There was an article in Time or Newsweek that listed the ten reasons why the price of oil going up is a good thing.  One of the obvious but related reasons was that people will start moving back to cities and stop sprawling everywhere.  Jobs often follow people (and vice versa) so while we may have lost 40k jobs in the last 8 years, there is plenty of room for hope!  The biggest problem is this adjustment period and how long it'll last (are we talking about a decade?  a generation?  multiple?)

FULL ARTICLE AT: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080727/BUSINESS09/322675054

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Article published July 27, 2008

 

Manufacturing losses exact rising toll in northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan

5,300 jobs disappear over last 2 years

 

By TOM TROY and LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE

BLADE STAFF WRITERS

 

The pudding cups are gone.

 

So are the hot dogs, and bumper covers, and spark plugs.

 

Even the toilets in Tiffin have been flushed away.

 

Northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan have lost nearly 5,300 manufacturing jobs in less than two years, according to state and federal unemployment filings. And another 2,100 high-paying manufacturing jobs in the region are scheduled to disappear from the Toledo-area’s economic map in the next several months...

 

Contact Tom Troy at:[email protected] 419-724-6058.

 

Link to map of job losses:http://www.toledoblade.com/assets/pdf/TO51488727.PDF

Where's the source? I thought Hamilton Cnty was at 6.2%?

 

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/03/03/us/20090303_LEONHARDT.html

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/09/AR2009050900913.html

 

In Toledo, Downturn Empties Offices

White-Collar Workers Reeling as Layoffs Force Them to Remake Their Lives

 

By Peter Slevin

Washington Post Staff Writer

Sunday, May 10, 2009

 

TOLEDO -- Rob Noonan's friends think he's a sucker. Laid off from his $140,000-a-year construction management job when the credit markets froze, he still shows up at work, one man working without pay in a cluster of vacant cubicles, trying to make something out of nothing.

 

While friends are mystified that he would toil for the developer who fired him after 16 years, Noonan figures voluntary work is his best path to a real job at real pay. And in an employment market this awful, he adds, "I really don't have anything better to do."

 

Article continues: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/09/AR2009050900913_pf.html.

Oh man I hear you on that.  Looks it will be part time work for me for awhile in this region (though I've found some good full time leads out on the East and West coasts). 

 

I do disagree that these cities will shrink into ghost towns.  We really can't accurately predict a future for rust belt cities, and there will always be people living in the Toledo and Detroit regions.  It's just a matter of downtowns reshaping themselves as a center of commerce, and offering incentives for businesses (what are left) to concentrate there.

 

The growth models for Detroit 2045 don't show further decline of the city below 700,000 residents.  That's even after it is assumed the Automakers and their suppliers go completely out of business.  I believe it.  Take a town like Saginaw, MI where during the 70's they began to automate all the plants with robots, and began staffing some factories with cheaper labor.  The East Side of the city pretty much collapsed, but the West side continued along as if nothing ever happened.  People are starting to buy up these cheap homes on the East side, and moving back in.  Saginaw is struggling, but it's not in crisis.  This recession has no doubt had an impact in the number of workers downtown, but they'll rebound as the economy improves.

 

These next few decades are about to get really interesting in the field of planning.  Medium sized cities similar to Toledo are beginning to embrace this concept of reconcentrating populations to provide them better services and housing.  It's a reaction against "the ghost town" phenomenon where there is islanding of occupied housing amongst swaths of abandonment.

I think the interesting angle is white-collar downward mobility.  $140K to nothing....though i think this guy is going to land on his feet eventually since he was doing a sort of managerial position which required some degree of technical expertise.

 

 

Oh man I hear you on that. Looks it will be part time work for me for awhile in this region (though I've found some good full time leads out on the East and West coasts).

 

I do disagree that these cities will shrink into ghost towns. We really can't accurately predict a future for rust belt cities, and there will always be people living in the Toledo and Detroit regions. It's just a matter of downtowns reshaping themselves as a center of commerce, and offering incentives for businesses (what are left) to concentrate there.

