State weighs credits for 2 projects

The projects would create more than 500 jobs in the Mahoning Valley.
By JEFF ORTEGA
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
COLUMBUS -- Ohio authorities are poised to approve state tax credits for two proposed Mahoning Valley projects that could bring more than 500 new jobs to the area.
The Ohio Tax Credit Authority will consider requests Monday from the West Telemarketing Corp. for a facility in Niles and from Famous Distribution in Sebring.
Even if the credits are approved, it's not certain that the two companies would open in Ohio.
The proposed tax credit for West Telemarketing Corp. is a 75 percent, five-year credit, and the proposed credit for Famous Distribution is a 55 percent, six-year credit, according to the state.
The proposed credits, if approved, would be against the companies' corporate franchise taxes.
"Any time you have that number of jobs coming to a region, it's going to make an impact," said Maria Smith, a spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Development.
In exchange for the credit, West Telemarketing Corp. proposes to create 492 full-time jobs in the establishment of an inbound customer-service call center in Niles. According to the agreement, the company would be required to be in operation at the Niles site for at least 10 years.
According to information filed with the state, WTC is one of the nation's leading providers of customer support with headquarters in Omaha, Neb. The company employs about 27,000 throughout the world.
The company processes more than 20 billion minutes of telephone-related transaction time for companies, the state said.
The company proposes to lease an 82,000-square-foot facility, formerly occupied by an MCI call center on U.S. Route 422, for the business. Company employees would process inbound calls from customer clients who will be placing orders for service, requesting product information and making inquiries on billing, the state said.
WTC estimates that 3 to 5 percent of the calls received by the center would come from in state and the company has told the state it plans to invest at least $1.8 million in the project.
That would include at least $1.75 million in machinery and equipment and about $50,000 in on-site improvements, the state said.
Sites in Colorado and Oklahoma are also being considered for the project, the state said.
Trumbull County and the city of Niles are expected to offer direct local financial support for the project as well.
The proposed tax credit would begin in January and end in 2009.
Famous Distribution project
Meanwhile, Famous Distribution proposes to create 30 new, full-time jobs and retain 17 as a result of the proposed expansion of its operations in Sebring.
As part of the agreement, the company would be required to remain in operation at the Sebring site for at least 12 years, the state said.
Based in Akron, Famous Distribution Inc. distributes heating, ventilation and cooling and plumbing products to contractors.
The company also provides training, technical support and product application recommendations and solutions to its customers, the state said.
The Sebring site is competing with Lawrence County, Pa., for the project, the state said.
The proposed Ohio incentives, including the proposed Job Creation Tax Credit, will offset the benefits available in a Keystone Opportunity Zone located in Lawrence County, the state said.
The Sebring facility is about 350,000 square feet on 19.5 acres.
Total investment
The proposed investment associated with this project would total at least $1.01 million, the state said.
The proposed tax credit would begin in January and end in 2011.
Mahoning County and the city of Sebring are also expected to offer incentives for the project through a 75 percent, 10-year Enterprise Zone tax incentive for new personal property.
In addition, the city of Sebring is to assign an existing 100 percent Community Reinvestment Area tax incentive to the company.
The tax credit authority is to meet at 10 a.m. Monday.