Bank
of America, $280,000.
Scott Township
Gregory and Jalene Allen. Wayne Bank, $275,960.
South Canaan Township
Philip and Ann Eckel, Pennstar Bank, $250,000. Bruce and Karen
Warninger, MERS, $300,000.
Sterling Township
John and Laura Pavlicek, MERS, $279,300.
Texas Township
Gary and Arlene Goodman, Dime Bank, $300,000.
New Corporations /
Fictitious Names
Carbon County
Pro-Shift Transmission & Notary, L L C RR1 189G Beaver Meadows, transmission repair
CCM Therapy, 123 Grist Mill Rd, Weatherly, Cathleen Dezolt,
occupational therapy
TL Communications, Ltd., 37 West Broadway, Jim Thorpe
EasyHandsFree LLC37 West Broadway, Jim Thorpe
Peja, LLC201 North First Street, Lehighton, restaurant
Dr Joseph McGinley, P C 856 Interchange Road, Lehighton,
medical services
ET Floor Coverings, LLC26 Wintergreen Lane Sunrise Ridge, Jim
Thorpe, floor coverings
Dadd Builders, LLC26 Wintergreen Lane Sunrise Ridge, Jim
Thorpe, commercial & residential buildings
DBA C&B Construction10 S Chestnut St, Tresckow, Craig Hittinger, roofing & siding
Aqua Pure Well Pumps, 586 Stoney Mount Road, Albrightsville,
Thomas Sullivan, installation & repair of well pumps
J & C Safehaven, 68 Crazy Horse Trail, Albrightsville, group home
for teens
Bear Mountain Recreation, L P 1500 Rock Street, Lehighton
Critter Sitter Services LLC, 1 Jonathan Point Drive Box 421,
Albrightsville, pet sitting in your home
Martz’s Excavating, LLC, 316 Knoll Drive, Lehighton, excavation
and site preparation
Appalachian Realty Group, LLC, 102 Lentz Trail, Jim Thorpe, real
estate investments
Spectrum Installation Management, 22 Broad Mountain View
Road, Jim Thorpe, install medical equipment
Acme Assessment Corporation, 103 S 6th Street, Lehighton, home
inspection services
Mountain Menu, 727 Lincoln Avenue, Bowmanstown, restaurant,
Charles Smith
BitConductors Consulting Group, 1085 E. James Street, Lehighton,
computer technology, Andrew Hodes
Lucille M Richmond, Inc ,1004 Center Street, Jim Thorpe, real
estate holding
East Penn Resources, LLC, 2172 Blakeslee Blvd Drive, West
Lehighton, driver brokering
New Beginnings Bookstore Café, 179 Pawnee Trail, Albrightsville
Koehler-Marvin Realty, LLC, 7395 Interchange Road, Lehighton,
real estate
BVM Properties, Inc , 5999 Quakake Road, Weatherly, operation
of real estate
Ascona USA, 1000 Tresckow Road, McAdoo, manufacturing and
sales
Pocono Mountains Virtual Services, 428 Mahoning Mountain Road,
Lehighton, virtual assistance service, Stacy Lee Wisser
Divine Connection Homes, Inc., 56 Broadway, Jim Thorpe, real
estate
Country Junction World, LLC, 6565 Interchange Road, Lehighton,
virtual assistance
Albright Homes, LLC, 85 Keats Lane, Albrightsville, real estate
Three Points Quick Mart, One Industrial Complex, Nesquehoning,
convenience and gas
Favorite Fit for You, 429 Coal Street, Lehighton, Darlene Hughes
and Michael Moyer, online retail business
The Furry Tale Boutique, 79 Broadway, Jim Thorpe, Chrissha
Kuehner, pet supplies
National General Properties, Inc , 450 Interchange road, Lehighton,
real estate
Curious Kids Play & Learn Place, 304 Mahoning Street, Lehighton,
day care center
Monroe County
Wellness Consultants International, 239 Sky Terrace, Effort,
consulting
Murray Hill Enterprise, 10 Fox Lane, East Stroudsburg, general
