by Office Manager | Mar 19, 2024 | Community, Community Improvement Corporation (CIC), PCED Office, Property Development
PAULDING – The first quarter Paulding County Zoning Inspector meeting was recently held at the OSU Extension Building. Tim Copsey, Paulding County Economic Development Director, provided a brief overview of previous meetings for new attendees and shared how this meeting has developed and grown out of the quarterly county mayor meetings. This group developed in 2023 and has continued to meet as a way to bridge communication gaps and provide idea sharing and collaboration around the county. Copsey then introduced the guest speaker, the Honorable Suzanne Rister, Municipal Court Judge, to the group of township trustees, mayors, village council officials and other local officials that attended.
Judge Rister shared the legal process involved in addressing junk or trash ordinances within villages and townships. She presented stats regarding the number of cases handled by the municipal court and shared that there is a low occurrence of zoning cases across the county. Most issues are resolved through correspondence from governing agencies. The number of zoning cases presented to the court annually were: eight in 2020, two in 2021, nineteen in 2022, eight in 2023, and none so far in 2024. Only a small fraction of cases gets to the point of jailable offenses. The cases that do mainly involve repeated violations of the same code.
Judge Rister highlighted the importance of clear communication between townships and village officials and residents, stressing the need of providing detailed documentation and current evidence in zoning violation cases.
Fines collected from convictions are returned to the charging entity. Judge Rister also addressed reimbursement policies, including attorney fees, indicating her efforts to alleviate financial burden on localities in these cases.
Incite was provided for how to increase the likelihood of favorable rulings for concerned localities. Judge Rister advised that representatives from villages or townships stand alongside prosecutors during court proceedings to be a witness to the case.
Participants asked about various procedure and process aspects, such as submitting evidence and how to handle repeat offenders. Judge Rister provided clarifications on landlord responsibilities and the criteria for jailable offenses.
Prosecutor Joe Burkard followed and elaborated on strategies for addressing property cleanup, expressing the importance of thorough information and gathering photos and time stamped evidence.
Copsey followed providing updates on community cleanup efforts, highlighting recent accomplishments, and shared ongoing projects where the Paulding County Land Bank and Community Improvement Corporations are involved.
Copsey then shared a prospective new project that may aid in cutting down zoning violations. A recent investment at Kohart’s Surplus and Salvage, now provides a way to efficiently shred and recycle vehicles. A request was made to all townships and villages to have conversations with property owners that have vehicles that do not have current plates on them. If the owners are willing to sell the vehicle there is a possibility of designing a county program to purchase these cars and remove them at no cost to the owners. In order for this program to develop we need to understand the demand and interest from residents.
Attendees discussed potential ways, including local recycling events, to facilitate resident cleanup efforts and how to identify blighted properties or open lots for future redevelopment.
Sarah McCabe, with the Paulding County Auditors office, shared that the County GIS system is updated now with zoning layers for Oakwood, Antwerp, Paulding and Crane Township. This was thanks to collaboration with the Paulding County Engineers office.
The importance of continuing to improve the county GIS system was noted. It is extremely helpful when inquires for site development come into the PCED office, especially for water and sewer infrastructure mapping. All localities were encouraged to work on mapping their utilities to better streamline planning down the road.
All in attendance agreed to meet again next quarter for continued collaboration between zoning inspectors and to discuss community revitalization efforts.
by Office Manager | Feb 23, 2024 | Membership, New Business, PCED Office
The Village of Antwerp has seen an awesome transformation on South Main Street, where small businesses Antwerp Pharmacy and More than Boutique have found their new home for well over a year. If you’ve been by recently, you have also seen the eye-catching signage on the building that houses the Antwerp Pharmacy. This enhancement is due in part to the marketing support program that is available for Paulding County small businesses, offered by the Paulding County Economic Development (PCED) office.
“Our marketing program is a really great tool for our member businesses to have their current business marketing strategies assessed. From that assessment, they receive a tailored proposal that lists different marketing ideas they can pursue on their own, or with the assistance of different partners, like West Bend Printing and Publishing, Natural Design and Graphics, or any other business they want to work with.” says Kristen Schilt, PCED Office Manager.
Schilt introduced Antwerp Pharmacy owner Mandy Miller to the program during the Paulding County Career Day expo last spring. Choosing to use the program, she was able to acquire a branded tablecloth to use for future displays and job fair events. Miller appreciated the simplicity of working with local businesses, adding, “I could prioritize what I needed the most and then make that idea a reality all while keeping the money we spent local.”
