Harrison County CIC reviews projects, touts global reach

Harrison County Community Improvement Corporation Executive Director Nick Homrighausen opened the September meeting with updates on ongoing projects, including the K-9 fundraiser for the Sheriff’s Office.

“I’ve had current discussions with some companies about donations,” Homrighausen said. “I ended up sending email requests for the data they asked for. This is all ongoing and I’ve had good conversations so far.”

He also reported on a July visit with Fuse Tech, a local company. “They’ve had a meeting also with Ohio Southeast to see how we can best assist with their business needs,” Homrighausen said. “Right now one of their main priorities is a new roof.”

Board President Dale Arbaugh said he was impressed by the company’s success. “My surprise was, I didn’t know how much business was going on there,” Arbaugh said. “It was very surprising that there’s that little business doing well in the county.”

Homrighausen said Fuse Tech has expanded internationally. “It’s global headquarters,” he said. “They’ve created divisions in Latin America and Germany to help with training and dealing with overseas and south of the border laws. That’s the second global headquarters we have in Harrison County.”

The county’s other global headquarters is L.J. Smith Stair Systems in Bowerston.

Homrighausen also pointed to infrastructure work. “The government center roadway is finished,” he said. “The road between them and Fuse Tech looks really nice and drainage issues have been fixed on both sides. Just thank you to Brandon [Ludwig] and Mayor Jones for working with the commissioners on the drainage issues and the curb. It really makes it look nice and it makes it a lot easier whenever I’m touring individuals when we meet there. It shows that we’re taking the money and investments and putting them back into the infrastructure.”

New business

Under new business, Homrighausen said he has been working with Ohio Southeast on a KMZ file, which is used to map large acreages of land for companies interested in megasites.

“To date, I’m not aware that JobsOhio or Ohio Southeast is doing this for any other counties,” he said. “Because we’ve got such great interest in megasites and also the vast amount of data companies question or need, it makes it easier, and it’s blowing companies away that we have that. So that’s something that’s unique and I’m proud of. It’s at no cost to us besides my time.”