Time Warner Cable customer centers to close
By PAUL HEIMEL/Special to The Era
COUDERSPORT – One week from today, the Time Warner Cable
customer centers in Coudersport will shut down, idling more than
500 workers.
At the same time, dozens of other people are preparing for
unemployment as the Adelphia estate closes out its remaining
operations in Coudersport (pop. 3,000).
Most of the jobless will be eligible for a severance check and
unemployment compensation to temporarily cushion the blow, but the
long-term picture is unsettling for both the employees and the
community.
Earlier this month, a consulting firm, Renaissance Partners, was
brought in to coordinate a fast-tracked effort to recruit
employers. The North Central Pennsylvania Regional Planning and
Development Commission in Ridgway hired Renaissance. The Potter
County Redevelopment Authority has been the company’s local
liaison.
Time Warner expects to keep about 75 information technology and
engineering employees at its modern Data Center, which was acquired
when the company purchased Adelphia’s local assets last August.
Those 75 jobs are a far cry from the upwards of 2,000 who were
employed during Adelphia’s heyday in Coudersport.
Fate of the other Time Warner-owned buildings, including the
former Coudersport Elementary School on North Main Street, remains
uncertain. The garish Operations Center built in 2001 on South Main
Street is owned by the Adelphia Estate. Its future is also
unclear.
About 200 Adelphia employees in Coudersport were terminated when
Time Warner took over in August.
To prepare local leaders and business owners for the expected
media onslaught, Potter County Visitors Association has released a
set of “talking points” designed to put the community in a positive
light and broaden reporters’ perspectives.
PCVA Executive Director David Brooks and board member Donald
Gilliland, managing editor of the Potter Leader-Enterprise,
prepared the primer, in advance of the likely inquiries that paint
a doomsday scenario for the Coudersport area.
“The Coudersport area was productive and profitable before the
Adelphia boom, and will likely continue to be so in years to come,”
the document reads. “The community has resources to allow
businesses to thrive.”
Among these, PCVA points out, are modern, high-speed Internet
access; a trained and proven workforce; environmental purity and
natural beauty, with abundant recreational opportunities; a strong
educational system; and outstanding opportunities for children in a
family-friendly environment.
Economically, Potter County continues to benefit from tourism,
particularly hunting, fishing, hiking and snowmobiling, the
document states. New regional marketing efforts, including the
Pennsylvania Route 6 and Pennsylvania Wilds initiatives, as well as
PCVA activities, are increasing tourism in the county.
“Yes, this is a troublesome time, but Coudersport will not be a
ghost town,” PCVA concludes. “We will move forward into the next
chapter of Potter County history with optimism and determination.
What you say to reporters can have an impact on a company’s
decision to bring business to the community.”
The cable system serving Coudersport, Emporium, Port Allegany,
Austin and Roulette was not affected by the sale. That system is
owned and operated by Zito Media, a company owned by the Rigas
family, founders and former majority stockholders of Adelphia.