Miller continued to praise the local program for making it easy to develop the signage for their new building, “We decided that the new sign was the most important item that was discussed (in the assessment meeting).” With remaining funds, she partnered with West Bend Printing and Publishing to design a banner-style sign, featuring the pharmacy’s logo, services, location, and contact info. Impressively, West Bend installed it within a day.
The local marketing business is excited for the opportunity to work with, and share their talents, with others, “West Bend Printing & Publishing has found this marketing program to be very helpful, for not only businesses looking to expand their marketing reach with useful tools, but it has also opened doors for the spread of our client-base as well,” stated co-owner Angel Steiner. “After being in business for almost 20 years, Bryce (Steiner, co-owner) and I are sometimes perplexed that so many still don’t know West Bend is more than just the newspaper. Clients are excited when they find out they can get marketing tools, like signage, personalized invoices, etc. made right here in Paulding County! We want to thank PCED and this marketing program for helping expand small businesses in Paulding County.”
The program is a collaborative effort made available through a grant from the OhioMeansJobs (OMJ) office of Defiance and Paulding County, and facilitated through the PCED office. The program is geared toward small businesses with less than 10 employees. It is designed to offset marketing costs as businesses establish and grow their existing business with new marketing opportunities.
“OhioMeansJobs Defiance & Paulding Counties is thankful for the funding opportunity, through the Greater Ohio Workforce Board, to allow OMJ Defiance & Paulding to help assist businesses with this tailored marketing opportunity. OMJ Defiance & Paulding is also appreciative of the continued partnership with PCED and their promotion and support of this wonderful opportunity,” shared Tiffany Rockhold, Workforce Supervisor for OhioMeansJobs Defiance/Paulding Counties.
For more information about the program, or to confirm your business qualifies for assistance, contact PCED Office Manager Kristen Schilt at office@pced.net or call 419-399-8295.
by Office Manager | Feb 14, 2024 | Business Expansion, Membership, New Business, PCED Office
Paulding County Economic Development Press Release February 14, 2024
New Paulding County Business Back Wall Archery opens
DEFIANCE – A new full-service archery sales and repair service facility has opened for business.
Back Wall Archery, owned by Thomas Cameron, established business located in Paulding County at County Road 171, Defiance, Ohio 43512, in Ohio on September 20, 2023 and opened up the shop on November 27.
Cameron had been working on his own, his family and some friend’s equipment for a couple years. During that time, he continued to develop a greater love for archery and working on the related equipment. The more he worked, the more those he helped encouraged him to go out on his own. “For years I’ve had the love for archery and loved working on my own bow. I wanted to provide the community with great service, along with fast service, for their archery equipment,” Cameron stated.
With the company now certified in the State of Ohio, Cameron is hoping to work with archers in the region that shoot compound or crossbows. In addition to providing archery equipment, arrows and accessories, Back Wall Archery is able to provide fletching repair on arrows along with strings and cables on bows.
The company originally reached out to the Paulding County Economic Development (PCED) office for guidance of how to begin. The office recommended a meeting with Lisa Becher, NW Ohio representative for Ohio Small Business Development. Using the information provided through those meetings and discussions, the business established and Cameron was able to turn back to the PCED office for additional help.
“Working with Thomas has been great as he dives into his business journey! We tackled his initial hurdles head-on by securing a small business loan and getting him enrolled in our marketing program. These resources, made possible through our collaboration with OhioMeansJobs and the Paulding County Area Foundation, are just some of the ways we’re able to help our local businesses.” shared Kristen Schilt PCED Office Manager.
For questions about the business, inquiries and business hours, contact Cameron at 419-438-6870, backwall.archery@gmail.com or check out Back Wall Archery on Facebook.
by Office Manager | Jan 30, 2024 | Community, Events, Jobs, Membership, PCED Office, Workforce
PAULDING, OH – The Paulding County Economic Development office is hosting the Annual Business, Industry & College Expo on Wednesday, April 3rd from 8:00 am- 12:00 pm. The event is located at the Paulding County OSU Extension Building located at 503 Fairground Dr. Paulding, OH 45879. Public is welcome to attend. High School Students from Antwerp, Paulding, Wayne Trace and Vantage Career Center, will attend to meet and learn more about the businesses, colleges and non-profits in attendance.
“Last year we had a great turnout of 44 businesses! We were impressed with the engaging hands-on activities some of the businesses had and look forward to more creativity this year. The overall goal for this event is to build awareness for the opportunities in our area. As always, we want to make the event better each year. Since last year we’ve met with our school leaders and came up with some tweaks to make the event more impactful for everyone involved.” noted Paulding County Economic Development Office Manager, Kristen Schilt.