 

The growth models for Detroit 2045 don't show further decline of the city below 700,000 residents. That's even after it is assumed the Automakers and their suppliers go completely out of business. I believe it. Take a town like Saginaw, MI where during the 70's they began to automate all the plants with robots, and began staffing some factories with cheaper labor. The East Side of the city pretty much collapsed, but the West side continued along as if nothing ever happened. People are starting to buy up these cheap homes on the East side, and moving back in. Saginaw is struggling, but it's not in crisis. This recession has no doubt had an impact in the number of workers downtown, but they'll rebound as the economy improves.

 

These next few decades are about to get really interesting in the field of planning. Medium sized cities similar to Toledo are beginning to embrace this concept of reconcentrating populations to provide them better services and housing. It's a reaction against "the ghost town" phenomenon where there is islanding of occupied housing amongst swaths of abandonment.

 

yeah, saginaw good example. you can also look at lorain/youngstown for smaller but still relevant models who were totally rocked in the early eighties. lorain has tried to diversify business and reinvent itself as more of a suburb. it was hit so badly i think at least maintaining a stagnant population is actually an indication of lo-rung success there, although there is plenty of abandonment. youngstown is of course famously and most interestingly dealing with it's post economic collapse and abandonment by physically reinventing the city itself.

 

i think toledo being larger already has enough economic diversity to ride this out. i doubt the population will change much there, it's pretty stable. still, as the local industry changes they too will need to take yet another unique approach to dealing with this crisis. just don't let it be too many low-paying service industry jobs and call centers-ugh!

 

 

Toledo has the potential. It needs to follow the Grand Rapids, MI model...by making every attempt to be the anit-Detroit. With the new arena, they are well on their way.

 

Precisely.  Good leadership, innovative thinking, and investment in civic structures, museums, parks etc. are key to keeping people around.  You want people to try and stick around, even when the job market is rough.  I know some people who haven't found jobs yet and refuse to leave Grand Rapids no matter what, just because it's a nice place to live.

I actually think UT provides more value added to the city than the city or the university appreciates. Especially with the combo of UT and MCO, the city has a serious full-line university. There are a lot of bigger cities out there that can't claim that. It also looks like UT will be a winner in the Ohio's transformation of the higher system (BGSU on the other hand looks to be a loser).

I actually think UT provides more value added to the city than the city or the university appreciates. Especially with the combo of UT and MCO, the city has a serious full-line university. There are a lot of bigger cities out there that can't claim that. It also looks like UT will be a winner in the Ohio's transformation of the higher system (BGSU on the other hand looks to be a loser).

 

i had a year-long bgsu internship at mco and it is a wonderful, wonderful teaching facility. top notch. it always seemed to be understood that it would merge with ut at some point. good that it finally did, tying into those resources probably saved it. yeah, no question ut/mco is big as well as somewhat underestimated in the mix of the toledo economy.

 

There is a long and dirty history of why UT didn't get MCO originally. Someone may know it, I only have a vague recollection, but suffice to say that it was not a bright and shining moment in the history of Ohio Higher Ed.

you're right about that, i don't recall the story either. maybe someone else does?

Here's a link with a brief history of the Medical College of Ohio, minus any scandal.

 

http://hsc.utoledo.edu/history/briefhistory.html

 

Anyway, I'm sitting in the computer lounge at UTMC (its new name). I'm graduating next week, and will be fleeing to the cleve afterward.  The university sucked me in and I stimulated Toledo's economy for a while.

Here's a link with a brief history of the Medical College of Ohio, minus any scandal.

 

http://hsc.utoledo.edu/history/briefhistory.html

 

Anyway, I'm sitting in the computer lounge at UTMC (its new name). I'm graduating next week, and will be fleeing to the cleve afterward.  The university sucked me in and I stimulated Toledo's economy for a while.

 

.....and we will welcome you home with open arms you little lopsidedfuck!  Come to papa!

