Will the Amazon deal solve MEVSD's funding issues? 2 local election board members are retiring. And the airport hanger project is officially funded
Give us a few moments and we'll serve up what matters in Marysville on Thursday, February 13, 2024
In this edition, brought to you by Martinizing Cleaners
Two local Election Board members are stepping down
Will the Amazon deal solve MEVSD’s financial problems?
The County Airport’s hanger project has secured an FAA grant
And preparations are underway for the US 42/Industrial Parkway widening this summer
But first:
A long line of customers were waiting before the crack of dawn for the opening of Winans Coffee and Chocolates on Wednesday. And an official ribbon cutting ceremony by the Chamber of Commerce ceremony made the opening official.
Union County Airport rakes in grant money for new hanger project
The Union County Airport Authority is raking in federal grant money to pay for the construction of its new 15-unit T-hanger.
The Federal Aviation Administration has approved $849,876 for the project.
The first grant of $585,000 was approved by the County Commissioners in January. A second grant of $264,876 should become available in March.
“There is heavy demand for hangars in central Ohio and this will be the first new construction of hangars at the airport since 2009,” the Airport's Steve Koenig shared in a statement.
The $1.9 million project is tentatively planned to start this summer and be completed before the end of the year.
The funding comes from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law enacted by Congress.
The airport also secured a $482,000 grant to replace the 20-year-old weather station at the Airport. Construction on that project is expected to start this summer.
The airport received approximately $540,000 in grant money.
The airport generated over $3 million in 2024 for the local Marysville economy.
“Successful cities have successful airports!” Koenig stated. “The airport is growing, solvent and preparing for the future.”
Will Amazon deal resolve MEVSD funding problems?
Above: Chart outlines fiscal forecast adopted by the Board of Education (Source: MEVSD website)
Many residents are wondering out loud how the incentive package for Amazon will affect the Marysville school’s financial situation.
The district is facing a $6.7 million deficit this year and will be forced to lay off 30 additional staff members if voters reject a property tax levy on the May ballot.
School district superintendent Diane Allen told us last week that the $13.345 million in payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs) are welcome but won't solve the districts near-term financial deficit.
Marysville school district treasurer Todd Johnson reinforced Allen’s comments.
“It will likely be several years before we see any money from this,” Johnson said of the annual payments of $903,000 spread out over 15 years.
“While that is a significant amount of revenue, it does little to fill the gap in revenues vs expenditures which will likely be around a $10 million annual deficit at that point,” Johnson said.
He said the dollars will help alleviate pressure on taxpayers in the future.
“This agreement doesn’t really have an impact on the current levy, but it will hopefully help reduce or delay the next levy.”
A rejection of the May levy question will push the district toward a potential "fiscal watch" declaration in the next year or so.
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Preparations for US 42 / Industrial Parkway widening project
The Ohio Department of Transportation is targeting July to start construction on the widening of US 42 at Industrial Parkway. It’s one of the busiest and most dangerous intersections in the county.
But before the work can begin, the City of Marysville is being asked to move quickly to move a city water line in the construction area.
The City’s Board of Control approved a $2.1 million contract to Driven Excavating to move the line. The project is part of the 2025 City budget.
According to minutes of a recent Board meeting, City Engineer Kyle Hoyng told the Board that ODOT has a sense of urgency on the project. It’s asked the city to begin the relocation in March so it can stay on schedule later this summer for the main event.
Hoyng told the board that ODOT will be reimbursing the City for roughly half the cost of the project.
The City is also in the process of relocating rights of way in the project site.
Meanwhile, the County Engineers office has heard a few concerns about planned detours that are related to the project. According to minutes of a recent County Commissioners meeting, ODOT is responsible for posting detours on state routes and major roads. They acknowledge not everyone will use the posted detours.
County Engineer Jeff Stauch was noted as saying all concerns have been addressed.
