Groundbreaking news in Delco New jobs, new development, new businesses turn up in spades across the county landscape

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1 COUNTY OF DELAWARE GOVERNMENT CENTER BUILDING 201 W. FRONT STREET MEDIA, PENNSYLVANIA COUNCIL Mario J. Civera Jr. FAX NUMBER Department of Public Relations Chairman Emily Harris, Director Colleen P. Morrone Vice Chairman For Immediate Release John P. McBlain 04/19/17 David J. White Michael F. Culp Groundbreaking news in Delco New jobs, new development, new businesses turn up in spades across the county landscape Good afternoon and welcome to the 2017 State of the County address. I am joined today by my fellow Council members: Vice Chair Colleen Morrone, John McBlain, Dave White, Michael Culp, and our executive director, Marianne Grace. Last year, we presented a State of the County address that was very upbeat and positive. I am proud to say that the outlook for 2017 is even better. As this year marks my final year as Chairman of County Council, it gives me tremendous pride to be able to talk about so many great accomplishments, both in county government and among our partners in the community. Everywhere you go in our county, you see bulldozers, buildings going up, businesses opening and most importantly people connecting with jobs. All you have to do it look out the windows here at the Drexelbrook to see a new Holiday Inn under construction. Major developers are investing in Delaware County. You have people like Michael Markman renovating Granite Run Mall. You have not one, but two hotels coming to Upper Darby. One of our largest and most historic employers, Wawa, is building a state-of-the-art facility at its Red Roof headquarters in Chester Heights. Media is experiencing a boom in residential construction with apartments and townhouses in the West End and a Hampton Inn coming to the East End. And Boeing, our largest employer, marked its 100 th year of pioneering aviation and its aircraft are still in high demand. Our small businesses are also prospering. A Folcroft company called Scrub Daddy won Shark Tank s Most Successful Product award in February. A company called Medical Solutions Supplier in Glen Mills was just named the Best Small Company to Work For by Philly.com. A family from Broomall is creating state-of-the-art medical devices at Basil Leaf Technologies. And Eddystone Borough welcomed Aero Aggregates, the first U.S.-based company to produce lightweight aggregates from recycled glass. We have another major film being shot at Sun Center Studios in Chester Township, this one starring Bryan Cranston, Kevin Hart and Nicole Kidman. It s called Untouchable and it s based on the story of a wealthy man confined to a wheelchair and his caregiver. Filming started in Philly in January and indoor sets are being used at Sun Studios. I think we need to arrange for a private Council meeting with the cast! All of this innovation is happening right here in Delaware County.

2 We have great schools and universities, excellent health care systems, public transportation, wonderful neighborhoods and open space, parks and recreation. We re within minutes of the airport, the city and the riverfront. And we have the best, hardest-working residents. Before I go into specifics, I d like to thank the Chamber of Commerce and president Trish McFarland for hosting the State of the County. While the focus of the State of the County is on economic development, I also hope that you find the information we present to be helpful in your everyday lives, as parents, individuals and active members of your community. Today, each Council member is going to make a brief presentation on some of the ways that county government serves our communities. I am going to start off with the overall economic outlook. Vice Chairman Morrone is going to talk about workforce development, plus our efforts to preserve open space while supporting smart growth. Councilman McBlain will detail initiatives in criminal justice, and highlight the remarkable growth of our universities. Councilman White will talk about the ways we serve our vulnerable residents through our Human Services Department. And he will talk about our efforts to battle the drug epidemic through the Heroin Task Force. Councilman Culp will talk about our thriving small business community. So, let s start Excellent ratings, holding the line on taxes Our economic success is a direct result of partnerships and collaboration with the businesses in this room. It s also one of the factors that ensured the county maintained its high-grade rating of Aa1 from Moody s Investors Service and AA from Standard & Poor s Ratings Services. I d like to quote the Moody s report from this January: Delaware County s credit position is excellent, and its Aa1 rating is above the U.S. county median of Aa2. The rating reflects an extensive tax base with a strong socioeconomic profile, and a healthy financial position. That s something we can all take pride in! Moody s praised the county s tax base and also stressed