MAHANOY TWP. – The warehouses under construction at the Schuylkill Mall may just be the beginning of a trend for our stretch of the I-81 corridor.
The redeveloper of the former Schuylkill Mall property south of Frackville, Northpoint Development, of Riverside, Missouri, has purchased two large parcels on the Barnesville side of the Interstate 81 exit at Mahanoy City in the Mahanoy Business Park. The land is split between Mahanoy and Ryan Townships.
The properties were purchased by Northpoint Development under a subsidiary, NP Mountain Valley Building 1, LLC, in June of 2019 for about $15 Million according to the Schuylkill County Parcel Locator.
Contrary to reports published Thursday, Northpoint has not purchased land which was recently cleared southwest of Mahanoy City near SCI-Mahanoy atop the Broad Mountain. The two sites are about three miles apart, split by the interstate.
The land near SCI-Mahanoy is owned by Ringtown Rentals, LLP, whose address is listed as 15 Main Street, Port Carbon.
The Pottsville Republican-Herald reported last week that Northpoint is about midway through the process of receiving a tax break on the property through the Local Economic Revitalization Tax Assistance Act.
”They [Northpoint] have under contract this acreage at Mahanoy Business Park with the intent to develop that into a three-building site of about 2.4 million square feet,” SEDCO Director Frank Zukas told the Republican.
Northpoint is the company behind the demolition and redevelopment of the Schuylkill Mall property, as well as properties in the Highridge Industrial Park and throughout northeastern Pennsylvania.
Farther into southeastern Pennsylvania, warehouse development is a trend.
In Bethel Township, Berks County, 14 warehouses have been built or are planned along I-78, reports the Northern Berks-Patriot Item, including one by Northpoint Development.
They report that 9.1 Million square feet of warehouses have been built, and that “For nearly a decade, residents have seen one family farm after another give way to mega-warehouses in the I-78 corridor.”