Hazleton, Luzerne County, PA -
Pennsylvania is the first state to establish a project-based permitting fast track program for complex, high-impact economic development and infrastructure projects — advancing Governor Shapiro’s efforts to streamline wait times and enhance permitting, licensing, and certification processes across the Commonwealth.
Project Hazelnut – a transformative technology campus that will drive future innovation and economic development and create over 900 permanent jobs in Northeastern Pennsylvania – is one of three projects initially enrolled in Fast Track.
Governor Josh Shapiro highlighted Project Hazelnut in Luzerne County as he hosted an event to ceremonially sign Executive Order 2024-04, launching the Pennsylvania (PA) Permit Fast Track Program to streamline the Commonwealth’s permitting process for critical economic development and infrastructure projects, boost transparency, cut timelines, and ensure government delivers results efficiently.
“It was too damn slow, and too complex,” Shapiro said of the permitting process for new development, new businesses and workers who need state-issued certifications for their jobs when he took office two years ago.
From behind a podium with a “Speeding Up Government” sign attached, Shapiro spoke to a crowd of over 50 business, government and economic development officials during a press conference at NorthPoint Development’s Hazleton Logistics 141 Project Building off the Arthur Gardner Parkway and signed an executive order that established a permitting “fast track” initiative for major economic development and infrastructure projects.
Logistics centers like the one under construction are buildings or warehouses used to manage the flow of goods from manufacturers to customers, and the 1-million square foot facility in Hazleton is just one of numerous development projects that NorthPoint has spearheaded in Northeastern Pennsylvania, providing jobs to about 14,000 people, Shapiro noted.
Another NorthPoint initiative, dubbed “Project Hazelnut,” entails creating a technology data center campus located on the west side of Interstate 81, north of the Humboldt North Industrial Park in Hazle Twp. that is expected to create more than 900 family-sustaining jobs. It’s currently in the planning stage.
It’s large-scale projects like these, which require permitting from several government agencies, that the PA Permit Fast Track Program is designed to assist, Shapiro said, adding that it’s the fourth step he and his Administration are taking to spur development in the Commonwealth.
First, he appointed Rick Steiger as secretary of the Department of Economic and Community Development and retired businessman Ben Kirshner to head the newly created Office of Transformation & Opportunity. Then, they crafted “the first economic development strategy plan in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 20 years,” Shapiro said.
Next, he convinced lawmakers, on a bi-partisan basis, to increase the economic development budget by more than $1 billion to offer incentives for new development.
“The fourth thing we needed in Pennsylvania to really grow our economy and unleash the full opportunity we have here is, we needed speed, and that is something that we’re here to talk about today,” Shapiro said. “In order to show that we recognize that time is money and the government needs to move at the speed of business, we knew we needed to make some serious changes and move things along more quickly.”
“It’s really hard for even talented folks like those at North Point to navigate the alphabet soup of the state bureaucracy. No longer will the burden be on those trying to do business here in Pennsylvania. Instead, the burden is on Ben Kirshner and his team at the Office of Transformation and Opportunity, not only to be the sherpas through this process, but to get it done really quickly,” Shapiro said.
In addition to establishing protocols for state agencies to work together and facilitate permitting processes, the executive order established a publicly available “Fast Track Dashboard” at pa.gov/en/agencies/oto/fasttrack that shows the timeline and progress for development projects approved for the fast-track permitting process, as well as a link to apply for inclusion in the program.
Hazleton Mayor Jeff Cusat said he was happy that “the state sees the value in taking action to speed up its permitting process. When we cut down on the unnecessary red tape, we attract more businesses, create jobs and help get licenses and certifications needed for projects to succeed.”
“Governor Shapiro and I are on the same page here. Government should work for the people and it should not slow down economic development projects that will benefit our communities,” Cusat said, adding that the Fast Track Dashboard will help improve government efficiency and promote accountability “by showing where these projects are running and if they’re on time.”
Dr. Anthony Grigoli, chairman of the Hazle Twp. Board of Supervisors, said there was a “desperate need” for Shapiro’s initiative, which he called “a game changer for Pennsylvania.” He thanked the governor and NorthPoint officials, calling Project Hazelnut “the single largest investment in our area in history,” bringing “much-desired technology-related jobs” to the Hazleton area.
Brian Stahl, vice president of development for NorthPoint, said the Fast Track pilot initiative allowed his company “to collaborate from day one” with state agencies on the projects, not only helping the developer “understand the path needed to move forward for approvals on the project, but candidly, also helped the agencies understand what we were trying to do.”
Stahl said the 1,300-acre Project Hazelnut technology campus will span multiple buildings and will house “secure tech infrastructure, including server rooms, power distribution, cooling systems and network connectivity, all working together to provide a high level of redundancy and scalability.”
And, with help from the fast-track process, “this new development will help Pennsylvania continue to stay at the front of the front of the pack when it comes to attracting jobs to the area,” he said.
