HERMITAGE, Pa. – Communities in the northwestern Pennsylvania region need to speak with a unified voice to capitalize on the emerging opportunities in the energy and technology sectors, proponents of a newly formed multicounty alliance said Tuesday.
U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick joined regional business leaders and federal, commonwealth and local officials for a launch event at Avalon at Buhl Country Club to announce Power Northwest, an initiative to promote development in the economic centers within a 10-county region.
“Pennsylvania is prime for economic resilience and economic renaissance, but we need to do more to bring that opportunity right here to northwest Pennsylvania,” McCormick, R-Pa., told the gathered officials at the event, sentiments echoed by several of the other speakers.
“Welcome to the start of something big,” Robert Wilson, Power Northwest’s newly named president, told the audience in the Avalon at Buhl County Club’s ballroom. “Right now we have so many voices speaking that we risk drowning out our own message. That message is that this region built America, and we can do it again.”
Power Northwest is composed of business leaders from across 10 counties: Erie, Butler, Beaver, Lawrence, Mercer, Venango, Warren, Clarion, Forest and Crawford. It was founded by local businessmen Frank Evans and Frank Mindicino to provide a single voice to advocate for the western Pennsylvania counties after the announcement of $92 billion in energy and technology investments at the energy and innovation summit hosted by McCormick last July.
That announcement represented a “very sobering moment,” according to Evans, Power Northwest chairman. “We know that when it comes to the economy, you can’t sit back and wait your turn,” he said.
“We stand at a pivotal moment in northwest Pennsylvania’s history,” said Barry Zekelman, executive chairman and CEO of Zekelman Industries. “With the rise of new industries, from artificial intelligence and the energy to power it to traditional manufacturing and thought-based businesses, a new future is within our grasp. As we speak, real estate developers, technology companies, contractors and public utilities are racing to find sites that data centers can go to. They’re looking for places with energy like Pennsylvania’s abundant natural gas and a history of innovation. … It’s about transformation.”
In addition, this provides the opportunity to not only build infrastructure that serves businesses but also lifts communities. “This is about creating a future where the economy serves all people, not just a few selected,” he remarked.
“I like to say we’re here to connect the dots and bring people together and help get projects over the finish line,” Wilson said following the event. The intent is to have the organization led by the private sector, engaging with colleges and universities, economic development agencies and political leaders.
Jay Bruce, president and CEO of ArchKey Bruce & Merrilees, said his company is already “laying a path” in establishing the data centers and power generation that will drive the new economy. Companies like Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft and Amazon are investing billions to build the new economic future, and Google recently floated a 100-year bond to finance its expansion in that space.
“We’d be fooling ourselves if we did not acknowledge the biggest opportunity at our doorstep right now is data centers in the intersection of AI and energy,” he remarked. “That opportunity is ours for the taking, if we choose to embrace it, and we must for the sake of our region.”
Energy and artificial intelligence represent one of three areas that represent “an enormous opportunity” for Pennsylvania, the other two being defense transformation and reindustrialization and life sciences and pharmaceuticals, McCormick said. The energy/AI revolution will create tens of thousands of skilled trades jobs, expand local tax bases and generate indirect economic benefits to the communities that participate, he predicted.
One of the most important lessons of the past 50 years has been the need to adapt to change or be left behind, as institutions are finding out every day as they face challenges that could not have been foreseen even 20 years ago, said Kathy B. Richardson, president of Westminster College.
“I want our region to be a place where students pick up their diplomas and walk off the stage with optimism,” she said.
McCormick also acknowledged there are “enormous risks to address,” apparently referring to concerns over energy and water use in communities where data centers are located, promoting moratoriums and bans by some communities.
“Somebody said to me the other day, ‘I’m not sure we want to be part of this AI revolution,” the senator said. “And I said, ‘Well, you’re going to be part of it one way or the other, because it’s happening. The question is, do you want to be in the front of it or do you want to be on the back of it?”
Guests attending the launch event were supportive of the initiative.
Rod Wilt, executive director of Penn-Northwest Development Corp., was among those who expressed enthusiasm following the event.
“First of all, drawing attention to the resources that we have at our disposal is paramount,” he remarked. “Secondly, you know, in Mercer County specifically, and in the region, we’ve got to continue to innovate and draw young people here. And I think the type of jobs that can be created through this type of announcement and this type of support for these initiatives really positions us well to keep and bring back some of the talent that we’ve lost over the years.”
Power Northwest has “a unique opportunity to bring business and community leaders from a large footprint together” to discuss what projects can be pursued and how to advance the economy as a group, said Mark Longietti, director of business and community development in Hermitage.
Longetti also acknowledged the concerns that have been brought up regarding data centers. Some of the discussion at the commonwealth level has involved requiring them to supply their own power, so as not to increase costs to consumers, and while western Pennsylvania has “abundant” water, those natural resources need to be available to everyone, he said.
“There’s actually language in our constitution that guarantees that people have access to the natural resources of the state,” he said.
While Power Northwest is “clearly advocating for economic development” and wants to be part of this revolution, “nobody wants to see this happen without safeguards in place,” Wilson said. “So I’m confident that at the end, we’ll make good decisions for the region and for the country and for our environment.”
Tuesday’s event also featured a video message from former Pittsburgh Steelers running back Rocky Bleier.
Pictured at top: Robert Wilson, Power Northwest’s newly named president.