1.
 Team NEO Economic Development Impact Awards 2009 - A Message from Tom Waltermire
Issue: June 2009
Author(s): Tom Waltermire
Every year, hundreds of companies in the U.S. and throughout the world make decisions about where to invest next for growth. These investments are made in good times and bad, because even in a weak economy, businesses with innovative products or services continue to grow by penetrating their markets. In total, the many communities, counties and economic development organizations in Northeast Ohio helped attract and/or retain more than 6,000 jobs and $1.2 billion in capital investment in 2008. Team NEO i...
2.
 Team NEO Economic Development Impact Awards 2009 - Customer Fit
Issue: June 2009
Author(s): Eric Broder
Filing for bankruptcycan lead to better things. In this case, it led to a fresh start for a manufacturing company and a big economic boost to a community. In 2005, the Growth Partnership for Ashtabula County had come to the aid of NEO Plastics, a financially troubled, Austinburg Township-based manufacturer of rotational molding equipment. The company was undercapitalized, deeply in debt and unable to grow or make a profit. The Growth Partnership brought in industry experts as consultants to attempt to r...
3.
 Team NEO Economic Development Impact Awards 2009 - Drill Team
Issue: June 2009
Author(s): Eric Broder
American Augers was planning to expand — good news, right? The West Salem-based manufacturer of earth-boring machines, horizontal directional drills and other large underground equipment wanted to double its facility. The additional 106,000 square feet meant it could expand its offerings to the oil and gas industry. The $11 million expansion plan also meant 50 to 75 new jobs immediately and up to 150 in the future. But there was a hitch: American Augers needed much, much more electrical power than...
4.
 Team NEO Economic Development Impact Awards 2009 - Finalists
Issue: June 2009
Author(s): Eric Broder
Detroit Shoreway Community Development Project: Preservation and restoration of the Capitol Theatre It took two decades and $7 million, but the Capitol Theatre at West 65th Street and Detroit Avenue in Cleveland’s Gordon Square Arts District is worth it. The renovation of the 1920s-era Capitol Theatre into a three-screen independent movie house has become the cornerstone of economic rebirth for the Detroit Shoreway Neighborhood. Popular restaurants such as Luxe and Stone Mad have opened since the ...
5.
 Team NEO Economic Development Impact Awards 2009 - Fund House
Issue: June 2009
Author(s): Sarah Filius
Ashley Frantz was at the right school at the right time. As a business management student at Lorain County Community College, Frantz landed an internship with Wireless Environment, a local LED lighting company. Frantz sat in on a funding meeting, commented on product launch strategies and is now updating the company’s Web site. This opportunity was the result of a collaboration between LCCC Foundation and Northeast Ohio companies in an effort to grow jobs and spark commerce in the region — a...
6.
 Team NEO Economic Development Impact Awards 2009 - Good Guys
Issue: June 2009
Author(s): Matt Beargie
It’s not even 11:30 a.m., and the noise inside Five Guys Burgers and Fries has reached a small roar as customers swarm in for an early lunch and line cooks bark orders in the open kitchen. “Believe it or not, this is replicable,” shouts Randhir Sethi as he motions around his fast, casual burger restaurant. “We’re building more stores based on need.” In jeans and a casual button-down, Sethi is the inconspicuous CEO of Wholesome Burger, which franchises Five Guys Burger...
7.
 Team NEO Economic Development Impact Awards 2009 - Material Handling
Issue: June 2009
Author(s): Jennifer Keirn
Headed toward Akron’s economic future? Just set your GPS for the intersection of biomaterials and medicine. That’s the vision behind the BioInnovation Institute, created in 2008 through a partnership of five area institutions to refashion Akron as a global leader for research, product development and clinical care in these interrelated fields. Building on Akron’s Polymer Valley reputation and the region’s rich medical talent pool, the BioInnovation Institute aims to create a dist...
8.
 Team NEO Economic Development Impact Awards 2009 - Metal Toughness
Issue: June 2009
No one said economic development was easy, even on the best days. And this was not one of those days. It was a soggy Northeast Ohio day that left nothing but gray skies and drenched soil in all directions. Not the greatest first impression for corporate executives visiting sites for a new $64 million facility. Despite such meteorological challenges, it was Walter Good’s job to wow Republic Special Metals’ Canadian-based delegation, which was scouting sites in the Warren-Youngstown area for a...
9.
 Team NEO Economic Development Impact Awards 2009 - On the Plus Side
Issue: June 2009
Author(s): Sarah Filius
On Scott Berlin’s first day of work as a tax accountant at Cohen & Co., he was welcomed by a basket on his desk stuffed with a greeting from the partners, a Starbucks gift card and the latest edition of the Cleveland Plus visitors guide. That’s standard fare at the Cleveland-based CPA firm, which for the past year has partnered with Cleveland Plus, the regional marketing campaign founded by the Greater Cleveland Partnership, Positively Cleveland and Team NEO to promote the region. “Peo...
10.
 Team NEO Economic Development Impact Awards 2009 - Space Saver
Issue: June 2009
The space race began about two years ago for Myers Controlled Power. Construction of its made-to-order industrial electric switchgear was crammed into a Massillon facility. If one order stalled during assembly and had to be moved for other projects, it cost the company. A lot. Up to $70,000. Myers spent two years looking for a new address. They scoured sites in Akron, Cleveland and Youngstown without the right fit. “We were finding a lot of very old industrial properties that weren’t very ef...