Vactor expansion in Streator will add 90 jobs

Vactor Manufacturing in Streator is expanding.

The $25 million project is expected to bring 90 new jobs. Of those jobs, 78 will pay at least $44,000 per year and a dozen will pay $67,000 or more.

The Streator City Council passed resolutions Wednesday that worked with Vactor to expand its current complex by 100,000 square feet at 1621 S. Illinois St.

Vactor’s parent company, Federal Signal, bought land to the facility's east, currently owned by Streator Industrial Development Inc.

The expansion was made possible through $2.5 million in bonds issued out of the city's tax increment finance funds that will be paid back in the next 20 years. An estimated $1.6 million of that will go for construction of an entryway from Livingston Road.

This money is only eligible to be used for TIF-eligible expenses, such as job training, building repair and public works projects. None of it will come from the city's general fund.

"We’re appreciative of the city’s help, and this community has been a great place for us to grow," said Vactor Vice President and General Manager Sam Miceli, who was in attendance Wednesday night.

Miceli said Vactor will be adding positions almost immediately.

"We’re looking to improve capacity," he said. "We need to grow the business immediately."

The Greater Livingston County Economic Development Council and the city of Streator also agreed to pitch in $7,500 of training per job of the 90 jobs.

Miceli said the support of the state of Illinois, the city of Streator and the Livingston County economic development group put the project "past the finish line."

“It was a very competitive project, but everyone worked together,” Miceli said. “It was actually a very smooth process.”

Streator City Manager Scot Wrighton said part of the challenge in getting businesses like Vactor to expand in Streator is the difficult market in Illinois when other surrounding states are more business-friendly.

“(Vactor’s expansion shows) the importance of working together when there’s something that needs to be accomplished," said Mayor Jimmie Lansford. “(With the partnerships) we’ve had with Vactor and Federal Signal, along with Streator IDI, the city and the Greater Livingston County Economic Development Council, we had a lot of involvement. Federal Signal has really taken a stand and said that Streator is a place that they want to be.

"The workers we have available and people that support this community are what keeps companies here," he added. "If you talk to any manufacturer in this community, they say the most important thing we have is our workforce."

Miceli said the project is being planned to take 12 months but weather will play a factor in how quickly work can begin.

According to Wednesday's news release, the new facilities will be used to help Vactor further its safe-digging initiative, which uses vacuum excavation and water for safer digging without the use of backhoes.

The project will start in two phases, with the first being an expansion of Vactor’s existing fabrication, welding, paint, assembly areas and testing bays. The second phase will see its training center and customer inspection facility updated, along with the construction of a new road rounding the facility.

Vactor employs more than 600 residents from Streator and the surrounding areas; with this new addition, Federal Signal is expected to invest more than $25 million over the course of the expansion.

"It’s good for Streator,” Lansford said. “There will be people from all over the area working here. This expansion benefits everyone."

Vactor has had a long relationship with Streator. It moved to Streator in the 1930s as Myers-Sherman and specialized in creating machines to aid in cleaning sewer systems.

Streator recently has seen growth in many of its other factories, adding roughly 40 jobs at Stertil ALM and at Owens-Illinois.

“This will help with the continuation of employment growth and a diverse manufacturing base,” Wrighton said of the Vactor expansion announcement. “These are not low-paying, unskilled positions. It involves the entire community, and when the community gets involved, the city grows.”