consulting
Arcadia North Industrial Park, 300 Community Drive, Tobyhanna,
property management
La Bela Rosa, 209 North, Marshalls Creek, Rosa Puma, restaurant
Trekkie Transportation, 607 Bumble Bee Pass, Swift River, bus
charter company
Marantha Bible Chapel, 717 Avenue C, Stroudsburg, church
Kukletown Pub, RD2 Box 494, Kunkletown, bar and hotel
Mountain High Express, 42 Cobblewood Drive, Mount Pocono,
Terry Geltmacher, trucking for hire
Patriot Express, 105 Pin Oak Road, Stroudsburg, frozen food
delivery
RHW Rentals, 413 Route 940, Mount Pocono, real estate
Dynamite Auto Wash LLC, 1 Castle Hill Manor, Henryville
Milik Investments, LLC, 1 Sleepy Hollow Estates, E. Stroudsburg,
real estate
Almost Perfect, LLC, 192 Mutton Hollow Road, Stroudsburg, real
estate acquisitions
Rufwear, RR2 Box 2368, Saylorsburg, Jacqueline Chavez, buy/
sell pet products
BDK Home Improvements, 528 High Point Court, E. Stroudsburg,
Brian Garlick, home remodeling
Pocono Event Music, 138 Penn Estates, E Stroudsburg, Judith
Albano, music and entertainment
Jomes Transportation Corporation, 34 Gabriel Estates, E. Stroudsburg
Donkore, LLC, 14 George Drive, Blakeslee, real estate
C Webb Holdings, LLC, 81 Glade Drive, Long Pond, real estate
Scientific Adventures LLC, 443 Laurel Crescent, Tobyhanna,
Children’s education
EHKA Enterprises, LLC, 823 Resica Falls Road, E. Stroudsburg
PC of the Pocono’s, 161 Leisure Lands, E Stroudsburg, John
Hilton, computer service
Tobyhanna Laundromat Company, Tobyhanna Shopping Plaza,
Tobyhanna, Samuel Bamiro, dry cleaning
B & C Landscaping and Construction, 516 N Courtland St, E
Stroudsburg, Bruce Soto, landscaping
Viva Markets Inc., 100 McConnell Street, Stroudsburg, convenience store
Lambert Property Management, LLC, 1128 Dreher Avenue,
Stroudsburg, rental apartments
Vikruti Properties LLC, 100 McConnell St., Stroudsburg, real estate
Facilities Management Solutions Company 1621 Donalds Road,
Effort, Manuel Serrano
Fundraising with Fragrance, 78 Shenandoah Trail, Effort
RD Power Systems, Inc., RR4 Box 4059, Saylorsburg, power
generators
Water Quality Specialists, Inc., RD2 Box 141, Kunkletown, plumbing and water conditioning
Monroe County Family Health Center, 458 Oakwood Avenue,
Stroudsburg
Flying Carpet Xpress, LLC, 55 Pinehill Road, Mount Pocono,
trucking
G C Klingensmith HRConsulting, LLC, 3130 Coolbaugh Road, E
Stroudsburg, human resources
Mason Dixon Properties Group, LLC, PO Box L, Pocono Pines,
property management
Ebenezer 24hr Academy, 43 Bridge Street, Stroudsburg, Yvette
Haughter and Donald Haughton, day care center
Lawn Mowing & More, RR1 Box 1485, Saylorsburg, landscaping
and tree removal
Gryphon Entertainment Inc., 113 Blue Mountain Lake, E. Stroudsburg, general entertainment
Beyers Appliance Repair, Inc., HC 1 Box 210, Bartonsville, appliance repair
S&P Performance LLC, 500 N 5th St., Stroudsburg, auto shop
ISCSS, Rt. 940 East, Blakeslee, marketing services
Palumbo’s Pizza, 3rd and McConnell Street, Stroudsburg, pizza/
restaurant
The Stroud Agency Inc., 804 Sarah Street, Stroudsburg
Quality Family Restaurant Inc., 1 Washington Street, E. Stroudsburg, restaurant
Rags off the Rack LLC, 208 Eagle Valley Mall, E. Stroudsburg,
Coming Next Month ... January 2008
