May 12, 2011
Ordinance clarity
Resident seeks clarity on raising chickens By DAVID S. OWEN ThisWeek Community Newspapers A Reynoldsburg resident wants the city to clarify ordinances regarding raising backyard chickens. Canterbury Lane resident Richard Boone addressed Reynoldsburg City Council on May 9 about the lack of specificity in city
code regarding raising chickens. Boone said his family maintains a variety of trees and gardens on their property, and each year they try to add something new. “This year we’d like to add a few backyard chickens, a few egg-laying hens to give us a living experience of agriculture,” Boone said.
After contacting the city to find out if raising chickens is permitted on residential property, Boone said, he found the city’s ordinance might not allow it. “In looking at the city ordinances, there is some tension in the code, and I am not quite certain if I am permitted to have chickens,” Boone said. “I wouldn’t want to count my chickens before they are hatched.”
Boone said he found in the city’s ordinance, under Section 505, that it does not specifically mention chickens or domestic poultry as an option. “Keeping Wild Or Exotic Animals,” in Section 505.33(d), states: “Animals which may be owned or harbored within the municipality are pure domestic cats, pure domestic dogs (not hybrid), domestic rab-
bits, guinea pigs, chinchillas, mice, hamsters, gerbils, parrot-like birds, non-poisonous fish, nonpoisonous reptiles and nonpoisonous snakes under five feet in length, hedgehogs, ferrets and horses owned prior to the effective date of this ordinance.” See CHICKENS, page A5
Chamber luncheon
Director offers tips to business owners By DAVID S. OWEN ThisWeek Community Newspapers
By Lorrie Cecil/ThisWeek
Slate Ridge Elementary School third-grader Nick Wallace presents the book his class wrote, called “If I was the Mayor of Reynoldsburg” to Mayor Brad McCloud on May 6. Wallace was elected class mayor after bringing in rice crispy treats. Each student in Lauren Jones’ third-grade class read a page they had written in the book to the mayor and other guests.
Slate Ridge
Third-grade students write book on being mayor, present copy to Reynoldsburg mayor By DAVID S. OWEN ThisWeek Community Newspapers Students of Lauren Jones’ thirdgrade class on May 6 presented Reynoldsburg Mayor Brad McCloud a signed copy of their book, “If I Was Mayor of Reynoldsburg.” School librarian Rhonda Eberst said that every year since Slate Ridge
Elementary School opened in 2005, its students have written a book as a class. Colorado-based Student Publishers publishes the books for free, Eberst said, and copies are available for be purchase at about $18, or 10 for a paperback. “We’ve been doing this since we opened Slate Ridge, and so we have quite a collection of books written
by students,” she said. “It’s great, and those kids can come back 10 years from now and find their book in the collection.” Jones said local government is one topic third-graders study, learning about the roles of mayor and city council and how those roles affect them now and when they get older. She said each student was required
to write a campaign speech to be mayor of the classroom for a day. “So we did that first as sort of a writing activity and social studies and from there came up with the idea: If you had the opportunity, what would you do if you were the mayor of Reynoldsburg?” Jones said. See MAYOR, page A2
Family, friends praying for shop owner Bennett’s Garage has been a fixture in Olde Reynoldsburg since 1959. It’s been closed since February, though, while its well-known owner battles for his life. Dave Bennett, owner of Bennett’s Garage, recently was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. Bennett, 60, learned of his diagnosis in February, after hav-
See DIRECTOR, page A2
Community cleanup week to start June 3; help needed By DAVID S. OWEN ThisWeek Community Newspapers
Bennett’s Garage By DAVID S. OWEN ThisWeek Community Newspapers
Reynoldsburg development director Lucas Haire said he wants business owners to know he is there to help. Haire gave a presentation during the Reynoldsburg Area Chamber of Commerce’s monthly luncheon May 5. RACC president Jan Hills said Haire was asked to make a presentation to members because she wanted to keep the line of communication open to business owners and let them know some basic do’s and don’ts. “If you’re a business and you’re thinking of adding on, moving your business, establishing a new one, whatever, these are the things you need to keep in mind,” Hills said. One facet of Haire’s presentation was to show that Reynoldsburg is a business-friendly community and to explain some common issues and pitfalls business owners might face when either establishing or expanding a business in the city. Accompanied by city planning administrator Matt Hansen, Haire said the development department’s goal is to serve as a resource for all business in the city.
ing a sore throat for several weeks and thinking it was nothing. His daughter, Pam Perez, convinced him to see a doctor. “Shortly after Thanksgiving, he had a sore throat, and he thought it was a cold or whatever, and he kind of started eating soft food,” Perez said. “Then he came over to visit me in January, which is when I really noticed because he lost about 40 pounds at that point, so I told him he should go get it checked
DIRECTORY
out.” Perez said her father’s diagnosis is terminal, but within a week of finding out, he started on chemotherapy in an attempt to shrink the tumor in his throat and possibly buy him some time. The first treatment was so traumatic, however, that he couldn’t continue with them, she said, adding that doctors weren’t sure he would survive the initial chemo round. “Somehow, by the grace of God, he
fought and pulled through and is still holding on,” Perez said. “He’s hanging in there, and he’s still in hospice at the VA hospital in Dayton, and he doesn’t think he feels quite up to coming home yet. But even when he does, he’ll still be in hospice.” Bennett lives in Baltimore but grew up in Reynoldsburg and graduated from Reynoldsburg High School in 1968. See BENNETT, page A4
Reynoldsburg’s annual community cleanup week is less than a month away, and chairman Mary Hudson said volunteers are needed. Community cleanup week was started to motivate residents to clean out their yards, basements or garages and put trash out for Rumpke to take away on regular trash day Thursday, June 9. For that week, the city will waive the $1 fee to hold garage sales. Hudson said residents need to begin organizing what they want to either throw away or place in a garage sale during the weeklong event. See COMMUNITY, page A5
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