Pickerington Area Taxpayers Alliance

Hey Pickerington, you paying attention???

CANAL WINCHESTER - A company that makes plastic fasteners and other parts for major automotive companies is expanding, a move that company officials say will create 15 jobs.
Nifco America Corp. will invest $1.2 million into renovating part of its facility and buying state-of-the-art computer and software equipment for its research and development department. The number of design and development engineers in that department will go from 15 to 30.
The average wage for design and development engineers is $24 per hour, said Rickey Blankenship, training coordinator for Nifco America Corp.
Investing in the research and development department will allow the company to stay competitive and manufacture an improved product, Blankenship said.
''Hiring research and development people could lead to many more jobs - who knows,'' Blankenship said.
Nifco America is a Japanese auto parts supplier. The company makes plastic fasteners that ''couple'' parts together, making up 90 percent of its business. The company also manufactures cup holders, molding garnishes that go around vehicle TVs and DVD players, and fuel chambers - better known as gas tanks.
The company's top three customers are Honda, Nissan and Toyota.
Nifco America built a 124,000-square-foot facility in Canal Point Industry and Commerce Park in 2000. The company relocated its corporate offices from Groveport to Canal Point last year, expanding the facility by another 39,000 square feet.
One-third of the facility will undergo renovations for the research and development expansion in addition to the purchase of computer hardware and software and training and development of new engineers.
The project shows the company's stability in the Canal Winchester and Fairfield County area, said Fairfield County Economic Development Director David Zak.
''By choosing to do their research and development here, they're strategically saying that Fairfield County is the place where they want to design and develop their products,'' Zak said. ''This is a major deal. We've been working on this for three months now.''
Negotiations with the state, county and village officials began in November 2005.
The Ohio Tax Credit Authority approved a 50 percent, five-year Job Creation Tax Credit for Nifco worth $75,000 Monday. The Ohio Department of Development also is offering the company a $15,000 training grant. A Community Reinvestment Area tax exemption on the property improvement will mean a savings of $123,000 over the next 15 years.
Obtaining incentives was critical for the project to move forward, Blankenship said.
''We have a global economy. One price fits all,'' Blankenship said. ''So we're competing with other branches of Nifco for this. We can take this back to our parent company in Japan and say, 'Look, we can do research and development right here' (in Canal Winchester).''
Originally published January 31, 2006

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Honey for Pickerington? -- NOT!!

Company Profile:
?• Company: Nifco America Corp., a Japanese auto parts supplier
?• President: Allen Hofmann
?• Founded: 1967. Nifco America began in 1987.
?• Headquarters: Canal Pointe Industry and Commerce Park, Canal Winchester. Nifco America also has manufacturing plants in Canal Winchester and Tennessee. The company has a sales facility in Troy, Mich.
?• Employees: About 460 employees at the Canal Pointe location
?• Average wage: $24 hourly for design and development engineers, $9.13 for entry level machine operators; wage may go up $1 annually if employees pass grade-level tests and fulfill job requirements
Sources: Rickey Blankenship, training coordinator for Nifco America Corp. and www.nifcoam.com.




How to apply:
To apply for a design and development engineer position or other positions, send resumes to Nifco America, 8015 Dove Parkway, Canal Winchester, Ohio 43110 or go to www.nifcoam.com.





What does Nifco make?
Nifco manufactures plastic fasteners that hold parts together as well as cup holders and fuel chambers, better known as gas tanks, for the automobile industry.
Sources: Rickey Blankenship, training coordinator for Nifco America Corp.




About the $1.2 million investment
Nifco is investing $1.2 million into expanding its research and development department. A breakdown of how some of the money will be used is listed below:
?• $450,000: To renovate about one-third of the 124,000-square-foot Nifco facility
?• $400,000: To purchase state-of-the-art computer hardware and software
?• $270,000: For training and development of new engineers
Source: Fairfield County Economic Development Director David Zak

What does Violet TWP do for PLSD

I think you folks need to look a little closer at the numbers on this deal at Canal Pointe just how much money will becoming into Violet Twp, The Village of Canal Winchester and the Canal Winchester schools.

The fifteen year tax abatement on the re-investment district basically gives the schools no new property values for the next fifteen years. This may well have a negative effect on the state funding for the schools. However there is some relief for the schools in that after the payroll reaches one million dollars the village must share their income tax revenues with the schools.

The seed money for this development came directly out of the Village of Canal Winchester taxpayer?’s pockets. I understand Violet Township continues to poor mouth every one as to why they can?’t afford to help with any of the initial expensives of economic development.

I know reading these glowing reports and the so-called accomplishments of this partnership between Canal and Violet everyone thinks the tax money will be rolling in but the truth is they will be lucky to keep their collective heads above water during the next fifteen years while the abatements run their course.

However once the Violet Township residents someday realize the big lie that has been played on them and their conspiracy with Canal Winchester to block Pickerington from reaching the available land in the township for development there will be a back lash.

Has anyone ever thought about why the township allowed properties like Haaf Farms and Glenshire to be developed? Then the township residents with the help of the bias from this web site developed high density housing in both Sycamore Creek and Spring Creek to block the City from future annexations. In addition when the city tried to annex further south to get to some of more commercially marketable properties along U S 33 the township trustees engaged the city in endless law suits that the city residents are still paying for.

It should be noted that the township operation director?’s family owns huge tracts of land in southern Violet Township and northern Bloom Township. All of these properties are in the Canal Winchester school district. At least one of the Violet township trustee?’s family owns property in southern Violet Township and wants to cash out some day.

So you folks that take glee in seeing Canal Winchester and Violet twp in partnership block efforts of City of Pickerington to actually do some economic development then also take a hard look at your feet because the majority of the township residents live in the PLSD and you are all shooting yourselves in the foot.

My message is not to say that Pickerington is the innocent victim in this process. They have made some real blunders and I suspect there was corruption running rampant prior to 2004 at 100 Lockville Road. However the township has opposed every annexation that I can remember and it all comes down to their 1.5 mill levy and their income. Nearly half of the school children in the PLSD come from the township and none of the recent development in Canal Pointe helps the tax base of PLSD. Maybe you township folks should start asking the hard questions.

What have you all done for yourself and your school district?

Can the township on its own do Ecomonic Development?





By Just wondering

Pickerington Blunders

As I remember it, Pickerington changed their land use plan along Diley Road from commercial, etc. to housing. Look at any annexations they passed and tell us where they located any commercial/light industrial ground. They have some ground currently in the City zoned Industrial and they have done nothing with that, so don't give the Township a black eye. Also, the City granted many TIF's which took 75% of the property tax money from the schools. In fact, the TIF along the railroad tracks has not brought in any money to pay it off(the City residents are paying thatoff,so the school will not get any money from that for a while yet. At least the Township has not done any of that at this
time.