Tyler Economic Development Council To Receive $100,000 Grant By GREG JUNEK, Business Editor   |   May 02, 2008

The Tyler Economic Development Council will receive a $100,000 grant from the Economic Development Administration to be used for a comprehensive economic development strategy after the loss of tire production at Tyler’s Goodyear plant, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn announced Thursday.

Funds will come from the U.S. Department of Commerce.

“This grant is good news for the future of economic development in the Tyler area,” Cornyn said in a statement. “The funding will support a plan to identify strategies to generate job opportunities for local residents and economic growth in the region. The project will also seek opportunities for redevelopment of the Goodyear facility, so that it will remain a catalyst of economic activity.”

Tom Mullins, Tyler Economic Development Council president and chief executive officer, said the TEDC was pleased the request for funds had been approved.

“We look forward to working with Texas A&M on implementing a plan of action to offset the loss of production and the jobs associated with the Goodyear tire plant,” Mullins said.

He said late last year as tire production was winding down that the TEDC would apply to the EDA for the grant.

Cornyn sent a letter to the EDA in support of the grant application on behalf of the TEDC.
Mullins said the grant will fund the comprehensive economic strategy, which a group from Texas A&M will write.

Last year the TEDC partnered with the university to produce the comprehensive strategy.
A group from the university will visit Tyler to learn about the community and develop ideas on economic enhancement, which will become part of the strategy document.

Projects in the strategy could become eligible for future infrastructure grants for things such as roads, utilities and site development.

Mullins, referring to Cornyn’s comments about redevelopment of the Goodyear facility, said that could be one of the strategies.

He said another company showed interest in the plant building more than a year ago, but Goodyear was still using it for tire production.

A group also toured the building about three weeks ago with a real estate official from Goodyear.
“We could end up using EDA money to help that investment group not necessarily purchase the building, but redesign the building to make it work for other employers,” Mullins said.

The plant building, at about 1.4 million square feet, is an excellent site for manufacturing, with rail and highway access and all the utilities a manufacturing operation would need, he said.

Goodyear ceased tire production at the plant at the end of last year, retaining about 200 employees in a mixing operation there.

Mullins said he believes the mixing operation will continue until the end of the union contract, in December 2009, unless the company sees that it can maintain its mixing quota at other plants and the union agrees to an early close.