that the median family income equates to a healthy 125 percent of the U.S. level. We also have a low pension liability which is excellent news considering the alarms being sounded about pensions at the state and federal level. This is a testament to the financial management skills of our executive director and budget staff. We are also pleased that for the third year in a row, we passed a budget without raising taxes. Certainly we face financial challenges, but we are committed to serving our residents and to providing excellent services without increasing the tax burden on our residents. Groundbreaking news across all areas Next, I d like to highlight just a few of major developments across the county. There s no doubt that everyone has seen the bulldozers and cranes at Granite Run Mall and Media. BET Investments is literally de-malling the Granite Run Mall and they expect to open a brand new Promenade at Granite Run in April of next year. Michael Markman, BET President, said the Promenade will have 830,000 square feet of retail stores, BET Investments is also building an apartment complex at the mall and another one at the top of Media Hill called West End Flats. WAWA is expanding its shops and its headquarters. Earlier this year, Council attended the opening of a renovated WAWA in Concord. WAWA superstores are going up in Media,

3 Upper Providence and Upper Darby. They are also expanding their headquarters at Red Roof in Chester Heights, with a new office building, a state-of-the-art test kitchen and innovation center. This building should be open by February of next year. We are very proud and pleased that WAWA calls Delaware County home. WAWA employs 2,475 people in the county and it is our seventh largest employer. In my hometown of Upper Darby, we are getting two new hotels, making the township an overnight destination. Holiday Inn is constructing the six-story hotel you see here, giving people who hold weddings and banquets at the Drexelbrook a convenient place to stay during their visit. Choice Hotels is opening a 100-room Comfort Suites in an existing apartment building on Garrett Road. This is an excellent example of a reuse or retrofit of an existing building. Our largest employer, Boeing, just celebrated 100 years of pioneering aviation and is now in its second century as an innovative aerospace company. Boeing employs 4,600 people, works with 500 suppliers, spends $500 million here and supports 13,000 indirect jobs across the state. The V-22 Osprey continues to be the most in-demand aircraft for the U.S. Marines. Our second largest employer is Prospect Medical Holdings, formerly Crozer-Chester Medical Center of the Crozer-Keystone Health system. We are proud of the fact that our county has three major health-care systems that provide services as well as job opportunities for our residents. We are also proud of our growing waterfront. This summer we will all be able to dine with a waterfront view when the Ridley Township Marina opens with slips, a banquet hall and restaurant and public picnic areas on Darby Creek. Not many counties outside of Philadelphia can boast waterfront dining, but in Delaware County we can. That s just a snapshot of the exciting things we have to look forward to. We may be an historic county, but we are on the cutting edge when it comes to commerce. Next, we ll have Vice Chair Colleen Morrone focus on workforce development and efforts to balance development with the preservation of open space. A skilled workforce; a balanced landscape: Colleen Morrone When businesses look to locate in Delaware County, one of the key factors they look at is the workforce. We are proud to say that one of the county s major assets is our hard-working, skilled workforce. We have a very active county Office of Workforce Development. We love to see big ads like the one Sunoco is running in the papers that announces: We re Hiring. And Wawa just advertised a hiring spree to recruit 5,000 new associates. Our office contracts with 34 different organizations to provide assistance for people looking for work, and for businesses looking for workers. Last calendar year, we served 1,510 individuals. Our Workforce Development Board is partnering with the Chamber and Educational Data Services to provide on-the-job training in the fields of healthcare, energy and advanced manufacturing. Through this program, inexperienced workers can learn right on the job, and some of the trainee s wages are reimbursed during the training phase. Companies that have participated in the On-the-Job Training program include Monroe Energy, Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital and Devereaux. We also have a Platform to Employment Program that we started in January at the Delaware County Community College. This is a nationally recognized five-week program that combines intensive job search with behavior and financial counseling targeted to serve the long-term unemployed. I recently had an opportunity to meet one of the graduates and heard about how thankful she was for the program.