...And we've heard so much good news about Providence.

 

 

Cities that did well tended to have economies tied to oil and gas exploration, military employment, education, and government.

 

San Antonio isn't in the oil patch but it has three big mitary bases:  Lackland AFB, Randoph AFB (which is a headquarters base) and Fort Sam Houston.  It used to be even more defense related back when it had Kelly AFB (which was huge) and smaller Brooks AFB, which is being moved to Dayton (the activities there, not the base).

 

That Brookings study is a lot of fun as they map things out, too, and provide some lists of rankings.  One should note that the study measures mulitple dimensions so places that suck in one dimension do better in another. 

 

 

 

The rating is based on recent and long-term increases in unemployment, changes in the overall economy, and depreciation of house prices.

 

That ranking is completely flawed for the reasons I bolded above. It's not measuring which economies are actually worst. It's merely measuring which ones have fallen the farthest since Dec 2007, without measuring their final strength.

 

In other words, they are only ranking the current rate of change, not the result of the change. It's really really stupid. It's like measuring a race by comparing each runner's result to their personal best, rather than the order in which they actually finished.

 

(Note: there's nothing wrong with the study. It's just that this newspaper is misinterpreting what the study means)

 

Not to ruffle any feathers, but certain cities on the "worst" list (like Tampa and Jacksonville) are still much stronger economically than virtually any city in Ohio. Lower taxes, smaller deficits, more population growth, etc. Even though they've "crashed", the size of their previous "booms" has basically cancelled it out.

 

Of course, this is yet another reminder of how bad things are in Detroit, as it still declined the fastest, even though it wasn't part of the inflated real estate boom like CA and FL.

Where's the complete list?

To download the full report pdf, click here.  The full listing is on pages 19 and 20 of the pdf.

 

^ were hit hard more by the fall out of the real estate market as opposed to the collapse of any industry.

 

I read an article in the Phoenix, AZ paper a couple of years ago that said, basically, that homebuilding WAS the major industry in the area.  This directly from the Pheonix newspaper itself.

 

Hey, let's manipulate the results real fast...

 

If we change the "Change in Gross Metro Output (colum 4, pag 19/20 in the pdf) to "NA" for all Ohio cities, then our placing in that category would be 1 - first place.  Just look at Austin and McCallen Texas.

 

So if all Ohio cities can withold their local GDP number, then we would all get much higher rankings!

 

I know Detroit and Toledo were very weak before the "recession" started in December 2007, and it's been all downhill since then. I bet Providence was similar.

 

Providence is a really interesting case. From an urban planning standpoint, they've done almost everything right. Most major infrastructure projects over the past 15-20 years have been very well done. The result is a rather beautiful urban core.

 

On the other side of the coin, the city government is impossibly corrupt (which is probably why they've been able to push through absolutely *perfect* urban redevelopment). The city has virtually no private industry, high taxes, insane debt, and a huge bloated bureaucrasy. At this point, the city only exists to provide inflated pensions to its army of employees.

 

Providence - while a stunning renaissance on the surface - is a shocking house of cards, economically.

My impression is that Providence basically tried to piggy-back on the over-priced nature of NY and Boston land and general economic activity over the last decade.

Scholarship cash lures Ohio grads to Toledo

University enrollment booming after full-ride offer to 21 cities' seniors

Saturday,  August 8, 2009 - 2:59 AM

By Encarnacion Pyle, The Columbus Dispatch

 

The University of Toledo will have three times as many freshmen from Columbus this coming school year as it did a year ago, and nearly half of them will receive a full academic scholarship. "We wanted more students from Columbus, and we're definitely getting them," said Kevin Kucera, associate vice president of enrollment service.  The number of Columbus freshmen at the school will increase 222 percent, from 37 last year to 119 in the fall -- the largest net gain of new students from any Ohio city, Kucera said.  Cleveland comes in a close second with 72 more freshmen, followed by Toledo with an additional 55.  Overall, the number of first-year students from the state's 21 largest cities will nearly double, to 803 students, he said.

