GREATER HAZLETON, PENNSYLVANIA

“We had absolutely no problem finding candidiates whopossess the skill sets we were seeking. I’ve been veryimpressed with the people our company has hired inHazleton and with the number of applicants who appliedfor positions.”Ken Gonnella I PresidentGonnella Frozen Products I Hazleton“We went out and looked in this wonderful community andfound lots of great leaders, great leaders who are goingto take us to the next level. But the most important thingthat happened was we found all of you, the wonderful,highly committed, highly dedicated, passionate peopleof Hazleton that we now call AutoZoners. Of all of thedistribution centers that I have ever seen open, I havenever seen one open as seamlessly as this one.”Bill Rhodes I Chairman, President & CEOAutoZone I Hazleton“Employing over 500 locally, the West Hazleton plant isthe largest producer of flexible packaging bags for thebakery business in the United States. The exceptional workethic of our employees is evidenced in our plant being inbusiness for 44 years. That, coupled with the skill level ofthe Hazleton workforce, has enabled us to rank at the topin productivity among five manufacturing plants in Bemis’Polyethylene Packaging division.”Geoff Svirbely I Human Resources ManagerBemis Polyethylene Packaging Division I Hazleton“The three main draws of this area were the locationbetween Interstates 81 and 80, which works very wellfor us; the Keystone Opportunity Zone program; and theworkforce in the Hazleton area, which is very good. Hiringpeople was not an issue at all. We received hundreds ofapplications for the positions we had available and havemaintained most of the people we initially hired.”Steve Boucher I General ManagerE.S. Kluft I Hazleton10

LABOR AVAILABILITYEmployers in Humboldt Industrial Park typically draw workers from a four-county area consistingof Luzerne, Schuylkill, Columbia, and Carbon counties. Humboldt is located in the approximatecenter of this four county area, near the intersection of I-81 and I-80. The region’s traditionally highunemployment rates have helped employers find an ample number of qualified job applicants.GREATER HAZLETON EMPLOYERS WITH AT LEAST 100 EMPLOYEESCOMPANYSERVICE11Bemis Company, Inc.Extrusion & printing of polyfilmBimbo Bakeries, USABakery food productsCargill Cocoa & ChocolateCocoa productsCargill Meat SolutionsRetail meat processing facilityE.S. Kluft & CompanyManufacturer of luxury mattressesFabri-Kal CorporationPackaging productsFirst Quality NonwovensNonwoven fabricGonnella Frozen Products, LLC.Manufacturer of dough for in-store bakeriesGraham PackagingManufacturer of plastic containersQuad GraphicsPrinting of telephone directoriesSilgan White CapMetal closuresSimmons CompanyMattressesThe Dial Corporation (Hendel)Household laundry productsThe Hershey CompanyMolded chocolate productsValmont NewmarkTubular steel polesAmazon.comBooks, consumer productsAmerican Eagle OutfittersDistributor of clothing & personal care itemsAutoZoneNortheast distributor of auto partsBradley CaldwellDistributor of hardware, farm & pet suppliesBrake Parts, Inc.Brake system componentsFedEx Supply ChainSupply chain solutionsMichaelsNortheast distributor of handcraft productsNBTY, Inc.Distributor of vitaminsRomark LogisticsNortheast distributor of M&M/Mars candy productsThe Packaging WholesalersCorrugated boxes and packaging materialsUS Cold StorageRefrigerated storageSource: Can DO, Inc.DISTRIBUTIONMANUFACTURINGAryzta Frozen bakery products

LABOR &EMPLOYMENTDATAHumboldt is located in the approximate center of afour county area, near the intersection of I-81 and I-80.12

2018 EMPLOYMENT/UNEMPLOYMENT FIGURESLUZERNECOUNTYLABOR 0272,10016,3005.6%Source: www.workstats.dli.pa.gov30 MILE RADIUS DEMOGRAPHICSPopulation653,627Ages 20 - 64381,233Total Households270,731Households with incomeof 50,000 or higher139,169Households with incomeof less than 50,000131,562Percentage (%) of personswith high school degree88.68%Percentage (%) of persons withassociate degree or higher29.14%Source: UYLKILL

