Lorain County Community Guide - May 19, 2022

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AMHERST NEWS-TIMES • OBERLIN NEWS-TRIBUNE • WELLINGTON ENTERPRISE Thursday, May 19, 2022

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Volume 9, Issue 20

Final days for former Golden Acres JASON HAWK EDITOR

AMHERST TWP. — These are the last days of the 91-yearold Golden Acres building, which started its life as the Pleasant View Sanitarium.

Demolition is scheduled start June 1. The Lorain County commissioners voted last week to hire A1 Land Development LLC of Rock Creek in Ashtabula County to do the job for $238,500.

Though its demise has been in the wind for years, neighbors Photos by Jason Hawk | Amherst News-Times were devastated by the news.

“I think it’s wrong to tear it Falling into disrepair in recent years, the former Golden Acres down.

It’s a beautiful building,” Nursing Home on North Ridge Road in Amherst Township has said Joe Rapose, who has lived seen better days. Now red “danger” tape crosses entrances and across the street on North Ridge signs warning of asbestos are plastered on windows and doors.

Oberlin BOE pivoting to build again

Road since 1980.

He remembers Golden Acres in the days when it was thriving as the county’s nursing home.

Now kids sneak in regularly — about a month ago, Rapose said he called sheriff’s deputies out to report an intruder there.

Roxanne Hardt, who also lives on North Ridge, said woods on the county-owned property are home to eagles and other wildlife, and she doesn’t want to see it further developed.

Her preference would be to see the Lorain County Metro Parks take over the land, or to see the building renovated to become a school or trades academy.

“There has to be a wealthy investor out there willing to put money into it,” Hardt said.

Like many others who live nearby, Hardt has fond memories of her two sons, now fully grown, sledding down the Golden Acres in the winter. She said she will miss the sound of kids laughing and playing if the property is sold to a developer.

Lisa McCord, who lives on Route 58 two doors down from the former nursing home, said she sledded there as a child, and so did her kids.

She wasn’t terribly bothered by the news Golden Acres will be torn down — there have always been stories about ghosts and squatters inhabiting the old building – but is more concerned by what may be built there.

FINAL DAYS PAGE A2

The Big Parade

JASON HAWK EDITOR

OBERLIN — Less than a year after opening its new $17.8 million elementary school, the Oberlin Board of Education is talking about spending as much as $39 million on another construction project.

Discussing their options last week night, school board members spoke in favor of building a facility for grades six to 12, to fit somewhere on the district’s North Pleasant Street campus.

It would replace the 99-year-old Langston Middle School and 62-year-old Oberlin High School.

Moving quickly is imperative, said Dan DeNicola, the former operations manager for the Oberlin City Schools who now serves as a consultant for its facilities projects.

Supply chain issues and the resulting inflation have pumped up costs, he said: “The only thing I can tell you I’m 100 percent sure about is it’s not going down. The SCHOOL PAGE A2 Classifieds, legals, display advertising, and subscriptions Deadline: 1 p.m. each Monday Phone: 440-329-7000 Hours: 6:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday

Photos by Jason Hawk | Oberlin News-Tribune

The Big Parade filled downtown Oberlin with song and laughter Saturday morning, May 14, 2022. Starting from the former Eastwood Elementary School, a menagerie traveled down College Street past Tappan Square, including the Oberlin High School and Oberlin College marching bands, jump-ropers, scouts, steel drums, butterfly costumes, bicycles and unicycles and the Kendal at Oberlin synchronized lawn chair brigade. National Teacher of the Year Kurt Russell (right) served as the parade’s grand marshal.

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Amherst

Oberlin

Wellington

Kids get a peek at school done the 1890s way • B3

City councilman is censured over email exchange • B1

Church celebrates 200th anniversary on Sunday • A3

OBITUARIES A2 • CLASSIFIEDS A4 • BULLETIN BOARD A6 • SPORTS B4-B5

Page A2

Thursday, May 19, 2022

Lorain County Community Guide

FINAL DAYS

FROM A1 “It had better not be another gas station or car wash,” McCord said.

The land, valued at $1.53 million, according to the Lorain County Auditor’s Office, is located in Amherst Township. Amherst Mayor Mark Costilow said the city helped create a Joint Economic Development District there to pave the way for commercial development, but right now he is unaware of any such ventures.

