LORDSTOWN, Ohio — Mayor Arno Hill said he's seen the good, the bad and the ugly over the years in the village of Lordstown, which has 3,300 residents.

As Lordstown Motors and Foxconn remain at an impasse over an expected $170 million of investment, Hill said he believes that Foxconn will be a great asset in the long term.

While he's hoping for the best, he said, "sometimes you have to anticipate that the best won’t come around." 

What You Need To Know

  • Lordstown Motors and Foxconn remain at an impasse over an expected $170 million investment 

  • The EV maker's stock recently tumbled below $1 a share 

  • Lordstown Motors has experienced issues with supply chain and recalls 

“Best case scenario, you know, for us and Lordstown, is for Foxconn to be successful and get other products in that plant. That’s 6.2 million square foot. I’ve seen the electric tractor, and you know, that assembly line is long enough. They can probably get five or six different products in there,” said Hill. 

Foxconn agreed to $170 million in funding back in November, however, the EV truck maker’s Endurance line may be halted because of production delays. 

Endurance has also been recalled twice in recent months for a high-voltage cable fault and electric park brake failure. 

“They’ve had three vehicle recalls, and they haven’t made many vehicles. And they were also counting on the money coming in from Foxconn. And now, Foxconn and Lordstown Motors are at a stalemate of what they’re going to do. Like I said, we don’t have an abatement with them, so right now, we’re just waiting to see how it washes out,” said Hill.  

While Hill said some of the plants' workers may be facing an uncertain future at Lordstown Motors, he does believe Foxconn will have a presence in the village for years to come. 

Hill, a tool and die maker for Delphi Packard Electric for 32 years, said Lordstown will remain strong and points to its other manufacturing strongholds.

“We have TJX Homegoods—that’s the largest distribution center. (The) battery plant promises 1,100 employees. By the end of the year, they’ll probably have 2,000. Our economy in Lordstown is coming back. We took a big hit—you know, the wages aren’t going to be the same as what General Motors were, but we’re going to survive,” said Hill. 

Both Lordstown Motors and Foxconn declined comment on the impasse. 

Lordstown Motors stock remains below $1, and recently, its founder Steve Burns cashed out more than $1 million worth of shares. 

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