Thursday, June 16, 2016
By Ed Runyan
WARREN
Trumbull County commissioners are praising Howland metal-framing manufacturer Flex-Strut Inc. as a “great company” that continues to grow and has met all the requirements of its two enterprise-zone agreements.
“They’ve expanded several times, and they’ve exceeded the requirements,” said Commissioner Frank Fuda. “It’s amazing when you go through. It’s so clean. It’s cleaner than some kitchens. And the workers are so appreciative of their jobs.”
Commissioner Dan Polivka added, “They’re a model company.”
On Wednesday, the commissioners approved Flex- Strut’s third expansion with an enterprise agreement since 2004 – an 11,870-square-foot, two-building addition to its Commonwealth Avenue facilities.
The company will invest between $900,000 and $1.7 million and hire eight full-time workers who collectively will make $235,000 annually, according to the Trumbull County Planning Commission, which administers county enterprise agreements.
Flex-Strut building products are used in places such as hospitals, schools and research labs across the country, according to the company’s website. This will be the company’s fifth expansion. Flex-Strut, whose president is Dale Gephardt Sr., employs 76 people and has an annual payroll of $3.5 million.
The enterprise agreement, also known as a tax abatement, will provide a 60 percent reduction on new real- estate taxes over 10 years. It prevents the company from having to pay $7,000 per year in new taxes, of which $1,200 annually would have gone to the county, said planner Julie Edwards. The Howland Township trustees approved the agreement last week.
The company has exceeded the requirements on both of its earlier enterprise agreements, Edwards said.
In the 2004 agreement, the company pledged to hire six full-time employees and two part-time workers with a payroll of $174,000 and invest at least $1.1 million.
As of December 2015, the company had employed 10 new workers with a payroll of $436,035 and an investment of $1.3 million, Edwards said.
In the 2010 agreement, Flex-Strut pledged to hire 10 full-time workers with a payroll of $262,000 and invest at least $2.25 million. As of December 2015, the company had hired 13 new workers with a payroll of $420,000 and an investment of $2.6 million.
The county has 13 enterprise agreements with various companies responsible for $117 million of new investment and 553 new jobs paying $22.4 million. The agreements also have retained 2,972 jobs, Edwards said.