HAMILTON — City officials said they’ve done what they were asked to do in purchasing the SMART Papers complex.

Now it’s up to an interested company to complete its due diligence and obtain the equipment from the asset liquidator that SMART hired last fall.

City Manager Joshua Smith said Thursday that the interested company has a written commitment for funding from JobsOhio, the state’s new job-creation arm.

He said that funding was approved several weeks ago and that a commitment letter had been signed by Mark Kvamme, JobsOhio president.

Laura Jones, JobsOhio communications director, said, “it’s our policy that we don’t comment on commitments that have been made on projects until they’re officially announced.”

Jones declined to say when an announcement might be made on this project.

Smith said he could not disclose the identity of the company until that part of the deal is finalized.

“We did what we we’re asked to do, which was to obtain the property and secure the JobsOhio grant,” he said.

Smith said the interested company would continue processing cast-coated paper.

The cast-coated product is a paper with a high-gloss enamel finish that has been produced by drying coated paper from a polished cylinder.

SMART Papers is the only manufacturer of cast-coated paper products in North America. This type of product is also made by manufacturers in China, France, Germany and India. SMART’s product is called Kromekote.

“This is such a niche market that could be the cornerstone for economic development in Hamilton,” Smith said.

After months of negotiations, City Council Wednesday unanimously approved the $400,000 purchase of the 42.9-acre site where SMART is winding down its operations.

Smith said on Thursday the cost of the purchase may be reduced to somewhere between $100,000 and $200,000 after SMART pays its final water and wastewater usage fees and various disconnection fees.

Smith also said SMART agreed to extend the closing date to March 23 to give the city more time to complete a title search and obtain title insurance.

It was originally set for Monday, but city officials had concerns that would not be enough time to take care of the title issues.

SMART Papers chairman Tim Needham has declined to comment due to a nondisclosure agreement regarding the deal.

The real estate purchase of the 1.1 million square-foot manufacturing complex also includes a co-generation power plant, a wastewater treatment plant, the riverfront mill, the main mill, the headquarters building and four parking lots.

The purchase does not include the machinery or the equipment in the plant.

Paul Houston, president of United Steelworkers of America Local 1967 that represents SMART employees, said he “had no inkling the city was coming through to purchase the site... It was news to us.”

Houston was concerned the deal did not include the equipment. But he said he’s “cautiously optimistic’ that the city will continue to have a paper-making company. He said SMART never communicated with the union.

If the interested company comes through its part of the deal, Houston said he hopes they would hire workers who were let go by SMART.

“You make more working in a paper mill than you do on unemployment,” he said. “We’ll play it by ear and see what happens. We have a lot of good and dedicated people there that deserve jobs.”

The deal for the city to purchase the property was praised by local businessman and former mayor Don Ryan.

“I think it was a smart move to me,” Ryan said. “It’s always the right move if it will help to control your own destiny.”

He was mayor when the city purchased, demolished and cleaned up the former Mercy Hospital site several years ago.

“The city is more in the driver’s seat if it controls the property because it gives the city leverage,” he said. “You have to be proactive. In order to be successful, you have to take risks.”

Ryan said there were plans to develop condominiums and a small commercial area at the old hospital site.

“It was a neat concept that was put on hold. We were close to a deal before the recession hit,” Ryan said. “But the site is all cleaned up and is ready to take off once the economy turns around.”