A deal to build a gas station on the front of the property near Route 58 fell through a couple years ago; according to Costilow, the buyer and Ohio Department of Transportation couldn’t come to an agreement about where access drives would be placed.

No other rumblings of serious buyers have reached Amherst Township Trustee Neil Lynch’s ears.

He said professional offices, medical buildings or financial services would fit well on the property. Lynch said he wants to see a low-traffic business move in, “something that looks good and fits the area, because you’re butting right up against residential too.”

The existing building just isn’t in good enough condition to attract those kind of buyers, he said.

Trustees even tried to arrange a public meeting there during the COVID-19 pandemic, but ditched the idea once they saw dirt and leaves inside, Golden Acres’ leaking roof and water running down crumbling walls, said Lynch.

“Who knows if it could have been repaired?” he said.

Neighbors who weighed in on the pending demolition said they expect the Golden Acres property to be commercially developed whether it’s this year or a few down the line.

They also shared contempt for a failed $4.4 million plan to convert Golden Acres into the Recovery One opioid addiction treatment center. In 2018, voters defeated a countywide levy that would have generated $2 million per year, paying for renovations to make Recovery One possible.

It would have raised property taxes by about $10.50 per year for the owner of a $100,000 home — but the proposal tanked by a 4 percent margin at the polls.

Sandy Kaiser, director of the Amherst Historical Society, said she hates to see the building destroyed, but there’s no alternative without a buyer who wants to invest in saving the local landmark.

Matt Nahorn, a former Amherst councilman who is active in the historical society, echoed her thoughts — he said he can understand how difficult it must have been for commissioners to decide tearing down Golden Acres was the most responsible choice.

He compared the property’s fate to that of the former Central School in Amherst.

That building sat empty for 30 years, slowly giving way to the ravages of time and water damage. It was rescued

by Sprenger Health Care Systems, which was able to plug $9.5 million into the old school to revive it with help from state historical tax credits.

That’s a rarity for “white elephant” buildings, said Nahorn — the huge sums of money needed to give them a second life almost never materialize.

“As a historian, I’m certainly disappointed to see any building of that age and stature disappear,” he said. “(Golden Acres) is built of Amherst sandstone and the architecture is beautiful. It’s definitely been a part of the community.”

Nahorn said his family will always feel a connection to Golden Acres. His great-uncle died there in 1938 after contracting tuberculosis.

That’s how Lorain County residents will always remember the facility, said Kaiser. Many people have emotional ties to it because it was essentially a hospital where the sick and elderly went for help.

Now the building has fallen into serious disrepair. Vines creep up its sandstone walls, red danger tape stretches across the entrances and signs on windows and doors warn of cancer-causing asbestos.

Envi Environmental of Elyria has been working to remove asbestos from the building at a cost of $134,979 as commissioners mulled its fate.

Commissioners Matt Lundy, a Democrat, and David Moore, a Republican, supported demolition in a vote Wednesday, while Michelle Hung, a Republican, opposed it.

She voiced reservations, saying the commissioners hadn’t done enough to list the property for sale and give buyers time to come to the table with offers.

Most potential buyers showed interest in the land, but didn’t want the building, said Lundy.

Now A1 Land Development will put the building to rest. Company President Justin Janson said residents can expect to see excavators start rolling in and fencing go up during the first week of June, but actual tear-down may not start until the middle of the month.

He has until Aug. 20 to wrap up the job.

Compared to others his crew has handled, Janson said Golden Acres likely won’t present much challenge, “but you never know for sure until you get into it.”

The building isn’t as solid as it may appear, he said — the exterior sandstone is only a facade, covering either concrete or brick. He said brick will “smash like glass.”

OBITUARIES RICHARD CHARLES KSENICH, 79, of Lorain, went home to be with the Lord on Saturday, May 7, 2022, at Ames Family Hospice Center in Westlake following a lengthy illness. Hempel Funeral Home is handling the arrangements.

PAULINE ESTELLE LOVELACE (nee Celesky), 89, and a resident of Elyria, passed away Thursday, May 12, 2022, at Lorain Estates. Hempel Funeral Home is handling the arrangements.

