Niles, Ohio

Published January 2013

The City of Niles prides itself as a place that offers “big city” amenities, but with a “small town atmosphere.”

Niles originated in the early 1800s as an industrial town, first with a sawmill and gristmill, then grew to a thriving iron town, which evolved into the steel industry which carries Niles into present day.

The birthplace of William McKinley, the 25th president of the United States, Niles is home to the McKinley Memorial Library, National McKinley Birthplace Memorial, and McKinley Birthplace Home & Research Center.

Serene setting
With beautiful parks and extensive recreational facilities, there’s plenty to do in Niles. The city boasts some of the finest shopping and entertainment in northeastern Ohio, and is home to a minor league professional baseball team, the Mahoning Valley Scrappers – a Class ‘A’ affiliate of the Cleveland Indians. Eastwood Field (originally known as Cafaro Field) houses the Scrappers, and plays host to concerts and events.

The city has a rich history in education and is known for quality educational institutions. The first school in Niles was opened in 1834. The district states part of its mission is to “ensure the opportunity for all students to become responsible learners, critical thinkers and problem solvers as productive members of a democratic society.”

The city is renovating excellence by building a new high school, a new K-2 primary building and a new 3-5 intermediate building.

Industrial development
Niles has also been successfully developing a wide industrial base, ranging from heavy to light industries. A current notable industry in the city is Dinesol Plastics Inc., an injection molder that provides quality engineering and manufacturing.

The city is an ideal location for the growth of industry. Clean land is readily available, as well as existing facilities to accommodate a diverse range of industrial requirements.

Expanding economic development and a low crime rate make Niles a desirable location.

Benefits of public power
The city, with a population of more than 19,000, owns its own water and power supply. The Niles Light Department, established in 1895, is responsible for maintaining and upgrading the city-owned electric systems. The department provides electrical service to about 11,000 customers.

Companies located in the City of Niles benefit from some of the lowest water and electric rates in the country, according to the city’s website.

The City of Niles utility billing got a new look in the spring of 2012. A new software program has improved features, including a consumption chart to show a comparison of usage over the past full year. Statements are more detailed to help provide the highest quality service to the city’s customers. Niles is also pursuing more online payment options through the city’s website.

As a member of AMP, Niles participates in a number of AMP programs and projects that assist in providing reliable energy and other benefits to the community and its citizen-owners. These include:

  • Northeast AMP Service Group (NEASG)
  • AMP Fremont Energy Center, a natural gas combined cycle facility that supplies intermediate and peaking power
  • Efficiency Smart, a comprehensive energy-efficiency program administered for AMP by the Vermont Energy Investment Corporation
  • Mutual Aid, a network of municipal electric systems that assist each other when utility emergencies occur that are too widespread to be handled by one system alone
  • OMEGA JV1, a joint venture of NEASG communities that owns nine megawatts (MW) of diesel generation installed at Cuyahoga Falls
  • OMEGA JV2, a joint venture that owns three gas turbine distributed generation units and 35 diesel units with a total capacity of 138.65 MW at sites across Ohio
  • OMEGA JV5, a joint venture that operates a 42-MW hydroelectric plant on the Ohio River and has back-up generation sources located throughout Ohio
  • New York Power Authority (NYPA), providing hydroelectricity generated by the Niagara and St. Lawrence rivers
  • Meldahl/Greenup, which includes the run-of-the-river hydroelectric generating facility currently under construction at the Captain Anthony Meldahl Dam on the Ohio River and the existing generating facility at the Greenup Dam, also on the Ohio River
  • Phase 1 Hydro, which includes the run-of-the-river generating facilities currently under construction at the Cannelton, Smithland and Willow Island dams on the Ohio River
  • The Prairie State Energy Campus, in southern Illinois, a 1,600-MW state-of-the-art supercritical mine-mouth plant and adjacent coal mine

For more information on the City of Niles, please visit www.thecityofniles.com