Founded in 1992 in St. Stephen, N.B., CNA started small and worked its wayup to a business employing nearly 400 individuals. Company President Barry O’Donnell, who appeared in person Friday to make the announcement, said the plan was to employ nearly that many people at the Presque Isle division, once the office was up to speed – possibly within a year or two. About 40 city, county and state officials, as well as CNA personnel, were on hand for the Nov. 3 event.

“We have our headquarters in Fredericton, N.B. where we employ 350 to 400 people. We also have about 100 employees at our Bathurst, N.B., facility. This will be our first U.S. venture. We’re hoping to have the Presque Isle division up to about 300 employees – both part- and full-time – within a year or so,” said O’Donnell. “We anticipate injecting $4 to $5 million in wages into the local economy in a relatively short period of time.”

That’s good news to the city and to the employees let go with the sale of MBNA, as well as others seeking employment. In September, CNA explored the possibility of opening a division here when business heads spent time at the Career Center interviewing individuals and accepting applications, in an effort to gauge the type of work force available in the area. Pleased with the results, company officials moved ahead with their plans – plans first discussed as early as May of this year, when CNA officials met with bank officials and were made aware of the vacant MBNA building by Steve St. Pierre, of KeyBank in Presque Isle. The process was facilitated through the Aroostook Partnership for Progress, an organization established to enhance the economy of northern Maine.

Following the May closure, Bank of America sold the property to theNorthern Maine Finance Corporation, with financial assistance from the Northern Maine Development Commission and USDA-Rural Development. Since the purchase, NMFC has been working with state agencies and city officials to locate a new tenant for the building – a business capable of bringing a number of jobs to the area.

“This is project is a perfect example of the strength of the APP team working together with the Career Center staff to host job information sessions for the company. This is also a perfect example as to why NMFC decided to purchase the facility from Bank of America a few months ago. Because NMFC owns the building, we were able to present the company with a very competitive and fair proposal,” said Bob Clark, president of NMFC.

The facility is an ideal match for CNA, a business that primarily makes outbound calls offering a variety of communication services.“The new office will primarily serve as an outbound call center, offering customers a variety of services, including telephone, Internet and cable. We may add some in-bound calling services at some point,” said O’Donnell.  City officials were pleased with the news.  “Can you feel the synergy?” asked City Manager Tom Stevens. “It doesn’t happen by itself. This is a cooperative effort that brings this type of event. The city is pleased to be a part of it.”APP Chairwoman Kris Doody-Chabre said it was nice to be able to be part of a project bringing business back to Aroostook County.  “s a partnership, the work doesn’t end. It’s been our goal to find a replacement business,” she said.

Also in attendance was Jack Cashman, commissioner of the Department of Economic and Community Development, who indicated it was the state’s goal to retain employees and find new job prospects for them, following the spring closure at the former call center. “When MBNA closed, we worked to keep most of the work force in the state. The building was purchased at a greatly reduced cost. The end of the story is we kept a vast majority of the work force that MBNA had,” said Cashman.

Rep. Jeremy Fischer spoke briefly, welcoming O’Donnell and his business to the Star City.    “A value I grew up with is that everyone has the right to work, live and be part of equal opportunities,” said Fischer, recognizing the possibilities for the community with the injection of new jobs brought about by CNA’s announcement.

Gov. John E. Baldacci was on hand, recognizing the New Brunswick firm’s positive growth.  “Connect North America is growing exponentially. Part of the challenge has been the redevelopment of the sites (at the Presque Isle and Fort Kent facilities, closed by Bank of America). This is a high-class state-of-the-art center and will be home to a high-class business here,” said Baldacci.

In addition to bringing jobs with competitive wages, CNA will offer benefits as well.  “This is a state-of-the-art telecommunication center. It’s not so much about the tax dollars we’re interested in but the jobs and benefits – a huge opportunity to give back to the community. We welcome CNA to the state of  Maine,” said Baldacci.

O’Donnell said he’s pleased with the facility. The hiring process will soon get under way, with small groups beginning training as early as December. “We’re looking at hiring approximately 30 individuals to begin with. Plans include running two shifts in the future. We expect to be operational after the first of the year,” said O’Donnell. “We’re excited to be here. It’s about giving customers packages they want for services they want and need. Creating jobs is just an added bonus.”