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WARREN -- Trumbull County commissioners today are expected to vote on whether to approve an enterprise-zone agreement for Clean Energy Future Trumbull LLC following a 10:15 a.m. public hearing on the matter.
The company is requesting a 100 percent property tax abatement for 15 years on improvements to the site for the Trumbull Energy Center.
Nicholas Coggins, assistant director of the Trumbull County Planning Commission, said the company intends on a minimum investment of $600 million, with $14 million invested in the facility, $582 million in machinery and equipment and $4 million in furniture.
The company plans to hire 22 people full time and anticipates a $3.5 million annual payroll, Coggins said.
The abatement would save the company about $70,000 annually, Coggins said.
Commissioners are expected to vote on the measure during their regular 10:30 a.m. meeting. Both hearings will be held in the commissioners' hearing room on the fifth floor of the Trumbull County Administration Building, 160 High St. NW.
The Lordstown Village Council approved a donation agreement, but still have to approve the abatement, and the Lordstown School District approved the agreement.
The Trumbull Career and Technical Center Board voted 11-7 last week to approve the abatement.
TCTC board member Dan Denman of Maplewood, who voted against the abatement request, said the company is going to spend millions of dollars and it wants a 15-year free tax abatement and will hire only 22 people.
"That is not worthy of a tax abatement, in my opinion. I understand it will be 22 jobs, but 22 homes don't generate enough income for one student to go to school. That is why I have a hard time with this," Denman said.
This will be the second power plant the company has built in the county in the last few years.
Clean Energy Future LLC opened the $900 million Lordstown Energy Center in 2018 on Henn Parkway.
It took about two years to build and provided about 900 construction jobs through the process. It's estimated the plant will generate about $13 billion in economic impact over the next 40 years. The first plant was granted a 100 percent tax abatement for 15 years.
The agreements call for the school district and village to collect funds from the company in lieu of property taxes.
Commissioners typically have not collected payments from companies when waiving taxes. They are able to negotiate a payment in lieu of taxes, but have not done so traditionally. The bulk of the collected taxes normally go toward the school district.