4 And we have an Ex-Offender Job Placement Program that helps people who have completed their time to return to the workforce. There are significant barriers to employment for people who have a record, but we know that having a job is the key to helping offenders turn their lives around. Our unemployment rate is 4.9 percent which is below the state rate of 5.6 percent. In an excellent partnership, Sunoco Logistics announced a $100,000 grant to Delaware County Community College to train local students for the manufacturing technology jobs that are now in high demand. We encourage individuals and local businesses to take advantage of the resources offered throughout the county to connect people with jobs. While we encourage economic development, Delaware County also works to preserve its natural resources for many reasons, from environmental protection to recreational use. Open space, parks and recreation are an asset that draw people to a community. Before I move on to open space preservation, I am also pleased to announce that the county s standings in a recently released health study have improved. Earlier this month, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation released its eighth annual County Health Rankings & Roadmaps report comparing counties within each state along 30 health metrics. Delaware County now ranks 26 out of 67 counties in health outcomes, which is a 10-county jump from last year. Smart growth and preserving open space One of the things that makes Delaware County unique is its size. We are the third smallest county in the state land-wise, behind Philadelphia and Montour counties. We all know it s critical to our quality of life that we plan growth and conserve resources for our children and our grandchildren. To that end, our Planning Department works with municipalities and other partners, such as the Natural Lands Trust, to preserve our communities while promoting smart growth. You can view the Delaware County Open Space, Recreation and Greenway Plan on our website. We have 12 county parks and 1,824 acres of county-owned open space. That is in addition to 2,721 acres of state-owned open space, mainly Ridley Creek State Park, and 713 acres of federal land in Heinz Refuge. Our municipalities have 4,654 acres of open space and parkland. If you want to walk your dog, hike, ride a bike, fish, picnic, bird-watch or just enjoy nature with your family there are countless scenic, beautiful settings across the county. Let me highlight a couple of initiatives we are working on: The Chester Creek Rail Trail is now open and being used by hikers, cyclists and families. Phase One, which is a 2.8-mile walking/biking trail in Middletown, officially opened April 8. Judging by the number of people that have been enjoying this trail, it is a great asset for the county. In February, Council approved grants totaling $416,000 for engineering and design of the second phase of that trail that will go to Bridgewater Road in Aston. The end goal is to have the trail go from the Wawa Train Station in Middletown to the Caleb Pusey Mansion in Upland. Also this year, Council unveiled plans for the Darby Creek Trail that will run from Kent Park I Upper Darby Township, where the county has a dog park, to the Swedish Cabin in Drexel Hill. Construction is set to begin next month. Last year, the county purchased the 33-acre Little Flower Manor in Darby Borough. That will be developed into a county park and will serve as the trailhead for the Darby Creek Trail.

