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Wright Patt lease agreement will generate jobs, money for region

Rendering of a new Convergence Research Center on and around Wright Patterson Air Force Base. The project is expected to create up to 3,000 new jobs.
Dayton Development Coalition
Rendering of a new Convergence Research Center on and around Wright Patterson Air Force Base. The project is expected to create up to 3,000 new jobs.

A new research center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base will bring together the county, the military and a private developer.

Synergy, a Beavercreek-based developer, has signed a lease to build the Convergence Research Center.

One section located along National Road in Bath Township. The other will be along Colonel Glenn Highway in Beavercreek Township.

The 50-year agreement sets the stage for development on base and in surrounding communities. Construction will begin this summer. And the first building will be completed in 2027.

Members of a the Convergence Research Center project. From left to right, Jeff Hoagland (Dayton Development Coalition), Jerad Barnett ( CEO, Synergy), Cong. Mike Turner (10th District), J.P. Nauseef (President & CEO, JobsOhio)
Kathryn Mobley
/
WYSO
Members of a the Convergence Research Center project. From left to right, Jeff Hoagland (Dayton Development Coalition), Jerad Barnett ( CEO, Synergy), Cong. Mike Turner (10th District), J.P. Nauseef (President & CEO, JobsOhio)

The official announcement was made during a morning gathering at Paragon Towers in Beavercreek. Members of the U.S. Air Force, including Col. Dustin Richards of the 88th Air Base Wing, business leaders, and local, state and federal elected leaders.

Synergy CEO Jerad Barnett said a strong talent pool makes this area ideal for the center.

"We have a high concentration of PhDs in this area. We also have a wonderful state and an area with a low cost of living that is very attractive for people in the Air Force," Barnett said.

The new labs and high security Air Force contract workspaces are expected to create as many as 3,000 new jobs.

"Just the buildings alone are going to be over $250 million worth of development," U.S. Rep. Mike Turner said. "Then you have, of course, all the equipment, the jobs themselves, the revenue that's going to be generated, this is going to be a major investment and a major impact both to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and to our entire region."

Other partners include JobsOhio, the state of Ohio and the Dayton Development Coalition.

"We want to position Dayton as the global leader for cutting edge technologies like cyber physical systems, digital engineering and digital manufacturing anchored in national defense and supported by cross cutting industry commercial applications,” Jeff Hoagland, president of the Dayton Development Coalition, told the crowd.

Kathryn Mobley is an award-winning broadcast journalist, crafting stories for more than 30 years. She’s reported and produced for TV, NPR affiliate and for the web. Mobley also contributes to several area community groups. She sings tenor with World House Choir (Yellow Springs), she’s a board member of the Beavercreek Community Theatre and volunteers with two community television operations, DATV (Dayton) and MVCC (Centerville).

Email: kmobley@wyso.org
Cell phone: (937) 952-9924