Schuylkill County commissioners on Wednesday approved an ordinance establishing a Neighborhood Improvement District in the area that includes the Highridge Business Park, Highridge Business Park North, and the nearby Schuylkill Airport business park.

The Neighborhood Improvement District is a necessary step to establish the Highridge Improvement District.The improvement district is a method of funding infrastructure maintenance at the business park through special assessments levied on all but tax-exempt properties within its confines.The debts incurred by building the park are now paid, so the new mechanism is needed to keep the park in good shape to attract even more businesses.The ordinance designates the Highridge Improvement District Authority as the Neighborhood Improvement District Management Association for the district and approves the final plan for the district.The Highridge Improvement District would replace the Tax Increment Financing mechanism that built the park in 1997.The Schuylkill County Industrial Development Authority has managed the park, with the Schuylkill Economic Development Corporation overseeing daily operations.The 2,428-acre park, along Interstate 81 in Cass and Foster townships, houses Lowe's, Wegman's, Walmart, Electrolux, Sara Lee and other distribution centers.Commissioners' Chairman Frank J. Staudenmeier said the park provides 3,000 jobs.