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Subway to locate in city’s building
YOUNGSTOWN
The board of control signed a five-year lease, with two five-year options, to have a Subway sandwich shop open in the city-owned 20 Federal Place.
Subway is expected to open in about 90 days at the current location of the Shops Downtown, a lottery and snack business that has been in that building, the former Phar-Mor headquarters, for about 20 years.
That main-floor location is a short distance from the building’s food court.
Shops Downtown may relocate to a spot in the food court, said T. Sharon Woodberry, the city’s economic-development director. Shops Downtown was on a month-to-month lease while Subway signed a long-term deal, she said.
The board of control approved the Subway contract at its Thursday meeting.
Subway will pay $9,650 annually in rent during its first two years at the city building at 20 W. Federal St. The annual rent increases to $9,939.50 in the third year, $10,229 in the fourth year and $10,537.80 in the fifth year.
The restaurant also will pay the standard common-space annual fee of $1.75 a square foot that all businesses pay at 20 Federal Place. That works out to $3,377.50 annually for Subway.
Subway has a restaurant on West Rayen Avenue across the street from Youngstown State University.
The new location’s customers primarily will be downtown employees, including those at 20 Federal Place, Woodberry said.
Also Thursday, the board of control approved a $2 million loan, with an interest rate of 0.25 percent for up to 12 months, for VXI Global Solutions for the call-center company’s expansion at 20 Federal Place.
VXI is spending $2.7 million for the expansion project on the building’s fifth floor and plans to add 500 jobs.
The work could be done by the end of the month, said city Finance Director David Bozanich.
VXI employs about 500 on the fourth floor of the city-owned building.
The Youngstown location handles inbound sales calls and customer-care calls that include providing information about products and billing for various companies.