WHY LOGAN COUNTY
INDUSTRY IS THRIVING, EXPANDING AND CONTINUING TO INVEST IN LOGAN COUNTY
Since 2018 there has been over $1B in capital investment by new and expanding businesses in and around Logan County. This includes the $45 million SMARTCenter at the Transportation Research Center, a $124M state of the art wind tunnel facility at the Honda Automotive Laboratories of Ohio (HALO), and in 2023 Honda’s $700M announcement to retool 3 of its plants located in or adjacent to Logan County. Honda of America Manufacturing which celebrated 40 years in the region in 2019, continues to fuel investments from other Japanese companies (10 total), the automotive/mobility industry, and dozens of small businesses across the county.
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In 2019, we celebrated a $2M expansion of PowerBuilt Material Handling Solutions, a homegrown business that has gone from 2 employees in 2000 to over 60 today. In 2022 we welcomed Indian based manufacturer of sound and acoustic equipment 5 Core Inc. to our community. The company relocated its US distribution operations to Logan County from California after researching the ideal location for US market access and lower overall cost of business. We are also proud to be home to a sizeable plastic injection molding industry, wire harness manufacturing industry, and a large logistics and distribution industry.
With a growing rural population of 46,000 people and ease of access to the fast growing Columbus Region, existing and new businesses alike are finding Logan County an ideal place to operate. |
Center for smart mobility research
Transportation Research Center (TRC) of Logan County, at 4,500 acres, is North America's largest automotive proving ground. With a 7.5-mile high speed track, a 50 acres vehicle dynamics test area, and a new 540 acre SMARTCenter it's understandable why over 1,000 companies test their automotive and aerospace technology at TRC. Most notably. TRC is the home of the only federal vehicle research and test laboratory for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. TRC is truly looking to the future with their new $45 million, 540 acre SMARTCenter project. The campus opened in July 2019 to provide diverse off-road testing of autonomous and connected vehicles. As a partnership between The Ohio State University and Honda. this state of the art facility is attracting global attention from the mobility Industry.
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TRC's off-road testing compliments on road testing of autonomous and connected vehicles (AV/CV) on the 33 Smart Mobility Corridor. This 4-lane highway corridor originates at TRC and heads 35-miles east to the Columbus outer belt. Equipped with Dedicated Short Range Communication Towers connected via a redundant fiber loop, AV/CV technology will be developed, tested, and proven on this corridor in Logan and Union Counties.
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Fiber Access
Logan County may be rural in nature but it has a broadband fiber optic infrastructure in many spots that rivals any urban city in the country. Through local companies Aunalytics and PeakFiber, Logan County has access to 1,100 route miles of fiber offering up to 100Gbps service. These companies are delivering high speed fiber internet access to residents and businesses in Bellefontaine and many locations throughout Logan County.
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Workforce
Thanks to the incredible job opportunities, nearly 10.000 people commute into Logan County daily to work.
The Columbus Region is expected to add 1,000,000 people in the next 30 years, which will continue to fuel the workforce of our future. Locally, our population finds its roots in agriculture which continues to espouse a strong work ethic that our employers highly value. |
Small town resurgence
The county seat of Logan County is Bellefontaine. In 2012, nearly 70% of first-floor downtown spaces were vacant. Since then, over $30M has been invested, 60+ buildings and storefronts have been renovated, 7 new downtown eateries have opened, 20+ new retail businesses have opened, 34 new loft apartments were developed, and upwards of 200 new jobs have been created. Today, Bellefontaine is truly a destination for visitors near and far. Just 7 miles south, the Village of West Liberty has also become a destination for visitors looking for small town charm and boutique shops. West Liberty is the proud home of Marie's Candies, Ohio Caverns, and the Piatt Castle. Ten miles northwest of Bellefontaine sits one of Ohio’s most visited state parks - Indian Lake. This 5,800 acre lake is bustling with activity: camping, fishing, swimming, boating, restaurants, and shops. It is a community worth visiting. Come see for yourself why Logan County is an ideal place to live and have a business!
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