FASHIONABLE FIRELANDS

Joe Colon | Amherst News-Times

All dressed up for the Firelands High School senior prom Friday, several couples hit Oberlin College for classy photos. Pictured are Preston Dimarco and Caitlin Eckman, Bridget Mowery and Aidan Vongunten, Jacob Weegman and Jordan Cikalo, Avery Gandolf and Sonny Suglia, and Jana Krause and Abe Mastellone.

SCHOOL

FROM A1 sooner you do something, the cheaper it’s going to be.”

In 2016, the school board voted to consolidate its nearly 1,000 students onto one campus, said current Operations Supervisor Jim Eibel, who as a former principal saw firsthand many of the aging buildings’ shortcomings.

So far, the district has shrunk from five buildings to three, closing the former Eastwood and Prospect Elementary Schools, replacing them this fall with the new Oberlin Elementary School for prekindergarten through fifth grade.

The goal is to eventually have all students on one central campus, with buildings either connected under one roof or located close to each other. Doing so would greatly reduce operating costs, DeNicola said.

In many cases, Ohio school districts rely on money from the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission to help pay for new buildings. Oberlin qualifies for about $7 million in state support right now, according to Board of Education President Anne Schaum.

That money comes with strings attached, though.

It pays for the bare basics, not including auditoriums, field houses, expanded gymnasiums, multiple arts spaces, larger classrooms or other upgrades.

“There’s limitations on what’s possible, but $7 million is $7 million less we have to pay locally,” Schaum said. “So we want to play by the rules and make sure that as long as what the state wants, we’re balancing that against what Oberlin wants.”

The only rub is that the facilities commission isn’t offering to pay that $7 million up front. DeNicola said the money would likely be reimbursed a decade or more from now.

There are reasons. For one, state legislators are pushing less money to the facilities commission.

There are also other school districts that haven’t been able to pass the bond issues they need to get their state funding, so their need

has bumped Oberlin down the priority list, DeNicola said.

That leaves Oberlin taxpayers to cover the cost of a new school now and wait for the state to chip in its portion later.

A 6-12 building could run from $25 million to $35 million for a base model. But the kind of school the Board of Education wants, especially with add-ons like an auditorium, is likely to run roughly $39 million total, said district Treasurer Robert Rinehart.

That will definitely mean asking voters to pass a bond issue, though there are also other funding sources to help defray the costs, he said.

For example, the district has a close to $2.2 million carryover from the construction of Oberlin Elementary.

More importantly, the district has tucked away about $2 million from property tax money from the NEXUS gas line, earmarked for construction.

Rinehart said the pipeline’s owners have only been paying about 40 percent of their assessed tax bill, and have appealed numerous times to the state for it to be reduced.

Those negotiations could wrap up soon. Rinehart said he expects a settlement in excess of the 40 percent threshold, which would result in retroactive payments to the school district.

“We are in a very nice place,” to start construction, he said.

Selling “certificates of participation” to a lender — essentially taking out a mortgage on the school property and paying it back over 30 years — would also generate about $29 million right now, he said.

The Board of Education also discussed the possibility of moving more slowly, and starting off with construction of a school for only grades six to eight.

That facility is estimated to cost between $9 million and $15 million, and it could be built without asking voters for a tax increase, said Rinehart.

Another option is building just a high school for grades nine to 12, with a price tag somewhere in the $14 million to $20 million range. Voters would have to renew the bond issue that funded construction of Oberlin Elementary for that plan to work, said Eibel.

Going with the larger building for grades six to 12 was the more popular route with board members.

“I would rather ask up front for everything that we need and have everybody know this is it,” said board member Rosa Gadsden.

She opposed starting construction on a smaller building now and returning in another five years to ask for more money, especially with inflation causing prices to skyrocket.

“Minimizing the financial impact on our community needs to be the continued priority,” said Schaum. “We are asking a lot of our community, and that is the only thing that gives me heartburn about this 6-12.”

That option is likely to save taxpayers the most money in the long-term, however, she said.

Rinehart estimated the largest construction option would mean putting a property tax levy on the ballot for an additional 2.8 mills, which he believes would be around another $250 per year for the owner of a $100,000 home.

That amount has not yet been determined by the Lorain County Auditor’s office, however.

