Newsletter: Medina County Economic Development Corporation

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MCEDC E-Newsletter Vol. 6 Issue 2

Bethany Dentler, Executive Director

I would like to take this opportunity to wish each of you a very happy holiday season. 2009 has been a year of many successes and many challenges and I thank each of you for your support as MCEDC strives to strengthen Medina County and its business community. A note of personal thanks to the County's outgoing elected officials who have been a tremendous help to me this year. Also, congratulations to those newly elected – I look forward to building a strong working relationship with each of you.

For the past four years, I have served on the Board of Directors of the Ohio Economic Development Association, but due to term limits, my service will be completed at the end of 2009. However, be confident that I will keep Medina County's best interest in the forefront as I continue to serve on the OEDA Professional Development Council and various other committees.

Looking ahead to 2010, MCEDC plans to unveil a newly updated website so we can be more effective in helping Medina County to grow. We are working with Chad Allan Consulting to refresh the look and interactivity of the website, including the addition of social networking features.

I am truly enjoying my Leadership Medina County (LMC) class experience and am finding it very beneficial as I learn more about the County with each class day. My fellow classmate and MCEDC Executive Committee member, Robert P. Stall, President of Medina Hospital is the keynote speaker for this year's March 4, 2010 LMC Awareness Breakfast. The breakfast is an opportunity for anyone interested in learning more about LMC to gather information and talk with alumni and board members about the program. I encourage anyone who is interested in learning more about LMC and how to become part of this organization to visit http://www.leadershipmedinacounty.org/

Congressman John Bocceri speaks to the MCEDC Board of Trustees
The MCEDC Board of Trustees received a federal legislative update from Congressman Boccieri at our December 17, 2009 meeting. The Congressman addressed health care reform, funding for foreign wars and a less than lackluster national economy. He also discussed efforts to bring unused TARP funds back into the hands of small businesses, as well as pay for new infrastructure.

Membership Ourreach Initiative
The challenge to increase membership to ensure MCEDC's sustainability has been greatly increased over the past year due to the slow economy. MCEDC President-elect Mark Dorman recruited 20 MCEDC supporters to organize a very successful informational, membership outreach meeting on November 19, 2009. There were more than 40 potential new members in attendance. There was great feedback to the meeting, and we are very hopeful that we will see our membership grow. All members are encouraged to join our monthly meetings, which include an update on economic activity from each of our three cities as well as an informational program. View membership facts and application here.

SAVE THE DATE - JANUARY 26, 2010
The Medina County Economic Development Corporation’s 2010 Annual Meeting will be held at the Blair Center, Westfield Center at 6:00 p.m., Tuesday, January 26, 2010. The keynote speaker for the evening is John Myers, Executive in Residence with The University of Akron Research Foundation, who will focus on the innovation and progressive accomplishments coming from the university.

Welcome New Member: 20 Acres of Woods, LLC is a land development corporation locate at 945 Industrial Parkway, Brunswick.

Intro to Exporting Seminar
Numerous companies within the region are becoming more interested in learning about the benefits and challenges of exporting as a means to stay globally competitive. MCEDC partnered with the International Trade Assistance Center (ITAC) to bring an “Exporting Basics” seminar to the Medina County University Center on November 10, 2009. The seminar received an overall rating of Very Good from the 34 attendees.

Upcoming Ohio - UK Trade Mission
June 6-13, 2010: The Northeast Ohio Trade and Economic Consortium (NEOTEC) and the International Trade Assistance Center (ITAC) are organizing a manufacturers' trade mission to develop European business and look at the world's latest advanced technologies at the UK's leading trade show. View details here.

Recovery Zone Bond Program
Medina County Commissioners entertained four requests totaling more than $46 million for the county's $22 million allocation of Recovery Zone Bonds (RZBs):
Chippewa Landing Project: $17,804,000
Brunswick - Osborne Capital Project: $16,000,000
Medina County Fiber Network: $4,186,000
City of Medina Smith Road Corridor: $8,000,000

These low interest bonds, created by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Tax Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) can be used by both the private and the public sector within approved county recovery zones and are intended to stimulate economic activity. Allocation amount announcements are expected to be made by the early January 2010.