 

Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2009/08/08/toledobound.ART_ART_08-08-09_B1_SMEN9AH.html?type=rss&cat=&sid=101

Excellent lead article in the US section on Toledo's Xunlight and other Midwest initiatives on green energy.

 

http://www.economist.com/world/unitedstates/displaystory.cfm?story_id=14214855

 

 

Good article that well describes the Catch-22 of clean energy in the Rust Belt. I don't know enough about the debate to comment intelligently on it, but it seems like a problem of culture as much as technology or economics. We don't hear enough about small manufacturers acting w/environmental awareness in these parts and hear all the time about "big steel" and "big autos" and their pollutive (my own word!) ways.

I don't think it's a catch-22 situation for it.  It's just a high stakes game, moreso for us than for non manufacturing intensive areas of the country.  If we play our cards right, we can renew our industrial sector with new products.  If not, we get left even further in the dust.  But then, we haven't been good card players in at least 3 generations.

News that would make Corporal Klinger weep:

 

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Article published August 19, 2010

 

Fifth Third files foreclosure suit against Tony Packo's

 

By JON CHAVEZ

BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

 

Tony Packo's Inc., a famous Toledo restaurant chain already entangled in a family feud, now has its lender filing for foreclosure and seeking a court-appointed receiver.

 

The filings Wednesday by Fifth Third Bank, which claims it is owed $2.7 million, follow a legal battle that emerged in the last month in which one Packo family member is suing others, citing questionable transactions and the possible insolvency of the business.

 

Full story at: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100819/BUSINESS03/8190305

 

The auto industry seems to have hit bottom, and Chrysler and GM avoided implosion, which two years ago seemed liked a real possibility. Despite the thousands of layoffs, there are still thousands of auto manufacturing jobs left in Toledo. Libbey Glass posted huge gains last year due to an upswing in bar/restaurant sales (sign of national recovery since Libbey has the largest market share in the commercial food service industry). Now OC is starting to boom again. Has Toledo finally hit rock bottom?

 

Profits soar 1,358 percent for Owens Corning

BY SHEENA HARRISON

BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

 

Owens Corning said Wednesday that increased sales in fiber-glass reinforcements and other composite materials helped push the Toledo company to a 1,358 percent increase in profits last year. The manufacturer of building materials reported a profit of $933 million, or $7.37 a share, last year, compared to $64 million, or 50 cents a share, in 2009. Revenue for OC increased 4.1 percent to nearly $5 billion in 2010, up from $4.8 billion the previous year. For the fourth quarter, the downtown company reported a loss of $110 million, or 89 cents a share, on sales of $1.2 billion. The year before for the same period, it had a loss of $21 million, or 17 cents a share, on sales of $1.2 billion.

 

In a conference call with analysts, the company said increased global demand and selling prices contributed to an "impressive turnaround" for its composite materials business, which makes fiber-glass reinforcements for other products. Global industrial demand is expected to generate "double-digit growth" for that segment again in 2011, Chief Executive Mike Thaman said during the presentation.

 

CONTINUED ON BLADE SITE

http://beta.toledoblade.com/frontpage/2011/02/17/Profits-soar-1-358-percent-for-Owens-Corning.html

I may have spoken too soon about Toledo hitting bottom. And look at Ottawa County! :-o

 

Published: 3/9/2011 - Updated: 3 hours ago

Jobless rates soar in metro Toledo

BLADE STAFF

 

The unemployment rates across metro Toledo shot up sharply in January as seasonal workers were laid off, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services said Wednesday morning. In Lucas County, the jobless rate climbed a full percentage point to 11 percent, from a revised 10 percent in December. For the city of Toledo, the jobless rate was 11.3 percent in January, up from 10.5 percent in December.  The jobless rate also rose sharply in Wood, Ottawa, and Fulton counties for January, the state said. In Wood, it went to  9.8 percent from 9.1 percent in December. In Fulton, it climbed to 12.8 percent from 10.7 percent in December, and in Ottawa, it rose to 18.9 percent from 16.5 percent the month before.