Did you know that there are 16 colleges anduniversities with close to 50,000 studentswithin an hour’s drive of HumboldtIndustrial Park? This network of higherEDUCATIONeducation provides an invaluable resourcefor employers and their employees,offering ample opportunity for co-ops,continuing education, customized jobtraining, internships, and recruiting.The Pennsylvania State University has three satellitecampuses within 45 minutes of Humboldt. Penn State’s maincampus in State College, PA offers a comprehensive program inSupply Chain and Information Systems that ranges from non-degreecoursework up to the PhD level. The program is ranked fifth-best inthe nation for undergraduate level and seventh-best in the nationfor graduate level by U.S. News and World Report.Penn State - Hazleton9005Luzerne CCCCluzerne.edu5,36025Wilkes Universitywilkes.edu5,54527King’s Collegekings.edu2,30828Bloomsburg Universitybloomu.edu9,00831Misericordia University2,87940545415,4224544045Lackawanna Collegelackawanna.edu1,47745Penn State - Scrantonworthingtonscranton.psu.edu1,10048Marywood psu.edumisericordia.eduPenn State - Wilkes-Barrewilkesbarre.psu.eduUniversity of Scrantonscranton.eduGeisinger Commonwealth School of Medicinegeisinger.edu/educationmarywood.eduJohnson Collegejohnson.eduNorthampton Community Collegenorthampton.eduClarks Summit Universityclarkssummitu.eduEast Stroudsburg Universityesu.eduTOTAL STUDENT ENROLLMENTSource: www.colleges.findthebest.comSCHOOLMI.ENROLL. AWAY49,00414

COST ADVANTAGES& INCENTIVES15 15

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, through the Department of Community and Economic Development(DCED), offers a wide variety of grant, low interest loan, and training programs to help businesses grow.Some of the state programs more commonly used by companies are listed below.For more information on these and other Pennsylvania programs please visit dced.pa.gov.JOB CREATION TAX CREDIT PROGRAMQuick Summary: 1,000 per-job tax credit program. The Pennsylvania Department of Community andEconomic Development (DCED) sets the amount awarded for each project. The company must pay atleast 10.88 per hour. The company must claim credits within five years and agree to stay in PA atleast five years.The Job Creation Tax Credit (JCTC) Program is available to eligible businesses who, within three years from anegotiated start date, create 25 or more jobs or increase employment by 20%. Every new full-time job, up to aset maximum which meets certain minimum wage standards, will result in a 1,000 tax credit that the businesscan use to pay a number of state business taxes.The business may claim these credits only after the jobs are created. A minimum of 25% of all tax creditsavailable to be awarded each fiscal year will be allocated to businesses that employ 100 or fewer employees.In order to be eligible to receive Job Creation Tax Credits, a business must demonstrate leadership in theapplication, development, or deployment of leading technologies in business operations. A business will bedetermined to meet this requirement if it: Conceives and develops new production or product technology, orImproves its productivity by incorporating innovative processesTo be counted as new full-time employees under the JCTC Program, each new employee must earn an hourlywage rate of at least 150% of the federal minimum wage ( 10.88/hour), excluding benefits, at the time thecertificate is issued.The business must agree to maintain its operation in the commonwealth for a period of five years from thestart date. The start date will be the first day of the calendar year quarter in which an application is submittedunless the applicant requests and the DCED agrees to a later start date.A business may claim a job creation tax credit of 1,000 for each new job created up to a specified amount, asapproved by DCED. The credit must be claimed within five years of receiving the tax credit certificate, but in nocase can it be longer than six years from the start date. Credits not claimed within this period will be forfeited.A business may apply the tax credit to 100% of the business’s state corporate net income tax, capitalstock/franchise tax or the capital stock/franchise tax of a shareholder of the business if the business is aPennsylvania S corporation, gross premiums tax, gross receipts tax, bank and trust business shares tax,mutual thrift institution tax, title insurance business shares tax, personal income tax or the personal incometax of shareholders of a Pennsylvania S corporation, or any combination thereof. Cash refunds will not beissued for unused credits.16

