Innovative Opening Solutions, a Norwood-based security, door and window designer, is considering moving its headquarters to Northern Kentucky.
The potential move would be either in Covington or an undisclosed site in Boone County. Information on the potential Covington site came before the Covington Board of Commissioners Tuesday night.
Originally founded as Erlanger Hardware Consultants in 2005, Innovative Opening Solutions specializes in commercial door and window hardware, as well as general front-facing access and security measures. They have provided products for developments on both sides of the river.
If the relocation does happen, it would facilitate the move of 57 jobs, 50 existing ones and seven new ones, according to Covington Economic Development Director John Sadosky, plus any payroll tax those jobs might generate.
“Jobs include estimators, salespeople, project managers, handlers, fabricators and back office functions,” Sadosky said.
Although Sadosky admitted Covington was competing with a site in Boone County, he did not know where it was located when asked. Representatives from Innovative Opening Solutions attended Tuesday’s meeting but declined to comment at the meeting.
In any case, Sadkosy indicated the company is interested in buying about 100,000 square feet of the building that includes the old Keller Logistics center in the Latonia Commerce Center. City documents presented to the Covington Board of Commissioners Tuesday night state the company plans to spend about $6 million to purchase and rehab the building if they decide to go with Covington. To that end, the city is offering an industrial revenue bond package as an incentive to relocate.
Industrial revenue bonds, or IRBs, are common municipal financing measures to help companies and developers set up shop in a city. When a city, or another taxing entity like a school or a county, agrees to issue an IRB, it serves as a kind of conduit of capital financing for a project.
An official deal or contract was not part of the discussion at Tuesday’s meeting; it was just a commitment from the Covington Board of Commissioners to offer the bonding package in the event the company eventually purchases property in the city.
However, Sadosky gave an overview of what the deal would look like. His department’s recommendation included a 15-year bonding package with a 20% property tax PILOT (Payment in Lieu of Taxes) from the city and county and a 50% PILOT to the schools. His department’s calculations predicted $4.7 million in payroll by the third year of the company’s relocation.
“The city’s return on investment for this incentive is 10 to one,” Sadosky said, meaning the city would “make it up tenfold in payroll tax” whatever they gave up in property tax.
The Board of Commissioners will cast a final vote on the bonding commitment next week.