Mark
D. Litten - Executive Director
Rosanne
Bodner - Program Administrator
The
mission of the Greater Erie County Marketing Group, Inc. is to facilitate both
the creation and retention of jobs within Erie County.
By acting as the catalyst for economic growth, our goal is to work with
both the private sector and government agencies to increase economic
opportunities for individuals and businesses through a comprehensive economic
development program.
2003
in Review
Last year was a critical year for GEM as it was a year of reflecting on founding tenets, assessment of competitive focus, and strategic planning for future course of action. From April to September GEM conducted a strategic planning process to gain input from local leaders as to the desired results GEM should be striving for. The community assessment identified several areas that GEM will concentrate on in order to spur economic growth in Erie County, over the next 5 years. These included facilitation and coordination of development projects incorporating applicable incentive programs; monitoring of Erie County’s readiness & competitiveness; marketing and promotion; retention and expansion efforts; and to secure stable funding to ensure the future of economic development. The Regional Growth Partnership (RGP) facilitated the 5-year strategic plan.
Visteon
Corporation –formerly
Ford Motor Co. of Margaretta Township, invested $62 million in new machinery and
equipment to modernize the company’s lighting and carbon canister business.
The State of Ohio granted $750,000 to Visteon to offset the cost of the new
equipment. Various other State of
Ohio tax incentives and abatements were facilitated by GEM.
Attraction
Project
Kalahari
Waterpark Resort & Convention Center
was the largest attraction project in the county.
The $127 million project is expecting to break ground in March, 2004.
The team, LMN Development, consisting of Treasure Island and Kalahari
Resorts, is finalizing options to
purchase 141 acres in Huron and
Perkins Townships.
When
the resort opens in the spring of 2005, it will offer an 80,000 square foot
indoor waterpark, along with hotel, shops, restaurants, outdoor waterpark,
convention center, and condominiums. The plan is for the resort to expand within two to three
years by enlarging the size of each
event wing. The second construction
phase will make it the world’s largest waterpark resort, that title now being
held by Wisconsin Dell’s Kalahari Resort.
GEM
was instrumental in aiding the developers in applying for and receiving a TIF
(Tax Increment Financing) agreement through Erie County.
$9.3 million of Kalahari’s property taxes will be put into public
infrastructure improvements including the widening of US 250, water, storm and
sewer extensions, and public roadways. A $250,000 ODOD development grant was
secured by GEM for roadway improvements.
The resort will initially have approximately 500 year-round employees.
The resort is also expected to spur growth in small independent
commercial and retail support businesses.
Other
development efforts included finalization of the Quarry
Lakes TIF
agreement and securing of an ODOD infrastructure grant of $200,000. Infrastructure
improvements at the Margaretta Township industrial/business park
are to be complete by summer of 2004.
Other
Initiatives
Toward
gaining a competitive edge, an educational seminar was presented to local school
superintendents on the use of the P.I.L.O.T program. In conjunction with the Ohio Enterprise Zone Program, businesses are given
greater financial incentives in return for their direct monetary gifting to the
schools. In 2003, for the first
time, agreements were signed giving schools and companies greater flexibility.
Marketing
and promotion efforts were underwritten with the receipt of a $5,000 grant award
by the Sandusky/Erie Community Foundation.
A full-page industrial park advertisement was placed in the October issue
of Site Selection Magazine.
Attraction, retention, and expansion remain the key elements of economic
development. The statewide Procure
database of available sites and buildings is maintained within the GEM office
for timely response to leads. GEM
is the only entity in Erie County that receives inquiries from ODOD and
submits available properties.
The
Synchronist industry visitation program continues to provide a tool for
monitoring our existing industrial economic climate.
To date over 50 one-on-one meetings with local industry leaders have
taken place.
An
imperative immediate need of GEM is to secure stable funding to insure its
viability to perform essential economic development and growth activities.
Due to the loss in 2003 of financial support from major public
contributors, GEM has retained Stellar Fundraising Executives Inc. of Orlando,
Florida, for the purpose of conducting a capital campaign.
The initial feasibility study was conducted this past November, with the
full campaign, GROW ERIE NOW!, to be realized in the Spring and Summer of
2004.
The
mission of GEM has always been, and remains to be, the creation and retention of
jobs for Erie County. With a clear
mission, cooperative partnering of all entities, and community financial
support, GEM pledges its full attention and efforts toward that end.
2003
ended on a positive note economically in Erie County with regional manufacturing
activity on an upward climb, production orders up over a year ago, and
unemployment at a manageable 5.3%. Hopefully
these broad trends will continue throughout 2004.
However, its also important to look at the specific components that
comprise the economy in Erie County.
Tourism
continues to be an important seasonal economic factor.
This sector is about to explode into a year-round economy booster with
the addition of two indoor waterparks. In
addition to Kalahari Resort, Cedar Point is commencing construction of its
Castaway Bay Indoor Resort on
Cleveland Road in Sandusky. These
resorts will complement the already successful Great Bear Lodge indoor waterpark.
With Erie County within a day’s drive of over 60 million people, the area
could well become a waterpark destination for much of the midwest.
The
Rt. 250 commercial corridor continues to expand southward with the addition of
Crossroads Development near the Rt 2 intersection.
Home Depot will anchor the plaza, drawing various other entities into the
adjoining and outlot sites.
While commercial and service expansions fuel the number of new jobs, it is a major concern that the industrial base is continually shrinking, depleting the high-paying quality jobs. Attraction of new industry to Erie County MUST be a priority goal. It will be of utmost importance to retain the manufacturers we have and assist them in growth expansions.
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2002 ANNUAL REPORT
GREATER ERIE COUNTY MARKETING GROUP INC.
