Regional chamber is hosting a JEDD forum on Oct. 1
Staff report
LIBERTY
The Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber is having a forum, “Joint Economic Development Districts 101: How JEDDs can pay off for your community and spur economic growth” from 10 a.m. to noon Tuesday at the Liberty Township Administration Building, 1315 Church Hill-Hubbard Road.
The forum is being offered to explain the JEDD process and show the real economic development potential for the Mahoning Valley from communities collaborating in the districts, said Sarah Boyarko, the chamber’s vice president for economic development, North America.
A JEDD allows the taxation of workers and companies to be split between cities or villages and townships at businesses in those townships in exchange for infrastructure development.
City, county, village and township elected officials and government employees from Trumbull and Mahoning counties are invited to attend the forum and learn more about JEDDs.
Featured speakers are Tom Pascarella, Tallmadge city administrator, and Pat Sauner, Tallmadge’s community-development director. Tallmadge has a JEDD agreement with Brimfield Township involving an economic-development project that has resulted in benefits for both communities. They will explain the JEDD process, their experience with a JEDD and answer questions from the audience.
Brimfield is in Portage County, while Tallmadge is primarily in Summit County with a portion in Portage from the annexation of small parts of Brimfield, which it borders.
Pascarella is a Girard native and a professor of public administration at Kent State University and Hiram College.
Also speaking will be Warren Safety-Service Director Enzo Cantalamessa and Vienna Township Trustee Phil Pegg. The city of Warren and Vienna Township had agreed earlier this year to collaborate on a JEDD in order to garner resources to bring a TV- assembly facility to Vienna. That project eventually went to South Carolina.
The forum is free, but RSVPs are requested by contacting Mandy Shina at the chamber, by phone, 330-744-2131, ext. 32, or by email at Amanda@regionalchamber.com.