Arcadia suggests shops, eateries for Wolf building ** It also proposes a building on parking lot at the Easton site

Copyright Morning Call Jul 20, 2004

About 75 people, many of them downtown residents or property owners, turned out Monday to hear Arcadia Properties present its redevelopment plan for the Governor Wolf Building.

The Bethlehem company proposed turning the old school into part of a riverfront complex of restaurants, stores and housing.

"I would love to see something like this come through," Richard Baylor of Second Street said after hearing the presentation at Two Rivers Landing. "I want to see downtown flourish with shops and restaurants."

The building houses Northampton County offices. The county wants to sell it and has chosen Arcadia as its preferred buyer.

Arcadia has until next year to present its redevelopment plan and purchase offer but probably will do it by fall, company Vice President Shawn Langen said.

Arcadia's preliminary designs call for renovating the old school into hotel rooms, apartments or offices.

The building faces Second Street, with a cliff at the rear towering above Riverside Drive and the Delaware River.

An elevated walkway leading from the rear to an elevator tower that descends to parking along Riverside Drive would remain.

Arcadia proposed a new building on the parking lot.

It would connect to the elevator tower and contain a parking garage of 400 to 700 spaces, as well as more apartments, hotel rooms or offices. A health club, cinemas or classrooms on top of the garage and stores and restaurants on the bottom are possible.

Filling in the parking lot with an attractive building will catch visitors' attention as they enter town, architect Jeff Gilbert said.

"We see that as a huge missing tooth on the streetscape of a beautiful city that people are experiencing for the first time as they come across those bridges," he said.

The facade will be built to look similar to the former Seitz brewery that used to stand nearby.

"I think the facade is stunning," said Bill Marley, another Second Street resident.

It will disguise the parking deck and a first-floor bus terminal for the Lehigh and Northampton Transportation Authority and other carriers, Gilbert said.

Local officials hope the project could trigger more investment along the city's underused waterfront, as well as meet a demand for downtown parking and public transportation.

People at Monday's meeting quizzed Gilbert and Langen about the company's plans, with one person suggesting the Wolf complex should include more housing and the bus terminal should be put closer to the center of town.

Others asked about costs, the number of parking spaces and whether the building could be an environmentally friendly "green" building that conserves energy.

Langen said the costs remain undetermined, with the number of parking spaces to be decided by what types of businesses end up in the complex.

"We're entertaining proposals from people coming to us already saying they want to be in the building," Langen said.

Mountain of jobs envisioned

Jun-28-04 Pocono Record

Good-bye, Camp Tegawitha.

Hello, Arcadia North Industrial Park.

That change heralds Monroe County's maturity, in economic development terms, as a private company partners with a public agency in bringing businesses to the 600-acre property, officials said Thursday.

"It appears we're finally coming of age when the private sector feels comfortable making this type of investment," said Paul Canevari, board chairman of Pocono Mountains Industries, the county's economic development agency.

With sparkling Lynchwood Lake in the background, Canevari presided over a ceremony at the former girls field hockey camp. He announced an agreement with Arcadia Properties of Bethlehem to develop the land bought by Pocono Mountains Industries in 1999 as part of county plans to create two business parks in Coolbaugh Township.

Public-private deals have long sparked business projects in the Lehigh Valley and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton area, Canevari said.

"I guarantee this will bring jobs to Monroe County," he said.

Arcadia is completing due diligence on the property, including meetings with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation regarding access from Route 611, which borders the land.

Pocono Mountains Industries must build a spray irrigation sewage system before Arcadia buys the property. That project is expected to take about six months.

But Arcadia principals Richard Thulin and Charles "Chuck" Diacont are ready to start pitching the pristine land.

They pledged to preserve the lake and the property's woodland charm as they develop a "trophy" business park that will rival any in the country in aesthetic quality.

"We realize this is a very special place. It's development potential is tremendous," said Thulin, who noted that Arcadia's company logo is a tree, not a building. "We recognize a balance we need to strive for. We will work hard to make you very proud of what happens here."

They will renovate the camp's old boathouse, use it as a satellite office and later turn it over to park occupants as a meeting house.

The market will dictate what Arcadia builds at the camp, but Thulin and Diacont envision a mix of office space, warehouses and distribution centers that jibe with existing businesses such as a Wal-Mart distribution center up the road.

Arcadia will target Wal-Mart suppliers in its marketing.

