KBI getting knocked down

PERKINS TWP. — A private group recently publicized plans to tentatively demolish a historical site in Sandusky. Earlier this week, a limited liability company — known as 2509 Hayes, this property's listed owner — issued a press release, which partially shares some reasons behind this decision. "Since the last tenant vacated the facility, our group has worked extensively to find a suitable user to bring to the site and weighed every option of redevelopment that would help attract a user for the site," according to the statement. The site totals 129 acres at 2509 Hayes Ave. (Ohio 4) near Sandusky High School. This past summer, the company received $6 million in state brownfield remediation funds, which allowed it to begin pursuing this process. It's not known what results occurred from the environmental survey. Even if no issues arose from such an assessment, this site presents other problems. "Ultimately, the 1940s-era structure has proved difficult to work around for modern manufacturers and other users," it read. "Most national site selection searches require newer facilities and fast timelines. By clearing the site, we believe we are maximizing the potential for new development." The release notes that those involved with this initiative feel "excited to proceed forward with plans to demolish the existing building on our site, (which will occur) subject to all necessary approvals." Questions needing answers The Register asked additional questions in email correspondence with representatives. But those people wouldn't provide any more information than what they included in a short press release. Among the unknowns: • Who or what is 2509 Hayes LLC ownership? Who makes up that group, what is its mission and what type of experience, if any, does this group have? • When will the demolition occur? • How much does the demolition cost and where is that money coming from? • What necessary approvals do you need? When will those happen? • What will become of this site? • Why is this venture going to succeed at this site? • What type of investment, financially, could this be? And where is that money coming from? • Is there a time frame for when this work could happen? Sounding off The project features many local partners. This would include: • Perkins Township trustees In a statement, they wrote the following: "The board of trustees welcomes the news that a demolition permit has been applied for. Clearing buildings on this large property is seen as an important step in its redevelopment. The township remains available and committed to assisting in efforts to redevelop this property and to return it to productive use." • The Erie County Economic Development Corp. Abbey Bemis, the corporation's executive director, said, "Last year, (the corporation) worked with 75 different business attraction leads, and it is clear communities with large, ready-to-build sites are at a competitive advantage. We're pleased to have forward-thinking partners at 2509 Hayes who are making substantial proactive investments in order to bring this kind of site to market in Erie County." History lesson Across generations, the prominent property — whether known as Delphi, KBI or New Departure — employed thousands of locals. Though, since 2017, one of Erie County's largest employers from generations past has remained eerily empty. In spring 2016, Kyklos Bearing International, or KBI, announced it would cease operations on Dec. 31 of that year, sending about 300 people into the job market. The bearings plant at Perkins and Hayes avenues is rooted in the very start of the U.S. automotive industry. KBI opened as New Departure Bearings, a name that dates back to 1888. New Departure Bell was founded by brothers Albert and Edward Rockwell of Bristol, Connecticut. They formed the company to manufacture a new type of electric doorbell they'd invented. In 1900, the company received a trial order for 120 bearings from the Old Motor Works, the largest automotive manufacturer of the time. But it was more than six decades before New Departure moved to Sandusky, and war factored into the decision. During World War II, New Departure manufactured bearings for the war effort. "Why Sandusky was chosen as the spot for this development is an interesting story in itself. It is sufficient to say that the natural advantages of the city, its shoreline location, its ample supply of water, its east-west transportation facilities and other factors were the determining considerations," an article in the Register Star Journal dated Jan. 30, 1945, states. In addition, the new location in Sandusky lessened vulnerability to enemy attacks. The new bearings plant would be safer in Ohio, a harder target for enemy aircraft to reach, than the plants on the East Coast. New Departure in Sandusky opened June 14, 1947, covering 14 acres under a single roof. That same year, the United Auto Workers organized hourly employees, and the first union contract was negotiated and became effective in August 1948. After the war, the plant continued to operate and fully focused on making parts for automobiles, and it prospered considering: • In 1965, General Motors combined New Departure with Hyatt Roller Bearing division to form New Departure Hyatt Bearing Division in Sandusky. The company also brought 450 new families to Sandusky beginning in 1965 as workers transferred from plants in New Jersey and Connecticut. • In 1973, New Departure employed 2,839 people. • In 1974, the plant directly contributed $64 million into the local economy via payroll and local purchases, according to local newspaper articles. • In 1975, stable employment continued with 2,900 people working at the plant. • From the mid-1970s into the 1980s, considered the golden era of this operation, the plant employed about 5,000 people. It was considered the area's largest employer. It happened again in 1989 when New Departure started a process of transferring 112 employees from Bristol to Sandusky when the factory consolidated a spindle-bearing operation. "Some of the workers called Sandusky 'the frontier' because of its lack of shopping and other amenities. They thought it was treeless, wind-swept, flat," one New Departure executive told the Register at the time. The end of bearings manufacturing in Sandusky almost happened in 1986, when New Departure-Hyatt made the decision to leave the commercial ball bearings business, the industry it virtually invented in the 1900s, according to reports published at the time. GM merged Delco Moraine and New Departure-Hyatt into Delco Moraine. The restructuring and changes to survive continued when, in 1995, GM named the division Delphi Automotive. Delphi declared bankruptcy and was purchased by KBI, a subsidiary of HHI Group Holdings Inc. in 2008. Many locals expressed the feeling that the beginning of the end occurred with a judge's 2008 order in the Delphi bankruptcy proceeding. The judge required General Motors to subsidize KBI payroll until 2015. The subsidy meant KBI could not actively seek other contracts for years. Employees and union representatives have said KBI could not be competitive with overseas manufacturers they accused of "dumping" bearings into the U.S. market.