Beaver County Corporation for Economic Development 2023-24 Annual Report
Beaver County Corporation for Economic Development (CED) is a non-profit certified economic development organization located in southwestern Pennsylvania. Our mission is to enhance the economic well-being and quality of life for the Beaver County community. We do this by supporting, undertaking, and funding programs or projects in the economic development practice areas of entrepreneurship and business retention, expansion, and attraction; furthermore, CED also fulfills its mission by supporting economic development projects and initiatives designed to retain and attract residents and to grow a highly trained Beaver County workforce.
Bob Pusateri
Chair
Carey McDougall
Vice Chair
Carolyn Renninger
Secretary
Daniel Camp III
Commissioner
Dave O'Leary
Board Member
Dr. Melvin Steals
Board Member
Jack Manning
Commissioner
Joe Bevevino
Treasurer
Matt Dawson
Board Member
Ed DeMailo
Board Member
Larry Nelson
Board Member
Mike Lincheck
Board Member
Renee Suhr
Board Member
Tony Amadio
Commissioner
Elaine Savoldi
Board Member
Bob Pusateri
Chair
Carey McDougall
Vice Chair
Carolyn Renninger
Secretary
Daniel Camp III
Commissioner
Dave O'Leary
Board Member
Dr. Melvin Steals
Board Member
Jack Manning
Commissioner
Joe Bevevino
Treasurer
Matt Dawson
Board Member
Ed DeMailo
Board Member
Larry Nelson
Board Member
Mike Lincheck
Board Member
Renee Suhr
Board Member
Tony Amadio
Commissioner
Elaine Savoldi
Board Member
CED and its partners continue our efforts to enhance the economic health and the quality of life of the Beaver County community
This marks my fifth year as the “new” President of CED, and I want to thank our members for their continued support of Beaver County Corporation for Economic Development (CED). That support enables us to advance our mission and vision for economic development in Beaver County. With the ever-changing challenges and opportunities of the economic development field, our mission is not something that CED can accomplish alone.
Our goal of providing service to every level of business from “Bob and Barb’s Bagels” to “Worldwide Widgets” requires a diverse and ever-growing partnership. Some of our partners include the following: the Beaver County Board of Commissioners, our Pennsylvania State Delegation, the state Department of Community and Economic Development and the Governor’s Action Team, the Pittsburgh Regional Alliance, Beaver County Planning, Beaver County Community Development Program, the Beaver County Industrial Development Authority, the Beaver County Chamber of Commerce, the Community College of Beaver County, Penn State Beaver, Geneva College, Job Training for Beaver County, University of Pittsburgh Small Business Develop Center, the Riverside Center for Innovation, and the many municipalities of Beaver County.
These partners educate and mentor our budding entrepreneurs and small businesses; furthermore, they help grow business and create opportunity among our historically underserved populations, and they provide much needed workforce training and funding that allows us to grow and retain our existing Beaver County companies. Lastly, they help market the county and assist us in attracting new companies seeking to locate here.
We at CED continue our work in the areas of real estate, business finance, and business assistance and marketing, but we also work to support our partners in their efforts to enhance the economic health and the quality of life of the Beaver County community. Throughout the report you will see examples of businesses and companies that were not just assisted by CED but also by one or more of our partners.
