New Hampshire has long offered businesses a low-tax haven. And while it has maintained these pro-growth policies, business and government leaders are seeking out new avenues to attract business. One example is the conversion of a former Air Force base to an industrial center.

The growth of the New Hampshire economy is staggering.

The state has fostered this growth with a tax climate that is decidedly pro-business.

New Hampshire has no state income, sales, use, inventory or capital gains taxes. It also has no property tax on machinery or equipment.

In addition, the Legislature passed a new workers' compensation bill last year to minimize workplace accidents and ultimately reduce workers' compensation costs for businesses. Unemployment insurance premiums for businesses are also among the lowest in the country.

Former Air Force base takes off
One of the centers for business in New Hampshire is the former Pease Air Force Base in Portsmouth. The base was slated for closing after 1988, when Congress started the first round of base closures. The Pease Development Authority was formed in 1990, and the last military personnel officially left the base in 1991.

"Here we had 4,200 acres, and what were we going to do with it?" said Susan MacDonald, manager of Administration and Public Relations for the Pease Development Authority.

What officials have done is attract over 80 businesses, with several major expansions just completed or on the horizon. Pan Am Airlines located an aircraft maintenance facility at Pease, and Emery Worldwide has also moved in.

In 1994, Lonza Biologics (formerly Celltech), a pharmaceutical manufacturer based in Sweden, moved to Pease. The company completed a 76,000 square foot building in 1996, and recently invested $28 million in new equipment and laboratory and office space.An additional 55 employees were also hired.

"The site allows more convenient communication between our U.S. and Swiss colleagues," said Dr. Claude Chassin, head of Business Development for Lonza.

Chassin also said the location in Portsmouth puts Lonza close to the East Coast companies it does business with, including Pfizer, Hoffman-LaRoche, ImmunoGen and, Bristol Myers Squibb.

The airport is close to a number of transportation outlets, including Interstate 95, which runs north and south. The Port of New Hampshire is only 10 minutes away, and the former base is also served by rail.

East Coast access
Business activity, however, isn't limited to the Pease area. Autodesk, a computer software company, is adding 300 employees and leasing 32,000 square feet in Bedford.

"We were looking for a place on the East Coast to better assist our customers in Europe and the East Coast," said Kathy Tom-Engle, spokeswoman for the company. "This corridor from New Hampshire down to Boston is loaded with high-tech firms. It's a great place for us to be."

"It's also not hard to convince people to move to New Hampshire if we hire them from elsewhere," she said. "We've begun hiring, and we are impressed by the quality of workers in the state."

In Tilton, DM Management is building an $18 million, 407,000 square foot office and distribution center. DM is a direct marketer of women's clothing and accessories. It produces the Nichole Summers and J. Jill catalogs. The plant will employ 550 people when operational.

Businesses that come to New Hampshire often do what tourists can't: stay there. In addition to low taxes, the White Mountains and spectacular fall foliage, the state has 14 colleges and universities, including the University of New Hampshire and Dartmouth College.

"I don't think there's a better place to live," said MacDonald. "We're on the East Coast, there's air cargo facilities, a foreign trade zone, the quality of life is tremendous. We think it's something special."