 

The statewide rate, released last week, was 9.4 percent in January, down from 9.5 percent.

 

http://beta.toledoblade.com/Economy/2011/03/09/Jobless-rates-soar-in-metro-Toledo.html

BAX Global to close hub at Toledo Express; 700 jobs lost

BY LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE

BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

 

BAX Global Inc., a division of German transportation giant DB Schenker, announced Friday that it will close its U.S. air hub at Toledo Express Airport and sell its fleet of planes as part of what it is calling a “strategic realignment” of its North American business model.

 

About 700 jobs, mostly part-time, will be affected, the company said. Some employees will be given an opportunity to "redeploy to other parts of our business," the company said.

 

"We deeply regret that there will be some layoffs as part of this realignment. However, we are working to redeploy as many employees as possible to other parts of our business," Heiner Murmann, chief executive officer of Schenker, said in a written statement. "Our employees represent the cornerstone of our company and we will treat all affected personnel in an open, transparent and respectful manner throughout this transition."

 

The Toledo Express operation has been a key U.S. hub for the air-freight shipping company.

 

Contact Larry P. Vellequette at:

[email protected] or

419-724-6091

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2011/07/22/BAX-Global-to-close-hub-at-Toledo-Express-700-jobs-lost.html

 

Best news out of Toledo in years. Jeep is adding 1100 high-paying jobs (very high-paying by Toledo standards). It sounds like the Detroit 3 are back and swinging.

 

Jeep expansion to add 1,100 jobs

Chrysler plans initial investment of $365 million at Toledo complex

BY LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE

BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

 

Chrysler Group LLC plans to invest at least $365 million to expand and improve its Toledo Assembly Complex, adding a second shift with 1,105 jobs to the plant that currently builds the Jeep Liberty and Dodge Nitro SUVs, The Blade has learned. Analysts believe the investment could be the first of a number of expansions — and additional jobs — at the site in future years as the automaker ramps up production to meet global demand for up to seven different current and future vehicles, including the iconic Jeep Wrangler. While Chrysler’s current plans only list a second shift, a third shift at the Toledo North Plant could come if additional demand develops for new products, but that could be several years away.

 

Details of the automaker’s plans are contained in a city tax abatement application filed by Chrysler that is to be discussed at a meeting Thursday between the city and Toledo Public Schools. The expansion will deliver a significant impact across a broad swath of the area economy: construction jobs for an $8 million expansion of the plant’s body shop, $357 million to retool and equip the complex, and a boost to the region’s manufacturing sector from added jobs by Chrysler and its many area suppliers.

 

“What we’ve learned, if nothing else, is that this will be a great day,” Toledo Mayor Mike Bell said.

 

Chrysler officially would not confirm the application’s details because a state incentive package is not finalized. But it gave The Blade this statement:

 

“In January, 2011, Chrysler Group CEO Sergio Marchionne confirmed that the company was considering a possible investment in its Toledo Assembly Complex. As part of the process, Chrysler Group is working with state and local governments to secure incentives that would support the business case for such an investment. However, any decision to invest in the Toledo facility would be contingent upon final approval of state and local incentives and final acceptance of all agreements by the company.”

 

Chrysler expects to complete its expansion by 2013, according to the application. It will add $36 million in payroll through 1,050 new production jobs at $14.65 per hour, and 55 management jobs at about $90,500 each annually.

 

CONTINUED ON BLADE SITE (gigantic story with follow-up stories and graphics)

http://www.toledoblade.com/Automotive/2011/08/11/Jeep-expansion-to-add-1-100-jobs.html

Published: 8/12/2011 - Updated: 2 days ago

A NEW VISION FOR JEEP

Chrysler looks at even bigger plans for Toledo

$15M 2nd phase of expansion has been mulled

BY LARRY P. VELLEQUETTE

BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

 

As Chrysler employees and metro Toledo celebrated the news Thursday that the automaker plans to add 1,105 jobs to its local work force, new documents released by the City of Toledo indicate that the automaker's future plans for its Toledo Assembly complex may be grander than first thought.

