DOVER, Del.— Governor John Carney joined Secretary of Transportation Jennifer Cohan on Monday to highlight infrastructure investments that will be made throughout the state as part of the FY20 – FY25 Capital Transportation Program. Currently, more than $3.2 billion in infrastructure work is planned for Delaware’s transportation network over the next six years. When including FY19 in the total, the investments total $4 billion.

Notable projects include the widening of SR 1 north and south from Route 273 to the Roth Bridge in New Castle County, the US 13 Camden Widening project in Kent County, and the SR 1 Minos Conaway Grade Separated Intersection in Sussex County.

“With these investments, we are modernizing our transportation system statewide,” said Governor Carney. “This is the kind of smart, infrastructure investment that will create jobs, alleviate congestion, and lead to real economic growth statewide. Thank you to members of the General Assembly for helping us fund these important investments.”

 
“While we have many large infrastructure projects scheduled around the state, we’ll are also investing more than $100 million in public transportation and rail, $80 million in road paving and rehabilitation projects, as well as $20 million in sidewalk improvements to meet Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards,” added Secretary Cohan.

“Today’s announcement sends a clear to message to Delawareans: our state is growing and improving rapidly and all of us in state government are serious about making the kinds of infrastructure investments to support that growth,” said Senator Stephanie Hansen, Chair of the Senate Transportation Committee. “Our state prides itself in working together to get things done, and infrastructure is one of the key tests of how well a government functions. I think we are passing that test here and it will make for a safer, more efficient state and a stronger economy in the years and decades to come.”

“These infrastructure investments will impact communities throughout Delaware, creating jobs, easing congestion and improving the lives of Delawareans by fostering an efficient transportation system,” said Representative Ed Osienski, Chair of the House Transportation, Land Use and Infrastructure Committee. “These investments are substantial, and I look forward to seeing the continued progress.”

Each year, DelDOT develops a 6-year Capital Transportation Plan (CTP) that identifies anticipated capital investments. This plan is developed in cooperation with the Wilmington Area Planning Council (WILMAPCO), Dover/Kent County Metropolitan Planning Organization and Sussex County government. The plan provides information on the actual cost expenditures for each project phase that are anticipated in each specific fiscal year. The Council on Transportation provides final approval of the CTP by March 1st of the following year. For more information visit the DelDOT website.

Video from Monday’s event can be found here.

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DOVER, Del. – Governor John Carney on Wednesday issued the following statement on DuPont’s announcement of the company’s $45 million purchase and expansion of a facility in Newark to manufacture the specialized engineered material Kalrez:

“DuPont’s announcement on Wednesday reaffirms that Delaware remains a great place for any company to put down roots, grow and create jobs. Delaware has a talented and dedicated workforce, an ideal location and quality of life that’s second to none. We stand ready to support any business, large or small, that is seeking a great location to grow and thrive.”

DOVER – Nominations are now being accepted for membership on the Coastal Zone Conversion Permit Act Regulatory Advisory Committee, the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control announced today. The committee will comprise 15 to 21 members, representing different stakeholder interests and areas of technical expertise related to Delaware’s Coastal Zone. Nominations are due by March 23.

The Coastal Zone Conversion Permit Act was passed by the General Assembly and signed into law by Governor John Carney in August 2017. The Act authorizes the permitted use of 14 existing industrial sites in Delaware’s Coastal Zone for new heavy industry, construction, operation, and – in certain approved cases – bulk product transfer. The Act requires DNREC to develop and promulgate regulations for issuance of conversion permits by Oct. 1, 2019. The Regulatory Advisory Committee (RAC) will provide guidance and feedback to DNREC on the development of these regulations.

The committee structure was determined by using extensive public feedback collected from stakeholder interviews, public workshops, and verbal and written public comments.

“Delaware’s Coastal Zone is important to and valued by Delawareans in many different ways,” said DNREC Secretary Shawn Garvin. “We want people from all communities, organizations, and interests to feel that their voices are being heard in this process, and we encourage individuals to nominate themselves or others to become part of this committee.”

A nomination form and a conflict-of-interest disclosure form are required for each nominee. Forms can be found on DNREC’s alpha website, or can be obtained by contacting the DNREC’s Division of Energy & Climate at 302-735-3480, or by emailing CZA_Conversion_Permits@delaware.gov. Coastal Zone Conversion Permit RAC nominations should be sent by US Mail to DNREC Division of Energy & Climate, Attn: Susan Love, 100 West Water Street, Suite 5A, Dover, DE 19904 or by email to CZA_Conversion_Permits@delaware.gov. For more information, please visit de.gov/conversionpermits.

