Trumbull County holds hearing on vacating Niles‑Warren River Road to accommodate Kimberly‑Clark campus

Trumbull County commissioners on Jan. 14 heard presentations supporting a proposal to vacate the roughly one‑mile segment of Niles‑Warren River Road (also called Pine Avenue) between Burton Street and DeForest Road to allow Kimberly‑Clark to integrate a manufacturing campus and a planned regional distribution center.

The matter drew economic‑development backers and technical testimony. David DeCristofaro, Trumbull County engineer, said the hearing was held under Ohio Revised Code §5553.04 and summarized outreach and reports on file, including communications from the county auditor, engineer, sanitation engineer and planning commission. DeCristofaro recommended approval “based on the compelling economic benefits, the operational necessities, the positive traffic impact analysis, and the significant infrastructure improvements that are planned.”

Why it matters: presenters said vacating the road would let Kimberly‑Clark unify two adjacent parcels—simplifying air permitting and enabling controlled access for separate employee and truck gates—while state and local investments would improve surrounding roads. Anthony Trevena of the Western Reserve Port Authority described long‑term site remediation and a joint economic‑development district that…