8/2/2012 - West Side Leader
     

At the July 24 meeting, the Sharon Township Board of Trustees approved an agreement to allow SFS intec Inc., located on Portside Drive just off state Route 18, a partial tax abatement on new construction.

As the business expands, it anticipates adding 85 jobs during the next four to five years, and the Sharon location may become the company’s new North American headquarters, according to Trustee Ray Lurtz.

SFS asked for 50 percent abatement on property taxes on the new construction for the next 14 years, which is estimated to save the business $653,000 on the $32 million project, he said. The business is planning to double in size, he added.

Starting in November 1997, SFS was the first business in the township to receive full tax abatement, he said.

SFS intec Inc. is a global supply partner, manufacturer and supplier of precision cold-formed components, special fasteners and mechanical fastening systems, according to the business’ North American website. Headquartered in Switzerland, the Sharon Township arm was granted full tax abatement for 10 years and partial tax abatement for an additional four years, according to trustees.

Now in its 15th year in the township, the company is paying full taxes, which it will continue to pay on the existing structure, noted Lurtz.

The Highland Local Schools District has agreed to the plan by approving a Community Reinvestment Area Compensation Agreement with the business, which involves the business giving a lump sum of $10,000 annually to the district, said Lurtz.

The last hurdle is for the Medina County commissioners to approve the abatement, he said. However, the site in Sharon is in competition with one other site, he added.

In other business, Lurtz noted trustees sent a letter last week to Karvo Paving Co., of Stow, to try to clear up a payment dispute. Karvo did roadwork in the township in the fall of 2011, for which the township received an invoice for $165,000, he said. Trustees sent a check for $140,000 in January of this year, they noted.

The work was never completed, and the township was overcharged by $14,000, according to Lurtz. Also, the business has not responded to calls from Lurtz, he said.

Also, trustees noted their opposition to a proposal for a countywide heavy-equipment sharing program. Trustee Kimberly Bolas Miller said she attended a meeting with other officials in the county and expressed the township’s concern that lent equipment may not be necessarily cared for properly by borrowing communities.

While part of the discussion included the possibility of lending an operator along with a piece of borrowed machinery, trustees still are not interested, they said.

Trustee Brian Guccion pointed out the township has not hesitated to help its neighbors in the past, including Granger, Montville and Medina townships, and they would be willing to help others.

Sharon has borrowed items from other communities as well, said trustees.

In other business, trustees approved:

• placing a 2-mill road and bridge replacement levy on the Nov. 6 General Election ballot. Bolas Miller noted the levy is the only outside millage received by the township for road and bridge work;

• spending $1,840 for resealing and striping the Sharon Fire Station parking lot;

• spending $1,300 to level concrete and fill in joints on Sharon Woods Road; and

• allowing a plat change for Lot 23 in the Harvest Mill subdivision to move the driveway. Trustees also said they would help get the change approved at the county level.

Also, trustees held an executive session initiated by Fire Chief Rob Haas to discuss possible litigation, which did not result in any action.

Also at the meeting, resident Kathie Jones, representing the Concerned Citizens of Medina County, announced that the public, health care providers, first responders and elected officials are invited to a presentation to be given by Dr. Deborah Cowden, president of the Greene County Medical Society, on “The Effects of Fracking Toxins on the Body,” to be held Aug. 8 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Unity Life Enrichment Center at Williams on the Lake, 787 Lafayette Road in Medina. A water-testing presentation will be given by Precision Analytical, she said. Also, a free raffle for a Tier 1 water testing kit will be held, and maps of Medina County parcels leased for fracking will be available for viewing, she added. For more information, the Concerned Citizens’ website is www.fracking.weebly.com.

In other calendar items, Guccion reminded the audience the Medina County Fair, which began July 30, will run through Aug. 5 at the Medina County Fairgrounds. [For photos of that event, see Page 9.]

Trustees next will meet Aug. 14 at 7 p.m. in the Administration Building on Sharon Circle.

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