Port Authority hires focused on economic development
COSHOCTON − Two new employees of the Coshocton Port Authority are committed to economic development of the local area, said Executive Director Tiffany Swigert.
Hannah Gallagher recently joined the office as an economic development specialist and Ashley Guthrie is the office manager.
Guthrie replaced Jen Robinson, who left for a position with Buckeye Fabric. Gallagher replaced Sheri Gibson, who retired after a two-year grant to fund the position through RISE Ohio ended. Swigert said during that time, she realized how important the role was to the office and wanted to retain it. A grant through the Coshocton Community Foundation is helping to fund it for the next several years, Swigert said.
"There are so many opportunities right now for Coshocton. There are numerous grant commitments from the governor's office," Swigert said on the importance of the position. "In addition to that, other federal sources are also putting a lot of really great program dollars out. We feel like we need to be fully staffed to be able to help in any way we can to bring those dollars to Coshocton."
Gallagher is a Coshocton native who lived in Grand Rapids, Michigan, for 18 years. She returned to Coshocton in 2020. While not having had a job like this before, Gallagher said she has a background in customer service and isn't afraid to learn. She'll be undergoing various trainings the next few months.
"Anything to help Coshocton grow and thrive, I'm ready to throw myself into," she said. "I've got three kids and I want them to be proud of where they come from."
Swigert said Gallagher's experience of living in a large city will help her see the area with fresh eyes.
"When you're here, you do have blinders on of what possibilities exist outside Coshocton," Swigert said. "Having someone who was born and raised here, left and came back, is going to have a whole different perspective on things we can do in Coshocton."
Guthrie is a Coshocton native. Along with running the office day-to-day, she'll also be handling some financial matters and spearheading the revolving loan program. This includes not only reviewing applications, but promoting it. She said many businesses don't know it exists.
Swigert said in January they issued two loans combined for $70,000. One was for expansion of Good Boy Bakery in Roscoe Village and the other was for Rust Décor to move to a new location on Main Street. Swigert said 70% to 80% of economic growth in small communities like Coshocton is through small business expansion.
"We have money to give and we want to give it. We want it in hands. We don't want to hold it in our bank account. We want it out circulating in the community," Guthrie said.
A major project for the Coshocton Port Authority is development of the Coshocton Collaborative. Located in the old Pastime Theater building, the Collaborative will feature a unique maker space, business incubator and co-working facility while also providing office space for the Coshocton Port Authority and others.
Swigert is waiting to hear back on some grant funding before moving forward. They're also working on other money for remodeling and development of the theater portion into an entertainment venue.
"It's definitely a priority item for us," Swigert said. "We completely understand what impact that would have on our community and downtown."
Leonard Hayhurst is a community content coordinator and general news reporter for the Coshocton Tribune with more than 15 years of local journalism experience and multiple awards from the Ohio Associated Press. He can be reached at 740-295-3417 or llhayhur@coshoctontribune.com. Follow him on Twitter at @llhayhurst.
This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: Port Authority hires focused on economic development
