Region ‘wish list’ open to comments

The list is one way for the region to unite when it evaluates its needs, said Michael Gessel, the coalition’s Washington, D.C.-based vice president, federal government programs.

“There is a general consensus that this is the list of common projects,” Gessel said. “This is what we care about.”

Public comments on proposals sent to the Priority Development & Advocacy Committee (PDAC) are due Friday. A list of the proposals is found at www.daytonregion.com/regional-advocacy/priority-process/project-review-public-input/ on the coalition's web site, DaytonRegion.com.

Citizens may send comments on the proposals to aschrimpf@daytonregion.com.

PDAC is a group of 30 business, education and government leaders from across the region. They will winnow ideas down to a final list early next year. Some of the ideas may go to the 2014 Ohio Capital Bill process, in which the General Assembly weighs project ideas from around Ohio.

The process unites the community and allows public input. “It’s considerably more than what other communities do,” Gessel said.

“It’s slow and sometimes awkward, but that’s in the nature of the democratic process,” Gessel said, adding that the process ensures the final list is not the result of “back room” deals.

Among this year’s proposals:

* The city of Dayton seeks $3 million to help an undisclosed company build a new 250,000-square-foot downtown facility. The user needs room for a call center, IT support, sales, marketing and other uses.

* Moraine requests $1 million to help bring a large manufacturer to a former General Motors plant in that city. “Project Southbound” hopes to land a user to occupy 1.4 million-square-feet and 75 to 100 acres of the plant off Ohio 741, an unidentified company that could employ up to 800 people.

* Wright State University seeks $4 million to renovate and improve Col Glenn Highway.

* The university also seeks $5.7 million to work with Sinclair and Clark State community colleges to form a lab to support the Ohio/Indiana Unmanned Aerial Systems Test Center, the Air Force Research Lab and others. WSU expects the lab to create 8 to 10 jobs in the first year and 40 jobs in two to five years.

* Beavercreek asks for $500,000 to modify the Interstate 675-Grange Hall Road interchange.