Lewis M. Villotti, President
| Ambridge Regional Distribution & Manufacturing Center | Keystone Profiles, Ltd. KIZ Resources, LLC |
| Aurora Environmental, Inc. | Lennon, Smith, Souleret Engineering, Inc. |
| Avelli Manufacturing Corp. | Lombardo Industries |
| Beaver Borough | McDanel Advanced Ceramic Technologies |
| Beaver County Building Trades | L.C. Renninger Group |
| Beaver County Chamber of Commerce | Moderne Glass Holdings, Inc. |
| Beaver County Transit Authority | Penn State Beaver |
| Borough of Ambridge | PGT Trucking, Inc. |
| Monaca Borough | Selectrode Industries, Inc. |
| c3controls | Shippingport Industrial Park, LLC |
| Civil & Environmental Consultants, Inc. | Sippel Steel Fab |
| Colona Transfer LP | Steelsmith, Inc. |
| Community College of Beaver County | Stefanik Properties LLC |
| Creekside Springs, LLC | Gateway Engineers Inc. |
| David O’Leary | Town Center Associates LLC |
| Elite Athletix Training and Development | Tri-State River Products, Inc. |
| Esmark | Turney Electric, Inc. |
| First Energy | Uhl Construction Company, Inc. |
| Geneva College | United States Gypsum Company |
| Halama Brothers Electric, Inc. | Versatex Building Products |
| Heritage Valley Health System | West-Aircomm FCU |
| IBEW Local Union #712 | Woodske Law Offices |
| John P. O’Leary | Wright Asphalt and Concrete, Inc. |
| Julea Partners, LP | Kenson |
| JGVD Family Limited Partnership |
Dear Members,
Thank you for another great year! I want to thank you for your continued support of Beaver County Corporation for Economic Development (CED). Without your support, CED would be unable to deliver the successes you will find in this year’s report. The 2022-2023 fiscal year highlighted the ongoing need for CED and its programs.
I have been in this position for nearly four years as this fiscal year comes to a close. These early years of my tenure at CED have seen any number of challenges and successes. While I usually take the first few lines of this letter to tell you about all that CED has accomplished, I want to take a different approach this year.
Those of you that have been unlucky enough to see me give a presentation this year, at one event or another, know that I have a slide that says, “We have met the enemy and he is us.” This is in reference to the fact that we, the Beaver County Community, spend far too much time and effort beating ourselves up. I am tired of hearing about what is wrong with Beaver County. Instead, I want to hear about and celebrate what is right with Beaver County!
Whether you see it or not, and others do, we have great communities with long rich histories that are celebrated by their residents. We have vibrant and diverse neighborhoods. We have residents who show their continued support of one another everyday through volunteerism and their faith. We have seen both a strengthening of our legacy in manufacturing and a renewed interest in our recreational assets.
What is right with Beaver County? One simply needs to look at our transportation assets, our navigable river, the two interstates, the fact that we are 15 minutes from an International Airport, and that we have a countywide public transit system that is the envy of counties twice our size. Our post-secondary institutions lead the way in cooperation and community commitment. We have great places, great people, and great businesses. I want you to remember that every one of us (you, me, and the elected officials) that represent this County and its residents are all ambassadors for Beaver County. Throughout the upcoming year, you will continue to hear about what we at CED and others think is great about Beaver County, and we ask that you share the great news about Beaver County far and wide.
We at CED are excited about the future of Beaver County, honor its past, and fully live in its present!
Lewis M. Villotti, President.
| Ambridge Regional Distribution & Manufacturing Center |
| Aurora Environmental, Inc. |
| Avelli Manufacturing Corp. |
| Beaver Borough |
| Beaver County Building Trades |
| Beaver County Chamber of Commerce |
| Beaver County Transit Authority |
| Borough of Ambridge |
| Monaca Borough |
| c3controls |
| Civil & Environmental Consultants, Inc. |
| Colona Transfer LP |
| Community College of Beaver County |
| Creekside Springs, LLC |
| David O’Leary |
| Elite Athletix Training and Development |
| Esmark |
| First Energy |
| Geneva College |
| Halama Brothers Electric, Inc. |
| Heritage Valley Health System |
| IBEW Local Union #712 |
| John P. O’Leary |
| Julea Partners, LP |
| JGVD Family Limited Partnership |
| Keystone Profiles, Ltd. KIZ Resources, LLC |
| Lennon, Smith, Souleret Engineering, Inc. |
| Lombardo Industries |
| McDanel Advanced Ceramic Technologies |
| L.C. Renninger Group |
| Moderne Glass Holdings, Inc. |
| Penn State Beaver |
| PGT Trucking, Inc. |
| Selectrode Industries, Inc. |
| Shippingport Industrial Park, LLC |
| Sippel Steel Fab |
| Steelsmith, Inc. |
| Stefanik Properties LLC |
| Gateway Engineers Inc. |
| Town Center Associates LLC |
| Tri-State River Products, Inc. |
| Turney Electric, Inc. |
| Uhl Construction Company, Inc. |
| United States Gypsum Company |
| Versatex Building Products |
| West-Aircomm FCU |
| Woodske Law Offices |
| Wright Asphalt and Concrete, Inc. |
| Kenson |
The BHIVE Building
In March 2024, CED officially open The BHIVE Building. The BHIVE is a center for entrepreneurial learning and co-working space. It offers a fully renovated floorplan with dedicated internet access for entrepreneurs, local residents, small businesses, and visiting companies/organizations. The BHIVE also offers a variety of spaces for users that includes dedicated office areas, co-working group space, and conference room areas. Currently, Penn State Beaver’s Launch Box, Riverside Center for Innovation, Flourish, Geneva College, and the Sangha Center for Yoga all have offices or are fully located within The BHIVE Building.