You can find out more about Paulding County Economic Development events and programs online at www.pced.net; on Facebook at Paulding County Economic Development or email Kristen Schilt, Office Manager at office@pced.net.
by Office Manager | Jan 24, 2024 | Business Expansion, Community, Events, Funding, Jobs, Membership, PCED Office
Paulding County Economic Development Press Release January 18, 2024
RGP presents JobsOhio Inclusion Grant to Paulding County
PAULDING – Jessica Sattler, with the Regional Growth Partnership (RGP), recently came to Paulding County to present to local small business owners and leaders about an available business grant opportunity. The JobsOhio Inclusion Grant (JOIG) is available to businesses located in the zip codes of Broughton, Cecil, Oakwood and Paulding villages. In addition, the grant is available to female, veteran, disabled or minority owned businesses throughout the county. Fifteen businesses were represented at the meeting by 16 individuals.
The RGP team is the NW Ohio arm of JobsOhio. They help oversee 17 counties in northwest Ohio, including Paulding County, in economic development projects and grant opportunities. With the JOIG opportunity, businesses that are over a year old and provide business to business services with at least $100,000 in annual revenue (but not over $25 million) are eligible to receive a $25,000 reimbursable grant. An additional $25,000 is available to female, veteran, disabled or minority owned businesses that are located in the above-mentioned zip codes. There is a requirement of increasing full time employment, within your business by 10%, over the next three years. A business that has 10 or less employees would only need to increase by one full-time equivalent. Last year Paulding County had two qualified businesses that applied and both received this reimbursable $25,000 grant.
The event was hosted at the Paulding Eagles and organized by the Paulding County Economic Development office, in conjunction with RGP and the Paulding & Defiance OhioMeansJobs office. OMJ Workforce Supervisor Tiffany Rockhold shared several business partnership opportunities with attendees to make sure they were aware of the many options available through the OMJ office.
“The attendance of this event far exceeded what we expected, which shows that our business leaders are engaged and paying attention to opportunities our office is sharing,” stated Economic Development Director Tim Copsey. “The questions and discussions that evolved out of this meeting to both Jessica and Tiffany were informative. It’s great to see so many business leaders participating and thinking outside the box. We are now using the knowledge that we gained from this presentation to reach out and meet with other business owners that weren’t able to attend and share in this opportunity”.
If an Ohio business would like to learn more about this grant opportunity and qualifications, please reach out to your local economic development office for more information.
by Office Manager | Dec 23, 2023 | Jobs, Membership, PCED Office, Workforce
In its ongoing commitment to foster economic growth and connect job seekers with opportunities, the Paulding County Economic Development (PCED) office has recently transitioned to recommending the use of OhioMeansJobs’ (OMJ) exceptional job portal, for both job seekers and employers.
For a few years, PCED maintained a job list on its website (www.pced.net), providing a valuable resource for local job seekers. However, with the dynamic nature of the job market, including filled positions, new job opportunities, and high turnover rates, it became challenging to ensure the accuracy of the list.
Seeing the need for a more up-to-date platform, PCED is now encouraging the community to utilize OhioMeansJobs’ (https://ohiomeansjobs.ohio.gov/) job portal that offers a comprehensive and accurate representation of the local job market. Our local OhioMeansJobs office, is located at 252 Dooley Dr. Paulding, OH 45879.
Here are some additional offerings that employers should take advantage of through OMJ:
- Pre-hire Testing: OMJ streamlines hiring for employers with cost-saving candidate assessments, ensuring a thorough evaluation before hiring decisions.
- Top of Form
- Offset Cost for New Hires: Recognizing the financial challenges of hiring new employees, OMJ supports employers by offsetting costs, covering six months of wages for new hires.*
- Resume Building: The office offers assistance in resume building, helping job seekers present their skills and experiences effectively to potential employers. *
*Individuals must qualify for service. OhioMeansJobs will conduct an evaluation to determine eligibility.
PCED is committed to supporting the local workforce and enhancing employment in Paulding County. By using the features of OMJ, job seekers and employers can benefit from a more streamlined and accurate job matching process.
For more information or to connect with OMJ workforce supervisor and career coaches, visit the OhioMeansJobs office at 252 Dooley Dr. Or, you can contact Paulding County Economic Development at 419-399-8295 to get connected and take the step towards advancing your career or finding the right talent for your business.
