The project is being called highly competitive. Barclays is in lease negotiations on a site now, said Kimm Coyner, managing director of projects and JobsOhio for REDI Cincinnati. But the final location for the call center has yet to be confirmed.
If the deal is won, Greater Cincinnati will land nearly $50 million in new payroll, according to state records of the proposed business expansion.
“Cincinnati has proven we have the depth in the labor market,” Coyner said. “We are an affordable option and we have a great location.”
The financial services company issues Visa and MasterCard credit cards as well as co-branded credit cards through partnerships with some 60 companies and institutions, according to REDI. The company is growing, and plans to open a call center in the area represents a more than $9.3 million investment.
Assuming everything moves forward, Barclays could actually create more jobs than the GE shared services center, which will conduct back-office finance and information technology work. GE has promised to bring 1,400 new jobs in Ohio, although a total approximately 2,000 people will work at the center including relocations.
The shared services center is set to open in late 2016 or early 2017. Hiring has already begun, and GE opened last year a temporary space during construction.
Even though Barclays has more jobs tied to it, GE still carries a higher payroll in the neighborhood of $142 million a year, Coyner said.
“We are definitely having a banner year,” she said.
Barclays was one of several companies approved for tax breaks Monday in exchange for creating new jobs and expanding in Ohio. If Barclays chooses the Ohio site and creates new jobs here, it will receive a state tax credit of 70 percent for seven-years, worth a discount of as much as $5 million on its commercial activity tax bill. Altogether, 14 companies are promising to create a total 3,977 new jobs statewide over the next three years or so — the most new jobs promised and approved for tax incentives in a single meeting over the last 10 years, according to state government agencies.
In addition to Barclays, other business projects in the pipeline include:
• Amazon.com Inc., which plans to create 2,000 new jobs in Ohio, the single largest announcement for new job creation statewide in more than a decade, according to Ohio Development Services Agency. The online retailer is developing facilities in Ohio for Amazon Web Services, its cloud storage business, as well as fulfillment centers to support its other businesses, according to JobsOhio, the state's privatized economic development group. Amazon's Ohio expansion plans in the Columbus area were first announced in May;
• Hydrotech Inc. — which distributes hydraulics, pneumatics, linear motion, drives and controls, lubrication and filtration products — held a groundbreaking ceremony Friday for a 23,000-square-foot building expansion of its existing West Chester Twp. headquarters, according to the company's website, hydrotech.com. Hydrotech has committed to creating at least 14 new jobs by the end of 2018, generating an additional approximately $2 million in payroll, according to the state development department;
• DownTime Reduction Inc., a maintenance, repair and installation company, has a proposed 12-job expansion of its facility in Woodlawn; and
• Engineering firm Process Plus Holdings Inc., which already has a Cincinnati office location, is considering Ohio and North Carolina for a 25-job expansion, according to development department records.
Monday’s dealmakers bring the total tally for the year so far to 5,594 new jobs promised, 6,095 retained jobs and over $360 million in capital investment, according to REDI.
Regional Economic Development Initiative (REDI) Cincinnati is a nonprofit in charge of luring businesses to the Cincinnati area and working with local governments to retain existing businesses. It’s a subsidiary of the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber of Commerce.
Ohio Tax Credit Authority is an independent body of appointed business and government leaders, and the group votes whether to approve state-funded job creation and retention incentives offered to companies. Tax incentive agreements with state government spell out that businesses have three years to fulfill the promises.
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