Friday, November 30, 2018
YOUNGSTOWN
Mayors from Mahoning and Trumbull counties will send letters to the president, governor and governor-elect to urge them to offer incentives to General Motors to invest in a new product at the Lordstown complex.
The Mahoning River Corridor Mayors Association met Friday at the downtown DoubleTree by Hilton hotel and discussed a draft of the letters, which will be sent early next week.
GM announced Monday it will cease production of the Lordstown-built Chevrolet Cruze and indefinitely idle the plant March 1. About 1,500 people work at the facility.
The letters will ask President Donald Trump, outgoing Gov. John Kasich and Gov.-elect Mike DeWine “for your assistance in responding to this crisis. We hope federal and state incentives could be offered to GM to induce investment in a new product line.”
If GM permanently closes the complex, the association will ask the government leaders to assist in “recruiting a different auto manufacturer” to the site. If that fails, the association will ask for help in getting GM to “give the property in Lordstown to the local community for redevelopment and job creation.”
The association includes the mayors of Youngstown, Warren, Struthers, Campbell, Lowellville, Newton Falls, Niles, Girard and McDonald.
Lordstown Mayor Arno Hill, who is not an association member, attended Friday’s meeting and said he’s still optimistic that the plant can be saved.
“They haven’t told us they’re going to permanently shut us down,” Hill said of GM. “I’m hopeful we’ll have a new line.”
Meanwhile, Ryan of Howland, D-13th, is asking members of the public to share their stories about what the plant means to the community.
Learn how and more about the situation in Saturday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.