 

In an April letter, Chrysler Group LLC said it might add another 530,000 square feet to the existing 4-million-square-foot complex.

 

CONTINUED ON BLADE STIE

http://beta.toledoblade.com/Automotive/2011/08/12/Chrysler-looks-at-even-bigger-plans-for-Toledo.html

Published: 8/12/2011 - Updated: 2 days ago

Projections point to 995 spinoff jobs from Chrysler investment

NW Ohio region to share economic gains

BY JON CHAVEZ

BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

 

Adding assembler jobs at Chrysler Group LLC’S Toledo Assembly complex, where Jeep Libertys, Jeep Wranglers, and Dodge Nitros have rolled off the lines for more than 10 years, is projected to generate nearly as many spinoff jobs as new jobs in the four-county metro Toledo area and Monroe County in Michigan.

 

Economic models show at least 90 spinoff jobs should be created for every 100 new Toledo Assembly jobs. Based on Chrysler’s announced addition of 1,105 new jobs, that should mean an additional 995 spinoff jobs for the area. The projection is based on current auto assembly jobs that pay about $14 an hour.

 

CONTINUED ON BLADE STIE

http://beta.toledoblade.com/Economy/2011/08/12/Projections-point-to-995-spinoff-jobs-from-Chrysler-investment.html

State panel OKs $10M tax credit help for Chrysler expansion

BY JIM PROVANCE

BLADE COLUMBUS BUREAU CHIEF

 

A state panel Monday sanctioned $10 million in job-creation tax credits for Chrysler's proposed $365 million expansion and upgrade of its Toledo Assembly complex. THE BLADE/LORI KING Enlarge | Photo Reprints COLUMBUS — An Ohio panel Monday sanctioned $10 million in job-creation tax credits for Chrysler Group LLC’s proposed $365 million expansion and upgrade of its Toledo Assembly complex.

 

The credit against Chrysler’s commercial activity tax liability is one of a series of ducks the automaker is putting in a row as it prepares to phase out production of existing models in favor of new yet-to-be-determined replacements and decide where that new production should take place.

 

Christine Estereicher, senior manager of state relations and legislation for Chrysler, said Ohio is in competition with “other states.’’ She declined to reveal who Toledo’s competitors may be.

 

Read more at: http://www.toledoblade.com/State/2011/08/29/State-panel-OKs-10M-tax-credit-help-for-Chrysler-expansion.html

Bring back manufacturing!!

 

Chrysler plans to add 1,105 jobs at automaker's Toledo Assembly Complex

6:57 AM, Nov. 16, 2011

 

Chrysler and Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne is expected to announce plans to add 1,105 jobs along with plans to produce the next-generation Jeep Liberty today at the automaker’s Toledo Assembly Complex.

 

The Auburn Hills automaker has been approved for tax incentives from Ohio that pave the way for a $365-million investment to create 1,105 jobs and retain 900 existing jobs.

 

Marchionne is planning to speak this morning at Chrysler’s Toledo North plant where workers build the Dodge Nitro, Jeep Wrangler and Jeep Liberty.

 

READ MORE AT:

http://www.freep.com/article/20111116/BUSINESS0103/111116010/Chrysler-plans-add-1-105-jobs-automaker-s-Toledo-Assembly-Complex

Hickory Farms shifts offices to downtown Toledo

BY KRIS TURNER, BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

Published: 7/19/2012

 

Hickory Farms Inc. is relocating its headquarters from Maumee to downtown Toledo.  The company signed a 10-year lease for the fifth floor of the Hylant Building, 811 Madison Avenue and plans to move in mid-August.  About 50 full-time employees are expected to be part of the move.

