Business is coming to Portland

Berne Ready Mix is coming to Portland.
In requesting two tax abatements at Monday’s Portland City Council meeting, officials from the company said they plan to run a pre-cast concrete manufacturing operation in the former Jay Products building at the northeast corner of Meridian Street at county road 100 North.
Berne Ready Mix sales manager Matt Subler told council the company, which is under the umbrella of St. Henry Tile Company in St. Henry, Ohio, and also includes Pennville Sand and Gravel and four building supply stores, has outgrown its space at its current locations. It had been looking for a site at which to expand, and has chosen the former Jay Products location.
“This is a real opportunity for us to have a location that’s somewhat centralized between Berne and St. Henry and will give us plenty of room to grow,” he said. “The building is pretty ideally suited for what we need.”
In addition to the pre-cast concrete manufacturing, he said plans for the future also call for a storefront to sell supplies for the concrete and masonry industry.
The company’s goal is to add 11 new jobs in Portland over the next five years.
Jay County Development Corporation executive director presented Berne Ready Mix’s request for a five-year tax abatement on $1.155 million on personal property and a 10-year abatement on $225,000 on real estate. The abatements would save the company $72,000.
Council members Bill Gibson, Judy Aker, Kip Robinette, Mark Hedges, Don Gillespie, Kent McClung and Michael Brewster forwarded the request to the tax abatement advisory committee for its consideration. They plan to act on the committee’s recommendation at their Jan. 5 meeting.
Jay Products, which produced steel condensers and coolers for automotive steering units, closed its Portland operation in Sept. 2013 after announcing plans to do so four months earlier.
In other business, council:
•Approved carrying over $1.23 million in encumbrances for money allocated in the 2014 budget that will not be spent until 2015. Included is $258,701.75 for Portland Water Park construction and $346,412.75 for Safe Routes to School and other transportation-related construction projects.
•OK’d conflict of interest disclosure statements for 2015 for Mayor Randy Geesaman, whose wife Carol serves as his administrative assistant; Aker, who works for Mark Aker Plumbing; and redevelopment commission members Mark Clemens, who runs Community Fiber Solutions.
•Learned from Geesaman that the bidding process for the Geesaman Industries remediation project west side sewer work is underway. Portland Board of Works plans to open and review bids at its Jan. 15 meeting.
•Heard Geesaman and Aker compliment the Christmas decorations that are on display at Hudson Family Park. Barry and Elizabeth Hudson donated the decorations to the city for use at the facility.
•Transferred funds to cover year-end expenses.