All-Pro RV Service & Storage:

Making dreams a reality as new business opens soon

llianceArea Development Foundation

PRSRT STDU.S. POSTAGE PAID

SEBRING, OHPERMIT NO. 35

Alliance Area Development FoundationP.O. Box 3421Alliance, Ohio 44601

Fall 2011 Vol. 32

The Incubator Project:Fledgling high-tech software companies will soon have a home to develop business

Plus More!

Did you know? Alliance fun facts:

Then & NowThe Transue-Williams Steel Forging

Corporation & Sare Plastics

lliance Area Development Foundation | Fall 2011 lliance Area Development Foundation | Fall 2011 2

Thomas Pukys, President

Our Mission . . . is to positively impact the retention and expansion of businesses and manu-facturing in the Greater Alliance Area, as well as attracting new com-panies by working with them, area governments and economic develop-ment organizations.

Contact Us . . . visit our website at www.allianceadf.com for development information, email us at aadf@allianceadf.com or call us at 330-823-0700.

* Jennifer Barrett - Just Jen Designs, Newsletter Editor/Layout Design

AADF StaffTom Pukys, President

Pam Richardson, Economic Development Coordinator

OfficersG. Charles Dix II, Chair

Dr. Richard Giese, Vice ChairMark Fedor, SecretaryJoe Gerzina, Treasurer

At-Large MembersMichael A. Conny

Ray MartinezScott RobertsonDoug Schwarz

Calendar• Executive Committee meets on the third Thursday of each month at 7:30 a.m.

2011 Board MembersTom AultPeter Basil*Jim BoughtonDarren BoyleJohn ChristianHarriet ClemGregory ColanerMichael A. ConnyMort DeHoffG. Charles Dix IIMayor Patricia Fallot**Mark FedorMike FurcolowJoe GerzinaDr. Richard GieseSue Goris*Robin GraberMike JeffriesStan JonasCraig Laughlin

Bill LaveryRalph Lober

Mark Locke**Vince MarionRay Martinez

Gerard MastroianniMayor Toni Middleton**

Mike PauliTodd PughCheri Rice

Jeff RichScott Robertson

Joe SchatzDoug Schwarz

William C. ShiversWill Tolerton

Andrew Zumbar*Community member

**Ex-officio non-voting member

On the cover

From the president . . .

Autumn is a reflection of nature that echoes spring, but with a much richer palette of colors due to its time to mature. In the spring of 2011, new businesses in Alliance paralleled the seasons. Several small blossoms of industry began to sprout up from the earth earlier in the year, but as the months progressed, their form and functionality have begun to reach full potential. Thanks to the Greater Alliance De-velopment Corporation, Alliance Ventures, the University of Mount Union and the city - State Street has proven to be fertile ground. These new businesses include: Kohl’s (construction pictured on the cover), Panera Bread, Chipotle, Great Clips, Aspen Dental (plaza in progress pictured left next to Giant Eagle), and additional, undisclosed commercial development near UMU. The harvest season is upon us and soon everyone will be able to enjoy all its fruits in the place you can be proud to call home - the city of Alliance.

SAVE THE DATE! • The annual dinner is Tuesday, September 27 at 5:00 p.m. at Robertson’s Heating Supply Company.

The cooler temperatures of fall are right around the corner, but I hope everyone has enjoyed the sum-mer! Summer time often is associated with relaxing and taking it easy. However, the opposite has been the case with many area businesses. Growth and expansion have been the common themes this year. Over the past few months, we visited 25 area manufacturers getting their input on how their businesses are doing in this economy. The knowledge we gained was extremely helpful, as well as encouraging. One discovery was that 76 percent of the companies surveyed said they are increasing employment. This good news coupled with the reopening of Alliance Castings equates with many new jobs coming to Alliance. Other exciting visible growth has been the development on State Street. The landscape there is changing with the new Kohl’s building and the new retail plaza that will hold Chipotle, Aspen Dental, Great Clips and Panera Bread. We welcome these new additions to our community. September means our annual meeting is on the horizon. Please save the date of September 27 to attend. If you’ve attended in the past, you know the evening will be filled with great food, networking and good news reports about our community.

lliance Area Development Foundation | Fall 2011 3

dealership ranging from service, parts and sales,” Doug said. The shop will be open Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. It will offer recreational vehicle repairs, RV and boat storage, retail RV parts and acces-sories, and propane sales. The Wonner’s saw a need for this service in Alliance and wanted to find a way to fulfill a dream of opening their own busi-ness. “With the slower economy that we are in, RV owners are more apt to fix or upgrade their current RV rather than purchasing a new unit as they can be expensive,” Linda said. “Tom Pukys was instrumental in giv-ing us the direction and guidance needed to pursue our dream. The AADF is an asset to our community giving you the knowledge and tools needed to pursue any project you have large or small. It was nice to have Tom guide us through the process of build-ing our business in the city of Alliance.”

