Plans for Vadxx Energy LLC's Akron, Ohio, plant are moving forward.
Akron City Council this week approved the sale of 5.1 acres of city-owned land at East Waterloo Road and Kelly Avenue to the company. The city's planning commission approved the proposal in August, but it had to go before council before being finalized.
Vadxx CEO Jim Garrett said the next step for the company was to close on financing for the project; he was optimistic that would happen before the end of the year. He does not expect construction on the Akron plant — the company's first — to begin before spring 2014.
The plant will be about 20,000 square feet, Garrett said, and it will include a recycling unit made by Rockwell Automation Inc.
The city of Akron is not charging Vadxx anything up front to buy the land, said economic development specialist Brent Hendren. Instead, he said a profit-sharing agreement will be set up, likely through the Akron Development Corp., a nonprofit arm of the city that acts on behalf of the city's interests.
Cleveland-based Vadxx turns certain plastic waste into fuel. Original plans had Vadxx pursuing a plant in Cleveland, but those were set aside in favor of the Akron location this summer. The company has an existing research and development center in Akron.
Garrett noted that the company has had "enormous regional support" from governments and various organizations in Akron and Cleveland.