CLEVELAND — Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted announced the approval Wednesday of millions of dollars in tax credits for capital projects across the state, including four combined in the Cleveland and Canton areas.
A total of $100 million in investments from the state government will be spread across 12 total mixed-use development plans. According to the governor's office, these projects are expected to create more than 14,000 full-time jobs, $1.29 billion in new payroll, and $2.3 billion in investments for Ohio.
"These projects will transform not only the sites themselves, but also the look and feel of entire neighborhoods," DeWine said in a statement. "We're changing the face of these communities and bringing Ohio into the future. I'm looking forward to seeing the tremendous change these projects create in their communities."
Among the projects securing new funding is a proposed "complete rehabilitation" of both Erieview Tower and the Galleria in Downtown Cleveland. The spaces have been underutilized for years, but under the new concept would receive 227 residential apartments, 210 hotel rooms, and 300,000 square feet of office space.
The total cost of the proposal is expected to exceed $162 million, with the state kicking in more than $13 million in tax breaks. Officials have approximated 274 construction jobs as well as more than 2,000 permanent jobs "targeted at surrounding low-income communities."
Elsewhere in Cleveland, the state also awarded $8 million in tax breaks for "Phase 1" of University Circle's "Circle Square" construction. The massive $416 million undertaking will include retail and restaurant space, new apartments and hotel rooms, and even a public library in a "walkable, urban center in the heart of this historic neighborhood."
Further east, the corridor between downtown Painesville and the Grand is getting a makeover, complete with a new five-story building as well as renovations to Victoria Place. The apartments, shops, restaurants, and recreation areas will cost more than $54 million to build but will receive more than $5 million in tax credits.
Finally, Canton's much-anticipated Hall of Fame Village project received an investment of more than $15 million. The new attractions surrounding the Pro Football Hall of Fame are expected to cost more than $536 million in total, with groundbreaking on a waterpark taking place just this week.
Other projects receiving tax breaks include developments in Cincinnati, Lima, Van Wert, and Clark County.