Tuesday, December 18, 2018
Final reading, vote scheduled for Dec. 28
By Ed Runyan
LORDSTOWN
Village council gave a second reading to the TJX/HomeGoods enterprise zone agreement, but there was no debate Monday night on its merits.
Council is expected to give the final reading and vote on whether to approve it at a 5 p.m. meeting Dec. 28, Mayor Arno Hill said after the meeting.
The agreement provides a 75 percent tax abatement for 10 years on the increased property taxes resulting from the project.
It is a $140 million to $170 million project that would bring about 1,000 jobs to a 1.2 million-square-foot logistics facility the company wants to build at 3640 Ellsworth Bailey Road.
Solicitor Paul Dutton explained before the meeting two changes to the revenue-sharing agreement between the village and school district recommended by Lords- town Schools.
Superintendent Terry Armstrong and the school district’s legal counsel asked that the employer name for the project be changed from HomeGoods Inc. to “any employer involved with the project.”
Dutton said the reason for this is “we don’t know who the employer is. It could be TJX. It could be Marshall’s. It could be HomeGoods or some other entity.”
There is an income-tax-sharing agreement between the village and the school district that provides the district with half of the income tax generated by the project after the first million, Hill said. The village gets the first million. There is no abatement on the village’s income taxes.
A second change is the effective date of the income-tax-sharing agreement so that the tax sharing won’t occur until construction begins. It will last 10 years.
Having the tax-sharing begin when construction begins, possibly in the spring, means the school will not lose several months of revenue compared to starting as soon as the agreement is approved, Dutton said.
Council voted 5-0 to amend the ordinance, with Councilman Ron Radtka abstaining because he is one of the property owners involved with the TJX deal.
Council also unanimously voted on a resolution of support for the union and management employees at the General Motors Lordstown assembly plant affected by the recent announcement the automaker will discontinue production of the plant’s Chevrolet Cruze in March, idling the plant’s 1,600 workers.
Council also approved by a 4-3 vote the rezoning 117 acres of land owned by Mala Properties Limited from residential to Planned Unit Development District for a residential development on state Route 45 near Salt Springs Road. Hill broke the 3-3 tie.
Real-estate agent Jason Altobelli said the development will consist of up to 200 dwellings consisting of single-family homes, condominiums and villas.
Altobelli and Radka said the school district would welcome the additional students that would likely result from the development. Radka said the school district could accommodate about 200 more students in its current facilities.
Council members Karen Jones and Robert Bond questioned whether Hill can break ties, but Dutton said he believes he can. Dutton said he will provide a legal opinion at the next meeting clarifying the issue.