June 2015

For TCS, talent, business climate are key

In our latest Economic Development video, Amar Naga, left, Director of North America Delivery Centers for Tata Consultancy Services in Miami Township, discusses the mission of TCS and why Clermont County is a good fit. The wooded Miami Township campus was one of 16 TCS looked at across the country. Talent availability and a responsive business climate made the difference.

Watch our video.

Port Authority works with Loveland Station

If you've traveled into historic downtown Loveland recently, you've undoubtedly noticed a large building going up at the corner of W. Loveland Avenue and 2nd Street.

Loveland Station, a $10 million mixed-use development, features 94 upscale apartments and 15,000 square feet of retail and commercial. The commercial space will be completed during the summer and the apartment units by the end of the year.

Financing for Loveland Station came together through the Clermont County Port Authority, which was established in July 2012 to facilitate economic development in the county. Loveland Station faced significant infrastructure costs, which threatened its viability, noted Andy Kuchta, director of the Clermont County Department of Community and Economic Development. The developer approached the Clermont County Port Authority in 2014 for assistance.

The Port provided conduit financing to facilitate an exemption of sales taxes on construction materials for the project. The Port owns the building and leases it to the developer, while the developer leases the land to the Port. Both leases are for a 7-year term with early termination clauses. The developer saved an estimated $250,000 in Ohio sales taxes on construction materials.

Other Port Authority projects in the last couple of years included Huhtamaki moving into the Batavia Ford Transmission Plant, leading to 260 new jobs in Batavia Township; and Jungle Jim's redevelopment of the old Bigg's Plaza, leading to 500 jobs in Union Township.

Read more here about the Port Authority

Auto Temp expands; tax exemptions OK'd

Auto Temp Inc., the Village of Batavia's largest manufacturer, is moving ahead with its latest expansion. The company, which makes curved and flat glass for automotive glass wholesalers, is building a 10,000-square-foot expansion to its plant on Kent Road and adding a new tempering furnace.

The company will create 15 new jobs with an increase in payroll of $468,000, and has committed to retain 150 employees and maintain its current annual payroll of $7.1 million.

At its June 1 regular council meeting, the Village of Batavia approved a 10-year, 75% Rural Enterprise Zone Agreement which abates the real property taxes, saving the company an estimated $80,000 over the life of the agreement. At their June 17 session, the Clermont County Commissioners approved a 75% 10-year tax exemption on real property improvements.

Several Clermont companies make Top 100

The Enquirer's annual Top 100 Workplaces was recently published, and several Clermont County companies made the list. Among the Top 10 large companies (500+ employees) were Total Quality Logistics of Union Township and American Modern Insurance Group of Batavia Township. In the midsize category (150-499 employees) was Alliance Data Retail Services of Miami Township. In the small company category (149 and under): Edward Jones Investments of Loveland and Sharefax Credit Union of Union Township. Congratulations to these Clermont County companies for their commitment to their employees.

Tools for exporters

Here is a tool you may want to know about: The U.S. Commercial Service maintains a website called www.export.gov, a go-to source of information about any topic having to do with trade. This includes a series of videos by experts who offer advice for such topics as Gathering International Market Intelligence and Finding and Managing International Partners.

Here are some other links you may find helpful:

* "Doing Business In" Guides
* Promote Products Overseas
* Trade Data & Analysis
* Export Controls & Licenses
* NAFTA Certificate
* Export Finance

The Clermont Chamber's third annual Business Technology Summit is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 28 at Holiday Inn & Suites Eastgate. This year's keynote speaker will be Shashank Saxena, Director of E-Commerce Technology at the Kroger Co. Earlybird pricing is available through July 31 for Clermont Chamber members. Clermont County is proud to be a sponsor of this event.

Find out more about the summit and sign up

1st quarter 2015 demand analysis

Featured property

Clermont transportation updates

Small business assistance

The Clermont County economic development newsletter is published quarterly.

CONTACT US	QUICK LINKS
ANDY KUCHTA ADELE EVANS	akuchta@clermontcountyohio.gov jaevans@clermontcountyohio.gov

Clermont County, Ohio | 101 East Main Street | Batavia | OH | 45103