retail clothing
Liberty Homes Realty, LLC, Rt. 940 East, Pocono Lake, real estate
Kopernik Construction Co., HC 89 Box 383, Pocono Summit,
Jaroslaw Lausz, drywall/sheetrock
Friends and Family Collection, 516 Oak Street, East Stroudsburg,
Kerrie Curtis, web-based retail
ISIHL, Inc., 1172 W Main Street, Stroudsburg, real estate
Pocono Women, RD6 Box 6437A, Stroudsburg, Gertrude Lear,
Information and referral services
Rengabhashyam, LLC, 251 Big Ridge Drive, E. Stroudsburg,
medical practice
Al-Vin’s Old Fashioned Country Kettle Corn, 22 Morningside
Avenue, Stroudsburg, Alessandra Schiavone
Saxscape Mouthpieces, 3248 Penn Estates, E. Stroudsburg, Keneth
Barry
Delaware Water Gap/Pocono Mountain KOA, 233 Hollow Road,
E. Stroudsburg
Jena Communications, 125 Stokes Avenue, Stroudsburg, Ralph
Matergia, retail business specializing
New Horizon Abstract, Inc., 1 Rake Street, E. Stroudsburg, title
insurance
Jam Video, 4012 Manor Drive, Stroudsburg, Matthew Arnold,
freelance video production
Window Envy LLC, 109 Shawnee Valley, E. Stroudsburg, window
cleaning
Deano Designs LLC, HC 87 Box 169Y-1, Pocono Lake, construction
RJA Real Estate, LLC, 195 Northview Circle, E. Stroudsburg
Jasniewicz, Inc., RR4 Box 1471, Kunkletown, furniture and
woodworking
Pocono Occupational Therapy, PC, 116 Blue Mountain Lake, E.
Stroudsburg, home care
Ultimate Flooring Concepts, Inc., 564 Greenview Drive, Broadheadsville, installing carpets
Summer Glen Partners, LP, HC 1 Box 2337, Tannersville
Lots 4 Less, LLC, 3126 Emerald Boulevard, Long Pond, real estate
High Priestess Touring LLC, RR5 Box 5062, Stroudsburg,
entertainment
High Priestess Melodies LLC RR5 Box 5062, Stroudsburg, entertainment services
A & J Auto Parts & Cars Inc , HC 1 Box 104, Swiftwater, auto sales
Golden Eagle Deli, LLC, 348 N 9th Street, Stroudsburg, deli
Forever Yoga Studio, 55D Lower Ridge View Circle, E. Stroudsburg, Catherine Kincaid
St. Michael’s Security Detectors, Inc , Miller Drive, Pocono Pines,
security devices
Golf Strategies LLC, 1 Clubhouse Lane, Blakeslee, golf course
management
Perryman Keglovits Foundation, Inc., 35 3 Point Garden Road, E.
Stroudsburg
Competitive Arms & Jewelry LLC, 910 Sherwood Forest Road,
Stroudsburg, sporting goods and jewelry
K & S Building Solutions, LLC, 302 Barrys Road, Effort
Redco Group Development, LLC, 26 Alpine Lake, Henryville,
real estate
Coldwell Banker, Commercial Pennco Real Estate, 1250 N 9th
Street, Stroudsburg, Spiros Bilianis, commercial real estate
El Shaddai Church of Excellence International Ministry Healing &
Deliverance, Inc., 6637 Country Place Drive, Tobyhanna, church
Rainmaker Capital of Chestnuthill, LLC, HC 89 Box 105, Pocono
Summit, real estate
Everything Natural.com, 2370 Nelson Drive, Effort, Sandra
Selesky, skin care and perfume
Tie Dye Connection, 3447 Wild Cherry Lane, E. Stroudsburg,
Michael Rapino, online retail
Trinity Star Mortgage Services, RR5 Box 5147A, Kunkletown,
Eastlyn and Talibah George, purchase, new construction
P & L Marketing, LLC, 2/2103/21 Iroquois, Pocono Lake
Jay Effross Memorial Foundation, 209 Oxford Circle, Stroudsburg,
scholarships
Significa II LP, First National Bank of Palmerton, Gilbert
Pike County
Family Smile Center, Inc., 201 W. Harford St , Milford, Dental