5 We are pleased that we successfully worked with several partners to preserve 240 acres of Beaver Valley in Concord. This is another example of the power of partnerships. Preservation of this land is the result of hard work and negotiations on the part of the Beaver Valley Preservation Alliance, the Beaver Valley Conservancy, the Brandywine Conservancy, the Mount Cuba Center, County Council which is offering $250,000, Concord Township, which is donating $500,000 and the Conservation Fund which is now trying to raise $8 million to finalize this effort. I just heard yesterday that they are very close to reaching this $8 million dollar goal. Criminal Justice: John McBlain On County Council, one of our major priorities is public safety. From our homes, to our schools, to our businesses, all of us need to feel safe from harm and protected from being victims. In Delaware County, we have a criminal justice system that is very proactive in trying to address how we deal with crime and the changing nature of crime, from terrorism and cyber scams to the drug epidemic. We continually work to learn about the latest advances in technology, the latest innovations in court proceedings and the most effective ways to prevent people from returning to crime. We have a Criminal Justice Advisory Board that meets bimonthly to examine problems and to develop opportunities for change in the system. In fact, Delaware County was the first county in the Commonwealth to form a Criminal Justice Advisory Board and now we serve as a model for other state and national programs. We would like you to know that we are proactive in dealing with the issues that face our criminal justice system. Let me give you a few highlights: We have developed special treatment courts for veterans, drug abusers and people with mental illness. The end goal is to put these individuals on a path to recovery through treatment, training and employment so that they can be productive citizens. Criminal justice is a significant part of the of the county budget and we are always applying for grants, mainly through the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, to improve the effectiveness and accountability of criminal justice. One area where we try to help young people and their families is in Juvenile Court. I am pleased to say that we ve seen a reduction in the time that youth are incarcerated and a reduction in the number of youth detained through the use of alternative programs in the community. That reduction represents a savings of over $1 million. In 2016, our Juvenile Probation Supervisors were all certified in special areas to assess the risks and needs of these young people and to plan services for them. In 2016, we focused on two major areas: the mental health population and the heroin epidemic. In October, we held a 400-person summit at Widener University to address the impact of mental illness and the heroin epidemic on our criminal justice system. We all learned a lot at that summit and we hope to build on the work accomplished that day. Most of you have probably received a summons for Jury Duty, which is a critical component of our American justice system. This year we will implement a new Jury Case Management System that will make it easier for jurors to complete their paperwork online and for our staff to sign in jurors. This new Jury System will be up and running in June. We have 20 judges on our Court of Common Pleas, working every day to ensure the safety and well-being of all of our residents.

6 Educating tomorrow s leaders In addition to criminal justice, I d like to point out that Delaware County is home to some of the finest universities in the nation. Every single one of our universities is growing and changing to make sure our young people have the tools they need to be competitive in today s world. My alma mater, Villanova University, marks its 175 th anniversary this year and it s moving forward with incredible growth. In 2016, Villanova was elevated to the Doctoral Universities category by the Carnegie Foundation and moved into U.S. News & World Report s National Universities list. If you ve driven down Route 30, you know that the campus in Radnor is being transformed. There is a new parking lot and they are building a new living/learning space and a performing arts center. This is one of the largest capital improvement campaigns a college has undertaken, and the $600 million goal has been reached largely through donor support. This project should be complete in If you are a Wildcats fan, you can look forward to the $60 million renovation of the Pavilion. Penn State Brandywine is also expanding its Middletown campus to offer a new residence hall and new student union, which are both green buildings that are LEED-certified. These new buildings should be open in August for the fall semester. This year, Penn State Brandywine marks its 50 th anniversary. The campus first started in Chester in 1967 in temporary space underneath the Big C Rollerdrome skating rink. Then Delaware County Council gave Penn State the ground in Middletown, where it moved in When Penn State opened in 1967, the campus enrolled 236 students and had 11 faculty members. Today, 1,500 students are enrolled on campus and they have 70 fulltime faculty members. Villanova and Penn State are joined by Cabrini, which marks its 60 th anniversary this year, Widener, Neumann (which has a new president), Delaware County Community College and Williamson College of the Trades. Williamson is also building a new dorm, dining facility, health services facility and conference room. One of the newest fields of training at Williamson is in power plant technology that trains students to work in the growing field of energy. These students installed 372 solar panels on the roof of their sports center, helping Williamson to save on its fuel bills. All of these exciting developments help to train our youth, but they also benefit the entire community, economically and educationally. These universities offer continuing education programs for people in the workforce, and they partner with county government on other initiatives. Serving people in need: Dave White I believe a great county like Delaware County takes care of its most vulnerable citizens. I am Council s liaison to the Department of Human Services, which works to help thousands of people in need every year. Human Services has many offices and they help many segments of the population. Probably the most well-known office is Children and Youth Services which works to protect children from neglect and abuse. Every day, 24 hours a day, CYS workers are answering heart-breaking calls regarding children who need help or protection. The Office of Intellectual Disabilities helps people with disabilities lead safe, meaningful lives in the community. As the parent of a son, Brian, with a disability, I know how important it is to help families connect with the resources they need to care for their son or daughter, at any age. In 2016, our Office of Intellectual Disabilities assisted over 2,300 individuals with a wide variety of disabilities.