New businessCOMING SOONto Alliance

Alliance incubator will foster new software business growth

The Chase Bank on State Street (pic-tured above) has been donated by Al-liance Ventures for two years to house the new business incubator at a value of $90,000. According to the AADF, a sub-committee will be formed to determine what renovations the 4,300-square-foot

structure will need to undergo before it hosts the fledgling high-tech software development companies it hopes to at-tract in the near future. “The incubator board is now com-plete,” said Pam Richardson. The nine-member board includes: from the city of Alliance - Vince Mar-ion, planning & development direc-tor, Bruce Smith, from Geiger, Teeple, Smith & Hahn, and Steve Okey from the Alliance city council; from the pri-vate sector - Tom Pukys, president of the AADF, Gregory Colaner, president of Altercare of Ohio, Inc. and Daniel Luketic, president of Risk Management Technologies; from the University of

Chase Bank located at 1207 West State Street

Mount Union - Mike Kachilla, asst. professor of economics, accounting & business administration and director of entrepreneurial initiative studies, Dr. James Thoma, associate dean of the University and professor of human per-formance and sport business and Matt Stinson, director of advancement for major gifts. Plans are moving forward and prog-ress has been made. “It is moving very fast,” Pukys said, “because people believe in it and are working together.” The Alliance incubator has been pat-terned after the highly successful one located in downtown Youngstown.

Willie Nelson seemed to capture the heart of the traveler’s dream best when he sang about being “on the road again” in his classic, Grammy Hall of Fame song. There’s a certain sense of anticipa-tion that starts to build this time of year, as temperatures begin to become more bearable and autumn colors are once again in vogue. The urge to get on the road and enjoy all that this beautiful sea-son has to offer is high. No one knows this feeling better than those who own and enjoy recreational vehicles, or RV’s as they are commonly known. And soon, a new business will be opening in Alliance that will help make all those dreams of fun and adventure a reality. Alliance natives, Linda and Doug Wonner, are opening All-Pro RV Service & Storage at 1680 Freshley Avenue this year. RV’s have been a particular passion of Doug’s for many years. “I have 15 years of experience in the RV industry working in all facets of a

The Wonner’s not only service RV’s, they also own one. “It is a wonderful way to spend time with your family,” Linda said. “It is an ex-perience that you share and one that your children never forget. We have traveled to many places from local campgrounds to as far away as Alabama. Some of our best and most relaxing times have been in our motor home. We go to Michigan annually and have been to many NAS-CAR races. We actually got the oppor-tunity to work for NASCAR for the last nine years. During our trips, we have met many wonderful people. If you go RV’ing once, you will be hooked!”

lliance Area Development Foundation | Fall 2011 4

Alliance fun facts:

Jim Boughton, CEO of SES

Gregory Colaner, President

of Altercare of Ohio, Inc.

Bill Lavery, Owner of Lavery Automotive Sales

and Service

Four steps in making a gear forging cylinder at

Transue-Williams in 1935.

(The black & white photos above are courtesy of Alliance Memory.)

• Chief executive officer of SES, Jim Boughton, is celebrating 10 years with his company this summer. “I joined the AADF because as the market changes it is critical that we all become more proactive to develop and attract young people to pursue an engi-neering/manufacturing career, as well as maintain a community that is attractive for them and their families.” Bough-ton said. “It is important for the overall business community to be vibrant and growing along with the infrastructure necessary for education and healthcare to maintain this long term.” • Bill Lavery is the owner of the Lav-

ery Automotive Sales & Service dealer-ship his father opened in 1965. “I joined the AADF,” Lavery said, “to hear from other members about what is going on with other businesses in Alli-ance and focus on the betterment of the city as a whole.” • Gregory Colaner has been president of Altercare of Ohio, Inc. since 2003. “Altercare has been a member of the Alliance community since 1986. Over the years, relationships have grown deep and meaningful. I look forward to work-ing with the quality people associated with the organization.”

Three New Board Members Welcomed

“Those who don’t know history are destined to repeat it.”Then & Now “Those who don’t know history are destined to repeat it,” is a quote that has been attributed to Edmund Burke, a British statesman and philosopher from the 18th century. Whereas this foreboding statement has several variations - as far as it has to do with the businesses of Alliance - in contrast, it could carry a posi-tive connotation in regards to the ongoing success of this area. Since its inception, Alliance has had a long line of historically successful people and businesses which continue to emerge,

even to this day, with innovative advancements that keep this city a vital entity in the corporate world. Once such example from the past was the Transue-Williams Steel Forging Corporation formed in 1895 by Frank Transue and Silas J. Williams. Among its many significant contributions to our country during both World Wars, as well as other worthy achievements in technology, Transue-Williams played an integral part in how we all live our lives today. It had a vital role in the genesis of car mass production in the United States. Through Transue’s connections, Henry Ford was able to get an experimental lightweight steel manufactured in Stark County and then forged at the Transue-Williams plant which was located on West Ely Street (pictured above left in 1901). At its peak, the corporation employed 1,700 people. In the 21st century, a new king has taken the throne and advancements in plastics’ technologies reigns supreme. One of the best ex-amples of this is Sare Plastics, owned by Bart & Mary Ann Stuchell, which is located at 14600 Commerce Street NE. For nearly 30 years, this company has done its best to live up to its motto, “Where Innovation and Production Come Together.” One of the services they offer is engineering injection molded plastic parts to customer’s specifications for limitless uses. A new product line they have recently introduced to the building industry is their Silca System using their honeycombed-shaped Silca

Grate (pictured bottom left). This innovative process allows architects and builders to include bricked walkways, patterns and other designs in the building of decks (pictured bottom right), elevated walkways, balconies, ga-zebos, boardwalks, docks and other structures on a cost-effective and structurally-sound basis. Head coach of the men’s basketball team at Syracuse University, Jim Boeheim, and his wife Julie, have installed this system at their home and have appeared in a testimonial commercial which ran in New York to promote it.