Shuster announces job creating project in Franklin County

David Sciamanna and Congressman Shuster talk to the press about the transportation project

This morning, Congressman Shuster joined local elected leaders and members of the Cumberland Valley Regional Development Corporation to announce details of a major transportation improvement and job creation project off of Exit 24 of PA 696 in Shippensburg.

Shuster announced that a bridge-widening project on Pa. 696 at Exit 24 would begin this week. Federal funding will provide $2.2 million for the project, which will expand the bridge from two to three lanes and include 10-foot shoulders. The project in Southampton Township is expected to be completed by Thanksgiving of this year. The bridge will improve driver safety and help increase access to the new United Business Park that is now in development.

Other infrastructure improvements will be paid for by the developer of the business park, Cumberland Valley Regional Development Corp. They include realignment of the I-81 northbound ramp of the exit, installation of traffic signals at the northbound exit ramp, improvements to Pa. 696 that include widening of the road, and a driveway into the business park.

Including the bridge project, the infrastructure improvements total almost $3 million. Two-way traffic will be maintained throughout the project, with rolling shutdowns at night, as needed.

Planning for United Business Park began in earnest seven years ago when the Cumberland Valley Regional Development Corp. was formed in August 2002. The park is a joint venture between the Chambersburg Area Development Corp. and the Shippensburg Area Development Corp. CVRDC received a $7 million loan in 2006 through the Pennsylvania Business in Our Sites Program.

David G. Sciamanna, executive director of Chambersburg Area Development Corp., hopes the project will duplicate the success of the Chambers-5 Business Park in Chambersburg. That CADC-owned park, also 350 acres, began in 1990 and was filled last year when Vacon Inc. decided to build its North American headquarters on the last available lot in the park off of Orchard Drive.

According to Sciamanna, Chambers-5 Business Park is one of the premiere business locations in south central Pennsylvania. It houses more than 30 locally and nationally known businesses that provide about 1,800 jobs.

Posted by: Press Secretary