Media contact: Joanna Wilson, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902

Vol. 48, No. 34

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The two funds are designed to spur job growth in Delaware

Community and business leaders came together today to celebrate the success of a small business initiative which began in Wilmington a few years ago and to announce a complimentary effort that will support small businesses and job growth throughout Delaware.

Facilitated by West End Neighborhood House, The Longwood Foundation, Discover Bank, Department of State Division of Small Business Development and Tourism and the National Development Council, the Grow Delaware Fund was unveiled today at a ceremony in Wilmington. The Grow Delaware Fund, which seeks to replicate the success of the Grow Wilmington Fund, is a unique partnership that will provide $5 million to support loans to small businesses in Delaware that are seeking to strengthen their operations and grow jobs. The new initiative will offer flexible financing to Delaware-based businesses through long-term fixed rate financing designed to minimize monthly principal and interest payments maximizing a business’ ability to grow. This will allow Delaware businesses to both add and retain jobs.

The Grow Wilmington Fund, established in 2014, is a partnership between Wilmington Office of Economic Development, Discover Bank, Cozen O’Connor and the National Development Council, an SBA 7(a) lender and community development financial institution. It began with $1 million in seed money from Wilmington’s Urban Development Action Grant Corporation (UDAG), a quasi-governmental non-profit development corporation, wholly-owned by the city of Wilmington.  UDAG’s investment leveraged $3 million of private funds to establish a $4 million fund that offers low-interest, long-term loans to small businesses currently operating in Wilmington or looking to relocate to the city.  The fund can be used to acquire real estate, perform leasehold improvements and obtain working capital.  Since its inception the fund has loaned in excess of $3.2 million to support four small businesses which were able to create 17 new and retain 52 existing jobs.

Among the business that have benefitted from the Grow Wilmington Fund are Short Order Production House (formerly, The Kitchen) which used the fund to open its offices at the Joseph R. Biden Jr. (Wilmington) Railroad Station and Paul Campanella’s Auto & Tire Center, which used the Grow Wilmington Fund to move from its former location just outside of the city limits to its new location near the intersection of Concord Avenue and Broom Street. Owner Paul Campanella hosted today’s Grow Delaware announcement ceremony at his new Wilmington location at 1005 West 27th Street which is scheduled to open in November. Campanella said he wanted an opportunity to thank everyone for the assistance his business received from Wilmington’s small business initiative.

Grow Delaware Fund loans range from $150,000 to $4,000,000. The amount a business can borrower is subject to underwriting guidelines and loan fund availability. Once obtained, loan funds may be used for:

• Working Capital – to be repaid over 10 years
• Machinery and Equipment – to be repaid over 10 years
• Real estate acquisitions/renovation of owner-occupied businesses – to be repaid over 25 years
• Tenant improvements – to be repaid over the life of the lease
• Refinancing existing debts

Together, the Grow Wilmington and Grow Delaware Funds will leverage over $11 million to assist economic development and job creation.

“This is how we want to see economic development function in Delaware,” said Governor John Carney. “It takes a model that worked well at the local level and expands it statewide, helping businesses to grow and proposer from Claymont to Delmar. Small businesses are a cornerstone element of Delaware’s overall economic strength, and I look forward to seeing the new successes that will come out of assistance from the Grow Delaware Fund.”

Wilmington Mayor Mike Purzycki today thanked Governor Carney, Discover Bank and Longwood Foundation for their $1.5 million commitment to the small business community in Wilmington via the Grow Delaware Fund. “Wilmington is excited to be able to share its successes with a growth fund with small businesses and municipalities throughout the state. In Delaware, we get more done because we work together and freely share programs and ideas that can be leveraged for the greater good.”

“As amazing as it may sound, the Small Business Administration tells us that small businesses account for 99.7 percent of all employers in the United States, and employ over 56 million people. Therefore, the importance of providing growth capital to small businesses is critically important to the economies of Delaware and the nation. NDC is proud to be a partner in the innovative Grow Delaware Fund, which will provide reasonably priced loan capital to growing small businesses throughout the State of Delaware,” said Daniel Marsh, President and CEO of NDC.”

“Discover has been deeply committed to supporting the greater Delaware community for more than 25 years. As we have grown to become one of the leading direct banks, we have remained focused on supporting and promoting job growth in the communities in which our employees live and work,” said James J. Roszkowski, president of Discover Bank. “Whether it’s through innovative financial programs like the Grow Delaware Fund or the thousands of volunteer hours, Discover is focused on making a positive difference in communities around the country.”

