Philadelphia Debt Rating Increased Two Steps to A+ by S&P
Philadelphia had its general-obligation debt rating raised two steps to A+ by Standard & Poor's after three fiscal years of surpluses. The rating company also gave a stable outlook and credited a state oversight board called the Pennsylvania Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority with the financial improvement of the nation's fifth-most populous city.
PA Sells Parking Bonds to Aid Harrisburg Recovery Plan
Pennsylvania sold nearly $289 million of parking revenue bonds on its first day - a critical component of the recovery plan for its cash-strapped capital city Harrisburg.
Allentown's NIZ Brings Small-business Incubator
City Center Investment Corp., the private company constructing numerous buildings downtown, announced it is carving out space for a business incubator that will offer furnished office space, mentoring and low rents to tiny technology startups willing to bring their innovations to Allentown.
PA Mayor Pushing Statewide Version of City Revitalization Program
Signed into law in July, the City Revitalization and Improvement Zone program allows cities to establish areas up to 130 acres where developers or the local authority that oversees each municipal program can build or rehabilitate facilities for tenants whose state and local taxes are then redirected for as long as 30 years to pay down construction debt.
Developers Still Await Rules for PA Preservation Tax Credit
The legislation establishing a 25 percent tax credit for historic preservation projects was approved and signed into law by Corbett in July 2012. Six months after the long-awaited program was supposed to launch, state officials have not even released guidelines for potential applicants.
Reading Officials Fighting Hard for CRIZ & NIZ Designations
City officials and local politicians are vying hard to gain support for a new economic development program they say could begin to lift Reading out of poverty. On Dec. 2, the city announced its recent bid to earn City Revitalization and Improvement Zone (CRIZ) designation — a distinction that allows cities to reinvest state and local taxes into specifically targeted areas.
2014 EDA Economic Development Grant Program Now Open
This Federal Funding Opportunity (FFO) announcement sets out EDA's application submission and review procedures for two of its Economic Development Assistance programs (EDAP) authorized under the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965, as amended.
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