Milwaukee-based Harley-Davidson Inc. could cut half of the nearly 2,000 union jobs at its York County plant if workers vote in favor of a proposed contract on Dec. 2, said Tom Santone, regional representative for the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.

The cuts would be a necessary part of keeping Harley's largest plant in Springettsbury Township, Santone said today after Local 175 union members had a chance to review the proposed contract.

The union is endorsing the contract because the alternative is Harley would move build a new facility in Kentucky, he said. Harley narrowed the alternative site search to that state Nov. 4.

"Let Kentucky steal jobs from someone else, not from Harley-Davidson and not from our union," Santone said outside the York Expo Center's Toyota Arena.

The company will make its final decision about the factory following the union vote, Harley spokesman Bob Klein said.

He said the proposed seven-year contract includes:

• Job classifications reduced from 60 to five;
• average wage of $24.73 per hour, which is higher than 85 percent of comparable manufacturing jobs in York County;
• up to four weeks vacation, depending on seniority; workers currently with five weeks of vacation will be grandfathered in.

The proposal also would change the structure for overtime pay, increase health care deductibles while limiting coverage and reduce holidays, Santone said.

The company is offering severance packages for workers who voluntarily leave as part of job cuts and bonuses for people to take early retirement, he said.

Most workers at Toyota Arena today declined to speak with the Business Journal about the contract. Those who did said the proposal is painful but will keep the factory in York County.

"I'm voting for it," said Robert Greiman, a tool crib attendant who's been with the plant for 21 years, "because it's the difference between having a job or not."

The Hershey Trust Co. is pushing The Hershey Co. to outbid Illinois-based Kraft Foods Inc. for British candy company Cadbury using an issue of $2 billion in new stocks and $10 billion in cash, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Cadbury rejected two bids from Kraft, each worth nearly $17 billion, saying it undervalued the company.

Hershey doesn't comment on mergers and acquisitions, spokesman Kirk Saville told the Business Journal.

Representatives for the trust did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

Dauphin County-based Hershey on Nov. 18 said it's interested in Cadbury and was reviewing its options. One of those options is a partnership with Italian candy company Ferrero, which issued a statement similar to Hershey's, according to media reports.

Hershey, with headquarters in Derry Township, is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol HSY.

Kraft and Cadbury shares are also traded there under the respective ticker symbols KFT and CBY.

The U.S. General Services Administration this morning confirmed it is re-considering the U.S. Postal Service's former mail sorting site at 813 Market St. for a new federal courthouse in Harrisburg.

GSA's Harrisburg project manager met with city officials to discuss the project, GSA regional public affairs officer Gina Blyther Gilliam wrote in an e-mail. She would not disclose the meeting date.

"During the meeting, various topics were discussed, including the potential sale of the Market Street post office," Blyther Gilliam wrote. "A decision has not been made at this time."

Mayor Stephen R. Reed could not immediately be reached for comment.

Earlier this month, Reed said the Postal Service planned to sell the site on Market Street. Its Harrisburg sorting operation, which is a major mail hub for Central Pennsylvania, now is along Crooked Hill Road in Susquehanna Township.

The post office still has a retail presence at the Market Street site. Reed said it wants to move to a downtown location with 5,000 to 6,000 square feet of space. The post office has been at the Market Street site since the 1960s.

The Lancaster Alliance is collaborating with the Housing Development Corp. to create a 62-unit apartment building on the 100 block of Lancaster's South Queen Street, the nonprofits said today.

Called South Square, the project would redevelop 10 buildings, keeping their façades but tearing down the remainder of the structure, HDC Public Relations Manager Jeff McCloud said.

The units would be work force housing, he said. Construction of South Square is expected to cost about $15 million, with developers still working to secure tax credits and financing.

McCloud said the partnership hopes to begin work within a year.

Destination-marketing specialist Roger Brooks is scheduled in December to present his formal recommendations for improving downtown York.

Brooks, CEO of Seattle-based Destination Development Inc., has visited York twice in the past two years. His most recent visit was in August, when he interviewed local stakeholders and researched promotion ideas, which have been compiled into a branding, development and marketing plan.

The plan will be presented at 8:30 a.m. Dec. 1 at the Strand-Capitol Performing Arts Center in York. The presentation is open to the public.

During his last visit, Brooks said he wanted York to pick a brand for itself and then choose a two-block area to focus on improving.

Brooks' visit was arranged by Downtown Inc, a nonprofit that works to revitalize and encourage reinvestment in downtown York. The group will be taking the lead on implementing his recommendations.

A $3 million donation by a Lebanon couple has enabled Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center to reach its minimum fundraising goal for a new children's hospital.

The gift, from Edward H. and Jeanne Donlevy Arnold, pushed the campaign to the $65 million mark. Staff and dignitaries on Nov.13 broke ground for the $206.5 million Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital; construction is expected to start in February.

The Arnolds, who are vice chairmen of the Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital Campaign Committee, have contributed more than $8 million to the project, according to the medical center.

"We remain committed to seeing the new Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital become a reality for the families and children in our area," Jeanne Arnold said in a statement. "Through our experiences, both as patients and as volunteers, we have come to have a deep respect and love for the medical center and all that it represents."

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Government should open bid for health information exchange technology

The Governor's Office of Health Care Reform Wednesday announced its intention to enter into a contract worth at least $10 million with Medicity without the benefit of an open and transparent bid, request for proposal or other long-established practice of public contracting.

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