Governor, various officials attend naming ceremony

The governor says the tech facilities are 'reinventing' the local economy.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR POLITICS WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Bob Taft, whose term as governor ends Jan. 7, got quite the goodbye present -- a new technology center in downtown Youngstown named in his honor.
"It's very exciting for me and Youngstown," Taft said Thursday after a ceremony naming the yet-to-be-built facility the Taft Technology Center. "I've had good days and bad days, and this is one of the great days."
During Taft's eight years as governor, the state provided 3.5 million of the 5.9 million needed for the project.
Taft is a longtime supporter of technology-based development, most notably through his Third Frontier initiative that provides money for high-tech companies.
"I can't think of a better place or facility to have my name attached," he said. "It's at the core of the economic improvement" of the Mahoning Valley.
It is the first place ever named for Taft.
Taft has visited the Youngstown Business Incubator, located next to the Taft Technology Center site on West Federal Street, several times.
The incubator and the center are vital components to improve the local and state economy, Taft said.
"The incubator has been an economic engine for" the area, he said. "You are reinventing the economy in the Mahoning Valley."
Location
Five buildings were demolished last month at the site of the Taft center. A request for proposals to design and build the center is expected next month.
The center is to be a stand-alone building of up to 30,000 square feet.
Mark Brown, a business incubator board member and general manager of The Vindicator, said Taft "had the biggest role in making this project possible."
Without the governor's assistance, the project wouldn't happen, Brown said.
The incubator's eight companies generate about 38 million in income and employ about 165, with an average annual salary of 58,000, according to the business incubator board of directors.
Taft, a Republican, said he's always felt a special responsibility to help areas of the state, such as the Valley, that face great economic struggles even though the area is heavily Democratic.
Taft said he'll sign the state's 2007 capital budget into law next week. The bill includes 2.75 million for a second YBI expansion project along West Federal Street. The total cost of that project is about 5.9 million with the work to be done in phases.
Taft, business incubator officials, Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams and U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, a Niles Democrat who represents Youngstown in the U.S. House, said they envision West Federal Street between Vindicator Square and Hazel Street as a high-tech center employing hundreds of people and leading the way toward economic prosperity for the area.
"Things are moving in this community," Ryan said. "We need reasons to have young people stay here, and this is one of the key components."
State legislators from Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties attended Thursday's event.
skolnick@vindy.com