Office
Arbitration and Mediation Global Services, LLC, 104 W. High
Street, Milford, Consulting and alternative dispute resolution
services
Gebco Productions, 109 Yellow Wood Drive, Milford, Christopher
Gebbia, Music producer
AM Global, 135 William Penn Drive, Milford, general consulting
Key Handyman Services, 302 Ranchlands, Bushkill, residential
handyman services
The Kids Mailbox Club, 1823 Route 739, Dingmans Ferry, Kimberly Ciuffreda and Kathleen Curry, mailing service for children
L&G Brothers, LLC, 179 Firetower Road, Milford, real estate
Nextronic, 107 Fern Road, Dingmans Ferry, Craig Nystrom,
construction
Clean Cut Lawn and Snow Services, LLC, HC 1 Box 308, Paupack,
lawn maintenance and snow removal
Stage It! 1200 Hemlock Farms, Lords Valley, Birgitta Durfee, home
staging
Lakeview Plaza and Deli, LLC, 1757 Route 739, Dingmans Ferry,
food services
Dingman’s Ferry Plaza, LLC, 1757 Route 739, Dingmans Ferry,
real estate holdings
Everything but the Horse, LLC, 611 Broad Street, Milford
Chuff and Kosierowski, PC, 400 Broad Street, Milford, law
A-Counseling Center, 1821 Route 739, Dingmans Ferry, clinical
services
Colton Properties, Inc., 112 E. Harford Street, Milford, real estate
Brooks Partners, 112 E. Harford Street, Milford, Colton Properties,
Inc.
Nick Knack Productions, 1215 Route 507, Greentown, Nick Burriesci, event production
J&W Collections, Inc., 122 Chippy Cole Road, Milford, debt
recovery
Cuono, LLC, 2686 Hemlock Farms, Lords Valley, IT Consultation
and sales
High Point Tile & Grout Restoration LLC, 103 Overbrook Run
Road, Milford
Mauro & Michelson Lock and Key, 206 Pennsylvania Avenue,
Matamoras, Karen Mauro
Just Digging, Inc., 3053 Hemlock Farms, Lords Valley, construction, excavation
Epic Design and Construction, 107 Candlewick Way, Lackawaxen,
construction
Futuristic Productions, LLC, 130 Nelson Road, Milford
Heroes World, Inc., 115 Mill Street, Milford, comics, cards, collectibles
Davis Lakefront Properties, LP, HC 1 Box 312, Paupack
Eniluap LLC, 134 Saw Creek Estates, Bushkill, real estate
Stone Ridge Athletic Scouting, LLC, 104 Stone Ridge Lane,
Milford marketing student athletes
Delaware-Hudson Collegiate Sports of America, 104 Stone Ridge
Lane, Milford, marketing student athletes
The Rock and Gem Heaven, 601 W. Harford Street, Milford,
Margaret Lynes, wholesale and retail sales
Morgan Grays Handsome Style, Inc., 201 W. Harford Street, Suite
102, Milford
Morgan Grays Inc., 201 W Harford Street, Suite 102, Milford
CNB Homes, LLC, 296 Sawmill Road, Greentown, real estate
D&J Transport LLC, 100 Hartman hill Road, Milford, towing
Polaris Solutions Inc., 127 High Ridge Road, Dingmans Ferry,
consulting
Madhudas, Inc., 1757 Route 739, Dingmans Ferry, retail store
Carben Mattison Foundation, Inc., 977 Milford Road, Dingmans
Ferry, assisting with medical expenses
Wayne County
Four Star Country Corners Inc., 1571 Legedale Rd, Lake Ariel,
real estate
Alta Vista Advertising and Mapping, LLC, 123 Charles Street,
White Mills, advertising and historic maps
Rodz Garage, LLC, 615 Purdytown Turnpike, Lakeville, vehicle
repairs
Ideal Floors & More, LLC1551, The Hideout, Lake Ariel, install
flooring, cabinets, doors and windows
Sky Lake, LLC147, Sky Lake Rd, Tyler Hill, property mgmt.