GUARANTEED FREE TRAINING PROGRAMQuick Summary: Grant funding provided by thePennsylvania Department of Community andEconomic Development (DCED) for essential skillsand advanced technology training. Max amounts areup to 450 per trainee and 75,000 per company foressential skills training and up to 850 per traineeand 50,000 per company for advanced technologytraining. To be eligible, employees must be full-timeand earn at least 10.88 per hour.The Guaranteed Free Training Program (GFT-WEDnetPA)provides grant funding for Essential Skills and AdvancedTechnology training.The program’s Essential Skills training is limited tomanufacturers and technology businesses, includingbiotech and environmental-technology companies,and provides up to 450 per trainee and 75,000 percompany. Eligible training activities are those thatdirectly improve the essential job skills required forthe employee’s current position.17These job skills are central to the employee’s position andwould likely be found in the employee’s job description.The Advanced Technology training is available to mostcompanies and provides up to 850 per trainee and 50,000 per company. Eligible training activities will bethose that directly improve the advanced technology jobskills required for the employee’s current position.To be eligible for reimbursement, at the time of trainingan employee must be a resident of and employed inPennsylvania, earn at least 150% of the current federalminimum wage, excluding benefits, be permanentlyemployed full-time and eligible for full-time benefits, andbe an employee of the specific company location awardedgrant funds.Training costs must be “reasonable” as defined bymarket rates and/or other criteria. Regardless of how it isconducted (classroom, online, etc.), each training sessionmust be a minimum of 30 minutes in length.Training can be provided by a WEDnetPA partnerinstitution, the company’s in-house staff or any thirdparty provider.

PENNSYLVANIA FIRST PROGRAMQuick Summary: Pennsylvania Department ofCommunity and Economic Development (DCED)grant/loan program for companies that create/retain a substantial number of jobs. Providesfunding for real estate, M&E, job training, etc The company must pay at least 10.88/hour. A 10to 1 private investment match is required. Themax assistance is 5,000 per job (discretionary).Businesses can receive support in the form of grants,loans and loan guarantees for job training, propertyacquisition, site preparation, land and buildingimprovements, purchasing or upgrading machinery andequipment, infrastructure, environmental assessmentsand remediation, and working capital.Businesses must achieve one of the following standardswithin three years of receiving Pennsylvania FirstProgram funding: (1) create or retain a minimum of 100full time jobs at the project site; (2) increase their fulltime employment within the commonwealth by at least20%; (3) provide a substantial number of new, full timeemployment opportunities within a high growth industry;or (4) create or retain fewer than 100 full time jobs at projectsites that are located in counties or communities sufferingfrom high unemployment.The program requires participants to commit to operatingat the approved project site for a minimum of sevenyears. Full-time employees must earn at least 150% of thefederal minimum wage ( 10.88/hour). Loan terms can beup to 15 years for real estate and infrastructure and upto 10 years for machinery and equipment. Interest rateswill be set at the time of approval and will be based onthe 10-year Treasury rate. Each annual Pennsylvania FirstProgram appropriation must leverage at least 10 in privateinvestment for every 1 of program assistance awarded.The maximum assistance amount shall not exceed 5,000for each job projected to be created or retained. DCED hasdiscretion to modify this amount for special circumstances.The project may not commence prior to the approval ofPennsylvania First Program assistance without the writtenconsent of the DCED to incur project costs. Commencementof work prior to receiving DCED’s approval will result in theproject becoming ineligible for funding consideration.18

PENNSYLVANIA ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTFINANCING AUTHORITY TAX EXEMPT BONDPROGRAM (PEDFA)Quick Summary: Tax-free bond program. Provides loansbetween 400,000 and 20,000,000. Helps manufacturersand non-profit 501(c)(3)s among others. Funds real estate,M&E, working capital, etc The loan term can be up to30-years but not more than 120% of the depreciable life ofthe assets being financed. PEDFA can finance up to 100%of eligible project costs but will usually loan less because theparticipating bank will likely require some equity. Can be ina pool or stand-alone. Companies must apply through anIndustrial Development Authority (IDA) or an IndustrialDevelopment Corporation (IDC). Loan rates are typically20% to 30% lower than commercial alternatives.The Pennsylvania Economic Development Financing Authority(PEDFA) Tax Exempt Bond Program assists in financing landand building acquisition, renovations and new construction,machinery and equipment acquisition and installation, as wellas working capital.Those eligible for the PEDFA Tax Exempt Bond Program areindustries such as manufacturing, energy, solid waste disposal,wastewater treatment, transportation facilities, assisted living/housing, and nonprofit 501(c)(3).The loan amount must be a minimum of 400,000. Theborrower, along with its affiliates, together cannot incur morethan 20,000,000 of capital costs in the city or municipality ofthe project during a six-year period beginning three years prior19

