Carvana, local officials celebrate opening of Elyria Twp. facility

ELYRIA TWP. — The largest investment ever made in Elyria Township officially celebrated its opening Tuesday. Carvana is now operating out of the old Spiegelberg Orchards inside the township off Middle Ridge Road. The dealer hired about 400 people and is expected to create more than $13.3 million in payroll. Carvana built a 190,000-square-foot facility that contains different areas for inspecting and servicing of vehicles being prepared for sale. It's a center for the inspection of used cars. The building was the product of work between multiple agencies, including Elyria Township, the cities of Lorain and Elyria, and the county. The project remained secretive for months, operating under the code name "Apple Pie," said Elyria Township Trustee Bill Holtzmann. Despite the coronavirus pandemic and changes in administrations coming in the middle of the project, Holtzmann said Carvana was completed on time and moved forward, and added that many of the people hired to work at the facility have been hired locally. "Carvana, it's great to have you as our neighbor," he said. About two years ago, Manager of Development and Entitlements Todd Ward walked into the company's Tempe, Arizona, headquarters. His site selection coworker handed Ward a number and told him to call it. There was a site available in Northeast Ohio. That number led to Tom Blaz, zoning inspector in Elyria Township. Ward and Blaz struck up a friendship and Ward said it ran from there. Elyria Township competed with sites in several other states, including Indiana, Tennessee and Oklahoma, for the project. Ward said Blaz's hospitality and enthusiasm was duplicated throughout the entire community. "I have been doing this a long time across the country, but never before have I seen four different entities come together from the county to cities and township work together as one, like our partner, to make sure that we never had issues," Ward said. "All we had was solutions." Vehicle inspection essentially operates in an assembly-line format. Vehicles start at one end of the building and go through a 150-point inspection. Based on the evaluation of each vehicle, work like oil changes, fresh paint and new tires will be done. No major work, such as engine rebuilds, are completed on site. Once the vehicles are serviced and cleaned, they go to the final stage of being photographed for sale. Sales at Carvana are done online, and vehicles are stored on site until they are sold. For General Manager Jim Rebbeck, he has come full circle at the Carvana location in Elyria Township. Years ago he started with Ford Motor Co. in Lorain, which is no longer open. Rebbeck said he had the opportunity to come to the county and bring jobs with him. He previously came from a Carvana location in Arizona. Elyria Township, the city of Elyria, the city of Lorain and the county entered into a joint economic development district agreement, or JEDD, for the site in December 2019. Lorain will provide sewer service to the project and Elyria will provide water. The Ohio Tax Credit Authority approved a 1.368 percent, eight-year job-creation tax credit for Carvana in September 2020. The building cost was estimated at $23 million. JobsOhio President J.P. Nauseef praised the work of all parties to complete the project, and said it's only an example of what can happen in Ohio. At the end of the day, what seals the deal for companies is the community, said Christine Nelson, Team NEO vice president of regional business development. The former Spiegelberg Orchards property, at 6161 Middle Ridge Road, had been on the market for more than three years until the property transfer went through to Carvana earlier this month. Spiegelberg Orchards opened in the 1930s, and Kenneth and Ruth Spiegelberg ran the 105-acre property until they died in 2014. The property went up for sale in September 2016. According to Lorain County auditor records, Carvana purchased the site in August 2020 for $5.7 million. State Rep. Gayle Manning, R-North Ridgeville, said Carvana will serve as an example to all businesses for what Lorain County has to offer. Contact Laina Yost at (440) 329-7121 or lyost@chroniclet.com.