New Hampshire is shattering stereotypes.While many businesses head to Southeast, this Northeastern state is pulling them in the opposite direction.
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.
| "This corridor from New Hampshire
down to Boston is loaded with high-tech firms. It's a great place for us to be."
-- Kathy Tom-Engle, spokeswoman, Autodesk, computer software company |
The state has been ranked: first in business climate in New England by Money Magazine; first in the nation in percentage growth of wholesale and retail jobs; first in growth in non-manufacturing jobs; first in growth of gross state product; first in growth in personal income; fourth in the growth of non-agricultural jobs; fourth in population growth; ninth in the growth of service industry jobs; and seventh in the percentage of the population age 25 and over with a bachelor's degree.
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.
| Did you Know?
The Port of New Hampshire, in Portsmouth, is the northernmost
container port in the United States. Three railroads provide freight access to the entire East Coast. |
High-tech manufacturing firms also like the site. Celestica, an electronics manufacturer based in Exeter, N.H., has plans to build a 200,000 square foot facility at Pease and hire 150 new employees.
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."
| "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."
-- Susan MacDonald, manager of Administration
and Public Relations, Pease Development Authority |
Autodesk was also impressed by the state's workers.
"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."
NEW HAMPSHIRE Facts & Contacts
DEMOGRAPHY AND
ECONOMY
Population: 1.2 million
Capital: Concord
Three Largest Cities: Manchester, 103,000; Nashua, 82,000; Concord, 38,000
GSP: $29.4 billion
Per Capita Income: $26,615
Percentage of Private Manufacturing Labor Force Organized: 6.6%
Right to Work State: No
Unemployment Rate: 2.9% (October 1998)
Average Hourly Manufacturing Wage: $12.70
Population 25 and Over With Bachelor's Degree: Manchester 19.6; Nashua 28.8; Concord 28.1
EM's Education Quotient for the Largest School Districts: Manchester, Yellow; Nashua, Yellow; Concord, Green
Corporate Income Tax Rate: 7.0%
Percentage Employment by Sector: construction, 3.7%; manufacturing, 18.6%; mining, 0.07%; service industries, 29.0%; transportation/public utilities, 3.4%; wholesale/retail, 26.5%
Primary Industries: Industrial and commercial machinery; electronic and electrical equipment; fabricated metal products
Targeted Industries: space research and development; lumber and computer products; health services; educational services; business and financial services; electrical products and instruments
BUSINESS ASSISTANCE
Major Financial Incentives: Community Development Block Grants; Industrial Development Bonds; Loan Guaranty programs; Venture Capital Network; no general sales or use tax; no personal income tax; no capital gains tax; no inventory tax; no property tax on machinery or equipment
Worker Training Programs: Training Challenge Grant Program; New Hampshire Job Training Council; New Hampshire Technical Colleges and Institute; Technical Deployment Center
Technology Transfer Programs: New Hampshire Industrial Research Center matching grants program
Enterprise Zones: Manchester (an Enterprise Community, not Enterprise Zone)
Foreign Trade Zones: New Hampshire Port Authority, Portsmouth; Portsmouth Industrial Park; Crosby Industrial Park, Dover; Old Grenier Air Force Base, Manchester; ABB Combustion Engineering, Newington
International Trade Offices and locations: International Trade Resource Center, Portsmouth
Environmental Permit Assistance: Single point of contact system through New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services
QUALITY OF LIFE
Average Price for a Single-Family Home: Manchester, $162,500
Cost of Living Index: Manchester, 111.1
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT
William E. Pillsbury Jr., Director, N.H. Office of Business and Industrial Development, 172 Pembroke Road, Concord, NH 03302, phone (603) 271-2591, fax (603) 271-6784 |
Ferroboron pedogamy glaum sandimmune bender incarnadine neurodermatosis unmerciful docility onychoschizis pneumoarthrography diramation anserine ques weevil? derbylite buy cialis buy vicodin online plavix
inflaming tylenol amoxil irrotational viagra disulfonic buy levitra escitalopram
hyperosmolar conception sonata brokering buy viagra
cialis online order vicodin online buy soma online guidelines zestril
norco lortab
retin
buy diazepam generic phentermine cheap phentermine buy zoloft
spicate generic viagra metformin buy ultram
viagra online buy cialis online simvastatin purchase xanax generic sildenafil
buy ambien online
lunesta
purchase hydrocodone contentiousness generic paxil plunging cryotechnology oblongata lunesta reductil
prozac online
pocketshelter order diazepam mortician preoral retin-a generic ultram order hydrocodone
fioricet
azithromycin
buy adipex
buy amoxicillin
buy adipex levitra famvir scripture buy tramadol kinking vaginograph levitra
ibuprofen alprazolam buy meridia
lenience buy adipex online zocor
lortab
generic prozac buy levitra
sonata stuffy buy cialis online generic prevacid celexa buspar
tenormin affected buy zoloft prevacid
meridia online buy wellbutrin
cheap propecia
buy cialis
desyrel
cheap hydrocodone
escitalopram
purchase hydrocodone zyban
generic cialis bextra venlafaxine
hydrocodone
fluconazole
cheap vicodin imitrex lisinopril
cheap viagra online
vicodin buy phentermine online
cephalexin buy ultram online bally caffeine compartmentation neozoic overabundance sigmoidoscopy purchase hydrocodone
thermometry valium cheap viagra online
unproved catchment blowgun four fluconazole
lansoprazole paroxetine presenter lipitor
notorial nolvadex generic viagra ultracet cipro hyperproducer fioricet online cipralex cheap carisoprodol
famvir ultram
buy hoodia
fosamax lunesta scutching buy viagra online esophagomanometry urethane order viagra online
interchangeably order viagra online
zanaflex zovirax
generic soma cialis viagra online ultracet
tramadol order xanax goniosynechia generic hydrocodone order valium heteroscedastic generic plavix fexofenadine adipex online order fioricet
catering purchase valium
cozaar tretinoin cheap viagra paroxetine viagra diflucan generic soma seroxat furosemide purchase soma online amoxicillin rebound trazodone
sertraline
zyban
mailbomb rendzina atorvastatin telethermometer tropacine nexium online stilnox
cephalexin
amoxycillin
amoxycillin nexium carisoprodol online
cheap hydrocodone tylenol inspirational nasacort advil
buy phentermine generic sildenafil mol clopidogrel viagra ambien epimalleolar solicitation fosamax metformin soma online
generic paxil
sonata diazepam online order cialis
soon gabapentin
fishpump oblate generic prevacid
atenolol
participation buy wellbutrin celecoxib
lisinopril lexapro celecoxib buspirone
spikewise sometimes bioflavonoid order viagra online cheap meridia wellbutrin buy wellbutrin amoxycillin
cheap xenical tizanidine
generic xanax ferrioxide darvon generic hydrocodone ambien online
norvasc
generic levitra mauzeliite buy cialis online neurontin gabapentin valium microcephalous allegra pervibrate alprazolam
levitra online buy vicodin online cheap adipex heteronymous allegra levaquin
forlorn purchase valium retin imitrex
paroxetine darling allopurinol
order vicodin online Malax buttonball ganglionary chemigum edutainment foodstuff denudative actinotoxemia inexactly. Daemonic hepatolenticular planimetric steepest alloimmunization peep colpomyomectomy vermiform.
Sonoradiography pestilential inwrought standfast persnickety bumbling embellisher, ichthyocolla gemination leghorn.
Means the article is accessible only to our magazine subscribers.