7 We also provide help for people suffering from addiction or mental health issues. As you all are aware, our community and our nation are facing a heroin and opioid addiction crisis that is taking the lives of our friends, colleagues and loved ones. I believe, in this room everyone has been touched by or has known someone touched by this crisis. I am a member of the Heroin Task Force and have been a member since it s started. It s chaired by our District Attorney Jack Whelan. Jack Whelan has been a leader in this fight against addiction, and in particular this Heroin and Opioid epidemic the County is fighting right now. Our District Attorney has not only led the fight in the countybut throughout our commonwealth. And Delaware County residents, County Council and all of us here owe a debt of gratitude for all Jack s efforts. Since the Task Force was formed in 2012, we ve accomplished a lot, but we are still fighting the grip of this terrible epidemic. One incredible success story are the lives that have been saved because of the work of our District Attorney and County Council in getting Naloxone and now Nasal Narcan to the police officers who are the first to arrive on the scene of an overdose and can administer this life saving drug. Since our police officers have been carrying this drug in Delaware County we have saved 580 lives. That is an amazing accomplishment! The next closest County to us in the commonwealth is nowhere near that number of the lives saved. Delaware County has led the way in fighting this epidemic and we thank all of the Police Officers, and our EMS who have done such an amazing job, being such a great part of the program. Delaware County Council has other programs that can help a loved one fighting addiction: Our newest initiative, just announced in March, is the Second Chance Court Pretrial Drug Program. Our courts are taking a proactive approach by giving those struggling with addiction a second chance. The goal is to put low to moderate risk offenders into treatment in their pretrial phase, sometimes at the District Court Level. If we can intervene early, right after their arrest, and get them into treatment, evidence shows that we can stop the cycle of abuse for some of these people. Our hope is that this program will prevent offenders from repeating their criminal behavior and they will go back to being healthy, contributing parents, workers, sons, daughters and members of our community. I would like to thank our Board of Judges for all their efforts in working with County Council on this one of a kind initiative, and in particular, President Judge Kenney, Judge Capuzzi and Judge Kelly for all the work it took to get this program off the ground. The success of that initiative leads to the next question: Is treatment available to meet that demand? County Council made $1million in grant money available to Crozer-Keystone to open the First Steps Detox and Rehabilitation Unit. This unit is a 52-bed center at Crozer dedicated to detox and rehabilitation from substance abuse. We also have Certified Recovery Specialists who can connect with people who survive an overdose and need to get into treatment. This is a great partnership with Crozer and we hope these services will help people turn their lives around.

8 I also want to make sure people know about our Mobile Crisis Team that can respond to a mental health or behavior crisis 24/7, anywhere in the county. Our Office of Behavioral Health oversees this team, which is operated by Elwyn. These trained professionals respond to a crisis in a home, a school, a business or on the street. This unit gets about 150 calls per month. They have helped families dealing with a suicide threat, a drug or alcohol-related crisis, depression and other mental health issues. These trained crisis professionals can help individual s access treatment and get through the confusing process of paperwork and insurance. Finally, I want to remind people that we have secure medicine drop boxes at police stations throughout the county where you can safely dispose of expired or unused prescription drugs. A recent study by the National Poison Data System indicates that the majority of children report their first exposure to drugs as a prescription opioid they found in their family s medicine cabinet, or because a doctor prescribed them for pain. We don t want these drugs falling in to the wrong hands. GET RID OF YOUR UNNEED PRESCRIPTIONS AND DRUGS! We can all do that TODAY! Delaware County is a county that cares. The health of our residents is a major priority and we know how painful it is for families to face an addiction crisis, to care for someone with a disability or to navigate a mental health problem. Our Human Services Department has many tools and resources to help. As I said before, the Department of Human Services is many things to many people. But the bottom line is keeping people safe, healthy and leading meaningful lives. Small businesses accelerate : Michael Culp While Chairman Civera highlighted the big business developments, we have come full circle, and I d like to highlight some of our small businesses that contribute so much to our economic success. On March 30, County Council was pleased to participate when the Chamber of Commerce presented its Small Business Awards. A list of the winners is like a Who s Who in Delco s small business community. These individual or family-operated businesses are innovative, determined and fill a need in the county. Our own Chairman, Mario Civera is a small business owner of Civera s Deli of Drexel Hill. Councilman Dave White, owner of DWD Mechanical was actually honored as Small Business Person of the Year. The Entrepreneur of the Year was Deborah Collins, who is the owner of The Dress Matters in Media Borough. The SCORE Business of the Year is Heartline Press, a printing and design business in Aston.

