ASHLAND — Simonson Construction Services plans to build an 11,000 square-foot facility on the company’s existing property, located at 2112 Troy Road.
The new facility is estimated to cost $3 million and will expand the company’s machine rigging and steel fabrication activities, Mayor Matt Miller said at Tuesday’s Ashland City council meeting.
“We’ve said before in these meetings, our economic development strategy involves three different aspects: the retention of jobs, the attraction of jobs and the expansion of jobs,” Miller told council. “This particular item on your agenda deals with the retention of jobs and expansion into the future.”
The property’s current office will become an equipment repair shop.
“They currently employ approximately 97 full-time, permanent positions, and although they were reluctant to give us a number in regard to how many they hoped to grow over the future, the president has assured me that they expect to grow steadily,” Miller said
Simonson Construction put in a community reinvestment area application requesting a 75-percent reduction in taxes on the new facility for the next 10 years.
The program is an economic development tool administered by municipal governments that provides real property tax exemptions for property owners who renovate existing or construct new buildings, according to the Ohio Department of Development.
“This is in mind of what we have offered to our other companies in the Industrial Park who have expanded their operation,” Miller said.
“Several years ago, they had a tax incentive for their last expansion, and they always performed well, always paid on time and, of course, we all know they certainly give back to the community in many different ways. 
So if we can help facilitate their growth, all the better,” Miller said.
Councilman Dan Lawson clarified that even though the company has a “tax discount,” it is still more property tax money coming in, as compared to a vacant lot.
Council approved the tax exemption, which only applies to the $3 million facility. Simonson Construction will still pay its full amount of property taxes on the rest of the property.
“In other words, we’re not going backwards. The city is not getting less money, the schools are not getting less money, the county’s not getting less money,” Miller said.
“It will still be getting more money than it was receiving before this project, just not the whole amount that it will receive ultimately in 10 years.”