Bauer Hall Designs, 75 Spry Road, Honesdale, Jennifer Hawran,
needlework
Landmark Trucking, Inc., 30 Weed St., Lakewood
Briar Construction Corporation, 30 Weed St., Lakewood
Freedom from Calls Answering Service, Inc., 13 Sunset Ave.,
Honesdale, answering service
DJ Pete’s Instant Replay Used Music & DJ Service, 153 Welwood
Avenue,Suite 1, Hawley, Kathleen Riera, sales of used music
Timberdoodles, LLC1 A Pine Tree Drive, Gouldsboro, Internet
marketing
Avoy Heights, LLC253 Goose Pond Road, Lake Ariel, real estate
Terrapin Station Properties, LLC, 1114 Texas Palmyra Hwy Suite
130, Honesdale, real estate investments
Magikal Elements, LLC25 Milky Way, Hawley, sell gifts, jewelry,
handcrafted items
Cianna Medical, Inc., 42 Boathouse Rd., Suite 125, Lake Ariel
The Travel Booth, 186 Oak Hill Road, Hawley, Dmitry Dukhan,
reservation services
Helping Hand Financial Services, 96 Swamp Brook Road, Hawley,
Eileen Ertel, personal & small business financial services
Girlfriendz, 540 Main St., Honesdale, Shirley Pecko and Kathy
Woodyshek, retail sale of jewelry & gift baskets
Buzz Construction, LLC112 Milanville Rd., Beach Lake, building
A & E Commercial Building Services, LLC17 Davis Rd, Waymart,
Commercial cleaning, property maintenance
Citrus Graphix, 1503 The Hideout 4128 Chestnut Hill Drive Lake
Ariel, Doina Dekenipp, graphic design
Louis & Co. Entourage LLC, RT 6 Plaza, Honesdale, hair salon
Billmaren, LLC26 Sunny Point Road, Lakeville, rental property
A Dozen Secrets, 25 Indian Rocks, Lake Ariel, Kelly and Matthew
Menard, band/music
Jabale, LLC1327 Roosevelt Highway, Bldg. B, Waymart, design
and sell kitchen cabinets & countertops
Lake Region Tile, LLC469 Welwood Avenue, Hawley, tile sales
Cherry Ridge Realty Holding, LLC328 Wanoka Road, Honesdale,
real estate
Service World Concepts2882 Hemlock Farms Hawley, Irly Shimon,
custom product development
Next Logistics, 21 Shady Lane Lake Ariel, Timo Czilinger, transportation, logistics, trucking
All Pocono Realty Inc., 104 Trout Terrace, Newfoundland, real
estate
Professional Emergency Care, P C601 Park Street, Honesdale
Jukebox Classics & Vintage Slot Machines, LLC, 210 Main Avenue
Hawley, vintage slot machines, jukeboxes & antiques
Rileyville Community Association, 359 Gager Road Honesdale,
meeting place for Rileyville residents
Cycle Insurance Agency, Inc., 1114 Texas Hwy. Ste. 110, Honesdale, insurance agency, sale of retail insurance products
Cycle Insurance Agency, PA 1114 Texas Hwy. Ste. 110, Honesdale,
insurance agency, sale of real estate insurance products
Above All Contracting, LLC804 Elm Court Hawley, home
improvements
Hillside Executive Suites, LLC61 Commercial Street, Honesdale,
commercial real estate development
Sun Distributor of Pa., 210 Shortcut Rd., Lakeville, sale of recreational vehicles & equipment
Delaware River Press, 511 Niles Pond Rd., Honesdale, Dale Laszig,
creates & sells literature, including books
Crescent Moon Antiques, 51 Moosic Lakes, Sunset Drive, Lake
Ariel, Elisa D’Ascenzio, antiques
Adventure Staffing, LLC1258, Purdytown Turnpike, Lakeville
MERS = Mortgage Electronic Registration
Systems
Disclaimer: Deeds and mortgages are recorded
as accurately as possible adhering to the cover
dates in the County Recorders’ office.