Medina County Fiber Network
The fiber network project is moving forward into the financing phase. The Fiber Network Committee requested $4,186,000 in Recovery Zone Bonds in a December 14, 2009 presentation to the Board of Medina County Commissioners. The Medina County Port Authority has also engaged bond counsel Squire, Sanders and Dempsey to finalize a construction/operations contract between the Medina County Port Authority and OneCommunity, a Cleveland based non-profit network company.

MCEDC Autumn Speaker Series & 2009 Medina County Business Awards
Fred M. DeGrandis, President & CEO of Cleveland Clinic Regional Hospitals, was the keynote speaker at the Medina County Economic Development Corporation's Autumn Speaker Series held in conjunction with the 2009 Medina County Business Awards on October 22, 2009.

The Medina County Business Awards, sponsored by Westfield Bank, continues to gain recognition and participation. There were 99 well qualified, deserving nominations for the six categories; those nominations were narrowed to three finalists in each category. A panel of three finalist judges, former Medina County Commissioners Ralph Berry and Chuck Hawley, along with Brian Tucker, Publisher/Editorial Director of Crain's Cleveland Business, had the difficult task of making the final selections.

The 2009 awards honored the Medina County companies and individuals who have made an impact on the business community for work completed in calendar year 2008. "Sustained Business Growth" was a new category this year, established by the finalist judges to honor a company that has shown sustained growth in revenue and employment for at least five years.

2009 Medina County Business Awards Finalists and Award Recipients
Presenters are Jon Park, Westfield Bank, MCEDC Executive Director Bethany Dentler, and MCEDC President William Koran
Corporate Citizen of the Year - Company Finalists: Homestead Insurance Agency, Inc. Stop'n Go of Medina World Truck Towing & Recovery Award Recipient: Stop'n Go of Medina, accepting is Rich Frank, Sales & Marketing Director
Corporate Citizen of the Year - Individual Finalists: Lori Betz, GTB Medical Services, Inc. Jon Park, Westfield Bank Thomas Whelan, Akron General Lodi Community Hospital Award Recipient: Lori Betz, GTB Medical Services, Inc., accepting is Co-owner Greg Betz
Capital Investment Finalists: Cletronics, Inc. Plum Creek Assisted Living Wellman Products Group Award Recipient: Wellman Products Group, accepting are Chad Oney, Director of Operations and Sara Owens, HR Manager.
Small Business Enterprise: Finalists: Griffith Holdings, Inc. Justice & Company VEXOR Technology, Inc. Award Recipient: Justice & Company, accepting are Laura and James Justice, Owners
Sustainability - Environmental Improvement 2009 New Category created by the finalist judges and awarded at their discretion: The finalist judges created a category to honor a Medina County Company that implements strategies for long-term sustainability and adopts behaviors and practices to secure our environmental future. Award Recipient: VEXOR Technology, Inc., accepting is Phil Stapf, President
Entrepreneur of the Year Finalists: Cletronics, Inc. Foundations Children's Products Inflatable Images Award Recipient: Inflatable Images, accepting is David Scherba, Vice President
Sustained Business Growth: Finalists: Clinical Research Management EBO Group, Inc. Sandridge Food Corporation Award Recipient: Sandridge Food Corporation, accepting are Bill Frantz, President & COO along with Mark Dolan, Executive Vice President

Bioscience Consortiums of Northeast Ohio
MCEDC remains active with the BioScience Consortium of Northeast Ohio which is a collaborative group of educators, science experts, and business professionals dedicated to creating opportunities for high school students to experience the sciences in an educational and real-world setting.

MCEDC invites you to visit our partners' websites.

Visit NEOTEC and JOED here.

Read the Pass the Plus newsletter here.

Visit Team Northeast Ohio here.

Medina County Economic Development Corporation - 330.722.9215 - info@medinacounty.org