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WEST CHESTER TWP. — GE Aviation will move its engineering division to the township as part of a plan to bring 1,000 workers to Butler County, officials said.

West Chester Twp. and GE officials announced the plan Tuesday, Aug. 12, to move the jet manufacturer's $55 million facility to the township.

In a waiver application submitted May 22 by Butler County Economic Development Director Brian Coughlin, GE indicated it was seeking a location to consolidate engineers from two facilities in Cincinnati and one in West Chester Twp.

The company selected the site of the former Queen City Sports Complex, 9267 Cincinnati-Dayton Road, for the two-building, 400,000-square-foot facility, which will house 1,400 employees with average annual salaries of $100,000.

To encourage the move, the township offered GE a 100 percent tax abatement — roughly equivalent to $200,000 a year — for the length of its lease, expected to range from 10 to 15 years, according to officials. However, the abatement will not outlive the length of the lease, officials said.

The agreement also stipulated the creation of a joint economic development district, which township officials said could generate up to $1 million a year in income tax revenue for the township and a to-be-determined partner municipality.

Final details of the abatement, JEDD and reimbursement to the Lakota Local School District are still being finalized. The agreement is scheduled to go before Butler County Commissioners Thursday.

The draft agreement submitted to the state lists the new facility's proposed opening date as Jan. 1, 2010. The 43-acre site also has room for a possible two-building expansion, which would nearly double the facility's size and could be built as early as 2011.

By the numbers: GE Aviation's move to West Chester Twp.

Investment: $55 million

Number of employees: 1,400 total (1,000 from Cincinnati offices, remainder from West Chester Twp. office)

Average employees' annual salary: $100,000

Proposed tax abatement: 100 percent for the duration of the lease (10-15 years), equivalent to about $200,000 a year in property taxes to West Chester Twp.

Potential tax revenue from JEDD: Up to $1 million per year.