Western Reserve Port Authority to manage the CASTLO Industrial Park, CIC

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

The Western Reserve Port Authority will manage and market the CASTLO Industrial Park in Struthers and other activities of the CASTLO Community Improvement Corp.

The port authority, which runs the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport in Vienna and the NEO Development and Finance Authority economic-development group, authorized negotiations Wednesday to finalize a contract.

The contract will be with the CASTLO CIC, which runs the industrial park. The CIC will pay the port authority $3,200 per month.

Anthony Trevena, NEO director, said NEO will work on retention and expansion of businesses and industry, attraction of new businesses and industry and other programs.

A half-dozen or so businesses occupy 55 acres of the park. Another 65 acres have been cleaned through Clean Ohio grants and are ready to be developed.

William Binning, CASTLO board president, said in a news release that CASTLO is thankful the port authority is “stepping up and providing our park with their very able and professional economic development services.”

“The port will oversee all activities of the organization, including the management of the CASTLO Industrial Park and for the advancement, encouragement and promotion of the industrial, economic, commercial and civil development of the five CASTLO communities,” said John Moliterno, WRPA executive director.

The port authority’s public finance director, Sarah Lown, will be the point person at CASTLO, having served on the CASTLO board for many years and having been the grant writer for the Clean Ohio grants. The industrial park is on former steel property.

CASTLO is an acronym for the cities and village impacted by the loss of the steel industry – Campbell, Struthers and Lowellville.

Health issues forced the former director, Michael Hoza, to retire, Binning said.