Tuesday, January 06, 2015LORDSTOWN, Ohio -- An aluminum manufacturing plant under construction, the potential for a diversified business park development, plans on the drawing board for a new electrical generation plant, and continued investment in General Motors Co.'s manufacturing operation: It's already a busy 2015 for the mayor of Lordstown.
"All told, we're looking at about $1.175 billion of investment," says Arno Hill as he rattles off projects in various stages of development in his village. "It's been a great year."
Most recently, Clean Energy Future Lordstown LLC agreed to purchase more than 30 acres along Henn Parkway in Lordstown Industrial Park so it can build an $800 million power generation plant, Hill says. The project would create between 500 and 550 construction jobs and between 28 and 23 permanent jobs once the plant is in operation.
The project hit a snag last fall when the village planning commission rejected an application to rezone to industrial a 57-acre parcel on Salt Springs Road that was the company's first site selection.
"It's taken a long time to get where we're at," Hill says. "We're good to go."
Still, the Clean Energy project is one among several that bode well for the village in the short-term.
"Matalco's new mill is the story at the Ohio Commerce Park right now," noted Dan Crouse, broker for Routh Hurlbert, leasing agent for the park on state Route 45. "Construction is underway."
Frigid temperatures Monday did not stop operators from performing prep work on a 31-acre site at the park for Matalco Inc.'s $125 million new aluminum smelting plant there. The company, which broke ground in September, plans by the end of the year to finish a 200,000-sqaure-foot structure where the aluminum billets used in the aluminum extrusion industry are manufactured.
"They should be up and running by the fourth quarter of 2015," Hill says.
Hill also points to continuing investment by General Motors Co. in its Lordstown manufacturing complex, home of the popular Chevrolet Cruze. "GM has put in, over the last couple of years, $250 million in upgrades for the next generation Cruze," he says.
The success of GM's Lordstown complex and the Cruze is drawing even more interest from out-of-town developers who view the plant as an anchor for the region, Hill says.
In November, NorthPoint Development signed an agreement with RACER Trust to purchase 173.5 acres once owned by General Motors Corp. before it filed for bankruptcy in 2009. The developers specialize in redeveloping former industrial land into logistics parks that serve large manufacturing sites such as GM Lordstown.
"Representatives from the company are coming in this month," Hill notes. "We want to find out exactly what their plans are."
Hill says the developer would prefer attracting a Tier One supplier to the proposed park -- now deemed Lordstown Logistics Center. Work has yet to begin at the site directly across Route 45 from the Lordstown Industrial Park.
"They'd like a Tier One supplier network for GM, but they're hoping on other businesses to locate there," Hill says. "They have access to rail, interstate, utilities. We're primed for growth there."
NorthPoint wants to develop the land into a park that would house 1.5 million square feet of industrial structures and employ 1,500.
The company is creating a similar development -- Central Industrial Park -- in the Fairfax Industrial District in Kansas City, Kan. That development, near the GM Fairfax Assembly plant, is expected to create 2,000 jobs.
As for the new power plant, Hill says all that’s left are the proper permits to be issued before construction begins. "It's a 30-month project after that," he said.
Clean Energy Future Lordstown has secured approval from PJM Interconnection, a regional transmission organization that coordinates the flow of wholesale electricity in 13 states. "They have options on land to get to the power lines they need," Hill says.
The mayor says that Lordstown is attracting interest from a diverse base, and that plenty of vacant acreage remains to suit industrial expansion.
"We have room for industrial growth, we have room to keep our rural atmosphere, and we have room for residential growth," Hill says. "The future is bright for Lordstown village."
Pictured: Site of Matalco Inc.'s $125 million aluminum smelting plant under construction in Lordstown.
Copyright 2015 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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