Can 'Old Betsy' spark our slumping economy?

Feb 8, 2010 — Dayton Daily News

William Hershey

Feb. 7, 2010 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) -- COLUMBUS -- There is so much gloom in Ohio's struggling economy that every glimmer of hope seems to get buried behind mountainous clouds of despair.

In Springfield, businessman and state Rep. Ross McGregor thinks "Old Betsy" may be changing some of that.

Before McGregor introduces Betsy, let's review last week's economic weather report.

Hope broke out Wednesday, Feb. 3, in an unusual fit of bipartisan cooperation as the Democratic-controlled Ohio House and Republican-controlled Senate joined forces.

By overwhelming majorities, 83-14 in the House and 30-2 in the Senate, lawmakers voted to put a proposal on the May 4 ballot to ask voters to renew the Third Frontier high-tech economic development program. The proposal calls for the state to issue $700 million in bonds over four years.

The Third Frontier, conceived by former Republican Gov. Bob Taft, is credited with funding research and development projects that have retained or created 48,000 jobs, including thousands in the Dayton area, a bright spot in those mountains of clouds.

Hours before the House and Senate votes, however, Douglas Lumpkin, director of the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, provided a reminder that those 48,000 jobs are really just a small drop in the bucket of Ohio's 10.9 percent unemployment.

At a news conference, Lumpkin said that unless Congress acts soon, unemployment benefits for thousands of unemployed Ohioans would start to run out by the end of February.

According to government data, there were 641,000 unemployed Ohioans in December. Not every unemployed person qualifies for benefits, but for the week ending Jan. 30, 432,217 Ohioans filed unemployment claims.

If Congress doesn't extend current deadlines for extended benefits, more than 100,000 Ohioans will exhaust their benefits from Feb. 27-March 20.

Now back to McGregor and Old Betsy. Unlike most elected officials who talk all the time about "creating jobs," McGregor, a Republican, has first-hand experience as manager of business projects for Pentaflex Inc., a family company in Springfield. The company manufactures axle and brake components for the truck and automotive industries, particularly heavy trucks.

"We are seeing an increase in orders," said McGregor. "Our backlog has doubled within the last six months." During the past couple weeks, "we've brought on 10 or 12 folks." Employment now is about 75, just half of what it was a couple of years ago but may be on the way up.

The economy, McGregor said, may be stabilizing, particularly for durable goods. Trucks and cars don't last forever.

"Old Betsy is going to give up on you and you're going to have to go out and get a new one," he said.

Newstex ID: KRTB-0056-41890539