Business District Initiative & Mini Grant
CED is continuing its work with Town Center Associates to reduce the vacancy rates in the central business districts within the City of Aliquippa, the Borough of Ambridge, the Borough of Beaver, the City of Beaver Falls, the Borough of Bridgewater, the Borough of Midland, the Borough of Monaca, the Borough of New Brighton, and the Borough of Rochester. In the 2023-24 fiscal year, CED started the BDI Mini-Grant program to support the Business District Initiative. This grant program offers a $10,000 mini-grant for qualifying businesses within the designated business districts of Beaver County. In the fiscal year, CED awarded Quality Time & Carry Out, Honey So Good, Crush Bar, and Chaotik Java each a $10,000 grant that went towards starting or expanding their business.
New businesses opened since January 2023
0
More available storefronts on the market since the start of the initiative
0
BDI workshops held
0
mini-grants given out since the start of the program
0
CED Cumulative Total
Private Investment
$
0
Projects
0
New Jobs
0
Loan Program
As the Certified Economic Development Organization for Beaver County, CED has direct access to state loan programs to support a variety of investment opportunities for local companies and has also been a direct lender supporting private investment for over 35 years.
Selectrode Industries
$300,000 equipment purchase
Halyard Holdings
$300,000 real estate purchase
Kenson Plastics
$400,000 real estate purchase
General Assistace
CED continues to assist in the development of Stefanik Industrial Park by administering grants that were approved by DCED through cooperation agreements with both Beaver County and Stefanik Properties. Also, CED has played a crucial role in obtaining GetBlock Holdings $500,000, BIL Holdings $200,000, and Versatex $500,000 worth of tax credits from the state.
Shippingport Industrial Park
Beaver County Corporation for Economic Development was selected to receive a $100,000 Department of Energy grant that will go towards developing the multi-hundred-acre Shippingport Industrial Park by facility owner, Frontier Group. This site is the former Bruce Mansfield Power Plant and was purchased by Frontier Group in June of 2022.
“With the Congressman’s (Rep. Deluzio) support, and with the experience and expertise of our private sector partner and current facility owner the Frontier Group, this grant will help make this former power generating facility become not just an economic success story for Beaver County, but the entire Western Pennsylvania community.” – Lew Villotti, CED President
Kenson Plastics
Kenson Plastics is a manufacturing company that specializes in precision pressure-formed plastics since 1972. In 2017, Kenson began leasing 2835 Darlington Road in Beaver Falls from CED which was just one step in their numerous expansion efforts through the years. They have invested approximately four-million dollars in growth initiatives over the past several years which is estimated to create thirty to forty total new jobs. As part of these efforts, on June 28, 2024, CED and Kenson signed a $400,000 loan agreement that assisted them in purchasing the 72,000 square foot facility in Beaver Falls from CED.
CED is proud to have such a thriving business in Beaver County with Kenson. They have continued to provide quality jobs for the community and to invest in their business making it a flourishing organization that contributes to the economic well-being of the Beaver County community.
Corporate Financial Summary
Financial Activity
Financial Position
Yearly Comparison
Financial Activity
Financial Position
Yearly Comparison