Deepa Singh, program manager for the Grow Delaware Fund highlighted the fund’s state-wide approach: “The program’s outreach efforts have helped to catalyze the growth of a network of existing public/private/non-profit resources working collaboratively to support Delaware small businesses. Small businesses in all three counties have started the application process with the Grow Delaware Fund.” Ms. Singh will be available throughout the state to meet with businesses and promote the program.

The Grow Delaware Fund is the latest initiative to support the expansion of businesses in Delaware. Earlier this year, West End kicked off the Launcher Entrepreneurship program. Launcher was created to educate aspiring entrepreneurs on the fundamentals of starting their own businesses and help existing businesses expand. West End’s program is based on four primary components, which include: (1) business training, including classroom instruction and one-on-one mentoring focused on the basic elements of starting a business; (2) business support, such as topic-specific workshops taught by local experts; (3) loans/access to credit, provided by a local Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI); (4) business incubators – shared office and workspace to reduce costs and facilitate collaboration.

About Campanella’s Auto & Tire Center, host of today’s news conference
Paul Campanella’s Auto & Tire Center Service was founded in 1986. The locally-based and family-owned company employs 29 people – 25 full time and four part-time—at two locations. Later this month, Campanella’s will move from its current Augustine Cut-Off location to a new Wilmington facility at 1005 West 27th Street behind the Fulton Paper Company. The company’s other location is Paul Campanella’s Pike Creek Automotive at 2379 Limestone Road in Pike Creek. Campanella’s provides customers with high quality automotive services and superior customer service which has won it numerous awards from the Better Business Bureau and the Delaware Business Times. Its reputation has helped build long-term relationships with customers. The mission of the Paul Campanella Auto & Tire Center mission is to be the best provider of quality automotive products and services, while leading the industry in innovative processes.

Newport, DE – Governor John Carney, Secretary of State Jeffrey Bullock and other officials and dignitaries joined US NewGenzyme President and CEO Gaofeng Liu to and members of the Global Delaware team Thursday at a ribbon-cutting ceremony to officially open the company’s Newport facility.

“We are very excited to start operations in Newport,” said Gaofeng Liu, president and CEO of US NewGenzyme. “The state of Delaware and New Castle County have been very supportive of our efforts from the very start, and we are confident this will be a successful opportunity for both our company and the state.”

“We are excited and honored to welcome NewGenzyme to Delaware,” said Gov. Carney. “My administration is committed to building a strong innovation economy, and NewGenzyme is a perfect example of this—an entrepreneurial operation that will create high-tech jobs and additional opportunity right here in our state.”

US NewGenzyme, a subsidiary of Chinese food ingredient and flour additive company Southern New Well Food Co., uses a fermentation process to manufacture an all-natural bio-enzyme used to improve flour products. The enzyme will be sold directly to large baking ingredient companies as well as directly to large bakeries and flour mills in the U.S. and abroad. The product will help to replace chemical bleaching agents, which have been banned in China and several European countries. The U.S. market has also seen a significant decrease in the use of chemical bleaching agents, and an increased demand for safer alternatives.

“The bio-enzyme is safer than the chemical alternatives and improves the color, shelf-life and texture of the dough,” Mr. Liu explained. “This enzyme is well-known in the industry, but until now, the challenge has been to produce it affordably on an industrial scale. It took us several years to develop and fine-tune the manufacturing process, but we are now ready to start commercial production in our Delaware facility.”

Delaware provides right location, resources

Although the company’s research operations are in Maryland, the company chose to locate its manufacturing facility in Delaware because of the strong manufacturing legacy in the region, US NewGenzyme Business Manager Mike Tian explained. “Making the move from a lab-scale operation to an industrial-scale operation is a big step, and not an easy one. Here in Delaware, we were able to get the assistance we needed to launch our operation quickly and without a lot of extra steps. Everyone at the state of Delaware has been extremely helpful.”

Mr. Tian noted that the facility is an easy drive to the FDA and close to excellent schools that can provide a talent pool as it ramps up operations. In addition, the plant’s proximity to Interstate 95 provides easy distribution to East Coast customers.
“Delaware has much to offer young bioscience companies, from its strategic location to its outstanding universities and deep talent pool,” said Secretary of State Jeffrey Bullock. “NewGenzyme joins a growing number of strong, innovative companies, and we look forward to partnering with them to ensure their long-term success.”

Once the plant is running at full capacity, US NewGenzyme will employ between five and ten people, Mr. Tian said. Many of the positions will be manufacturing jobs, but the plant will also require several science and engineering professionals for quality assurance and plant management.

“We look forward to starting operations very soon, and we are grateful to Global Delaware and to officials around the State and County for all of their support in helping us make this project a reality,” Mr. Tian added.