"It's in their best interest to be as close to Wal-Mart as they can get," said Thulin.

Build-out of the park will take five years or more.

Arcadia will get the project moving much faster than Pocono Mountains Industries could, since the agency is focused on developing a sister park, Pocono Mountains Corporate Center East, on the other side of Route 611, officials said.

Thulin and Diacont like the timing of their new venture.

"The (commercial real estate) market's picked up dramatically in the last four to five months," said Diacont. "We're coming in here at a good time."

Thulin added, "The economy's headed in the right direction."

County commissioners gushed with enthusiasm for the project, which features expectations that Arcadia develop thousands of jobs, not just sprawling buildings.

"We don't want to see large buildings but just a few jobs. I have no doubt Arcadia will work with us," said Commissioner Donna Asure, who called the project "a monumental development for Monroe County residents and the region."

Developer arrives with winning track record

June 25, 2004 Pocono Record

Arcadia Properties has a sterling reputation for developing high-quality projects, say Lehigh Valley officials.

The Bethlehem-based company has business parks near Bath and Fogelsville among its many commercial and industrial ventures.

"They're first-class developers, and they certainly have the capacity and ability to develop a project like the property in Coolbaugh Township," said Tony Hanna, Bethlehem's economic development director. Hanna is familiar with the Camp Tegawitha project because his sister teaches in the Pocono Mountain School District, where the property is located.

"Everything they've done that I know of has been successful," Hanna said of Arcadia.

The firm's most recent coup was a $50 million Advance Auto Parts distribution center that will employ 500 workers. The project will be built in Arcadia West Industrial Park.

Last month, Northampton County officials picked Arcadia as the preferred developer of a former Easton high school that could become a riverfront complex of shops, restaurants and apartments.

"They're an outstanding organization," said Raymond Suhocki, a former PPL executive who heads the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corp.

Suhocki credits Arcadia with bringing thousands of jobs to the valley.

"They're very cooperative partners not only in their projects, but it economic development across a broad spectrum," he said.

Arcadia's principals, Richard E. Thulin and Charles R. Diacont, blend financial savvy with marketing flair.

Thulin is a Staten Island, N.Y., native who earned an MBA from New York University and worked for Metropolitan Life Insurance.

Diacont is from Easton, graduated from Penn State and started his own commercial real estate company.

To bank executive Scott Fainor, Arcadia is simply "first class all the way."

"The company's well regarded. They get in and do a wonderful job," said Fainor, head of Keystone Nazareth Bank & Trust and past president of the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corp.

Little Weisenberg Township welcomes giant Advance Auto ** Vehicle- parts chain will hire 500 warehouse workers to serve growing business

Copyright Morning Call May 29, 2004

Weisenberg Township welcomed Advance Auto Parts on Friday, as the company announced plans for a $50 million distribution center in Arcadia West Industrial Park.

Advance Auto of Roanoke, Va., a Fortune 500 company, will hire and train 500 workers to work in the distribution center. It will be looking for drivers, dispatchers, material handlers, supervisors and managers -- nearly all from the Lehigh Valley.

It has bought a 500,000-square-foot warehouse, and will expand it by 150,000 square feet within six months. Full operations will begin within two years.

Advance Auto serves both the do-it-yourself and professional installer markets.

"Although we have grown into a large, successful company, we are proud of our roots," said Roy Martin, senior vice president of logistics and replenishment. "We were founded in Roanoke over 70 years ago.

"This is a large distribution center, but we are not in the business of building or operating distribution centers. We are in the business of operating stores.

"Hiring our new team members here will be important. It's No. 1 with us that they build a career with us."

Wage figures weren't released.

Advance Auto will settle the deal with owners Arcadia Properties and Prudential Insurance Company of America on June 1, Martin said.

Martin said the Weisenberg site, off Interstate 78, will serve 500 to 600 stores in the Northeast when fully operational.

The company, which has 143 stores in Pennsylvania and a total of 2,553 stores in 39 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, wants to expand in the Northeast.

Bob Milot, Weisenberg's supervisor chairman, said the addition of Advance Auto Parts is welcome.

"They're adding 500 jobs," Milot said. "It's a clean facility and there's no added demand for water or sewage."

Advance Auto Parks, through taxes, will support Weisenberg's infrastructure and the Northwestern School District, he said.

Weisenberg, a farming community in western Lehigh County, had about 4,100 residents in 2000, according to the census.

