Overhead Doors abatement request clears Board of Works

Howard Greninger, The Tribune-Star, Terre Haute, Ind.
·3 min read

Sep. 27—While the Terre Haute City Council is slated to make a final decision next month, Arthur, Illinois-based C.H.I. Overhead Doors LLC gained approval Monday from the Terre Haute Board of Public Works and Safety for a 10-year personal property tax abatement.

The company plans to expand its manufacturing of residential garage doors, commercial doors and rolling steel overhead doors into Terre Haute, adding 130 jobs.

The company plans to make a total investment of $11.7 million, with the bulk of that — $9 million — for manufacturing equipment. This is where the company is seeking a tax abatement, which gradually phases in taxes over the abatement period. The abatement would save the company more than $442,000 in taxes over 10 years.

Those new jobs would have an annual cost of $5,675,000 to the company, which is an average annual salary of $43,680, according to documents filed with the Terre Haute City Council. The average pay is $21 per hour.

In other business, the board approved a request from the nonprofit 12 Points Revitalization to close city streets for 12 hours on Oct. 2 for a 12 Points DoDeca Festival.

"We will have two stages set up. The (city) parks department has already (approved) closing Gold Medal Plaza for a small stage, with another stage set up at the old Harmony Hall," Garri Knezevich, 12 Points Revitalization events chair, told the board.

Gold Medal Plaza is a landscaped traffic island with benches at the intersection of Lafayette Avenue, Maple Avenue and 13th Street, and small park includes a memorial to local Olympic gold medal winners.

"DoDeca means twelve in Greek, so that is where the name came from," Knezevich told the board.

The board approved closing Lafayette Avenue from 13th Street to Linden Street, Maple Avenue from 13th Street to Garfield Avenue and Phillips Avenue from 13th Street to Lafayette Avenue from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. during the festival. The board did stipulate that the parking lot of Great Giorno Italian Cuisine remain open and accessible during the festival.

"We are also working to try to get Coy Park (on North 16th Street) used for many events so will not need to close (city) streets," Knezevich said.

In other matters, the board:

—Approved plans and specifications for a new traffic signal at the intersection of 25th Street and Margaret Avenue. Josey Daugherty, a staff engineer for the city, said the city plans to open bids before the Board of Public Works and Safety on Oct. 12 and will likely request a special meeting of the board on Oct. 18 to award a bid. "That would allow us to start work on Nov. 1 with the goal of it being completed by the end of this year," Daugherty said.

Daugherty said traffic along Margaret Avenue using the overpass has increased, causing the need for the traffic signal.

"At peak hours, that intersection gets really backed up with vehicles, so a traffic signal there will help traffic flow there," Daugherty said after the meeting.

—Approved a request from the Vigo County School Corp. to restrict parking from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays for 100 feet on the west side of 19th Street north of the intersection of 19th Street and Eighth Avenue for Deming Elementary. The measure is help load and unload preschool children on buses at the school, located at 1750 Eighth Avenue.

—Approved a parade permit for Terre Haute South Vigo High Homecoming Parade on Oct. 1.

—Approved a change order to pay $1,027 for pavement markings on the Lafayette Avenue Project. It was work not included in the city's original bid for the project and approved a change order to extend the project for six days.

Reporter Howard Greninger can be reached 812-231-4204 or howard.greninger@tribstar.com. Follow on Twitter@TribStarHoward.