CUYAHOGA FALLS: Falls Council on Tuesday approved a tax break for a Marc Road factory planning to rebuild after being partially destroyed by fire in December.
Judson Waters, director of operations for Technicote Inc., told council last week the company is planning a 45,000-square-foot expansion.
About a dozen employees are expected to be added in the next two years, he said.
Technicote will pay only 50 percent of the property tax assessed for 15 years. That translates to a savings of about $35,000 annually.
Even with the tax abatement, Woodridge schools will receive more in property taxes once the construction is complete than they are receiving from the company now, according to Jennifer Syx, assistant director of development for the city.
On Dec. 16, firefighters were called to the factory at 3:49 a.m. By dawn, thick, black smoke from the factory could be seen for miles.
When Waters arrived on the scene about 11 a.m., firefighters were still spraying the smoldering building.
After the fire was extinguished, some of the employees stayed to clean up. Most others were sent to work in the company’s Indiana plant.
Waters said there was talk of closing the Falls plant, but that changed when he saw the dedication of the employees and the eagerness of city officials to help the company rebuild.
The company has been a fixture in the city for 30 years.
Gina Mace can be reached at ginamace2@gmail.com.
