Lackawanna County's new economic development director acknowledged that, for all the professional reasons he accepted the position, there was a personal one, too.
It's something most parents would understand.
"I have three young daughters," George Kelly, 54, of Dunmore, said. "I want them to have good jobs here. I want them to be able to settle down here and keep them close to me. It's a selfish motivation to help my family, my friends."
More than a year after they established a new Department of Economic Development to foster private-sector job growth in the county, majority Commissioners Corey O'Brien and Jim Wansacz on Monday introduced Mr. Kelly as its first permanent director. The position pays $60,000 a year.
The commissioners said Mr. Kelly, a finance executive with an extensive background in business development, will be responsible for developing and carrying out a comprehensive economic development plan for the county aimed at creating family sustaining jobs.
"We are confident he can get the job done, and we are excited to have him. ⦠It's been a long process, but we believe we have gotten the right person to lead this effort," Mr. O'Brien said.
The commissioners said the new director is a seasoned executive and consultant with Wall Street experience and a strong track record of providing business owners and major corporations with detailed road maps to building, expanding and streamlining their businesses.
For the past decade, Mr. Kelly has operated his own business in New York and Dunmore, providing management consulting services on a contract basis for various enterprises, in addition to managing real estate rehabilitation and investment projects.
Mr. Kelly, who grew up in Brooklyn, N.Y., spent eight years in the seminary and appeared to be destined for the priesthood until he met his future wife, Sharon, a Dunmore native, while helping out at Camp St. Andrew. He considers Dunmore and Lackawanna County his home, he said.
Mr. Kelly said he could earn a lot more in Manhattan but added, "It's not about the money."
"I did Wall Street for many years. The commute, the shuffle, the high-paced life - it was good experience, and I really thrived on the excitement of it," he said. "But I want to be local. I don't want to commute. I don't want to shuffle back and forth. I want to focus on home and see what I can do here."
Mr. Kelly said he believes passionately that Northeast Pennsylvania is a good place to live and a good place to do business. Alluding to his seminarian background, he said he will be an evangelist "spreading the good news" about what the region and county have to offer.
The county's strengths include a huge inventory of available buildings and shovel-ready properties, he said. It is also a college community, which "doesn't get played up too much."
"We have lot of well-trained individuals who are leaving the area because they can't find jobs," he said. "So we have an inventory of people, and we have an inventory of resources, of space available."
Mr. Kelly joined the commissioners in a meeting earlier Monday with representatives of other area economic development organizations.
Ken Okrepkie, regional manager for Ben Franklin Technology Partners, said Mr. Kelly expressed his desire to reach out and collaborate with other partners in the region. With his background in growing companies, Mr. Kelly has the ability to help develop firms, he said.
"He can leverage his knowledge of investing in early-stage companies and growth to maybe grow the entrepreneurial network here in Northeastern Pennsylvania," Mr. Okrepkie said.
Austin Burke, president of the Greater Scranton Chamber of Commerce, said Mr. Kelly's background "fills a number of holes we were hoping to fill" among the ranks of area economic development professionals.
Mr. Kelly is the first of three economic development professionals the county anticipates hiring within the new department. The county also plans to add two deputies, one responsible for business development and the other for operations and finance.
Contact the writer: dsingleton@timesshamrock.com