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No job losses on the
horizon
Darke County Partnering for Progress…
By Bob Robinson
“For the first time, we are no longer in danger of losing jobs,” said
Darke County Economic Development Director Marc Saluk.
This was one of several “positives” noted by the county’s ED head at a
recent Partnering for Progress Quarterly Meeting at the Greenville Golf
Club.
Saluk reported 520 jobs retained or created, with another 147 new jobs
currently in progress. No possible job losses were on the office’s
radar.
“We haven’t experienced the recession like other communities,” he said.
“Many of the companies in our area are considering expansion or new
hiring.”
He noted that Ramco was planning to add several new jobs by the end of
the year, along with other planned, saved or recent hirings by the FRAM
Group, Continental Carbonic, Integrity Ambulance, JAFE, American
Plastic, Specialized Casting, and two yet-to-be-named companies that
could bring more than 100 new jobs.
They were also working on a possible expansion from Indiana that could
bring another 15 to 25 jobs.
Saluk made the point that these were not minimum wage jobs. The average
wage ranged from $12.75 to $22.40 an hour.
He noted that these were not huge companies with huge payrolls; they
were smaller companies bringing small but steady growth. He said he
wouldn’t ignore the possibility of a large company coming to Darke
County, but that a “positive” like that could turn into a “negative”
down the road if the company decided to leave the area.
“I would rather have ten “100-job” companies than one “1000-job”
company,” he said. “The way things are going, that’s what’s going to
happen anyway.”
Why did Darke County keep FRAM? Saluk had a lot of praise for the local
initiative from plant manager Larry Buck to keep the company here,
noting that he was told “efforts here were far more aggressive than
from any other city.”
Saluk told the group that the Office still maintains a strong grass
roots effort. He has been to the Pitsburg Lions Club, the Castine
Village Council and others; and these visits will continue.
“Three years ago, only 26 to 27 percent of the businesses in Darke
County knew of our existence. Today, they are learning. They call us
when they hear something.”
Saluk also brought the group up to date on the Office’s web site,
http://darkecounty.com/
He noted that the top two marketing tools that businesses use are
face-to-face and the Internet.
While face-to-face is always used when possible, the Development Office
and Darke County now have a strong Internet presence.
Osgood welding company, Dynamic Weld was honored as the Business of the
Quarter. Gene Niecamp, vice president and co-founder accepted the award
from Darke County Commissioner Mike Stegall.
State Rep. Jim Buchy told the group that Ohio is setting the stage for
real growth with the Utica shale oil and gas reserves in the eastern
part of the state.
“We could be the next Texas,” he said. “It has the potential for
unbelievable economic growth… we don’t have a grasp on its full
potential yet.”
Editor’s note: See companion story from Energy.aol: Utica Shale May Be
Its Own Energy Game-Changer
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