 

Hickory Farms has been in Maumee since the early 1970s, said Michael Holton, the company's vice president of brand marketing.  Its current headquarters are on Perrysburg-Holland Road, in the Arrowhead Industrial Park.

 

MORE: http://www.toledoblade.com/business/2012/07/19/Hickory-Farms-shifts-offices-to-downtown-Toledo.html

^Awesome, can't believe I didn't hear about that. Along with Libbey, Jeep, and Tony Packo's, Hickory Farms is one of the Toledo's great brands.

Libbey Inc. Recommits To Downtown Toledo

Date: 08/28/2012 @ 10:30PM

 

Libbey Inc. (NYSE MKT: LBY) Libbey Inc. has announced it has signed a 15-year lease to keep its global corporate headquarters at Edison Plaza in downtown Toledo, Ohio.  Libbey partnered with Mohr Partners, a global real estate advisory firm, to negotiate the lease.

 

"We are pleased and proud to be making a long-term commitment to maintain our global headquarters in Toledo and we thank Toledo Edison and the State of Ohio for their support," said Stephanie Streeter, chief executive officer, Libbey Inc.  "By signing the new lease, we are able to keep Libbey's headquarters in our 'hometown' of Toledo, while supporting our recently announced strategic plan aimed at reducing costs and increasing productivity across our business."

 

The State of Ohio also awarded Libbey a $1 million economic development grant for capital improvements and a $200,000 grant to enable Libbey to provide additional workforce training.

 

"What we at JobsOhio and the Regional Growth Partnership have accomplished with Libbey is to sustain and grow an industry that is emblematic of Ohio," said Nate Green, JobsOhio Project Manager.  "The natural resources and the workforce are here, both of which are critical to the quality products produced by this company.  JobsOhio recognized this and is proud to be part of the effort to support the heritage and success of Libbey Glass."

 

"Our collaboration resulted in a competitive lease agreement that will keep Libbey in our Edison Plaza property for many years to come," said Randall Frame, President of the Toledo Edison Company.  "And it will ensure that the Libbey® brand will continue to be synonymous with Toledo and one of downtown's signature buildings, Edison Plaza.  Like Libbey, Toledo Edison has called this region home for more than 100 years and our companies help to make up the fabric of Toledo's business community."

 

Libbey has also extended its lease with the City of Toledo for its Libbey Glass Factory Outlet store at the Erie Street Market and its lease with CAD Properties for our Libbey Glass Showroom at 335 N. St. Clair.

 

Renovations in Libbey's new corporate headquarters space are scheduled to begin in late 2012 and will be led by architect and design partner Vocon from Cleveland, Ohio. The redesigned offices will provide associates with a more productive, collaborative and contemporary work environment.  Libbey's headquarters associates will relocate to the new work area in phases, with the new space complete in time to celebrate the Company's 125th anniversary in August of 2013.

 

About Libbey Inc.

 

Based in Toledo, Ohio, since 1888, Libbey Inc. is the largest manufacturer of glass tableware in the western hemisphere and one of the largest glass tableware manufacturers in the world. It supplies products to foodservice, retail, industrial and business-to-business customers in over 100 countries, and it is the leading manufacturer of tabletop products for the U.S. foodservice industry.

 

Libbey operates glass tableware manufacturing plants in the United States in Louisiana and Ohio, as well as in Mexico, China, Portugal and the Netherlands.  Its Crisa subsidiary, located in Monterrey, Mexico, is a leading producer of glass tableware in Mexico and Latin America.  Its Royal Leerdam subsidiary, located in Leerdam, Netherlands, is among the world leaders in producing and selling glass stemware to retail, foodservice and industrial clients.  Its Crisal subsidiary, located in Portugal, provides an expanded presence in Europe.  Its Syracuse China subsidiary designs and distributes an extensive line of high-quality ceramic dinnerware, principally for foodservice establishments in the United States.  Its World Tableware subsidiary imports and sells a full-line of metal flatware and hollowware and an assortment of ceramic dinnerware and other tabletop items principally for foodservice establishments in the United States.  In 2011, Libbey Inc.'s net sales totaled $817.1 million.

