IROQUOIS – Ross Video is on the verge of its biggest expansion ever, and is waiting for one last piece of the puzzle to fall into place so the proposed project can move forward.
Ross employs 787 people globally, of which 225 are employed at its manufacturing headquarters here in Iroquois.
Since setting up shop in Iroquois in 1974 the Ross facility has undergone major expansions in 1982, 1999 and 2012 but the latest will be the largest yet.
The 55,000 square foot, two-storey, expansion project has an estimated price tag of $15 million will almost double the size of the manufacturing facility and will bring at least 40 new jobs to the Iroquois site.
In preparation for the proposed expansion, Ross Video has been acquiring surrounding land including South Dundas’ former Iroquois works building, the former Miller Street St. Lawrence Medical Clinic building, and an adjoining parcel from Iroquois Enterprises.
But, there is one last piece of land owned by Iroquois Legion Branch 370 that Ross needs to acquire to allow the project to proceed as planned.
That piece of land is a gravel parking lot.
What Ross officials are proposing is a land swap that would trade the parcel behind the building for a parcel beside the building and include a paving upgrade.
“We’ve been going back and forth on this agreement, and I think we almost have it sorted,” Ross Video vice-president of manufacturing Jeff Poapst told The Leader following his September 3rd presentation to South Dundas council. “It’s the only barrier left.”
South Dundas council unanimously offered to support the project any way possible.
Contingent on securing the agreement with the Legion, the expansion will allow Ross Video not only to expand but also bring the 8,000 square feet of manufacturing space it occupies in the Iroquois Plaza into the main facility.
Once the Legion agreement is sorted the project will move forward. Optimistically, if all goes well, the expansion project could break ground in May 2020.