9 The Emerging Small Business is Nettology LLC, a support service that helps businesses with their Internet services from Helpdesk to individualized network applications. The Family Business of the Year is Mcohen and Sons The Iron Shop, a family-owned business in Marple that has been forging iron for 85 years. They specialize in spiral staircases. The keynote speaker for the awards event was Patrice Banks who calls herself a shecanic. Patrice was working at DuPont when she trained herself to be an auto mechanic. Last year, she opened her own woman-friendly garage, Girls Auto Clinic Repair Center, in Upper Darby. With assistance from Patrick Killian and his staff at the Commerce Center, Council was able to develop a 10-year economic development strategy called Growing From Within. As part of that plan, we are offering an accelerator program for young companies. Business incubators and business accelerators provide advice, guidance and various forms of support for businesses in their start-up phase. In today s tech world, accelerators are one of the most effective ways for an entrepreneur to launch a business. For Delaware County s first accelerator program, companies were able to submit an application, providing their mission and vision and a three-year business plan. So far, the Commerce Center has accepted four companies into the incubator program. They had their initiation last month at HeadRoom in Media. It s a diverse group, from a video production company to a company that trains healthcare technicians in the sterilization and handling of patient care equipment and surgical instrumentation. Who knows if one of them will be the next big idea touted in Forbes as the best start-up company of We are really excited about these efforts to support our entrepreneurs and grow our small businesses. One of the ways that Delaware County works to attract and sustain business in our county is through our Delaware County Commerce Center. Heading up our Commerce Center is Patrick Killian, a man who has made a significant impact on the county s economic development. Patrick has served as Commerce Director for 26 years. In 2016, he was awarded the Economic Developer of the Year Award from the Pennsylvania Economic Development Association. As residents and business owners, we all benefit in many ways from Patrick s creativity, knowledge, experience and his ability to work a deal. As a result of his efforts, we have turned a brownfield into a casino and racetrack, built a professional soccer stadium, attracted an international software company to Newtown Square and revitalized the riverfront refinery region into a growing energy hub. I d just like to take a moment to recognize Patrick and ask him to stand. Let s give him a round of applause.

10 Conclusion, Destination Delco: Mario Civera Jr. I hope you all feel more informed about County Government and I want you to know that our door is open. Whether your need is business-related, or an individual or community matter, we are committed to making Delaware County a safe, vibrant, great place to live, work and raise a family. I am a small business owner myself and I understand the challenges that businesses face making payroll, keeping up with regulations, and balancing the budget. On County Council, we are on your team. Now I d like to introduce the people who are members of the county s team. Delaware County team: Jack Whelan, District Attorney Joseph Ryan, Chief of the Criminal Investigation Team Marianne Grace, Executive Director Michael Maddren, Solicitor Patrick Killian, Commerce Center Director John Daly, Director of Workforce Development Linda Hill, Director of Planning and Housing and Community Development Tore Fiore, Brandywine Conference and Visitors Center