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Cleveland Seeks To Expand Goodrich Site

Goodrich Landing Gear quietly told employees last week that it could shutter its East Side facility in 2012... with no suggestion of how many people, if any, could transfer to other company facilities, some local, others scattered across Ohio.

Cleveland's Economic Development Director Tracey Nichols says the city was caught off guard, but is now acting aggressively to find a way to take advantage of Goodrich's need to consolidate.

TRACEY NICHOLS:
"We think there's a play here to bring jobs to Cleveland instead of have jobs leave the city of Cleveland. So we talked to the company, said 'Hey we'd love to sit down and meet with you on a positive note on what we might be able to do to bring jobs here to Cleveland.' They were open to it."

Nichols says the best case scenario is for the company to keep its Marble Avenue plant open… and consolidate its Toronto operations in Cleveland as well, bringing up to 600 new jobs.

Both Governor Kasich's and County Executive Fitzgerald's offices are now involved in the talks.

Nichols says the State's Development office in Ontario, where the company 'is' considering expansion - supplied research showing strengths Cleveland has over Toronto, including ample land for expansion across the street from the Marble Avenue factory. That site also houses the firm's Military Unit Headquarters.

Goodrich Landing Gear currently employs more than 550 workers at Cuyahoga County sites in Cleveland, Independence, and Brecksville.

Rick Jackson is a senior host and producer at Ideastream Public Media. He hosts the "Sound of Ideas" on WKSU and "NewsDepth" on WVIZ.