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7/22/2009 Minutes of June 21, CIC Board of Trustees
COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT CORPORATION OF THE STEUBENVILLE OHIO AREA Meeting of the Board of Trustees – June 16, 2009 CALL TO ORDER President Kenneth Perkins called the meeting, held at the Jefferson County Airport, to order at 3:30 p.m. ROLL CALL Present: President Kenneth Perkins, Vice-President David Skiviat, Secretary Alex Marshall, Treasurer Dr. Edward Florak, Immediate Past President William Blake, Trustees Paul Prater, Robert Chapman, Jim Emmerling, Lisa Quattrochi, Kyle Brown, Bill Petrella, Jon Rogers, Thomas Gentile, David Maple, Matt Parise, Geno Morelli, Susan Hershey, Gary Folden Absent: Trustees B.J. Smith, Ross Patton, Robert Hargrave, Bill DeNoon, Derek Ferguson, Lou Petrozzi, Joseph Glaub, Robert Gribben, Huberta Siciliano, Dr. Laura Meeks, Brad Blair, John Riley, Severine Petras, Thomas Minor, Reese Slater, Richard Delatore, Fred Brower, Jay Zatta, Don Snyder, David Hindman, Dr. Thomas Graham, Domenick Mucci, Ed Chanoski, David Lalich, John Geddis Others in Attendance: Phillip Bender, Jefferson County Airport Operations Manager; Kathy Durheimer, ODOD; Executive Director Ed Looman, Ruth Casey, Joanna Styczenski, Progress Alliance; Paul Giannamore, Steubenville Herald-Star 09-06-01 Following the board’s review of the minutes of the CIC meeting of May 19, Trustee Blake made a motion that the minutes be approved as presented. Trustee Emmerling moved to second the motion, motion approved unanimously. Mr. Looman expressed his thanks and that of the board to Philip Bender, Operations Manager of the airport, for hosting the meeting, then introduced Mr. Bender to hear his remarks. Mr. Bender welcomed the board and its guests to the airport and said he hoped they would enjoy the visit. Mr. Bender said that the airport has a great opportunity to grow and provide additional services which will increase use of the facility. He said that he and Trustee Hershey had discussed what the airport represents to the community. The airport serves the entire area along U.S. 22 and has a vital role to play in the Jefferson County. The level of professionalism at the airport is the first thing you see when arriving at the airport. The next important step is to market the airport; in order to do that, you need something to market, which can be achieved by providing a positive experience to customers and visitors. A good first impression is essential. The importance of extending the airport runway to 5000+ feet cannot be overstated; this will make it possible to serve commercial flights. The runway is currently 4400’. Mr. Bender said that his first responsibility is aviation safety. His next goal is to have an airplane in every hangar. There is a real need for aviation maintenance at the facility. He hopes to take an already successful facility and extend its capacity and available services to incoming flights. REPORTS OF TRUSTEES AND COMMITTEES There were no reports to be presented by Trustees or Committees Treasurer Florak reported that he met with Ms. Casey to review all disbursements and deposits. He said everything was accounted for. On a personal note, Trustee Florak passed the hat for funds for the Relay for Life.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT Executive Director Ed Looman began by welcoming everyone to the meeting, then introduced Kathy Wurthheimer, Ohio Department of Development business service representative in Jefferson County. Ms. Durheimer said that the business service representatives are seeking to market ODOD services throughout Ohio, i.e., jobs available through Jobs & Family Services, the Connections one-stop facility located at the CAC for businesses and job-seekers, a list of available grants and loans, under the title “Ohio Means Business.” Mr. Looman thanked Ms. Durheimer for her information. Mr. Looman said that the state budget is currently calling for up to a 20% cut in ODOD funds, which would be a major blow to economic development throughout the state. The ODOD staff was a great help during negotiations for assistance for Wildfire Motors. He fears that these budget cuts could damage ODOD’s ability to work with companies looking to build or relocate. The 2009 Corridors of Opportunity event planning is moving forward, co-sponsored by Progress Alliance and the BDC of the Northern Panhandle. It will be at the Weirton Serbian-American Cultural Center of July 16. The theme is 3-2-1; “three counties, two states, one goal” to seek out development opportunities on a regional basis. The Herald-Star is again producing a resource guide for the event, which when completed can be used as a marketing tool by all three counties. Progress Alliance will again receive a few thousand copies for use in visits to businesses and industries locally, and for those outside the area. Mr. Looman said that he would like for everyone support the event by purchasing ads in the guide, and attending the Corridors of Opportunity event. Mr. Looman said that he is a charter member and co-chair of a new group, JMB Partnership, formed by Jefferson, Monroe and Belmont counties to seek economic development opportunities within the three counties. A meeting is scheduled for July 10 in the Incubator Kitchen of the Midway Community Center in Antioch, Monroe County. Anyone interested in attending the meeting to offer ideas and suggestions is welcome to attend. The Third Annual Bridge Invitational Golf Tournament will be held at the Steubenville Country on Friday, August 21. Mr. Looman said last year’s golf outing was a good day; the Invitational is something which might be presented jointly with BDC in the future. The CIC was one of the local organizations to lend support to the Jefferson County Community Investment Plan in 2008, which received rave reviews in Columbus. The implementation team continues to meet monthly, and will soon be gathering information about the progress made for a future series of stories. The implementation team will soon be soliciting community input regarding the plan, and Mr. Looman encourages everyone to provide feedback on the plan. Mr. Looman participated in a meeting on May 29 with Doug Schraeder, vice president of governmental relations for Severstal Steel, and Wilbur Winland, general manager of the Wheeling operation. Others taking part in the discussion were Chamber President Sue Hershey, Jefferson County Commissioner Dr. Thomas Graham, and Steubenville Mayor Domenic Mucci. During that meeting, Winland stated that Severstal is “here to stay.” He said the company is currently trying to minimize costs and survive these tough times. Winland said that the local operation of Severstal may become a mini-mill, based around the electric furnace in Mingo Junction, and will employ approximately 900 people. There was some discussion of marketing potentially vacant Severstal buildings and land in the future. Severstal said the company is looking at the long-term future of buildings and land, and said they will work with Mr. Looman to market them for sale or lease when the company has made a decision. Progress Alliance hosted a workshop on May 27, along with the Jefferson County Regional Planning Commission, to launch the Census 2010 effort. Mr. Looman said that the census effort locally will operate under the theme of “Be Jefferson County Proud – Be Counted!” Mr. Looman announced that a meeting of the Industrial Park Committee will be held at Wildfire Motors in the Industrial Park on June 23, and a “Lenders’ Luncheon” to familiarize local banks with the Revolving Loan Fund available from Progress Alliance will take place on June 24 at the Holiday Inn. ADJOURNMENT 09-06-02 Trustee Brown made a motion that the meeting be adjourned. Trustee Skiviat seconded the motion; motion approved unanimously. President Perkins declared the meeting adjourned at 4:26 p.m. Kenneth R. Perkins, President Date Community Improvement Corporation of the Steubenville, Ohio, Area Minutes prepared by Ruth Casey |
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