Sanoh America got the Mount Vernon Municipal Planning Commission’s approval to expand its building’s floor space by 25% at its location on Industrial Park Drive.

Sanoh is a manufacturer of brake line and fuel line tubing with headquarters in Findlay. It wants to add a 150-foot-by-500-foot addition to the back of its Mount Vernon facility, adding 75,000 square feet of floor space.

The existing building has approximately 240,000 square feet of space.

Jerry Baker of Wooster, the property owner, said the company meets all codes and restrictions of the city with the building and expansion plans.

A plant in Alabama is sending 32 machines to Mount Vernon. Sanoh needs the additional floor space for them.

“They are very particular about what they do,” Baker said.

He said $850,000 was spent on air conditioning for the building last year as Sanoh wants to keep its employees comfortable and retain them.

“Now they are going to be looking probably by October for 60-plus people. That’s a good thing for Mount Vernon,” Baker said.

Sam Filkins, vice president of the Area Development Foundation of Knox County, said he read the plans and checked the restrictive covenants for the industrial park to make sure it met all city codes.

“Because it is an addition on the back of the property, it easily meets everything. The side setback isn't changing. The front setback isn't changing, and the back setback is still well within the rules,” he said. “Everything I can see on the plan fully applies to every restrictive covenant that we have.”

City Engineer Brian Ball said the stormwater requirements will be easily met with this plan. Full city utilities already are available there.

Municipal Planning Commissioner Julia Warga’s motion to approve the building expansion was approved with a 4-0 vote, with commissioners Matt Starr, Rick Dzik and Robert Drews also voting yes.