Pashinski announces $2 million RACP grant for Gateway Center Hotel Project

HARRISBURG, April 22 – State Rep. Eddie Day Pashinski, D-Luzerne, announced today the approval of a Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grant totaling $2 million to the Greater Wilkes-Barre Industrial Fund for the Gateway Project 3.0.

“Once completed, this project will be the final piece of the puzzle for the revitalization of River Street, making it an extremely attractive and very welcoming thoroughfare for residents and visitors alike,” Pashinski said. “I’m proud to have successfully advocated for this RACP grant as well as the 2020 $2.5 million grant awarded for this project. This will be a major advancement for the city of Wilkes-Barre, making our city more beautiful, more accessible, more shoppable, and more livable.”

The funding will be used to help create a mixed-use, 5-story, urban development, complete with a 110-room hotel, roof top bar and restaurant, breakfast cafe, and conference space. The center will showcase a panoramic view of the river, mountains, and city skyline from the rooftop bar and restaurant. The conference center will also provide flexible, technologically advanced meeting space, including a balcony and terrace overlooking the Susquehanna River. The center will also feature a ground-level breakfast and lunch café, allowing outdoor seating on the corner of River and Market Streets.

“Thank you to Governor Tom Wolf for his continued understanding of how important this project is to our region and approving this additional grant funding,” Pashinski said. “I can’t wait to see the completion of this revitalization effort that will attract conferences and visitors to our most vibrant downtown for decades to come.”

The Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program is a commonwealth grant program administered by the Office of the Budget for the acquisition and construction of regional economic, cultural, civic, recreational and historical improvement projects. RACP projects are authorized in the Redevelopment Assistance section of a Capital Budget Itemization Act, have a regional or multi-jurisdictional impact, and generate substantial increases or maintain current levels of employment, tax revenues or other measures of economic activity.