U-Haul breaks ground on expanded storage facility across from current Lebanon location

Matthew Toth, Lebanon Daily News
·2 min read

Since starting at the U-Haul on 1440 Cumberland St. in 2002, owner representative Jeff Levengood always wanted to expand the facility's storage capacity.

"I managed the store for about 17 years, and I had the vision a long time ago for this," he said. "It took a while to get the idea to cooperate so they would actually invest the money to do it."

On Thursday, Levengood stood with U-Haul managers, along with state, city and county officials, and broke ground on a new storage facility across from the company's Cumberland Street location.

U-Haul owner representative Jeff Levengood and Area District Vice President Mike Zemba were joined by Lebanon County officials to break ground on construction for a new storage facility on Cumberland Street Thursday.
U-Haul owner representative Jeff Levengood and Area District Vice President Mike Zemba were joined by Lebanon County officials to break ground on construction for a new storage facility on Cumberland Street Thursday.

The new three-story facility is projected to hold 830 indoor self storage units, each equipped with climate controlled options and security features. The facility will be equipped with drive-in load and unload bays for residents. Construction on the estimated $14 million project is expected to take more than 11 months, with owners expecting to add up to 12 new jobs when it is completed.

"It will be strictly storage," Levengood said. "We will be maintaining the operation across the street with all the trucks, trailers and everything. But this will be strictly storage."

Part of the construction includes an upgrade to the façade of the existing 1440 Cumberland St. building. While U-Haul representatives said the work should help beautify the area by building on a former vacant lot, their first focus is providing more services to the residents that they serve in the county.

"Our goal is not specifically to beautify the area, it's to provide more service to customers," Levengood said.

U-Haul has been serving in the Lebanon area since 1979, and Area District Vice President Mike Zemba said the company has been working over the last year to get this project underway.

"Most projects have some stumbling blocks, and this was no different," he said to those in attendance Thursday. "But here we are today, and it's a proud moment to break ground."

U-Haul's concept for its new proposed storage facility on Cumberland Street.
U-Haul's concept for its new proposed storage facility on Cumberland Street.

The largest industries in Lebanon County include manufacturing, transportation and warehousing, according to the State of the County address hosted by the Lebanon Valley Chamber of Commerce in May.

Prior to the year 2000, the county had 89 warehouses using 455 acres of land, with a total of 4.2 million square feet under roof. Currently, the county has an inventory of 22 million square feet under roof utilizing 2,150 acres of land.

Residents are already expressing interest in using the new Cumberland Street facility once construction is completed in 2024, according to U-Haul owners.

"We're underserved in a lot of communities, so this will fill a need immediately as we get it opened," Levengood said.

Residents looking for more information about U-Haul services in Lebanon can call the Cumberland St. facility at 717-274-3681 or visit their website at uhaul.com.

Matthew Toth is a reporter for the Lebanon Daily News. Reach him at mtoth@ldnews.com or on X at @DAMattToth.

This article originally appeared on Lebanon Daily News: Lebanon PA U-Haul breaks ground on expanded facility on Cumberland St.