Industries & Practices
Economic Development
We establish a collaborative environment among Ohio communities and private commerce to foster job creation and quality growth.
Using the economic development tools that best suit our clients’ goals, we structure projects and layer programs, connecting government entities and private developers with available financial resources. Our team assists both public and private sector entities, offering cutting-edge financial, regulatory and other consultative solutions.
We provide economic development counsel in these areas:
- Creative application of public and private financing
- Regulatory compliance
- Site selection support
- State and local permitting
- Tax incentives, loan and grant programs
- Zoning
Specific projects include:
- Creating tax increment financing and special assessment districts
- Creating and managing Ohio’s PACE programs and assisting private property owners to obtain PACE financing for energy efficiency and alternative energy improvements.
- Facilitating cooperative development arrangements among political subdivisions and public-private partnerships
- Establishing and working with communities and businesses to leverage community improvement corporations, community reinvestment areas, enterprise zones, joint economic development districts, new community authorities and port authorities
Financings and refinancings for institutions of hi...
Serve as bond counsel and issuer counsel to community colleges, public and private institutions and universities across Ohio seeking to take advantage of the low-interest rate environment in order ...
MoreBond counsel for Ohio community college for culina...
Served as bond counsel to an Ohio community college in connection with the tax-exempt financing of their new, cutting-edge culinary arts center.
MoreCommunity college $300 million voted bond issue
Served as bond counsel to an Ohio community college for its first issue of general obligation bonds approved by the Ohio county voters in a $300 million voted bond issue dedicated to financing a ph...
MoreConversion of a former munitions factory
Served as counsel to a port authority for a capital lease transaction, providing a sales tax exemption to the developer and property owner. The transaction enables the conversion of a former m...
MoreOhio’s largest PACE transaction
Served as counsel on a $16.3 million refinancing of a construction loan that involved significant PACE financing. The project funds eligible upgrades to a hotel near The Ohio State University campu...
MoreCleveland-area solar farm development
Represented Cuyahoga County in closing a $10 million financing transaction for the development of a solar farm on former landfill property near Cleveland. The solar farm covers 17 acres and co...
More$1.6 billion development in Warren County
Served as special counsel to a township in connection with a 1,230-acre, $1.6 billion mixed-use development in southwest Ohio. The transaction involved negotiating and structuring a tax increment f...
MoreCOTA downtown bus pass program
Assisted the Capital Crossroads Special Improvement District with structuring and creating a process for implementing a program to encourage 43,000 downtown Columbus, Ohio, commuters to bus to work...
MoreEconomic development counsel for large scale mixed...
Assisted developer of mixed-use project in Dublin, Ohio known as “Bridge Park.” The work included the negotiation of incentives, including a tax increment (TIF) arrangement and co...
MoreTIF counsel for Northeast Ohio redevelopment
Served as special counsel to Orange Village for the implementation of a tax increment financing (TIF) program to facilitate a mixed-use development known as Pinecrest, including an approximately 1,...
MoreAreas of Focus
Public Sector
We assist state and local governments with infrastructure finance and negotiations with developers and business owners. The ultimate goal is creating and retaining jobs, supporting innovation, and stabilizing and improving property values.
MoreState Tax Counsel
We assist companies in navigating the tax implications that affect their operations. Sales and use taxes, the commercial activity tax (CAT) and the pass-through entity tax, including best practices for compliance, are just a few of the tax matters on which we focus.
MoreEnergy Finance & PACE
Participating in the issuance of Ohio’s first property assessed clean energy (PACE) bonds, our firm is a trailblazer in the area of energy project finance. We help public entities use funding opportunities to update existing office buildings or warehouses or to acquire an alternative energy source, like solar panels or wind turbines, without impacting certain local debt limitations. Visit our PACE Financing Resource Center >>
Private Sector – Developers
Collaborating with our firm’s national real estate practice, we work closely with developers. As a strategic partner, we identify options to close gaps in the capital stack in order to facilitate important development and redevelopment projects.
Private Sector – Business Owners
Supporting entrepreneurial growth, we work with companies to identify and negotiate federal, state and local incentives. We use our comprehensive knowledge of available programs to help businesses both grow and retain jobs – and improve their bottom lines.
Economic Development Compliance
Our attorneys guide incentive recipients from start to finish. We begin with negotiation of award requirements, and partner with incentive recipients until all award requirements have been satisfied. For businesses with existing awards, we provide advice regarding outstanding requirements, either in connection with ongoing reporting obligations or in response to any investigation or enforcement actions by the award provider.
People
John Caleb Bell
Partner & Public Finance Practice Group Chair
Christopher J. Bondra
Associate
Tyler J. Compton
Associate
Price D. Finley
Partner
Brian W. Fox
Of Counsel
Jeffry D. Harris
Of Counsel
Christopher B. Jones
PACE Financing Consultant
Colin J. Kalvas
Partner
Gregory J. Lestini
Partner & Financial Services/Insurance Chair
Jacquelin R. Lewis
Senior Associate
M. Shannon Martin
Partner
Daniel B. May
Associate
Robert F. McCarthy
Partner
Isaac A. McGlone
Public Finance Analyst
Tracy L. McKenna
Public Finance Analyst
Sarah E. O’Dea
Senior Counsel
Larry D. Scurlock
Sr. Public Finance Analyst
Adam W. Seeley
Associate
Jason Tiemeier
Associate