Lehigh Valley Industrial Park, Inc.

Lehigh Valley Industrial Park (LVIP) is one of the leading economic development corporations in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Founded in 1959, in response to five strikes in 14 years at the Bethlehem Steel plant in Bethlehem, Pa., LVIP’s mission remains the same today as then: to create jobs, expand the regional tax base, and diversify the local economy.

LVIP is a community-owned, non-profit organization governed by a Board of Directors consisting of business, education, healthcare, and government leaders. It receives no government or membership support for operations instead relying solely on its real estate activities. LVIP accomplishes its mission through land development and the construction of best-in-class business centers. With a focus on small-parcel development and extensive job creation, LVIP purposely targets industrial, manufacturing, medical, and technology users for their family-sustaining jobs. 

Now nearing 68 years of operation, LVIP has developed over 2,500 acres of industrially zoned land creating seven industrial parks in the Lehigh Valley, which are home to 500 businesses and 25,000 employees with total investment in the LVIP system exceeding $2,500,000,000. LVIP is often credited with strengthening the Lehigh Valley economy as it weathered the downsizing and eventual loss of Bethlehem Steel, textile mills, and countless other manufacturers in the region especially in the 1980’s and 1990’s.

And the great irony is that LVIP’s most recent park – LVIP VII – consists of the redevelopment of 1,000 acres of the very same Bethlehem Steel plant in Bethlehem, which was the impetus for its origin in 1959. The Bethlehem Steel tract is one of the largest privately owned brownfield sites in the nation. In addition to 75 lots for purchase, LVIP’s redevelopment of LVIP VII comprised the construction of a 100-acre Intermodal, Class-A office and flex industrial buildings, a retail center, and utility infrastructure to support regional power needs and well-functioning municipal systems. Over the last 25 years, LVIP has attracted 38 businesses to the former Steel tract with 4,600 new jobs and $1,300,000,000 in new investment.

Most recently, LVIP announced a new initiative for affordable housing targeted for south Bethlehem. LVIP marshalled a partnership with the City of Bethlehem and Pennrose, the renowned Philadelphia-based affordable housing developer, to address the Lehigh Valley’s housing shortage by creating Gateway on 4th, a new mixed-income, multifamily development offering 120 housing units. In April 2025, LVIP acquired two industrial properties adjacent to LVIP VII targeted for the new development and immediately began the process of environmental remediation, demolition, and large tank removal. Today the site is shovel-ready for Pennrose to acquire and construct the new Gateway on 4th starting in the fourth quarter of 2026. LVIP is honored to play a role in this unique project that will have a broad economic impact on the region, not only during the construction phase but far into the future as it revitalizes the region with much-needed affordable housing options for local residents. To ensure Gateway on 4th’s success, LVIP will donate the improved land to the initiative as a community investment exceeding $4,000,000.

LVIP garners the support of business, community, and education representatives throughout the Lehigh Valley who dedicate their time and expertise and are committed members of the Board of Directors and various committees. Partnerships among municipalities, utilities, and local, state, and federal economic development organizations that joined LVIP through the decades have enabled the organization to emerge as a brilliant example of public/private partnerships formed for the good of the region. The companies located in the LVIP park system, as well as local developers, have also become partners in LVIP’s mission as they commit to growing their businesses in the region.  With these partnerships and many more to come, LVIP continues to set the stage for progress beyond tomorrow.