Media Center | Press Releases « 2005 Press Releases »

2005 Press Release

Contact:
Neil Cotiaux, FHLBank of Pittsburgh: 412-288-2851; cell: 330-703-0753
Gretchen Wintermantel, press secretary, Rep. Paul Kanjorski:
    202-225-6511
Thomas P. Cooney, principal, The A + E Group, Inc.: 570-822-8500

SMALL BUSINESS ASSISTANCE PROGRAM CELEBRATES
$100 MILLION MILESTONE: REP. KANJORSKI, BANKERS, CIVIC LEADERS CELEBRATE RENOVATED SCHOOL; PLAINS TOWNSHIP PROJECT BRINGS JOBS, NEIGHBORHOOD IMPROVEMENT

PLAINS TOWNSHIP, PA, April 25, 2005 — Closed for nearly a decade, the former Maffett Elementary School in Plains Township came back to life today in the form of an attractive office center with new jobs — one of 56 small-business projects in the local area funded by an innovative, low-cost banking initiative.

At a ribbon-cutting ceremony and building tour, U.S. Rep. Paul Kanjorski (PA-11) praised the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh (FHLBank) for working with local financial institutions and making funds under its low-cost Banking On Business (BOB) program available to new or expanding small businesses. Rep. Kanjorski was a leader in enacting the regulatory changes that enabled the FHLBank to offer the program.

In northeastern Pennsylvania, the FHLBank, a wholesale lender, is working with nine member banks to make small-business growth plans more bankable. Together, they have put forward a combined $28.9 million in funding for the purchase of land, buildings, equipment, machinery and leasehold improvements, permanent working capital and closing costs. In all, more than 900 area jobs have been created or retained through the Banking On Business program.

"The conversion of Maffett Elementary School is a prime example of how our Banking On Business program places jobs and property on the tax rolls while improving neighborhoods," stated Jay Roy, president and chief executive officer of the FHLBank of Pittsburgh and a speaker at today's event. "In five short years, and by working closely with Congressman Kanjorski and community banks in the area, we've been able to make the dreams of more than 50 small businesses come true, freeing capital that might otherwise not have been available to them."

Across its three-state region of Delaware, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, the FHLBank is celebrating a $100 million milestone in small-business funding, representing the Bank's more than $16 million in BOB program funding to date, coupled with a total of $75.1 million in member bank financing and approximately $9 million in borrower equity.

The A + E Group moves to renovate

Maffett Elementary remained shuttered until The A + E Group, Inc. (formerly The Architectural and Engineering Group) decided to vacate its Commerce Boulevard location in Wilkes-Barre and renovate the aging schoolhouse. The 82-year-old elementary school had been closed in 1997 due to physical deterioration and building consolidations. The FHLBank's BOB funds were combined with a first mortgage from Community Bank & Trust Company, one of the Bank's member financial institutions, to provide more than $1.5 million in financing.

Thomas P. Cooney and Dean L. Butler, principals in The A + E Group and investors in Maffett Hill LLC, the corporation formed to own and operate the building, then recruited Cornell Storefront Systems of Forty Fort, the leading supplier of rolling and side-folding security closures for retailers. Cornell Storefront moved into the first floor of the building in January 2005, bringing 30 new jobs to the area, and discussions are under way to locate a tenant in the basement portion of the project. The FHLBank of Pittsburgh also decided to take space in the new facility, relocating its regional office from West Market Street in Wilkes-Barre. Today, approximately 60 area residents work inside the old schoolhouse, breathing new life into a Plains Township neighborhood.

"Thanks to Congressman Kanjorski's vision and the willingness of Community Bank & Trust and the FHLBank to provide low-cost funding, we were able to convert Maffett Elementary into a jobs-creating, tax-generating home for several businesses," said Cooney. "We encourage other businesses interested in startup or expansion to learn more about the BOB program and how it can assist them."

Participating banks

Northeastern Pennsylvania community banks participating in the FHLBank's Banking On Business program are: Columbia County Farmers National Bank, Community Bank & Trust Company, Dime Bank, Fidelity Deposit and Discount, First Federal Bank, First National Community Bank, Luzerne National Bank, Omega Bank and Penn Security Bank.

Businesses interested in learning more about BOB should contact any of these community banks or Bill Joseph of the FHLBank's Community Investment Department at 570-823-0644.

The FHLBank of Pittsburgh, with assets of more than $61 billion, serves nearly 340 financial institution members in Delaware, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. It is one of twelve FHLBanks, all private cooperatively owned banks that provide wholesale housing finance, community lending and correspondent banking services to member banks, savings institutions, credit unions and insurance companies.