 

SOURCE Libbey Inc.

I always liked Marco's, certainly my favorite big chain in the Midwest.

 

Toledo-based pizza chain opens 300th store

BLADE STAFF AND NEWS SERVICES

Published: 9/5/2012

 

Toledo-based Marco’s Pizza has reached a milestone with the opening of its 300th store.

 

The store in Wheeling, Ill., is the first in that state for the company, which opens about one store a week. It said it has stores in 24 states and the Bahamas.

 

The company, founded in 1978, plans to open more than 85 locations by the end of the year.

 

“Our continued success, despite a weakened economy, is a true testament to the brand and all that we’ve done to position ourselves atop the multibillion- dollar pizza industry,” Jack Butorac, chief executive officer, said in a statement.

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2012/09/05/Toledo-based-pizza-chain-opens-300th-store.html

a fantastic ongoing story - bully for toledo!

 

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2013/12/27/us/in-blue-collar-ohio-a-windfall-of-chinese-investments.html?hpw=&rref=us

The quote below seems to be near the essence of where we are as a country.  This year there have been so many stories about how expensive it is in SF and NY and the divide between the have and have-nots widening (inside those types of cities especially).  If the US is not going to leverage it's assets then someone else may as well jump into the breach and profit from opportunities in places like Toledo.

 

“When you think about the U.S., you can’t just think about New York and L.A.,” Mr. Guo said recently as he sat in a conference room at the offices of his company, Five Lakes Global Group. “Don’t get me wrong, L.A. is fabulous. New York is great. But if you want to connect with American life, it’s Toledo.”

 

 

Cool article. Smart of their officials for taking a proactive approach in getting foreign investment. Except for this:

 

There have also been preliminary talks between local officials and a Chinese company about an arrangement in which industrial tools would be produced in China, shipped for assembly in Toledo and labeled “made in the U.S.A.,” which would allow them to be sold at a premium.

 

That's horsecrap.

"That's horsecrap."

 

Agreed, but thats how the trade laws are written.

I recently ordered an American Flag and pole and bracket from some Veterans' Services group.  The guy who sold it to me ranted and raved about how the Flag is made in America.  He was right..... but when the package arrived, the pole and the bracket had big "MADE IN CHINA" imprints on them :(

wasnt there something earlier about one of those wacky chinese empty cities investment developments they wanted to build somewhere around toledo or in michigan?

NOOOO!!  The Andersons was one of my favorite parts of a road trip to Toledo.

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/Retail/2017/01/15/The-Andersons-to-close-its-stores-affecting-1-050-employees.html

 

The Andersons to close its stores, affecting 1,050 employees

Retail group has been a money losing unit

 

The Andersons general stores, a Toledo retail icon that for seven decades operated quirky general stores that offered shoppers a mix of everything from drywall to produce to fine wines, soon will be no more.

 

The Monclova Township-based company announced tonight that it plans to vacate the retail business by eliminating its money-losing retail division and closing its four stores between April to June. It has two Toledo area store and the two in Columbus that employ 1,050 full-time and part-time workers...

https://www.toledoblade.com/local/transportation/2020/02/01/more-ships-less-cargo-port-of-toledo-2019-business/stories/20200201006

 

More ships, less cargo out of port of Toledo 2019

https://www.13abc.com/content/news/Major-invetsment-coming-to-Toledos-Port-system-567890141.html

 

Major investment coming to Toledo's Port system 

https://www.toledoblade.com/business/development/2020/02/18/intelliteach-bringing-130-jobs-to-maumee/stories/20200218126

 

Intelliteach bringing 130 jobs to Maumee

https://toledo.oh.gov/news/2021/03/01/toledo-ranked-no-1-for-new-business-investment

 

Toledo Ranked 1st in Nation for New Business Investment Among Mid-Sized Cities