Other tenants in Arcadia West include Batesville Casket; Suntuf 2000, maker of clear polycarbonate panels for sunroofs and greenhouses; and Kenco Group, which stores, cuts and ships specialty rolled steel.

Arcadia Properties, developer of the park, has another 500,000- square-foot building under construction and has proposed a 400,000- square-foot site. When those properties land buyers, Arcadia West will be filled.

"The economy is resurging at this juncture," said Richard Thulin, principal of Arcadia Properties. "It prompts people such as those at Advance Auto Parts to say they're seeing pent-up demand."

Because Arcadia West hasn't been designated by the state as a Keystone Opportunity Zone, which puts little tax burden on property owners, the developer looked for other money.

Thulin said the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corp. and the state government helped swing the deal by delivering a financial package that brought the project to Pennsylvania rather Maryland, New Jersey or New York.

The state agreed to provide a financial package worth $3.225 million, including $1.5 million in job creation tax credits, $225,000 in customized job training, $500,000 from the Machinery and Equipment Loan Fund, and a $1 million opportunity grant.

"This will result in the creation of jobs for 500 people over the next three years," said David Yeager, director of the Governor's Action Team. "From the state perspective, that's profound.

"It's not often that a community or state has the opportunity to participate in such an incredible economic package. We're working on a company's commitment of $50 million to purchase an asset, expand it and buy the needed machinery and equipment."

Advance Auto is financially healthy. The company earned $51.3 million in the first quarter ended April 24, up from $5 million in the period a year ago that included merger expenses. Sales were up 9 percent to $1.1 million in the recent period compared to a year ago.

"The building is empty today, but give us six months and you will see a very large operation in there," Martin said. "We are at capacity at our Delaware and Roanoke facilities. This new site is not replacing another one.

"With the 150,000-square-foot expansion, it will be the largest in our distribution network and the largest in volume two years from the opening. It's because of our development in the Northeast."

Advance Auto Parts coming to Valley ** National chain to open distribution center in empty warehouse

Copyright Morning Call May 28, 2004

Due to newsroom front-end system production difficulties the entire text could not be electronically captured for the online archive, please see microfilm for the complete map.

A national auto parts store chain will buy an empty warehouse in western Lehigh County and turn it into a distribution center employing up to 500 people over the next three years, officials confirmed Thursday.

Advance Auto Parts of Roanoke, Va., will be announced this morning as the new owner of the warehouse in Arcadia West Industrial Park, Weisenberg Township, a source in the administration of Gov. Ed Rendell said.

Advance Auto Parts is the second-largest automotive retailer in the country, trailing only Auto Zone, according to Hoover's Online. It has more than 2,500 stores in 39 states, including seven in the Lehigh Valley region, and is a partner in online auto-parts site Partsamerica.com.

The Weisenberg warehouse will become Advance Auto Parts' largest distribution facility on the East Coast, according to the source.

The company will buy the 500,000-square-foot warehouse, add about 150,000 square feet and open it as a distribution site, said Bob Milot, Weisenberg supervisor chairman. No manufacturing will be done there, he added. Milot did not name the company.

This month, company Chief Executive Officer Larry Castellani told analysts that Advance Auto Parts had set aside $50 million for a new Northeast distribution center. Castellani did not say where the center would be.

It was not known Thursday when construction might begin or when the warehouse would open.

The news is a major boost to the Arcadia West park, at Route 863 and Interstate 78, which has positioned itself as an alternative to the cluster of warehouse development four miles away in Fogelsville. It's at I-78's New Smithville exit.

The Advance Auto Parts warehouse could eventually rank among the Lehigh Valley's largest in terms of employment. Many of the Fogelsville warehouses are partially or extensively automated, and employ fewer than 300 people.

The Lehigh Valley emerged as a distribution center about 10 years ago, starting with Nestle's 1-million-square-foot warehouse in Fogelsville. Major companies such as Coca-Cola and J.C. Penney, and the outside firms that handle their distribution, flocked here because of abundant, relatively inexpensive land and good regional highway access from Interstate 78.

The new warehouse will be Arcadia West's largest tenant by far, Milot said. Other tenants in Arcadia West include Batesville Casket Co.; Suntuf 2000 Inc., which makes clear polycarbonate panels for sunroofs, greenhouses and other uses; and Kenco Group, which stores, cuts and ships specialty rolled steel.

