Market Info

Why advertise in South Central PA?

South Central PA (SCPA) is a diverse market located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains and consisting of nine separate counties: Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Fulton, Lancaster, Lebanon, Mifflin, Perry and York.

Harrisburg is the largest city in the region, as well as the capital of Pennsylvania. The other two significant cities in the region are Lancaster and York. The Harrisburg-Lancaster-Lebanon-York television market is the 39th largest market in the United States.

SCPA is a logistics hub, serving as a major Pennsylvania transportation nucleus for decades.  Three major interstate highways intersect our region, making us a choice location for our proximity to major metropolitan markets. The region is drained primarily by the Susquehanna River, flowing southwards to the Chesapeake Bay and further still to the Atlantic Ocean.

SCPA is notable for its large Amish and Mennonite population. It is also the site of the bloodiest battlefield of the Civil War, the home of Hershey's chocolate and the York Peppermint Pattie. SCPA has also hosted, however briefly, two former capitals of the United States during the American Revolution: Lancaster and York.

 

Population & Housing

• SCPA is the 42nd largest metro market in the United States with 1.9 million people or 15% of the population of the state of PA.
• There are 743,481 homes in SCPA, which makes SCPA the 40th largest housing market in the United States.
• 77.7% of the population OWN their homes. SCPA ranks 12th in the United States for homeownership.
• Six of the top ten fastest growing metro markets are in the Harrisburg DMA: Gettysburg (2), York-Hanover (3), Chambersburg (4), Lebanon (7), Lancaster (8) and Harrisburg-Carlisle (10).
• Our projected five-year population growth is 4.29% or five times the rate of growth for the State.
• York County leads the Commonwealth of PA in new home construction. In addition, the York/Hanover region is the fastest growing in the Northeast.

 

Income

• Five of the top ten PA metro areas with the highest median incomes reside in South Central PA: Lancaster (3), York-Hanover (4), Harrisburg-Carlisle (6), Gettysburg (8) and Lebanon (10).
• The median income for SCPA is $52,653. That's significantly higher than the PA median income of $48,003.
• Compared to the United States, the Harrisburg DMA ranks 35th out of 210 metro markets in highest median income.

 

Retail

• In 2008, SCPA spent over $23.9 billion on retail goods and services - that's 16% of all the money spent in Pennsylvania.
• Compared to the United States, the Harrisburg DMA ranks 39th out of 210 metro markets in total retail sales.

Employment

• SCPA is one of the fastest growing, dynamic and productive regions in the State. The cultural makeup and business-savvy nature of our residents has produced a highly skilled, well-trained, dependable and loyal workforce.
• SCPA enjoys a diverse base of industries that contribute to its economic success including Wolfgang Candy Company, Harley Davidson, The Hershey Company, Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Starbucks, Solar Innovations, Hydroworx, Voith Hydro, Cumberland Valley Endocrinology LLC, Livewire International, Utz Quality Foods and Allen Distribution, to name just a few.
• South Central PA accounts for 15% of all the manufacturing industries in the state and 20% of all the Agriculture and fishing industries.
• The Commonwealth recently invested nearly $2 million in new career training programs including major initiatives at Cumberland-Perry Area Vo-Tech School and Dauphin County Technical School, designed to teach advanced materials and diversified manufacturing methods to young workers.

 

Infrastructure

• SCPA is a logistics hub, serving as a major Pennsylvania transportation nucleus for decades.  Three major interstate highways intersect our region, making us a choice location for our proximity to major metropolitan markets.  East-west travel from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh is made easy on the Pennsylvania Turnpike (I-76). Travel from New York to Virginia on I-81 and from Harrisburg to Baltimore on I-83. 
• The region maintains an advanced fiber-optic infrastructure thanks to the investments of Verizon, Embarq (the former Sprint) and others into the development of FTTP technology for the delivery of optical communications directly to end users.
• South Central PA is located within one day's drive of more than 40% of the nation's population and 60% of Canada's population.
• According to the World Bank, Pennsylvania has the 17th largest economy in the world with $450 billion in gross domestic product.

Commuters

• The average "drive-time" in SCPA is 25 minutes for the over 974,000 employed.
• Over 28% of the employed adults in SCPA commute to other counties and DMAs throughout the area. Of those people, 94% spend more than 30 minutes for driving.
• Over 63,000 commute to areas outside of the DMA such as New York, Philadelphia, Washington D.C. and Baltimore.
• More than 32,000 people commute to areas considered part of Baltimore. More than half of these people live in York County.