For traffic driving on Industrial Parkway to and from Dublin this summer, plan for multiple headaches. As ODOT cranks up the US 42 project, the City of Marysville will be shutting down the road at Coleman’s Crossing to install a new roundabout.
What killed the Honda/Nissan merger?
A report from Reuters indicates that talks between Honda and Nissan broke down “due to Nissan's pride and insufficient alarm about its predicament.”
According to people familiar with the talks, it became apparent that Nissan's slow decision-making culture also contributed to the breakup.
The two companies announced in December a plan to merge. But late in January, they delayed a report on those talks to the end of this week.
As a major employer in Union County, local employees, residents and community leaders are watching the situation closely.
Honda has committed a billion dollars to transform its Union County based plants to build new electric vehicles. The updates will allow Honda to switch back and forth from EVs and traditional gas-powered models as market forces dictate.
Two Board of Elections members are stepping down
The Union County Board of Elections will be looking to fill two seats on the bi-partisan body that oversees the election process for local residents.
William Steele and Jeff Robinson are stepping down, per a post on the Board's Facebook page on Wednesday.
Above: Jeffery Robinson and William Steele
In Ohio, each county’s Board of Elections is comprised of four qualified electors appointed by the Secretary of State. These members serve as the Secretary’s representatives.
Appointments are made on March 1st of odd-numbered years, with each member serving a four-year term.
Two members are selected from the political party that received the highest number of votes for the office of governor in the most recent state election, and the other two from the party with the next highest number of votes.
All appointments to new terms and vacancies filled for unexpired terms must be from the same political party as the outgoing member.
Dean Cook remains the Chairman of the Board. The other member is Barbara Luke.
Oversized truck snags overhead wire uptown
An oversize-loaded truck traveling south through uptown Marysville snagged power lines at the intersection of Main and 6th Street on Monday afternoon. No one was injured.
40-year-old Carl Howard, the truck's operator was not cited.
The incident occurred around 2:40 p.m. and the scene was cleared around 3:30 p.m.
One transported following Coleman’s Crossing crash
A 65-year-old Milford Center resident was cited for failure to control after a crash on Coleman's Crossing on Monday afternoon around 12:20 p.m.
Michael Klieber was northbound on the road near Meijer and Home Depot. According to Marysville Police reports, his 2022 GMC Canyon ran off the road, struck a tree, hit another tree and then flipped on its side as it hit a third tree.
Klieber was transported to Memorial Hospital for treatment of suspected serious injuries by Marysville Fire Division EMS crews.
Police reported that Klieber was traveling at the posted speed limit of 35 miles per hour at the time of the crash.
Spike in influenza in Marysville area
The state of Ohio has bounced back up into the “very high” category for current influenza activity.
According to the Union County Health Department, 42 influenza-related hospitalizations have been reported since December, with 8 already this month.
“We definitely had significant flu activity reported over the past three weeks. We also see it hitting all ages,” said Jennifer Thrush, a spokesperson for the department. “The age range for reported influenza-associated hospitalizations is now as young as 1 year to 90 years old, with the average age being 68 years old. We are primarily seeing influenza A in these reported cases.”
Wastewater monitoring continues to show an increase in influenza locally, with trends remaining at high levels. A sample earlier this month the highest level of influenza in wastewater in the past 12 months.
On the COVID front, cases have dropped back to normal after a peak early in January. Wastewater monitoring also indicates decreasing activity.
The Health department advises residents to:
Wash hands frequently
Stay home if you are sick
Get vaccinated if you are so inclined
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-Joe C.
When we are celebrating the awarding of federal dollars for projects in the county, like these airport hangars (which the Muskenjugend may very well yet cancel), we should also remember who supported and who opposed the legislation that created the funding. In the case of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act of 2020, our own Congresscritter, Jim Jordan, voted against it. Fortunately, he was in the House minority. And, back then, we had two rational senators in Rob Portman and Sherrod Brown who both voted for it. Oh, for the good old days...