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Governor banking on green energy jobs to save Ohio's economy

THE PLAIN DEALER, 1/26/10 Thursday, January 28, 2010

Gov. Ted Strickland vowed Tuesday to "move heaven and earth" to right Ohio's economy from the blow dealt by the Wall Street meltdown, reports the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

"I can't say it will be today. I can't say it will be easy," Strickland said during his hour-long State of the State address before the General Assembly and other guests at the Statehouse. "But we are going to fix this thing."

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Ohio U to receive millions in sale of home-grown Diagnostic Hybrids

CAMPUS TECHNOLOGY NEWS, 1/20/10 Thursday, January 28, 2010

Ohio University stands to gain millions of dollars from the sale of a company whose technology was created at the Athens-based university, reports Campus Technology News.

Quidel, which creates diagnostic tests for healthcare, said it intends to purchase Diagnostic Hybrids Inc. for $130 million cash. Until recently the company operated on campus in OU's Innovation Center, which provides business incubation services and resources to startups.

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Ruling could render Ohio's campaign-spending law toothless

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH, 1/22/10 Thursday, January 28, 2010

Ohio's ban on corporate contributions could be unenforceable, some experts say, after yesterday's U.S. Supreme Court decision allowing corporate spending for political campaigns, the Columbus Dispatch reports.

Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner said she expects the legislature will consider modifying state law to bring it into compliance with the court's ruling -- and that voters can expect more 30-second television campaign commercials.

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Ohio's education system ranked among top five in the nation

YOUNGSTOWN BUSINESS JOURNAL, 1/15/10 Thursday, January 28, 2010

Ohio's educational system ranks fifth in the nation, according to the Education Week Quality Counts 2010 report, says the Youngstown Business Journal.

Ohio's overall grade was a B-, and states scoring higher include Maryland, New York, Massachusetts and Virginia.

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Two public policy groups see opportunity in Ohio for 'green-collar' jobs

CRAINS CLEVELAND, 1/26/10 Thursday, January 28, 2010

Two public policy groups recommend changes in Ohio's job training efforts to better prepare people for jobs in the clean energy sector of the economy, reports Crain's Cleveland.

The groups, in a report, say many of the elements of a green training infrastructure already exist in Ohio. However, they say there are "still gaps along the green career pathway that must be filled through stronger, more integrated training programs."

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Senate votes to trim Third Frontier extension by half: conference committee awaits

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH, 1/27/10 Thursday, January 28, 2010

Senate Republicans want to cut almost in half a proposed extension of a program focused on developing high-tech jobs, despite objections from Democrats who say it doesn't go far enough, reports the Columbus Dispatch.

The Senate voted along party lines Tuesday to place on the May 4 ballot a $500-million, four-year extension of the Third Frontier program, which is set to expire in 2012. The resolution will head to a joint House-Senate conference committee, where the chambers will have to compromise quickly to make the Feb. 3 deadline for getting the issue on the May ballot.

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UC colleagues use innovative non-profit to raise awareness about rare spinal disease

SOAPBOX, 1/26/10 Thursday, January 28, 2010

Three colleagues at the University of Cincinnati have joined together, taking a unique approach to raising awareness about a rare disease at national paintball competitions, Soapbox reports.

The three launched the non-profit Athletes Joined Against Spondylitis to fight a rare autoimmune disease and form of arthritis that causes the vertebrae to fuse together.

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Airstream adding 99 jobs, receives Ohio tax credit

DAYTON BUSINESS JOURNAL, 1/26/10 Thursday, January 28, 2010

The Ohio Tax Credit Authority Monday approved a six-year, 45 percent job creation tax credit for Airstream Inc., which plans to fill 99 new jobs, reports the Dayton Business Journal.

The tax credit, worth more than $225,000, was one of more than 20 awarded to expansion projects around Ohio.
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General Electric eyes $50-million R&D center in southwest Ohio

DAYTON DAILY NEWS, 12/26/09 Thursday, January 14, 2010

General Electric Co. is considering whether to build � possibly in southwest Ohio � a $50-million center that would allow engineers to collaborate in one location to develop, test and certify electrical power systems for aircraft, reports the Dayton Daily News.

Bill Chadwick, an executive with the Aerospace Industries Association, a trade group, agreed that there likely is to be strong demand over the next several decades, after the aerospace industry gets through its current slump that is a result of the recession.

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Ohio chambers pledge support for Third Frontier renewal

THE YOUNGSTOWN BUSINESS JOURNAL, 12/28/09 Thursday, January 14, 2010

The Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber is joining with eight other Ohio chambers of commerce to urge that the Ohio Third Frontier renewal issue be placed on the May ballot, and pledges to support the campaign for passage of the issue, reports the Youngstown Business Journal.

In a letter to Gov. Ted Strickland, House Speaker Armond Budish, Senate President Bill Harris and Chancellor Eric Fingerhut, the leaders of the nine chambers said that the Third Frontier initiative is "the best course for creating jobs at a time when there are few other alternatives."

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Tech firm to help Warren business incubator

WARREN TRIBUNE CHRONICLE, 12/22/09 Thursday, January 14, 2010

Millions in state and federal funding has been secured to launch a green and advanced energy incubator in Warren, and what's needed next is a business plan and governing structure for the organization that will hatch new economic development, reports the Tribune Chronicle.

That's where Nortech, the Northeast Ohio Technology Coalition, will be lending its experience and expertise on the Warren project - one of two recently selected by the agency to help develop advanced energy industries.

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Study: Third Frontier created 10,000 Ohio jobs

THE CINCINNATI ENQUIRER, 12/18/09 Thursday, January 14, 2010

Ohio's $1.4-billion Third Frontier program already has created nearly 10,000 new jobs and nearly $300 million in tax revenues since it was approved by voters in 2005, according to a new report by a coalition of business executives, reports the Cincinnati Enquirer.

All of the state dollars will be paid back with new tax revenues by 2014, with an annual return of 22 percent, according to the Ohio Business Roundtable, a Columbus-based group of state business leaders who commissioned the report to determine Third Frontier's value.

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Cleveland-based Athersys inks global deal with Pfizer

GLOBE NEWSWIRE, 12/21/09 Thursday, January 14, 2010

Cleveland-based Athersys, Inc., has entered into an agreement with Pfizer Inc. to develop and commercialize a new treatment for Inflammatory Bowel Disease, the company says in a news release.

Under the terms of the agreement, Athersys will receive an up-front cash payment of $6 million from Pfizer, as well as research funding and support during the initial phase of the collaboration.

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University of Dayton purchases former NCR headquarters

THE NEW YORK TIMES, 12/21/09 Thursday, January 14, 2010

The University of Dayton has bought the former world headquarters of the NCR Corporation for $18 million, in an effort to expand its campus and begin to fill the void left by Dayton's loss of its sole Fortune 500 company, reports the New York Times.

The acquisition of the 115-acre NCR complex expands the university's campus by almost half and the main building will house the university's research institute, a new alumni center, graduate school classrooms and executive development programs and conferences.

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DHL seen close to Wilmington air park deal

DC VELOCITY, 1/5/10 Thursday, January 14, 2010

DHL and Clinton County, Ohio, are very close to a deal that calls for DHL to donate to the county the massive air logistics park in Wilmington, Ohio, where the company's U.S. air and surface freight operations once were housed, reports DCVelocity.

The deal has been delayed as both sides iron out details of the complex transaction, which involves the transfer of the equivalent of 1,600 parcels of land in and around the air park. The facility sits on 2,200 acres and is the largest privately owned airport in the country.

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