POCONO
www.pbjonline.com
Education and Workforce Training
www.pbjonline.com
• Workforce Training: Training available to local employers to sharpen a competitive workforce
• WIRED Update: Grants to help businesses prepare for future tech jobs from Wall Street West
• School District Roundup: How vocational/technical schools respond to employers’ needs
• Leadership Programs: Leadership program graduates throughout the Pocono region
strengthen their business community
• Professional Profile: Lehigh Carbon Community College gets students ready to work
24
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
December 3
CEO Excellence Development Series (new online seminars),
Achieve Business Solutions with The Alternative Board. CEO
Skills for small business owners. The interactive workshop series
covers 6 Keys to Success, Marketing Basics, Beyond eMyth, 7
Critical Mistakes Business Owners Make, Sales Traps and How
to Avoid Them, Managing for Success, People Power. For more
information visit the events calendar at www.AchieveNextLevel.
com or email [email protected] or call 866-4268073. First time attendees participate for free.
Interview Basics, 9:00 a.m. -10:30 a.m., Salary Negotiation, 10:30
a.m. - 11:00 a.m. Held at the PA CareerLink in Tannersville. Call
(570) 620-2850 or visit www.cwds.state.pa.us for more information.
December 4
Intro to CareerLink Services 10:00 a.m. -11:00 a.m., Mock
Interviews, 1:00 P.M. - 2:00 p.m., Website Enrollment, 3:00 p.m.
- 4:00 p.m. Held at the PA CareerLink in Tannersville. Call (570)
620-2850 or visit www.cwds.state.pa.us for more information.
December 5
Career Exploration, 9:00 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Call (570) 620-2850 or
visit www.cwds.state.pa.us for more information.
December 5, 12, 19, 26
BNI Milford, 7:00 a.m., Mount Haven Resort, 123 Log Tavern
Rd., Milford. Call (570) 296-7176 for more information.
December 6
LeTip Weekly Meeting J.R.’s Grill @ Budget Inn & Suites (I80
Exit 308), East Stroudsburg, 7:01 a.m. to 8:31 a.m. Cost: free.
Bring plenty of business cards.
LeTip is a professional business leads exchange group that
becomes your sales force. Only one category is permitted in each
chapter. Call Louise at (570) 588-4113 or email ruonpar@verizon.
net for more information.
Pesticide Applicator Certification Examination, Monroe County
Cooperative Extension office, 724 Phillips St, Suite 201, Stroudsburg, 8:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. To register, call the Monroe County
Penn State Cooperative Extension office at (570) 421-6430; for
questions concerning the exam, call Chris Santore at the PA Dept.
of Agriculture at (570) 836-2181.
Website Enrollment, 9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. Held at the PA CareerLink in Tannersville. Call (570) 620-2850 or visit www.cwds.
state.pa.us for more information.
The Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau’s Annual Holiday Dinner,
Executive Conference Center at Skytop Lodge, Skytop, Cocktails
6:00 p.m.; dinner 7:30 p.m. Live musical entertainment by Soulbusters at 8:30 p.m. Cost: $45. includes tax and gratuities. Event
also serves as a retirement dinner for PMVB Executive Director,
Robert Uguccioni. Call Nicole Krieger at the Pocono Mountains
Visitors Bureau at (570) 421-5791 for more information.
Holiday Makeover, For Women by Women, held at The Apple
Tree Boutique, Main Street, Stroudsburg, 4:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.
Learn how to accessorize your daytime office wear and go directly
to a holiday party after work during this busy holiday season.
Networking, nibbles and wine. FWBW’s Pocono Women will be
there to meet you with a special holiday drawing of discounts,
prizes and more. RSVP to [email protected] by December 4.
December 6, 13, 20 and 27
BNI Bartonsville, 7:00 a.m. - 8:30 a.m., Howard Johnson’s, Route
611, Bartonsville. Call (570) 237-5869 for more information.
December 7
BusinessRICH Business Success Academy, ActionCOACH,
registration and networking; 7:30 a.m.; Business Academy 101
8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Intensive business course that covers sales,
selling techniques, marketing, systems, team building, priority
management. Location to be announced. Fee: $595. includes
textbooks and all workshop material. Previous attendees and
clients can save $100 when they register. Call (570) 517-7100 or
e-mail [email protected] for more information and to
pre-register.
December 7, 14, 21, and 28
BNI Shawnee-on-Delaware, 7:00 a.m. - 8:30 a.m., Inn at Shawnee, River Road, Shawnee-on-Delaware. Call (570) 420-8656 for
more information.
December 10
Resumes & Cover Letters, 9:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. Held at the PA
CareerLink in Tannersville. Call (570) 620-2850 or visit www.
cwds.state.pa.us for more information.
