Plain City now has its own Community Improvement Corporation (CIC), an economic development tool that will help set the foundation for future growth.
Council members unanimously approved the creation of the Plain City Development Corporation during their most recent meeting. Council member Jim Eudaily was absent.
In May 2023, Development Manager Jason Stanford told council that he felt it was the right time for the village to create its own CIC, rather than relying solely on those of Union and Madison counties.
However, he noted that the Plain City Area Development Corporation will not replace the neighboring counties’ CICs. Stanford has also said he does not foresee any issues with Plain City representatives continuing to be involved with those two organizations.
He said the village’s CIC would help achieve the immediate goals of remedying utility issues and identifying sites for development.
A Community Improvement Corporation is a quasi-governmental nonprofit corporation that is allowed by Ohio law. They are given specific powers to achieve economic development goals.
Among the powers of CICs established by the Ohio Revised Code are the abilities to provide loans to individuals for businesses, to apply for and administer grants and to enter into contracts with federal, state and local governments.
Stanford previously said the power that would likely be most used in Plain City would be the CIC’s ability to buy, lease or sell real or personal property.
CICs can purchase parcels from a third party, then sell them to a developer for a specific economic development purpose. The funds generated by a sale or lease can then be deposited into the local government’s general fund.
CICs do have limitations, as Stanford has emphasized that they cannot exercise eminent domain or levy taxes, and can only recommend tax abatements to council.
The CIC will have an initial Board of Trustees that will act as a “caretaker” board, which Stanford said on January 3 would include himself, Eudaily, serving as a designee of Mayor Jody Carney, Council member Kerri Ferguson, Village Administrator Haley Lupton and Finance Director Renee Sonnett.
After filing articles of incorporation with the Secretary of State, the board will appoint remaining at-large trustees. The board will be comprised of between seven and 13 members, 40% of which must be village officials or representatives, as required by Ohio law.
The board will then draft and adopt a code of regulations for the CIC before the village appoints it as its “Economic Development Agent.”
Stanford said earlier this month that he would ideally like to have the process completed in the first quarter of the year.
In other business:
– Council unanimously approved the mayor’s recommended appointments to village boards and committees, including: Zachary Robbins and Erin DiGiralomo to the Board of Zoning Appeals, Sean Bischel and Emily Waldo to the Parks and Recreation Committee and TJ Tripp to the Board of the Mid-Ohio Water and Sewer District.
– Council unanimously approved the reestablishment of the Economic Development Committee.
Lupton explained that the measure was a formality after council decided during its work session to merge the committee with the Communication and Marketing Advisory Committee.
At the time, Council member James Sintz, who helped create and served on the communications committee, said he felt the merger made sense. Since there was often overlap between the two groups’ work, he said the communications committee “has struggled to see where we fit.”