Incentives

Independence has adopted an incentive policy tailored to individual business needs. The Economic Development Department understands each company is different and requires unique solutions when considering retention, expansion, and relocation decisions. The City bases incentive offerings on data such as payroll, employee numbers, project investment, and growth projections. Projects will be considered for incentives on a case-by-case basis. To discuss how the City may be able to participate in your project, please contact:

JessicaHyser_cropped

Jessica A. Hyser
Economic Development Director
City Hall:    216-524-4131 (x2246)
Direct:        216-524-3853
Email:         HyserJ@IndependenceOhio.org



The following are some of the ways the City can assist your business. For specific examples of how City incentives have been used to encourage economic development, please review our Economic Development case studies.

Performance-Based Incentives
Encouraging the creation of sustainable jobs is one of the key tenants of economic development. One way the City can encourage job creation is through performance-based incentives. Using job and payroll commitments provided by the company, the City may offer growing companies annual performance-based payments calculated as a percentage of annual municipal payroll withholding.

Grants
Relocating an office is expensive. Build-out costs or technology upgrades can make relocation projects cost-prohibitive. Based on the company and project specifics, the City will consider providing grants to offset relocation expenses and encourage investment in current buildings.

To learn how the City used a grant to assist a company relocating to Independence, please review the 7Signal Solutions and ReliabilityFirst case studies.

Land
The City is willing to consider the write-down or elimination of costs to purchase land. The City also owns approximately 33 acres in the Northwest Quadrant of the Rockside Road Business District and 16 acres in downtown Independence. The City intends to leverage its property in these areas to encourage investment and job creation.

The City has used the elimination of land expenses to facilitate past economic development projects. To learn how the Cleveland Cavaliers Practice Facility benefited from this incentive, please review the Cleveland Cavaliers case study.

Infrastructure
The City of Independence can provide road and utility infrastructure improvements. The City has a Five-Year Capital Improvement Plan that helps guide infrastructure investment. With several Tax Increment Financing (TIF) districts established, Independence has the financing mechanisms in place to ensure that public infrastructure is available to facilitate commercial development.

To learn how the City used infrastructure investments to attract new jobs, please review the Involta and Cleveland Clinic Foundation Business Operations Center case studies.

State of Ohio
The State of Ohio through JobsOhio has created several new programs designed to encourage job creation. The Economic Development Department has partnered with the State of Ohio on incentives to encourage job creation in Independence. More information on the State’s economic development incentives is available at the JobsOhio website.