Two companies either moving to Pittsburgh or expanding operations here will create 152 jobs thanks to state economic development grants and loans of $1.83 million, state and city officials said today.
Technology consultant TechAssist of Washington, D.C., plans to move its national operations center to 11,000 square feet of office space of the National City Bank Building, Downtown; and credit card manager CardWorks will move from Downtown to 57,500 square feet in Station Square's Commerce Court, said state Department of Economic Development Secretary Dennis Yablonsky.
TechAssist will create 96 jobs within three years, Yablonsky said. In exchange, it has received $439,200 from the state that includes a $200,000 small business loan, $100,000 grant and $96,000 in job creation tax credits.
Similar grants and loans worth $468,000 will keep CardWorks' 245 employees in town. The company has promised to create 56 jobs here within three years.
"They had alternatives," Yablonsky said of the two companies. "They were courted by other states, but they chose Pittsburgh and Allegheny County."
Mayor Luke Ravenstahl thanked Yablonsky at a news conference in the Regional Enterprise Tower, Downtown, and welcomed the new jobs.
"One of the challenges that we face, quite honestly, are job opportunities," Ravenstahl said.
He said the best way to keep young professionals from leaving Pittsburgh is to court companies who can make good on the promise of new jobs.
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