DevelopOhio

A “handful of old and empty Columbus buildings” will get new life after renovation plans were approved for Ohio Historic Preservation Tax Credits, The Columbus Dispatch reports. Eclipse Real Estate’s proposed $60.6-million transformation of the former Madison’s Department store and White-Haines buildings was granted $4.4 million in tax credits. Eclipse plans to keep the ground-floor retail, add apartments above, and add a new building for parking, commercial spaces and additional residences, according to the article. Developer Eli Adahan’s $17.6-million plans for The Broadwin apartment building received $1.755 million in tax credits. Brad DeHays proposes an $8.5-million redevelopment of the Market Mohawk Center to convert first-floor offices into apartments and retain offices on the upper floors. The project was granted $842,267 in tax credits. For more, read the full article.

The City of Dayton has reached a purchase option agreement with NorthPoint Development for land at the Dayton-Wright Brothers Airport, where the company hopes to develop “a high-tech manufacturing project that could bring 400 new jobs to the area,” the Dayton Daily News reports. The city “has been working with NorthPoint to attract ‘Project Flyer’ to the property,” which is in the Joint Economic Development District (JEDD) between Dayton and Miami Township, according to the article. NorthPoint has “constructed around half a dozen buildings near the Dayton International Airport, totaling more than 3 million square feet of space that employ more than 2,200 people.” For more, read the full article.

The construction of Petmin’s $474 million nodular pig iron plant in Ashtabula Harbor is expected to bring up to 600 jobs during construction, and approximately 100 new permanent jobs upon completion, the Star Beacon reports. Currently, all of the nodular pig iron — “a type of metal used to produce high value metal components like engine blocks and landing gear” — used in the United States is imported, according to the article. State Representative John Patterson said the pig iron plant and the recently completed Risberg natural gas pipeline “are foundational industries that will move the county forward.” Ashtabula County could see a resurgence of high-tech jobs in the county “if a metal casting facility comes to the area,” Patterson said. For more, read the full article.

The Ohio Supreme Court will decide whether the Ohio Environmental Protection Ageny (EPA) lost jurisdiction to enforce the federal Clean Water Act to hold Rover Pipeline LLC accountable for dumping “millions of gallons of mud mixed with diesel fuel in pristine wetlands in 2017,” The Columbus Dispatch reports. Rover “argues that the state failed to act within one year of Rover’s application for specific certifications” under the act, therefore waiving the requirements, according to the article. A brief filed by the Ohio Attorney General’s office argues the act “does not say that states, if they fail to timely issue a water-quality certification, forfeit their power to enforce all state environmental laws that the permittee later violates.” For more, read the full article.

Cincinnati’s residential property tax abatement program “rewards wealthy white homeowners in predominantly white neighborhoods while punishing minorities and poor people who often don’t qualify for tax breaks,” a lawsuit filed against the city claims, according to a recent Cincinnati.com article. The lawsuit claims the rule mandating homeowners “spend at least $5,000 on a home improvement project” to qualify leads to exacerbation of “the racially segregated residency pattern” in the city. Some city officials have expressed concern about the program over the years; Cincinnati City Council “created the Property Tax Working Group more than a year ago to examine the system and propose changes.” For more, read the full article.

Several high-rise construction projects representing “the first skyline-altering additions” to Columbus in a decade are moving forward despite the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, Columbus Business First reports. The $192-million North Market tower, the 1.75-million-square-foot Whittier Peninsula mega-development, and the $150-million Millennial Tower are all still pressing forward, according to the article. And while hotels, “an anchor tenant of many high-rise projects,” have seen significantly lowered occupancy rates in recent months, the Hilton Columbus Downtown “isn’t slowing plans for its 28-story, $220 million expansion.” Don Brown, executive director of the Franklin County Convention Facilities Authority, said, “[w]e’re confident the demand is there for 2022 and beyond.” For more, read the full article.

The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT)’s DriveOhio initiative “has finalized a study to expand electric vehicles (EV) access” throughout the state, identifying “key steps” needed to expand Ohio’s EV impact, Knox Pages reports. A key recommendation is to install EV charging stations “at least every 50 miles at strategic locations along interstate, state and US route corridors,” according to the article. In coordination with this study, the Ohio EPA is accepting applications for $3.5 million in grants to fund publicly accessible chargers in 26 counties (see our July 27, 2020 blog post); another $5 million in grants for Direct Current Fast chargers will be released in early 2021. Jack Marchbanks, Director of ODOT, said by working toward EV-friendly corridors, “Ohio will continue leading the way in the changing landscape of transportation.” For more, read the full article.

The Campbell City school district will invest $2 million in infrastructure upgrades to “convert all of its buildings to be powered by clean energy,” with work beginning later this summer, The Business Journal reports. The upgrades, including a hybrid solar and combined heat and power systems, “are being made at no cost to the community thanks to incentive programs,” according to the article. Matthew Bowen, superintendent of Campbell City Schools, said in a statement the school district will be free from the energy grid in 20 years and will “capture a full $300,000 annual benefit.” For more, read the full article. 

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is accepting applications for “$3.25 million in grants for publicly accessible electric vehicle [EV] charging stations,” according to a recent news release. Funding for the grants “comes from dollars allocated to Ohio from the Volkswagen Mitigation Trust Fund,” which requires states to develop a plan identifying how the money will be allocated for “10 allowable uses that can reduce nitrogen oxide emissions and offset damages,” according to the release. Eligible applicants “include public or private entities in the 26 counties that Ohio EPA has identified as eligible to receive funds”; applications will be accepted through September 30, 2020. For more, read the full news release.

The Ohio Development Services Agency (ODSA) is launching a $10-million revolving loan fund “to help women- and minority-owned businesses recover from the coronavirus fallout,” the Dayton Business Journal reports. Microlender Economic and Community Development Institute (ECDI) will administer the funds, loaning “up to $350,000 apiece to businesses at 2% interest,” according to the article. ECDI founder and CEO Inna Kinney said the nonprofit “aims to increase the fund by many multiples, kicking off a fundraising campaign to match the state dollars from the banks and local governments it works with.” For more, read the full article.