“Michelin was Ardmore and Ardmore was Michelin.”
That’s the declaration of Bill Murphy, president of the Ardmore Chamber of Commerce and what he told KOCO TV news following the devastating news in the past week that Michelin plans to close the tire production facility in 2025.
Ardmore city leaders will have an opportunity Tuesday to speak to an Oklahoma State Senate hearing about the economic challenges the closing presents. The Senate Select Committee on Business Retention and Economic Development will hold the hearing to discuss what can be done to keep other businesses in the state.
It was devastating news for Senate Pro Tem Greg Treat who described Michelin as a “pillar” in Ardmore for decades.
“We must examine everything, including our shortcomings especially when we lose major employers.”
The closure will affect 1,400 employees who will be out of a job when the plant is closed.
KOCO news reported other cities have gone through similar shocks in the past few years, including El Reno which lost more than 800 jobs with the closing of a nearby Haliburton Company office.
El Reno former mayor Matt White said Ardmore will have it worse than El Reno did four years ago.
Then there was the shutdown of the General Motors manufacturing plant in Oklahoma City. It closed its doors in February of 2006 after nearly 26 years of production and as a result, 2,000 hourly and 200 salaried employees lost their jobs. But the figures didn’t include the number of firms that went out of business because they relied on related economic ties to the plant.
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