News in recent weeks that a couple of significant employers in Venango County will be ceasing operations here has sparked concern among residents.
But county commissioners are hopeful that new businesses will be attracted to the Honeywell site in Franklin and the Sasol location in Cornplanter Township. And commissioners chairman Sam Breene is also expressing optimism that Polk Center may remain open.
Breene and fellow commissioners Albert Abramovic and Mike Dulaney touched on all these matters during an interview with the newspaper.
Abramovic noted that the county leaders can’t do anything until they know what the plans are for the Honeywell and Sasol properties.
“We’re still investigating…the owners will probably try to sell the properties,” Dulaney said.
Last week, word began circulating that Honeywell in Franklin, which makes safety equipment, would close down operations here and move that work to Mexico by the end of the year.
Dulaney said people were talking about Honeywell closing several years ago when he was on Franklin City Council, so the news came as no surprise.
“It didn’t happen sooner because for the past four years they have had incentives to stay and keep their business in the U.S.,” he said.
Breene noted that the office jobs and engineering jobs were sent to North Carolina several years ago, leaving about 100 manufacturing jobs.
“Honeywell is moving the jobs that are still there (in Franklin) to Mexico. That is a business decision that is hard to fight when you have a global, faceless corporation like Honeywell,” Breene said.
Dulaney noted there are incentives at the Honeywell site to draw a new business in, such as a foreign trade zone.
Abramovic explained that a foreign trade zone is a place where companies are taxed less for imported goods than they would be outside of the trade zone.
“Honeywell is one of the most accessible sites in the county. I’m optimistic they can find a business interested in the property,” Breene said.
Franklin Mayor Doug Baker told the newspaper last week he was informed the facility is expected to go on the market early next year, and that the Franklin Industrial & Commercial Development Authority (FICDA) “is reaching out to their contacts.”
“It is always a bad thing when businesses close, but multiple other places are looking to hire and those jobs are paying more than they were and more than Honeywell does,” Breene said.
Breene said many local businesses, including Webco, Pathways, Jones Lumber, Shaw Industries, Stronghold Digital Mining and many others, are looking to fill positions in a variety of sectors and are “very much in need of applicants.” He added that the county is also hiring.
“On a positive note, if you can take one from this situation, people don’t have to leave the county to find new jobs,” Breene stressed. “I encourage them to apply locally.”
Sasol announcement
In mid-February, Sasol announced it was closing its chemical plant just outside Oil City, which affects about 34 employees.
Breene noted that the South Africa-based company is simply closing the plant and isn’t moving those jobs elsewhere.
Breene said he is optimistic another company can be found to move in and operate a business at the site.
Polk Center update
Meanwhile, the fight to save Polk Center is continuing on several fronts with the planned closing date looming later in the year.
Breene said he believes that if keeping Polk Center open becomes an issue in this year’s primary and general elections, the state won’t be able to carry out its plans to close the facility by the new Nov. 30 date.
In the courts, the proposed closure of Polk and White Haven state centers has gone into mediation, and the closure date for both centers has been pushed back from August to Nov. 30, allowing more time for negotiations.
“Polk (Center) won’t close in August. If it becomes a campaign issue we won’t lose the jobs at Polk Center,” Breene said.
Breene said the state “expected a fight” with Polk Center, and that’s why the initial announcement was made in August 2019 with a three-year timeline to close the center before the 2022 election when Gov. Tom Wolf wouldn’t be able to run again because of term limits.
“There are not enough group home beds. Closing down a center where there is the potential for thousands of beds doesn’t make sense,” Breene said.
As candidates for governor have come to the area in recent months, Breene said he has educated them about Polk Center and tried to get them on the record as to where they stand on the issue.
He said all the candidates he has talked to said Polk Center is a “healthcare and humanitarian issue”, and they all agreed it should be kept open, he added.
