A cluster of economic development agencies across northeast Ohio that includes four with ties to the Mahoning Valley is a finalist for some of $1 billion in economic development grants connected to the Biden administration’s coronavirus relief package.

Led by MAGNET (Manufacturing Advocacy Growth Network), the Cleveland-based group that spans 18 northeast Ohio counties, the proposal that seeks $75 million focuses on smart manufacturing and advanced materials.

The finalists — predominantly coalitions made up of government, academic and economic partnerships — will receive $500,000 each to help plan for the next round, with applications due in March. The deadline for choosing the winners is September.

MAGNET’s proposal is broken into eight construction and nonconstruction program components, one of which would be led by BRITE Energy Innovators that, located in downtown Warren, is the state’s only energy technology incubator.

Other Valley coalition members include America Makes, the national additive manufacturing and 3D printing accelerator in Youngstown; Youngstown State University; Youngstown Business Incubator; and Youngstown / Warren Regional Chamber.

BRITE, according to the application, would establish research and development (R&D) and commercialization space to support companies in the battery and energy storage space, especially those in automotive.

The project would cost about $8 million.

Rick Stockburger, BRITE’s president / CEO, said the opportunity is huge to build a strong regional ecosystem in the sector. So far, the effort has been toward developing the proposal. Should it win funding, it could mean upgrading BRITE’s facility, building new or repurposing an existing building for the new center.

“Key is the relationship with Ultium Cells and Lordstown Motors as we go ahead and move forward that we are building something that will bring exponential return for the community,” Stockburger said in the form of investment into energy companies and job creation.

Other construction-related components would be $5 million deploy a network of smart sensors at Lake Erie ports and waterways to improve freight movement and supply chain backlogs; $7 million to improve electrical microgrids that serve key industrial districts; and $15 million to create space to develop and test new materials used in advanced manufacturing.

The nonconstruction-related components of the plan include $5 million to set up R&D and commercialization technical help to manufacturers developing remote health devices in the 18-county region; $15 million to create R&D and commercialization to help in the aerospace field around the NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland; $10 million to increase supplier diversity and minority businesses’ growth; and $10 million to launch a business technical program to support manufacturing learn-and-earn programs that engage underrepresented groups.

“These projects provide an opportunity to address structural inequities that produce extreme conditions of distress in our communities,” the funding application states.

It is estimated the construction projects would be complete within 30 months of an award and the nonconstruction projects within two years, the application states.

The project is among 60 finalists announced Monday. The funding is aimed at improving job training and regional industry partnerships.

There were 529 applicants for the grants. That means roughly 11 percent of submissions made it to the next round, which will ultimately choose 20 to 30 regional coalitions for up to $100 million in grants that could shape manufacturing, clean energy and life sciences hubs around the country. Twelve of the finalists were from places tied to the coal industry.

“This program will bring communities back in regions across America,” said Alejandra Castillo, assistant commerce secretary for economic development. She said the program was designed to bring different local partners together “to leverage their assets.”

Matching has letters of support for more than $25 million, which represents more than 33 percent of the estimated project costs. Sources include money, local, state and philanthropic grants, corporate donations, concurrent projects and capital and public financing initiatives, according to the application.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.