First card placed on the table
July 15, 2015
By DEANNE JOHNSON - Staff Writer ([email protected]) , Morning Journal News
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COLUMBIANA - A development group would like to build a high-value metal company on Cherry Fork
Road and officials on Tuesday asked the Columbiana Planning Commission for some help getting
their project underway as early as mid-August.
Dennis McAndrew, a consultant with Amp Corp.; Sam Messina of Geis, a construction company hired
for the creation of the plant; Jen Dotson, an architect with Geis; and Todd Hunt, an attorney helping
them all through the process; gave the planning commission a small amount of information about
the rumored manufacturing plant. Then they asked the planning commission to help them with the
zoning of the property they propose to annex on Cherry Fork Road.
McAndrew said the project includes metal with several uses, including biomedical. The plant when
completed would create 120 jobs. He said the site on Cherry Fork Road was chosen after looking at
about 150 sites on paper and visiting 40 to 50 possible locations. He noted the area has many
people knowledgeable in working with metals along with colleges and other facilities training people
they need.
However, unlike other sites they looked at, the Cherry Fork Road property is not shovel ready. It is
still in Fairfield Township and needs to be annexed into Columbiana, where it can be added to the
city water, sewer and electric systems. Messina said the company is prepared to pay for the cost of
adding all three. The cost of the water and sewer is estimated at $1.4 million and the cost of the
electricity upgraded service to 69 kilovolts would be $500,000. The lines would then be the property
of the city.
Additionally, Dotson outlined the size of the project - 74,000 square feet of manufacturing space and
123,000 square feet of warehouse, along with 204 parking spaces and room for both growth and
storm water retention drainage.
But size of the facility was one of the issues they needed help from the planning commission. Neither
Industrial-2 or Industrial-3 zoning allows for any building to be taller than 65 feet. The facility they
needed to build is nearly 80 feet high. After some discussion, it was determined the 65 feet was not
probably set for any particular reason. The planning commission made a motion to send to council a
request to change the I-3 zoning requirement to 85 feet.
While planning commission chairman Dick Simpson said he is excited and in favor of industrial
expansion in the Columbiana area, he also questioned the secrecy of the project. He does not like
when people ask him what is coming and he has to tell them he does not know.
Simpson refused to move forward with the request of Hunt, who asked the commission to inform
council that if and when the property is annexed it should be zoned I-3.
Simpson pointed out the planning commission cannot zone property before it is in Columbiana. He
did offer he was not opposed to have special meetings to help move the zoning process along when
the time comes.
To continue on the annexation process, the group also plans to go before Fairfield Township trustees
on Thursday night, Columbiana council next Tuesday and then county commissioners as early as
that following Wednesday morning. All are steps they will have to go through on their way to
possibly breaking ground in August.
They also will be seeking some EPA approval. Because of all the steps and the oncoming winter,
Hunt said they are trying to do as many steps at the same time as possible.
Amp Corp. reportedly has a parent company, but the identity of that company was one of the
secrets the presenting group would not divulge on Tuesday. They noted it is a competitive project
and other competitors may try to foil the project.
Additionally, they would not talk in any detail about the type of metal or metals being produced,
except to note it is not hazardous and does not create any hazardous byproducts.
"The greatest danger that this material poses is if you dropped it on your foot," assured McAndrew.
"It's not radioactive. It's not poisonous It's not noxious in any way. The cooling water is not in
contact with the product... The scrap is recycled. It's created in a vacuum environment."
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