Obama touts Stimulus Payoff

at Ohio Seamless Tube Plant

By DAVID SKOLNICK

skolnick@vindy.com

Youngstown Vindicator

President Barack Obama didn’t come to V&M Star with money for economic development in the Mahoning Valley or an offer to provide assistance to help the area’s struggling economy.

But Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams said Obama is helping the Valley.

Just by coming to the area Tuesday to highlight V&M’s $650 million expansion draws national attention to what’s happening here and what the area has to offer to businesses, Williams said.

“There’s this notion that a city like Youngstown is to be written off; our better days are behind us,” he said. “I refuse to believe that.”

Obama, a Democrat, talked about areas like the Valley with long-standing financial struggles collaborating as a region, and receiving state and financial help to progress.

“He talks of communities like Youngstown moving from surviving to thriving,” said Williams, a Democrat. “For years, we’ve been barely surviving. At some point in the future we’ll be out of survival mode. I do believe this community can indeed thrive.”

Continue reading Regional Industry Is Getting Benefits From Obama Manufacturing Stimulus Programs →