Seminole Chamber of Commerce and Seminole Industrial Foundation announced today an expansion of the Seminole Kelsey-Hayes plant which will mean an employment expansion from some 30 employees to more than 200 employees.

Making the joint announcement were Cecil Sullivan, President of Seminole Industrial Foundation, Hulett Edgmon, President of Seminole Chamber of Commerce, Raymond Harber, Treasurer of Seminole Industrial Development Authority and Bob Jones, manager of the chamber.

The local group of chamber, foundation and authority officers have been conferring with Kelsey-Hayes officials for the past several weeks. The lease and contract signed yesterday follows a recent trip by Jones and Harber to Elkhart, Ind., for a conference with officials of the Acle Division of Kelsey-Hayes.

“We are certainly delighted and happy that the company has agreed to enlarge the Seminole operation and make it the Southwest area operational headquarters,” Jones said in providing details of the project. Henry King, Southwest Area Manager for Kelsey-Hayes joined Harber and Jones in expressing pleasure at the expansion project.

King, who headquarters in Seminole and lives on Highway 9 East with his wife and three daughters, said this week that he hoped to see the Kelsey-Hayes operation expand into a threeshift operation. This would substantially increase the employment total.

The new 65,000 square foot building will adjoin the present 24,000 square foot operation of Kelsey-Hayes on north “A” Street in Gulf Industrial Tract in the east section of the city.

Harber said the new lease will encompass all of the Foundation property from U.S. 270 north to the property line with J. A. Runge company. The present lease to Kelsey-Hayes runs from midway of the tract south of their plant to the Runge plant’s property line.

“This expansion of Kelsey-Hayes completes the industrial development of this former Gulf Oil Company area along North Harvey Road,” Harber pointed out after the letter of intent was signed late last evening by the Kelsey-Hayes officials from Romulus, Michigan.

The Kelsey-Hayes plant in Seminole assembles axles primarily for mobile homes and recreational vehicles. The firm is the largest in the world manufacturing and assembling wheels and brakes and axles for all types of vehicles.

“Mr. Kelsey, one of the founders of the Kelsey-Hayes Company, started making wheels when the wheel was first invented,” Harber said in explaining the status of the firm which is making Oklahoma and Seminole a key point in their Southwestern USA operations.

The property being leased is owned by Seminole Industrial Foundation. The Seminole chamber developed the expansion project and the Seminole Industrial Authority will issue industrial revenue bonds to construct the plant, purchasing the property from the Foundation when the structure is completed.

“Our Industrial Authority has leased the property to Kelsey Hayes for 20 years and the rentals from the lease will completely retire the bonds,” Harber explained. The option of the industry to either lease the property for another 20 years or purchase the property is included in the lease, Harber explained.

The new plant will be an Armco Industrial building constructed by Stoldt Builders of Oklahoma City. The Stoldt firm did the designing of the plant with Kelsey-Hayes engineers. Cost of the structure alone will exceed a half-million dollars, the announcement said.

Financing and bond sales are being handled by R. J. Edwards Company of Oklahoma City. Paul Johanning, bond attorney of Oklahoma City is handling the legal details with Bill Bishop serving as local attorney.

The Trustee Bank, which handles the funds under the Authority guidance, will be American National Bank and Trust Company of Shawnee. The Shawnee bank’s trust department has been handling the trust funds for the local Authority for the past several years.

“We are proud of the fact that Seminole Industrial bonds command an excellent market and we always get a good market for our bonds because of the record of the city with its general obligation bonds and because of the record of success and type of industry we have been successful in bringing to Seminole,” Harver explained.

Sullivan, Chairman of the Seminole Industrial Foundation, is also vice chairman of the Seminole Industrial Authority. Other members of the Authority, in addition to Harver and Sullivan, are Ed Roesler, First State Bank, George Poplin, of First Federal Savings and Loan and Milt Phillips, local newsman who is chairman.

The new Kelsey-Hayes operation is expected to move into the assemblying of a wide variety of the company’s Axle Division Products. Frank Schaefeer, Elkhart, Indiana, and the general manager of all Axle Division plat operations, said the company is presently looking forward to even greater future expansion in the Southwest.

“The completing of this project with Kelsey-Hayes demonstrates the value of the coordinated efforts of the major organizations in our community,” Jones said in making the announcement this morning. He cited the close cooperation of the chamber Industrial Division headed by John Marshall, the Foundation, the Authority, and the officials of the City of Seminole.

“No community can boast of finer cooperation between all of the key groups, including our city officials, than we have in Seminole,” Jones asserted. -oOo Slants - J. Q. Moss getting ready for the bass fishing tourney at Sportsman Lake… Betty Watson being a little quick in shutting a car door… June Davis and Imogene Dawson enjoying Oklahoma City’s Festival of the Arts… Lena Mae Smith receiving a personal letter from Governor David Hall with reference to a nice remark she made about him some weeks ago… The Bob Iveys who moved from Seminole a year or so ago, back visiting and renewing longtime friendships.