TRUMBULL COUNTY Society gets paving funds

A steel company in Niles is seeking a $350,000 loan for improvements that will add jobs.
By AMANDA C. DAVIS
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- Fish sticks and potatoes were on the menu when the director and assistant director of the Trumbull County Planning Commission dined at the St. Vincent de Paul Society.
Director Gary Newbrough and Alan Knapp, his assistant, say the meal reaffirmed to them how important the facility is to those in need.
"They have good food," Newbrough said.
That importance is partly why the county approved a request last month to free up $3,000 in a Community Development Block Grant to repave the society's parking lot on Niles Road.
Granting the request allows the county to play an indirect part in helping people, Newbrough said.
Service: St. Vincent de Paul's dining hall serves meals five days a week, three weeks a month, to about 100 people a day. On average, 18,000 people have eaten there each year since 1989, Newbrough said.
The director said the county received more than $1 million in requests for CDBG funding this year but had only $450,000 to dole out.
Awarding loan: The planning commission, meanwhile, is recommending that county commissioners award a $350,000 revolving loan to HM Steel off Warren Avenue in Niles.
The company bought out the former Hunter Steel in recent months and plans to make $1.5 million in improvements, adding machinery and equipment. The loan would have a 6 percent fixed interest rate for 10 years.
The company qualifies for the loan because improvements will pave the way for 56 new jobs, Newbrough said.
The director said the county and Warren have jointly applied for a $564,000 grant from the Economic Development Administration for the Golden Triangle sewer project.
It would serve six businesses on Phoenix Road in Howland, helping to create or retain more than 200 jobs. Total cost is $940,000. Newbrough said bids will be sought.
Centenarians: A U.S. Census Bureau update highlighting ages of county residents shows that there is one male and one female 110 years old or older. Statistics do not say who the residents are or where they live.
The figures also show one male and two females between the ages of 105 and 109.
Altogether, there are 35 people living in Trumbull County who are more than 100 years old, Newbrough said.