Jobseekers! Save the date, Wednesday, November 18, 2020. JobsOhio is excited to partner with Champaign and Clark Counties to connect with job-seekers with businesses that have immediate job openings! Registration opens November 2, 2020.   By Chelsea Bray - Elle A. Design Bundy Baking Solutions is a local company, founded by Russell T. Bundy, that sells bakeware and baking equipment all over the world. The story behind the success starts with Russell in 1964 when he started Russell T. Bundy Associates Inc. (RTB) in Columbus, Ohio to engage in the purchase and resale of pre-owned bakery pans and equipment. Soon enough the business had expanded from reselling of products, to recoating and cleaning bakeware, to producing custom baking pans for some of the largest bakeries in the world. The operation moved to Urbana, Ohio along with some interesting items that Russell had been collecting through the years.  What may be the best kept secret in Champaign County is that we are home to the World’s Largest Loaf of Bread and one of the largest collections of baking memorabilia in the world. They both belong to Russel T. Bundy and are located on private property but over the years the Bundy Family has captured and shared many photos and videos of the collection. The impressive collection can’t even be contained within the three floors of the museum and is displayed throughout the headquarters, manufacturing area, employee offices and even outside!  In 2006, Russell was inducted into the American Society of Baking’s Hall of Fame and honored as an industry leader. For more than sixty years, Russell has been leading and changing the baking industry. The innovation and leadership at Bundy Baking Solutions has led them to amazing success throughout the years. Over the past several years they have seen tremendous growth and continue to be a major employer in Champaign County.  Bundy Baking Solutions is headquartered in Urbana, Ohio, and has two facilities in the UK, one in Spain and one in Romania. This global leader in the baking world has made Urbana, Ohio a more unique place to live and to work by bringing their headquarters, baking museum, and giant loaf of bread to our town.  Work Begins to Transform the Douglas Hotel and Former Elementary Schools into Senior Apartments
The apartments will be ready to lease next year, Miller said. The apartments in the school buildings will be ready by mid-summer and the apartments in the Douglas, by year end. “Legacy Place is a big win for our community, and it’s the result of persistent effort by many individuals and organizations in a united public-private partnership,” Marcia Bailey, director of the Champaign Economic Partnership, said. “Legacy Place is proof of what our community can accomplish when we work together.” Besides the CEP and project developer Flaherty & Collins, key players in the partnership are the City of Urbana, Urbana City Schools administration and Board of Education, John Doss, owner of the Douglas Hotel since 2007, and Resident Supports and Services, Inc. (RSSI). RSSI, a local nonprofit provider of housing for seniors and adults with developmental disabilities, is serving as co-developer and 25 percent owner of the project. “Revitalizing and repurposing these historic buildings will have a tremendous impact on our economy and the attractiveness of our community and downtown,” Bailey said. The anchor of the southwest corner of Monument Square since 1870, the Douglas has stood vacant since 2004. “I’m looking forward to further business development in Urbana, especially in the downtown, to accommodate the new Legacy Place residents.” Another positive outcome of the project, she added, is that it will make much needed single-family housing available for new residents as seniors downsize to move into the apartments. Miller said the project accomplishes two goals: “turning three vacant buildings back around to make them useful assets to the community and meeting Urbana’s needs for affordable senior housing.” He added that the project, as it qualified for historic tax credits, will respect the historic nature of the buildings. Ed McCall of McCall Sharp Architecture of Springfield is the architect for the project. The $13 million in financing for the project includes federal and state Historic Tax Credits, low income housing tax credits, an Ohio Housing Finance Agency loan, and a construction loan. As the City of Urbana’s community development manager, Doug Crabill has been assisting Flaherty & Collins on the project for three years. He said, “Projects like this sometimes have a long horizon before the public can see the fruits of what we’ve been working for. The great thing is that everybody – the city, schools, the CEP, the developer – have been pulling in the same direction to get us where we are today.” He added, “John Doss has helped keep the project moving forward and he’s kept the Douglas in a stable state” to make it a viable candidate for the project. Doss had work completed to stabilize the structure and removed two small additions, which did not contribute to the historic value of the property. “I was really happy about the city and the school board all pulling together to get this done,” Doss said. “The schools really stepped up for the community.” Charles Thiel, superintendent of Urbana City Schools, said, “It’s been a long, long journey to get to this point. But we had faith and hope that we would get here.” Scott DeLong, president/CEO of RSSI, said, “Our board members are excited about the project and happy we could participate and help make the project a success.” RSSI manages housing for people with developmental disabilities in Champaign, Preble, Shelby and Union counties. Six of the 51 Legacy Place apartments will be designated for people with disabilities. Story and photos submitted by CEP (Champaign Economic Partnership). Photos taken by Gary Schenkel.