Late Thursday afternoon, Advance Auto Parts' Web site added a link to a news release dated today saying Advance Auto Parts would open a distribution center in the Lehigh Valley. Further information was not released.

Richard Thulin, developer of the Arcadia West complex, could not be reached.

This month, Advance Auto Parts reported record earnings for its first quarter, which ended April 24. Sales reached $1.1 billion, up 11.6 percent from the prior year, while net income reached $51.3 million, up more than 1,000 percent. Net income in the first quarter of 2003 was hurt by almost $31 million in one-time charges, including costs related to Advance's takeover of the Discount Auto Parts chain.

The company began in 1932 as a chain of three home goods and auto parts stores in Roanoke and Lynchburg, Va. The chain stopped selling home appliances in the 1970s. It employs about 35,000 people.

Advance Auto Parts recently introduced a proprietary electronic parts catalog, which the company credits for helping increase same- store sales.

The company plans to open 125 to 135 stores this year, particularly in the Northeast and Midwest, officials have said.

Arcadia Properties, Prudential to build 500,000 sf warehouse at Arcadia West

Monday, October 23, 2000

Speculative State-Of-The-Art Building Being Constructed

Lehigh Valley, PA – October 23 2000 - Arcadia Properties, LLC announced today that it has agreed to enter into a joint venture agreement with Prudential Real Estate Investors of Parsippany, NJ to construct a 500,000 square foot warehouse on Arcadia property west of Fogelsville, PA.

According to Richard E. Thulin, founder and principal of Arcadia Properties, the warehouse/distribution facility is a speculative venture and will be constructed on approximately 40 acres at Arcadia West Industrial Park on I-78. The project will go in for township approvals this fall with the site work to begin during the first quarter of 2001 and completion planned for late summer. Thulin said that while the venture is for one building at 500,000 square feet (expandable to 850,000 square feet), the park could grow to include four buildings and up to 2,000,000 square feet.

The Norwood Company of Allentown has been named construction manager for the project with Bonsall Shafferman of Bethlehem serving as architects and Liberty Engineering of Allentown providing civil and structural engineering. Arcadia Properties will act as property manager upon completion.

The building will be constructed of tilt-up concrete with 30-feet clear ceilings. It will be a double loading building with 150-foot-deep truck courts and concrete aprons. An ESFR sprinkler system will be installed throughout and the building will be suitable for storage or third party warehouse and distribution for up to three separate companies.

John Maurer, principal and a portfolio manager of Prudential Real Estate Investors, said that his firm is very interested in the Lehigh Valley as a major growth center.

“Arcadia West is in an ideal geographic position to serve regional warehouse/distribution needs,” Maurer said. “With I-78 at the park’s doorstep, it provides easy access to all major Northeast markets including New York City, Philadelphia, Washington, Pittsburgh and more.”

Thulin said that Prudential’s strong financial resources and proven development track record give Arcadia the opportunity to maximize the potential of Arcadia West. Additionally, he said that Arcadia’s recent appointment of Grubb & Ellis as leasing agent will keep this new project in the forefront. Steve Bonge of Grubb & Ellis, who has considerable experience in “big box” leasing throughout the Lehigh Valley, will be representing the property.

Arcadia Properties is a privately owned real estate development and management company with properties throughout the Lehigh Valley and Eastern Pennsylvania.

PREI provides global real estate investment management services to institutional clients in the U.S., Europe, Asia, and South America. PREI currently manages $13.8 billion assets on behalf of 330 institutional clients as of June 30, 2000.

Arcadia Properties names Grubb & Ellis as exclusive leasing agent

Tuesday, September 19, 2000

Liaison Frees Arcadia Management To Pursue New Projects In Lehigh Valley

LEHIGH VALLEY, PA, September 19, 2000 — Arcadia Properties, LLC, a rapidly growing Lehigh Valley based developer of commercial and industrial properties, has named Grubb & Ellis Company as exclusive leasing agent for its growing real estate portfolio .

Richard E. Thulin, founder and a principal of Arcadia Properties, said that his firm selected Grubb & Ellis because it provides a full range of real estate services including advisory, management and consultative in addition to its leasing expertise.

“The number of projects Arcadia is undertaking in the Lehigh Valley is growing rapidly. We want to concentrate our energies on developing these projects. To free us to do that, we have asked Grubb & Ellis will take on the important leasing tasks necessary to make these projects viable entities,” Thulin said.