to the date of the bond closing. These capital costs includethe current project costs and any outstanding tax-exemptdebt. Up to 1,000,000 of tax-exempt financing, includingoutstanding tax-exempt debt, is allowed without regard to the 20 million capital costs limit.The loan can be up to a 30-year term but no more than 120%of the depreciable life of the assets being financed. Interestrates are generally 20% to 30% below comparable commercialalternatives. Weekly variable interest rates generally trackagainst the Securities Industry and Financial MarketsAssociation Index (SIFMA), a weekly municipal interest rateindex that serves as the industry benchmark.For each composite pool project, the PEDFA loan amountmust be in multiples of: (1) 25,000 if the loan amount is lessthan 1 million; or (2) 100,000 if the loan amount is 1 millionor greater. There are no specified loan increments for standalone projects.While up to 100% of qualified costs may be funded, in mostcases lenders or credit banks require a significant equitycontribution.All applications must be submitted online by a local IDA orIDC, which is the “Applicant”, through the Electronic SingleApplication located at dced.pa.gov.The project may not commence prior to the approval ofPennsylvania First Program assistance without the writtenconsent of the DCED to incur project costs. Commencementof work prior to receiving DCED’s approval will result in theproject becoming ineligible for funding consideration.20

MERICLEOVERVIEWMericle Commercial Real Estate Services has developed more investmentgrade industrial, flex, and office space than any developer in the historyof Northeastern Pennsylvania.2117

THE MERICLE DIFFERENCEMARKET KNOWLEDGEOur executive team and the vast majority of ourapproximately 250 employees are natives of thisSINGLE SOURCEMericle is a true master builder, and our employees takeresponsibility for all phases of your project, from siteselection, to design, to excavation, to construction, tofit-out, to property management. In short, we do it all.This unique corporate structure keeps your stress levelto a minimum and ensures that your project will becompleted on time and on budget.VALUEBy utilizing the master builder concept, we are ableto cut out unnecessary profit centers and provide youwith quality, investment-grade real estate at a verycompetitive price. Plus, Mericle is the authorized ButlerBuilder for Northeastern Pennsylvania. This closeassociation with Butler Manufacturing Company,the largest manufacturer of pre-engineered buildingsystems in the United States, means we are able to offeryou an unmatched level of innovation and flexibility.Our in-house design and engineering teams includesome of the industry’s most experienced professionalsin dealing with Butler systems. Every material, coating,part, and process is tested to ensure strict compliancewith exact Butler standards.region. Five of our executives have backgrounds in localeconomic development and can offer you guidanceon incentive financing, employee recruitment, jobtraining, family relocation, community contacts, andmuch more. We also have strong relationships with localmunicipalities, permitting agencies, utility companies,and suppliers. This depth of local experience ensuresthat we complete all aspects of your project smoothlyand without delay.SPEEDMericle will complete your project faster thancompeting developers. Our large team of excavationemployees works year-round preparing ReadyToGo! Sites. This gives us a great inventory of sites that havealready been planned, permitted, subdivided, cleared,graded, and compacted. In addition, because Butlersystems can be erected quickly and without expensiveon-site modifications, we’ll cut your construction timeby as much as 30% compared to the methods used bycompeting developers.AVAILABLE SPACEWe are always building speculative industrial, office,flex, and medical buildings on our ReadyToGo! Sites.As such, we have far more existing space available thanany other developer in Northeastern Pennsylvania.Whether you need just a few thousand square feetor one million square feet, we will very likely have aproperty that works for you.22

SOME OF MERICLE’S HUMBOLDT FACILITIES550 Oak Ridge Road I 615,000 SFMericle constructed this building on speculation at501,600 square feet and then expanded it to 615,000square feet to meet the needs of Amazon.com’s e-commerce fulfillment center. Mericle received LEED SilverCertification for Commercial Interiors for the project.61 Green Mountain Road I 4

ROAD ACCESS Humboldt Industrial Park is located near Hazleton, Pennsylvania, just 1.2 miles from Exit 143 of I-81 and 9.2 miles from the I-81/I-80 intersection. The park is within a 300 mile radius of 76.4 million people. Downtown Hazleton and Hazleton’s major suburban sh