Taylor pact keeps 500 workers in Dayton

By the numbers:

Taylor Communications agrees to keep 500 employees in Dayton. In return, it gets:

Source: City of Dayton.

Taylor Corp. has pledged to stay in Dayton and keep at least 500 employees at the former Standard Register headquarters — an agreement the city says it secured despite competition from other states.

The deal is contingent on several million dollars in financial incentives from local governments — including a development agency’s plan to buy the Taylor Corp. buildings and a commitment by the city to clean up the surrounding area and tear down dozens of substandard structures near the Albany Street offices.

City officials said they had to compete to keep the more-than-a-century-old printing and marketing company in Dayton.

“It was worth it,” Ford Weber, Dayton economic development director, said of the terms of deal. “And I can tell you we were competing against other states.” He declined to say which states were competing, but Taylor is based in North Mankato, Minn.

Taylor — a private company doing business as Taylor Communications following its acquisition of Standard Register during bankruptcy proceedings in 2015 — will get $1.25 million combined from Dayton and Montgomery County, and CityWide Development will buy its Dayton buildings. The city has committed to another $2.1 million in nearby “streetscape improvements,” according to terms of the agreement.

As part of the deal, Taylor will enter into a 10-year property lease with CityWide, which will renovate the former Standard Register buildings, according to the city. The purchase price for the buildings was not released.

CityWide’s incentive was “a major selling point” for Taylor, officials said.

“There is a long tradition of operating in Dayton as well as a talented and experienced local workforce, but the decision had to make financial sense for Taylor Communications,” Mark Shaker, president and CEO of Miami Valley Hospital and chair of CityWide, said in the city’s release.

The city said the company, which serves the health care, financial services, manufacturing, retail, business services and transportation sectors, has a workforce in Dayton of more than 600.

Before filing for bankruptcy in 2014, Standard Register had around 850 employees in Dayton and 3,500 worldwide.

Taylor is expected to keep a minimum of 500 workers in the building during its 10-year lease with CityWide, Weber said.

“They’re going to be entering into a long-term lease,” he said.

What Taylor employees pay in payroll and income taxes is confidential, Weber said. In 2014, the last year the company was a public company under Standard Register, it reported revenue of $719.8 million and a net loss of $7.4 million for 2013.

The $2.1 million in streetscape improvements will occur over several years, according to the city, as will the demolition of 30 to 40 “dilapidated structures” near the Taylor buildings. The city release did not identify which structures will be torn down or where.

“Due to the collaborative work of our local economic development partners, we were able to craft a deal that will allow Taylor Communications to have a meaningful presence in Dayton,” Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley said.

The city is doing an inventory of the buildings considered sub-standard around the company’s Albany Street offices, Weber said.

Most of the $2.1 million in demolition money will likely come from state and federal dollars, Weber said.

He wasn’t sure how much CityWide will pay for the building. A message seeking comment was left for representatives of Citywide.

“We’re not in a position to say anything more than what has been published in the city of Dayton’s news release,” Dale McMichael, a spokesman for Taylor, said in an email.

There may be other incentives. JobsOhio and Ohio government are “evaluating the project parameters and further assistance is under consideration,” the city’s release said. The project remains contingent on the city commission’s approval of the incentives.

“We are pleased to have reached an agreement with the city of Dayton where Taylor Communications has over 103 years of history,” Deb Taylor, CEO of Taylor Corp, said in the release. “Our continued partnership supports our mission of opportunity and security, for hundreds of employees.”