A roofing company has decided to build its new office and warehouse on the site of a former farm in Perry Township.
RJK Roofing Solutions will construct a 30,000-square-foot building on vacant land on the south side of Clark Road, just west of Perry Park Road.
A groundbreaking ceremony for the project was held on the morning of Dec. 7.
RJK, which currently is based in Willoughby, will build its new headquarters on a 20-acre section of an 88-acre vacant property owned by the Perry Joint Economic Development District.
The site met RJK’s needs in several ways, said Jamie Kirkland, who is the company’s president and owner.
“This is a great location for our service area,” Kirkland said. “It’s very easy to get to, you have quick freeway access (by way of Route 2). And the people out here have been really great to work with.”
RJK purchased the land for its new structure from the Perry JEDD for $235,520. The company will construct a building consisting of a 25,000-square-foot warehouse and 5,000 feet of office space.
Overall cost of the project is about $2.5 million, Kirkland said.
Perry JEDD Board Chairman Robert Dawson also noted that the company’s annual payroll is in the range of $2 million.
Kirkland said RJK currently employs about 40 people, and that number is likely to increase, when the company moves to its new and larger headquarters.
“We’ll have the opportunity to grow,” said Kirkland, noting that the building also will provide room for additional equipment to serve customers. “Where we’re at now in Willoughby, we’ve outgrown it. It got to the point where we needed to move.”
RJK, which was established in 2004, is a full-service roofing contractor that provides roof repair and replacement services for commercial and residential properties.
The company’s new building will be constructed by Sullivan Development, which is based in Perry Township.
Dawson said Matt Sullivan, who owns Sullivan Development, initially contacted the JEDD Board about RJK’s intentions.
“He approached us on behalf of his client, about what was available there (on Clark Road), because his client wanted to come east,” Dawson said. “And that’s what started the conversation specifically with RJK.”
Dawson said the JEDD Board sought to learn more about what Kirkland wanted to accomplish with a new building in Perry Township and get an idea of how much space he would need.
The board also confirmed that RJK was willing to use a commercial septic system for the building, until sewer service is available for the Clark Road property.
“The next step is getting a sewer in the front of this property, and we’re working on that with the Lake County commissioners,” Dawson said.
Kirkland said his goal is to have the building completed by late summer.
Dawson, during the Dec. 7 groundbreaking, said government leaders in the community are excited about RJK’s project.
“All I can say is we could not be happier to have you guys and we welcome your business to Perry Township and to the JEDD,” said Dawson, who also serves as a Perry Township trustee.
The overall 88-acre property on Clark Road formerly functioned as a farm owned by the West family. Dawson said Perry Township had the foresight in 2008 to buy the property, in hopes of attracting future commercial development.
Dawson said the land was purchased to replace another property to the west that was designated for industrial development, but eventually was acquired by Lake Metroparks. Today, that property is the site of the Lake Metroparks Lake Erie Bluffs park.
Dawson said the JEDD Board is working to attract additional businesses to buy other portions of the 88-acre property on Clark Road.
“We’re talking to several other suitors that will ultimately develop this,” he said.