Mark
D. Litten -
Executive
Director
Rosanne
Bodner, Program Administrator
The
mission of the Greater Erie County Marketing Group, Inc. is to facilitate both
the creation and retention of jobs within Erie County.
By acting as the catalyst for economic growth, our goal is to work with
both the private sector and government agencies to increase economic
opportunities for individuals and businesses through a comprehensive economic
development program.
Economic
Overview
The
cornerstones of economic development continued to be vitally important as the
nation’s recession persisted for the duration of 2002.
Time proven tools of retention & expansion, marketing, and
partnership development were utilized to ensure that Erie County’s readiness
and competitiveness remain focused.
Assistance to Existing Industry
In
spite of the recession four major projects were announced that combined
for a total of $90.4 million of capital
investment, 308 new jobs created, and 1,700 jobs retained. The utilization of public incentive programs helped bring
these projects to fruition. This commitment to Erie County reinforces what most
residents already believe – Erie County is a great place to live and work.
Pegasus Vans
& Trailers
– In January it was announced that Dean Wikel would relocate his Berlins
Heights operation to Margaretta Township. The company invested $2 million and
added a 57,500 SF facility that
employs 20 people. This was a
creation of 13 new jobs. The
company received an abatement of 75% for 5 years after agreeing to gift the
Margaretta school system 15% of the yearly abatement.
Freudenberg
NOK –
This Milan Township automotive operation constructed a new 140,000 SF addition
to their facility, in a consolidation of it’s out-of-state business to Erie
County. This highly competitive
project with the State of Michigan, resulted in a $14.7 million investment that
will create 97 full time jobs within the next three years and retain the current
119 jobs. A 10 year, 50% tax
abatement was granted on inventory, building improvements, machinery, equipment,
and fixtures. Other incentives were realized through the State of Ohio’s
Job Creation Tax Credit program (JCTC) and the Ohio Investment &
Training Program (OITP).
Visteon Corporation –
December
brought the announcement that Visteon Corp., formerly Ford Motor Co. of
Margaretta Township, was investing $62 million in new machinery and equipment to
modernize the company’s lighting and carbon canister business. The State of
Ohio granted $750,000 to Visteon to offset the cost of the new equipment.
Various other State of Ohio tax incentives and abatements were
facilitated by GEM.
It
is widely known that 80-90% of all
economic growth comes from expansion of existing industry.
Therefore R& E visitations to local industry is vital to monitor the
current business climate. GEM
conducts these visits with the assistance of Synchronist, an R&E
software tool, which provides an overall rating of Erie County’s
economic vitality. 32 visits to local industry have been conducted since the
programs’s inception.
In
a continuing effort to keep Erie County in the forefront as one of the
nation’s best locations, an advertisement was placed in the August issue of Plants,
Sites, & Parks development magazine, whose international coverage
reaches those companies considering relocation and expansion.
The ad featured Erie County’s four (4) fully infrastructured industrial
parks along the State Route 2 corridor.
Trade
show attendance included the March SAE auto show in Detroit, and an October
Metal Fabricators Trade Show in Toronto, Canada. Both shows resulted in several
leads. The GEM Website, www.gem.org,
continues to provide extensive demographic and site information to the general
public. The site is updated regularly to reflect current census and economic
data. A quarterly newsletter, GEMS,
was launched in 2002, with the intent to improve communication and heighten
local knowledge of GEM’s mission and capabilities to those industries
considering projects.
Web-based
site selection became available in the last quarter through the ODOD E-Procure
site. GEM was designated
as Erie County’s sole submittal agency as we are an “umbrella”
economic development firm representing the various cities and
governmental units of Erie County. This
additional marketing tool puts Erie County sites and buildings at the fingertips
of decision makers worldwide.
GEM
maintains membership in several regional economic associations. These include
the Regional Growth Partnership (RGP),
the Northwest Ohio Regional Economic Development
(NORED) group and Mid-American Economic Development Corp. (MAEDC).
Networking within these groups provides perspective as to how Erie County is
faring in relation to its closest neighbors as well as the nation in general.
GEM also works closely with other entities such as the Toledo/Lucas
County Port Authority, and Northern Ohio Development Assistance Corp. in order
to offer alternative financing options to our clients.
Additionally, GEM maintains an ex-officio position on the Huron Economic
Development Council, offering consultation toward its development efforts.
Finally,
GEM continues to enhance its relationship with the Ohio Department of
Development (ODOD) to foster industrial growth.
In conjunction with Terra Community College’s Small Business
Development Center (SBDC), GEM provides assistance to small businesses. SBDC
services offered include business counseling, business plan writing, and
technical assistance with financing and funding program eligibility.
November
saw the official opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony for the long-awaited Rt.
250 widening project. This project
is expected to spur commercial and industrial development from Bogart Road south
to the Huron County line. GEM was
instrumental in preliminary studies of this project in the early 90’s.
An important
function of GEM is the constant monitoring of State and Federal regulations,
initiatives, and programs that affect economic development at the local level.
Remaining abreast of the current trends in economic development means
that GEM can facilitate and coordinate a comprehensive package of incentives for
qualified local industries. These
programs take such forms as tax credits, investment credits, tax exemptions,
workforce training, etc. 2002 saw emphasis at the state level on the Third
Frontier Technology Project and the Clean Ohio superfund for environmental
clean-up. GEM works diligently with each client to explore all options and to
provide confidential analysis of their project’s feasibility.
Focus on the Future
Tough economic times were the theme for 2002. Fear of terrorism stalled the economic recovery, soaring benefit costs plagued employer and employee alike, and corporate fraud scandals depressed Wall Street activity. However, Erie County, with its diversified industrial/business sector is poised to successfully combat these ills. Our strengths in educated work force, favorable market position, and high quality of life will sustain us until full recovery is complete.
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