Arcadia Properties has grown from its flagship venture, the 250-acre Arcadia West Industrial Park on I-78 near Fogelsville, to add four new commercial office and flex properties and a new industrial park, Arcadia East Industrial Park in East Allen Township. With the Grubb & Ellis relationship, it plans to accelerate its development activity.

Timothy M. Pulte, Executive Vice President and Managing Director for the Philadelphia Region of Grubb & Ellis, said that his firm has assigned specialists in both large industrial sites and commercial leasing to the Arcadia team.

“It is always exciting for us to be selected as exclusive agents for a dynamic developer like Arcadia Properties,” Pulte said. “Arcadia has an excellent portfolio that will provide quality business locations to the Lehigh Valley inventory.”

Representing Arcadia for Grubb & Ellis is Stephen Bonge, Vice President Advisory Services, and Mike Capobianco, Vice President Advisory Services. “The interest and acceptance of Arcadia’s offerings by national firms over the last year is a marketing advantage in representing the firm,” Bonge said. “Arcadia’s geographical spread throughout the Lehigh Valley means that we will have a variety of options available to prospects interested at this dynamic area.”

Grubb & Ellis Company is one of the nation’s largest commercial real estate services firms. With the collective resources of nearly 7,000 people in 200 offices in 27 countries, Grubb & Ellis professionals arrange the sale or lease of such business properties as industrial, retail and office buildings, as well as the acquisition and disposition of multi-family and hospitality properties and commercial land.

Suntuf 2000, Inc. will build 64,000 S.F. production/warehouse at Arcadia West

Wednesday, February 16, 2000

Israeli Firm Selects Lehigh Valley For Its First Production Facility In The United States

LEHIGH VALLEY, PA, February 16, 2000 — Suntuf 2000, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Paltough-Palram, Ltd. of Israel, has selected Arcadia West Industrial Park at Route 863 and I-78 in Weisenberg Township as the site for an approximately 64,000 square foot manufacturing and warehouse facility.

Oded Yaniv, President of Suntuf, Inc. said the company has manufacturing plants in Israel, Great Britain, India and China and manufactures polycarbonate rigid sheets for construction, industrial and agricultural. This is its first manufacturing facility in the United States and will create 72 new jobs for the area over the next three years. Home Depot represents about 35% of the business for Suntuf’s corrugated plastic sheeting product which is used for car ports, pool covers, atriums and many other uses.

Richard E. Thulin, president of Arcadia Properties, LLC, said that design, engineering and approval work for the building is underway and that construction is scheduled for completion in the Fall of 2000.

“There were a number of organizations that played major rolls in bringing Suntuf to the Lehigh Valley,” Thulin said. “Key among them are the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation and The Garibaldi Group. The Garibaldi Group of Chatham, NJ represented Suntuf in its site selection and is very familiar with what the Lehigh Valley has to offer. LVEDC quickly took the lead in assisting Suntuf with financing and in getting more than $2,000,000 in financing from state programs.”

Thulin said that Arcadia has had the pleasure of working with The Garibaldi Group on other proposals and is impressed with their open, fast-track approach to completing the site selection process.

Gerald E. Moore, Jr., Vice President of The Garibaldi Group, said that the search for a site was extensive. On the short list were sites in West Virginia, Ohio, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The Lehigh Valley was selected because of its accessibility to East Coast ports, its overall transportation links, the availability of labor and its reasonable cost of living.

“Much of the credit in winning Suntuf 2000 should go to the developer, Arcadia Properties. They responded quickly, provided the information we required, and were cooperative in working to meet the needs of Suntuf. State officials also deserve credit for their quick response for financial assistance,” Moore said. No one could be happier about bringing another quality business to the Lehigh Valley than the LVEDC.“It is great news that Suntuf will join the growing number of international companies expanding into the Lehigh Valley,” said Thomas Shaughnessy, Vice President of Business Development at LVEDC. “We were pleased to work closely with The Garibaldi Group, who represented Suntuf in an extensive site search, and with Arcadia Properties, developer of Arcadia West.”

Arcadia West Industrial Park is a 250-acre industrial park zoned highway commercial that is planned for 2,300,000 square feet of warehouse/distribution operations. It is located four miles west of Fogelsville on I-78 and is being developed as a build-to-suit to lease or build-to-suit to sell park. In addition to Suntuf, other companies in the Park are MetLife, Batesville Casket Company and the Kenco Group, Inc.

