What's more, it's Big

A Kansas firm called Big Industrial LLC has bought the old Dayton Tire plant on Council Road and will turn it into the Will Rogers Industrial Park.

Bridgestone/Firestone closed the plant last year, citing declining interest in its low-end tire lines. About 1800 jobs were lost.

The facility covers 2.5 million square feet on 310 acres. One possible selling point is the presence of an onsite gas-powered cogeneration plant, which may reduce utility costs for the new tenants, and "tenants" is plural: in recognition of market realities — turning the whole place over to a single firm is unlikely — Big Industrial is prepared to subdivide as needed. The demand is presumably there, though: the local vacancy rate, despite this and other plant closings, is still only about 10 percent. (A group led by Terryl Zerby bought out the old Western Electric/Lucent plant; speculation is rife that Tinker Air Force Base will absorb the former GM Assembly facility.) Proposed lease price is $2.50 per square foot; if fully leased, the new park will earn $6 million a year.

The name change for the plant presumably will not affect the Bridgestone/Firestone grade school being built in the Western Heights school district.

Posted at 10:41 AM to City Scene