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Trumbull County commissioners hold off on fairgrounds proposal
By Ed Runyan
WARREN
Trumbull County commissioners expect to hold off for a week on a proposal from county fair officials, who would like to place a levy on the ballot this November to make fairgrounds capital improvements.
Richard Roscoe, fair board president, first proposed the one-time levy more than a week ago, but the commissioners asked for more details before giving a yes or no answer to whether they would approve putting the measure on the ballot.
Commissioner Paul Heltzel said it’s likely that details will be ironed out by next week so that commissioners can vote on it then.
Earlier this week, county Auditor Adrian Biviano said a 0.2-mill levy would raise $683,000, which is the approximate amount the fair board says it would like to raise.
A 0.2-mill levy would cost Trumbull County taxpayers owning a $100,000 house about $6 per year, Biviano said.
Roscoe said the fairgrounds need a new perimeter fence, a fence in the grandstands to protect spectators from racing- related debris, post replacement on horse barns, repair of cracks in the concrete steps in the grandstand, electricity upgrades, restroom upgrades in two locations and replacement of roofs on four horse barns.
In other business, commissioners approved a 10-year enterprise zone agreement with Main Lite Electric Co. Inc., which plans to build a new facility on Sferra Avenue NW in Warren Commerce Park off of North River Road.
The agreement calls for a 75 percent reduction on real property taxes to be paid over the 10 years on Main Lite’s $600,000 to $800,000 investment.
Main Lite will build a 13,000-square- foot facility on four acres.
The abatement will save the company around $15,000 per year, or around $150,000 over 10 years, said Mark Zigmont of the Trumbull County Planning Commission.
Main Lite Electric is on Niles Road Southeast in a building of 6,000 to 8,000 square feet but needs room to expand, company officials said.
The company plans to hire three additional workers and 20 temporary full-time employees within three years of completion of the project.
Main Lite is an outside electrical-contract company, which maintains traffic signals for Mahoning and Trumbull counties. It regularly employs eight, but its employment levels change depending the time of the year.
Last year, employment peaked at 36, but the company hopes that number will rise to 50 after completion of the new facility, which could break ground this summer and be completed sometime next year.
Warren City Council approved the abatement June 8.