It’s getting harder and harder to be excited about new economic development announcements in Ohio, as the ones already on the table seem to be dropping off at an alarming rate. Intel’s One Ohio project may now be even closer to that edge.

According to a report by WCMH, there are rumbles that Intel may be considering how to handle its computer chip manufacturing arm, as part of cost-cutting efforts. Intel has already said it is planning to lay off 15% of its global workforce, suspend its stock dividends program — and the company reported $1.6 billion in losses during its July earnings presentation.

Meanwhile, according to WCMH, a group of stockholders is suing Intel for “false and misleading misrepresentations” about the division of which the Ohio One plant is supposed to be a part.

Given the number of benchmarks Intel was required to meet before Ohio’s clawback measures kick in, surely they are thinking carefully about whether canceling Ohio One is to their benefit in the long run.

But, according to WCMH, Intel has already halted plans to build a $25 billion semiconductor fabrication plant in Israel (that project had $3.2 billion in incentives attached), and may be considering halting construction on a plant in Germany that was billed as being Ohio One’s counterpart.

The news does not look good. WCMH reports that back in 2022 there were a lot of job openings listed for the planned plant in New Albany. Now, the company’s career page does not have ANY jobs listed for Ohio.

“The Rust Belt, it is dead,” Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said at Ohio One’s groundbreaking. “The Silicon Heartland begins.”

Time is running out for the company to prove its vision for a silicon heartland has not come to an end before it ever really started.

To avoid the state’s clawback measures, Intel must have 3,000 workers on-site by 2028.

State officials must not wait that long to start asking some difficult questions. Should Ohio One fail to launch, it will be a broken promise not just to New Albany, but to the entire Buckeye State. And it will be one more reminder that Gov. Mike DeWine’s goal of having a large employer within commuting distance of every Ohioan is still just a dream.

Too many times we’ve had our hopes raised and been disappointed. That doesn’t mean economic development officials should stop trying. But it does mean we need to work harder on the smaller projects that aren’t billing themselves as saviors of local and state economies. A diversified (both in terms of industry and geography) crop of new employers across the state might make more sense than betting it all on one homerun.

Here’s hoping Intel’s Ohio One project pulls through. While we wait, let’s not stop looking at the rest of our options.