Canfield Township Approves JEDD, City Votes Sept. 5
Update: The city’s vote will be held on Wednesday, Sept. 5, for the second reading. The first reading was on Wednesday, Aug. 18.
CANFIELD, Ohio – By a unanimous vote, Canfield Township Trustees approved the proposed Millennial Moments joint economic development district, or JEDD, agreement at its regular meeting Tuesday evening. A vote today by council members of the city of Canfield will decide whether the project moves forward.
Township trustee Marie Izzo Cartwright read the statement to those gathered: nine residents, including Frank Amedia, owner of FJA Developers Inc., which is developing the site.
“The board finds and determines that the creation of the JEDD territory pursuant to the JEDD agreement will facilitate economic development, will create and preserve jobs and employment opportunities, and will benefit the economic welfare of the residents of the township,” Izzo Cartwright stated.
The township has negotiated with the city and FJA since 2017 after the city attempted to annex the 111-acre property at U.S. Route 224 and South Palmyra Road. At the time, township officials asked Mahoning County Commissioners not to annex the property until the possibility of a JEDD or other agreement had been discussed.
After negotiations, of which Izzo Cartwright was a part, and six public meetings, the township and the city arrived at the current JEDD proposal, though “it isn’t a perfect agreement,” she said.
“This doesn’t make all residents of the township happy,” Izzo Cartwright said. “But that’s what negotiations are. It is a compromise.”
In addition to the JEDD, trustees approved the annexation of the city-owned 288-acre Red Gate property along Leffingwell Road, as well as some 15 acres owned by MALA Properties Ltd. The city purchased the Red Gate property in 2003, but couldn’t develop it because it sits in the township.
Per the agreement, the city will provide water, sewer and stormwater services to the JEDD, while township police will patrol the area. The joint school and fire districts benefit from an incremental tax, the city collects its 1% income tax and the township collects property tax.
Amedia said he was pleased with how things have proceeded thus far and complimented the work of the township, the city and the community.
“It’s an arduous process, but at the end of the day at this point all parties are being served honorably,” he said.
Having the township annex the Red Gate property from the city is in the best interests of development, he added, saying that water and sewer lines going through the Millennial Moments property “can now feed that project.” Red Gate sits to the south of the Millennial Moments property.
Should city council approve the proposal today, site work on the $100-million-plus Millennial Moments could begin as early as spring, Amedia said. It would take about five to six years to fully develop the 111-acre luxury lifestyle center.
The plan calls for nearly 35,000 square feet of retail space facing Route 224, with more than 10 acres available for future development.
The extensive multigenerational residential area includes two-story four-plex townhouses, two-story lakefront townhouses, single-family villas and 51 custom home lots. Other amenities would include a natural lake, 580-foot preserved stream, swim pond, 3,500-square-foot clubhouse, a 120-unit community living center and walking trails.
Canfield City Council meets at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall Council Chamber at 104 Lisbon Street.
Pictured: Frank Amedia, owner of FJA Developers Inc. (foreground, left), looks on as Canfield Township Trustees sign the Millennial Moments JEDD agreement documents. (From left) Trustees Joe Paloski, Brian Governor, chairman, and Marie Izzo Cartwright, and Carmen Heasley, township fiscal officer.
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