Business Card Exchange/Holiday Mixer, Greater Pocono Chamber of Commerce, held at Alaska Pete’s, Marshalls Creek, 5:00
p.m. – 7:00 p.m. Cost in advance: $10 Chamber members, $20
non-members; cost at the door: $15 Chamber members, $25 nonmembers. Call (570) 421-4433 for more information.
December
December 11
How to Run an Effective Meeting, PP&L Learning Center,
Hawley, 8:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. Seminar, sponsored by the Wayne
County Builders Association, provides instruction on running
meetings effectively, developing agendas, using parliamentary
procedures, stimulating meaningful discussions, and controlling
disruptive behavior. Cost: $20 for members of the Wayne County
Builders Association; $25.00 for non profit associations; $35 for
non-members of WCBA. Cost includes light breakfast and booklet
on Parliamentary Procedure and How to Run Effective Meetings
Guide. Contact the Wayne County Builders Association at (570)
226-4941 or e-mail [email protected].
Successful Supervisor Workshop, Manufacturers Resource Center,
125 Goodman Drive, Bethlehem. Cost: $149. includes continental
breakfast and lunch. Course covers transitioning from employee to
manager, building a high-performance team, coaching and counseling, and creative problem-solving. Call (610) 758-5581 or email
[email protected] for more information.
Intro to CareerLink Services, 10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m., Website
Enrollment, 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. Held at the PA CareerLink in
Tannersville. Call (570) 620-2850 or visit www.cwds.state.pa.us
for more information.
Greater Pocono Chamber of Commerce Women in Business
luncheon, 12:00 noon, Shawnee Inn and Golf Resort, Shawneeon-Delaware. Annual Holiday Luncheon, sponsored by Connie
Roberts of George Roberts Productions. Cost: $15 Chamber
members, $20 non-members and walk-ins. Call (570) 421-4433 for
more information.
December 12
Setup Reduction, 8:00 am. – 12:00 noon, Manufacturers Resource
Center, 125 Goodman Drive, Bethlehem. Cost: $225. includes
refreshments and materials. Learn how companies have achieved
75% reduction or better in changeover, often with little or no
investments. Seminar based on Dr. Shingo’s Single Minute Exchange of Die System of Setup Reduction. Participants are asked
to bring a videotape of an actual setup. Call Angie Bove at (610)
758-4588 for more information.
Find a Job You’ll Love!, 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon. Held at the PA
Carbon County Chamber of Commerce Christmas Party, location
to be determined. Cocktail Hour (cash bar) begins at 6:00 p.m.,
dinner at 7:00 p.m. Call CCCC (610) 379-5000 for more information.
December 12 and 13
Train-the-Trainer Forklift Training, Northeastern Pennsylvania
Industrial Resource Center, Inc. (NEPIRC), held at Action Lift/
Medico Industries, 1500 Highway 315, Wilkes-Barre. Wednesday
8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m., includes lunch. Thursday 8:00 a.m. - 12:00
noon. Fee: $795. Call (570) 819-8966 for more information.
December 13
LeTip Weekly Meeting J.R.’s Grill @ Budget Inn & Suites (I80
Bring plenty of business cards. LeTip is a professional business
leads exchange group that becomes your sales force. Only one category is permitted in each chapter. Call Louise at (570) 588-4113
or email [email protected] for more information.
Setup Reduction, Northeastern Pennsylvania Industrial Resource
Center, Inc. (NEPIRC), 75 Young Street, Hanover Industrial
Estates, Wilkes-Barre. Registration at 7:30 a.m. with Continental
Breakfast; course 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Fee: $225. includes refreshments and lunch. Call (570) 819-8966 for more information.
Member Success Program, BNI Pennsylvania/New Jersey, held
at Abilities, 264 Route 31, Washington, N.J., 9:00 a.m. - 12:00
noon. Cost: $5. Call Steve Gambino at (908) 995-8860 for more
information.