Official voting for the Best of Champaign County will be October 1st-31st. Voters are asked to donate $1 per vote to the Chamber of Commerce, so that it can continue to carry out its mission to connect Champaign County by promoting members and inspiring collaboration by offering resources and opportunities to enhance our community. Nominations and ballots will be accepted online, by mail, email or in person at the Chamber of Commerce located at 127 W. Court St. in Urbana.
Chamber Director, Sara Neer, explains, “With so many events being cancelled and postponed this year due to Covid the Chamber and Board of Directors thought long and hard about a fundraiser that we could carry out virtually to replace our in person events that we rely on for revenue to keep the Chamber in business. The Best of Champaign County contest does a few things: promotes local businesses, educates and involves the community, and assists the Chamber in raising funds by implementing a ‘donate to vote’ feature.” In a normal year the Chamber hosts monthly lunch & learns, business after hours networking events, first friday coffee hours, Safety Council meetings, Leadership Champaign County, along with other larger events. “We want to do all we can to continue providing valuable resources to our members and the community throughout this trying time and we hope that Champaign County will support our newest fundraiser”, says Chamber Board President, Tom Coles, “Small businesses add to the uniqueness of our county and we want to involve the community in recognizing and celebrating all that makes Champaign County a great place to live, work and play.”
The project also includes the expansion of specialized telecare, telestroke and telecardiology services in hospital. “This technology enables specialists with Mercy Health Physicians to use virtual monitors at Urbana Hospital to remotely connect with patients and provide consultations. The patients can stay at Urbana Hospital instead of traveling to Springfield Regional Medical Center for specialist care,” said Jamie Houseman, president, Urbana Hospital. Additionally, the hospital has added a second state-of-the-art ultrasound machine allowing it to expand hours for outpatient services and schedule more tests to accommodate patients. This latest project is part of an overall $1.3M investment in the campus that has included: -Adding on site mammography services -Renovating the inpatient space, emergency department, operating rooms and central sterile services department -Building the hospital’s new, covered front entrance -Internal renovations on the first floor, including a new registration area separate from the emergency department, gift shop and a more accessible coumadin clinic -Renovated cardiac rehab space and helipad It follows 2017’s $3 million renovation and service expansion project that included: -Building a 10-bed senior behavioral health unit -Recruitment of an orthopedic surgeon and two general surgeons, which has led to a significant increase in surgery volumes -Doubling of the MRI service capability from two to four days weekly -Internal renovations to modernize the facility Hiring more employees
Champaign County’s largest employer, KTH is one of the largest Tier 1 automotive suppliers in the U.S., employing more than 1,100 associates in a 1.068-million-square-foot complex west of St. Paris. KTH makes underbody structural frame components for cars, with Honda its top customer.
KTH also has been busy on Sundays, hosting open interviews to fill 40 to 50 open production positions. Millice recently shared with the Champaign Economic Partnership (CEP): “The availability of candidates to fill these positions is very limited. We have been advertising these positions by radio, social media and news publications.” KTH is a Champion Level investor in the CEP, which is Champaign County’s economic development agency. “Good news like this is very encouraging, especially during the pandemic,” says CEP Director Marcia Bailey. “In Champaign County we’re very fortunate to have a diverse mix of businesses and employers like KTH that are growing, looking to the future and providing new jobs for area residents.” While keeping up with demand, KTH also has been closely following CDC guidelines to protect its workforce, Millice said. This includes: · Facial coverings, sanitizing and social distancing · Moving some workstations or placing barriers between workstations to ensure proper distancing · Requiring face shields and masks for associates who work in processes where social distancing cannot be accommodated · Hiring personnel whose full-time job is to wipe down high-traffic areas several times a day · Emphasizing that associates stay home when they are not feeling well · Restricting all non-essential visitors from entering the plant “At KTH we pride ourselves on our dedicated workforce, which is one of the best in the industry, as we work through labor demand constraints and follow COVID safe practices,” Millice says.
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