Despite a slow start, Lubrizol Corp. is moving forward with its expansion plans in Wickliffe, despite a slow start, according to Cleveland, Ohio News-Herald.
In January 2014, Wickliffe City Council approved a 10-year, 50 percent tax abatement enterprise zone for Lubrizol Corporation, allowing it to move forward with planning a large multi-purpose building project.
At that time, Lubrizol facility manager Dave Skursha said the project will be sized to prepare for 1,700 eventual employees, a 500-employee increase in support jobs for the Wickliffe campus, the world headquarters of Lubrizol for 83 years.
However, Sections 4 and 5 of the original agreement said the city of Wickliffe granted Lubrizol a 10-year, 50 percent tax exemption commencing no later than January 1, 2017.
Since the deadline was approaching, Lubrizol requested an extension. At a December 19, 2016 meeting, Council passed a resolution authorizing the mayor to extend the agreement. Wickliffe City Council has approved an extension of the 10-year, 50 percent tax abatement enterprise zone that will be available to the company until 2029.
Wickliffe Mayor William Margalis said the agreement will remain a 10-year, 50 percent tax abatement for real property improvements. Lake County commissioners also recently approved a resolution amending the enterprise zone agreement between Wickliffe and Lubrizol.
Although the tax abatement will be unchanged, there are a few changes to Lubrizol's building plans.
Lubrizol initially proposed a two-story, nearly 100,000-square-foot building with an investment total of about $33 million. Margalis said the current plan is to build a 63,000-square-foot, single-story multi-purpose facility on the campus at 29400 Lakeland Blvd. that would connect two of its existing buildings. The new projected investment total is about $28 million.
The proposed timeline for the project includes planning this year, beginning a 12- to 18-month construction project in 2018 and completing the project by 2019.