Holiday Celebration, United Way Monroe County, at Sycamore
Grille, Delaware Water Gap, 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. Santa Servers
include Bob Matthews of WSBG, Monroe County Commissioner
Suzanne McCool and Robert Phillips, CEO of the Greater Pocono
Chamber of Commerce. The evening includes food, a silent auction and live music by Chris London. Proceeds and tips will be donated to the United Way of Monroe County. Call (570) 629-5657
for more information.
December 14
GrowthCLUB: 90 Day Massive Action Planning Session, ActionCOACH, registration 7:30 a.m.; workshop, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Location to be announced. Your chance to step out of the business
and get focused, with instruction on how to map out a winning
game plan for the next 90 days. Fee: $299.95. Call (570) 517-7100
or e-mail [email protected] for more information and to
pre-register.
2008 Planning Meeting, Achieve Business Solutions, The
Alternative Board, 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Tri-Co Federal Credit
Union, Augusta, NJ. Includes continental breakfast, economic
review, impact, and outlook; developing your SWOTS and goal
setting, lunch, best practices, sales team accountability, marketing plan development. Call (973) 940-2020 or email btheobald@
tab-nwjerseypoconos.com for more information.
Negotiation Techniques, Center for Professional Training and Development, The University of Scranton, O’Hara Hall, 1st Floor,
9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Fee: $95. fee includes materials & lunch.
This workshop provides an appropriate and effective model for
negotiation skills, examines phases of the negotiation process
and identifies techniques and specific skills. After development
of an appropriate model and understanding, case applications and
exercise are used to further evaluate skills and techniques. Call
(570) 941-7582 to register.
Computer Basics, 9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. Held at the PA CareerLink in Tannersville. Call (570) 620-2850 or visit www.cwds.
Negotiation Techniques, 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m., University of
Scranton Center for Professional Training and Development,
O’Hara Hall. Cost: $95. Workshop provides effective model for
negotiation skills, examines phases of negotiation process and
identification techniques. Call (570) 941-7582 for more information.
December 17
CEO Excellence Development Series (new online seminars),
Achieve Business Solutions with The Alternative Board. CEO
Skills for small business owners. The interactive workshop series covers 6 Keys to Success, Marketing Basics, Beyond eMyth,
7 Critical Mistakes Business Owners Make, Sales Traps and How
to Avoid Them, Managing for Success, People Power. For more
information visit the events calendar at www.AchieveNextLevel.
com or email [email protected] or call 866-4268073. First time attendees participate for free.
One-on-One Résumé Writing Assistance, 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
(must attend “Résumé & Cover Letters Class). Held at the PA
December 18
Intro to CareerLink Services, 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m., Interview
Basics, 12:00 noon - 1:30 p.m., Salary Negotiation, 1:30 p.m.2:00 p.m., Website Enrollment, 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. Held at
the PA CareerLink in Tannersville. Call (570) 620-2850 or visit
www.cwds.state.pa.us for more information.
December19th
Career Exploration, 9:00 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Held at the PA CareerLink in Tannersville. Call (570) 620-2850 or visit www.cwds.
December 20
LeTip Weekly Meeting, J.R.’s Grill @ Budget Inn & Suites (I80
Bring plenty of business cards. LeTip is a professional business
leads exchange group that becomes your sales force. Only one
category is permitted in each chapter. Call Louise at (570) 5884113 or email [email protected] for more information.
Résumés and Cover Letters, 9:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. Held at the PA
December 21
Monthly Breakfast, Greater Pocono Chamber of Commerce, Best
Western Pocono Inn, Stroudsburg, 7:30 a.m. Sponsored by CareWorks Convenient Healthcare, Special Program by Kiwanis Club
of the Stroudsburgs. Cost in advance: $10. Chamber members,
$14. non-members in advance. Cost at the door: $12. Chamber
members, $18. non-members. Call (570) 421-4433 for more
information.
Résumé Critique, 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon. Held at the PA CareerLink in Tannersville. Call (570) 620-2850 or visit www.cwds.
December 24 and 31
Computerized O’Net Assessments, 9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. Held at
the PA CareerLink in Tannersville. Call (570) 620-2850 or visit
www.cwds.state.pa.us for more information.
December 27
Intro to CareerLink Services, 10:00 - 11:00 a.m. Held at the PA
If you would like to have your business event
listed in the PBJ Calendar of Events, please
submit information to [email protected].