Thulin said that the Norwood Company of Allentown has been named construction manager for the Suntuf project with Bonsall Shafferman of Bethlehem serving as architects and Liberty Engineering of Allentown providing civil and structural engineerin

Kenco Group planning steel-handling building, warehouse will be for a distributor for Carpenter Technology of Reading.

Wednesday, July 14, 1999

Arcadia Development Corp. of Bethlehem has signed an agreement to build a $4 million warehouse and distribution facility for Kenco Group Inc. of Chattanooga, Tenn. The new warehouse will be in Arcadia West Industrial Park in Weisenberg Township, a 150-acre industrial park at Route 863 and Interstate 78, four miles west of Fogelsville. Plans include hiring about 25 people to work at the facility, said Richard E. Thulin, president of Arcadia Development. Kenco, a distributor, has signed a 10-year lease on the building, where it will store, cut and ship specialty rolled steel made by Carpenter Technology of Reading. Construction is scheduled to begin in September and to be completed by spring 2000. The Norwood Co. of Allentown is the construction manager, and Bonsall Shafferman of Bethlehem is the architectural firm for the project. Liberty Engineering of Allentown will provide civil and structural engineering. Arcadia also is building operations for Metropolitan Life Insurance and for the Batesville Casket Co. in Arcadia West.

Casket maker relocating

Monday, July 5, 1999

Batesville Casket Co., the world's leading supplier of burial caskets, will relocate from its existing facility in Fogelsville to a new warehouse/distribution facility at Arcadia West Industrial Park on I-78 near Fogelsville. Richard E. Thulin, president of Arcadia Development Corp., said his firm will build the 82,944-square-foot, $3.5 million complex on 11 acres near the entrance to the park. The structure will feature masonry and steel construction, and work is scheduled to be complete by the end of the year. The Norwood Co. of Allentown has been named construction manager for the project, with Bonsall Shafferman of Bethlehem serving as architects and Liberty Engineering of Allentown providing civil and structural engineering.

Metlife warehouse/printing facility planned for Weisenberg Twp. site, company will employ 77 full-time workers at the Arcadia West Industrial Park.

Tuesday, December 8, 1998

Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, the insurance and financial services titan, will open a distribution and printing facility at Arcadia West Industrial Park in Weisenberg Township this summer. Richard Thulin, president of Arcadia Development Corp., said Edison Supply and Distribution Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of MetLife, has signed a 15-year lease for a 225,000-square-foot warehouse building. Arcadia Development Corp. is investing $6 million in the development of the single-story building that MetLife will use as a storage and printing facility. The original plan is to construct a 225,000-square-foot building, but Thulin said another 50,000 square feet of space may be added in the future. The company, which is planning to consolidate current operations in North Jersey, will employ 77 full-time workers in Weisenberg. MetLife officials could not be reached for comment on Monday. The company becomes the premier anchor in the new 150-acre industrial park, which is just west of the Fogelsville hub that has attracted such Fortune 500 companies as Nestle and Perrier. “This is a very credible user that's going to serve as a catalyst for the rest of the park," Thulin said on Monday. "It's a very important cornerstone." MetLife started looking at the Lehigh Valley about a year ago, according to Thulin and officials with the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corp. LVEDC officials have submitted a letter of intent to help Thulin secure about $125 million in funding through the state's Infrastructure Development Program. The money, which hinges on the creation of jobs at Arcadia West, would be used to help develop roads, sewer lines and drainage. MetLife was attracted to the access to I-78, Thulin said, and the visibility the company would have along the busy interstate. Thulin credited economic development officials with the LVEDC and GPU Energy with helping to secure MetLife at Arcadia West. “A lot of people had a role in this," he said. "LVEDC got MetLife comfortable with the area. It was a very well organized effort," he said. "We think we did a real good job with this one," said Thomas Kucharski, executive director of LVEDC.

New business park

May 4, 1998

Arcadia Development Corp., Bethlehem, will develop a 103-acre site at Route 863 and 1-78, four miles west of Foglesville, for warehouse and distribution use. Richard E. Thulin, president of Arcadia, said that the project is zoned highway commercial and will be called Arcadia West Industrial Park. He said that his firm will soon be adding an additional 40 acres of land which would bring the site to 143 acres accommodating a total of 2.4 million square feet of warehouse/distribution space. Approximately 1.7 million square feet is planned for the original 103 acres. Thulin said that Arcadia will build-to-suit to lease or build-to-suit to sell. There will be no sale of undeveloped land.