Schaum urged fellow board members to also consider the continuing costs of maintenance and repairs at Langston and Oberlin High. There is already a plan to spend $74,000 this summer on a major repair at the middle school, she said.

“Maintaining buildings is expensive, and that was one of the main reasons why the prior board did decide it’s not worth it for us to fix these buildings, instead to go new,” said Schaum.

An analysis showed the cost of renovating the two old schools would exceed

two-thirds of the price tag for new construction, said DeNicola.

He acknowledged that the community is particularly attached to the old Langston building on Route 58, which prior to 1960 served as the high school. It’s not threatening to collapse, but the cost to operate it is incredibly high, he said.

“I think it’s served this district well. It’s just worn out, and it’s time to either spend a lot of money to renovate it, which I don’t think you want to do, or replace it,” DeNicola said.

That doesn’t mean the building should be demolished, Schaum added — it’s a “burden” that taxpayers shouldn’t have to shoulder anymore, she said.

Exactly what a new school will look like or how it will fit on the North Pleasant campus have yet to be decided.

The school system is finalizing the purchase of about 13 acres just south of Oberlin Elementary from Oberlin College. A large portion of that area is wetland.

In return, the college would get the former Eastwood Elementary property on East College Street, which it intends to use over the next decade as administrative offices, art studio space and storage. That deal is contingent on rezoning of the old Eastwood land by City Council.

In addition, Eibel said other college-owned parcels neighboring the North Pleasant campus are also under negotiation.

According to Eibel, the school district has cash on hand to hire an architect to design the building and its position.

But Ken Stanley, the longest-serving current member of the school board, said he doesn’t want to move too fast. The urged caution, saying there is too much uncertainty right now over how much NEXUS money will be available and what direction the economy will take.

“I don’t feel the hurry. I don’t feel the rush,” he said.

ABOUT THE COMMUNITY GUIDE LORAIN COUNTY COMMUNITY GUIDE (USPS 673-960) is published every Thursday, 52 weeks per year by Lorain County Printing & Publishing Company, 225 East Ave., Elyria OH 44035.

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Thursday, May 19, 2022

Lorain County Community Guide

Page A3

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The United Church of Huntington, 26677 State Route 58, will celebrate its 200th anniversary on Sunday, May 22.

Huntington church celebrates 200 years JASON HAWK EDITOR

HUNTINGTON TWP. — For 200 years, the United Church of Huntington has been a center of worship for residents in the far southern reaches of Lorain County.

The congregation will celebrate its bicentennial with a special service at 10 a.m. Sunday. All living former pastors who have served in the pulpit have been invited to return for the festivities.

An open house will run from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. that day with displays showing photos from the past.

“We’re just proud of our heritage. The first settlers came in 1818,” said Frances Rollin, a church member who has also been an officer of the Huntington Historical Society.

After establishing themselves, early pioneers started meeting together for worship in homes in 1822, she said.

The original portion of the church building on Route 58 south of Findley State Park was constructed in 1848, and expanded in 1892 after a big membership drive, according to Sara Twining and Howard and Barb Quast, who have been compiling its history.

By the 1940s, the church was experience problems, but the revivals of the 1950s and 1960s caused it to boom again, and by the 1980s it needed one more addition.

At one point there were eight churches in Huntington. Over time, one by one they merged until the United Church remained — today it is the only church in town.

In past decades, it has been a social hub for the community, with 4-H and scouting groups using its hall and voters turning out to cast their ballots there.

The congregation is now recovering from the disruptions of the COVID-19

pandemic, said Twining. About 100 people fill the pews on an average Sunday, down from a peak of 150 but slowly trending upward again.

“God’s been working here for a lot of years,” said Twining. “I’ve seen the progression.”

When the virus hit in March 2020, the church first closed for the first time in its two centuries, said Howard Quast.

Services resumed outside during the warm summer months. When the weather turned cold and a spike in COVID deaths and hospitalizations swept the nation, attendance again dropped “enough to scare us,” Twining said.

With a trailer provided by trucking and freight company DW Nesbett & Sons, services were broadcast via radio to congregants safely tucked away in cars in the church lot.

Normal services resumed last May. Howard Quast, who previously served as an elder for 27 years, said that as United Church of Huntington prepares for its next century it needs to prioritize being “a Bible-preaching church.”

“Too many denominations have gotten away from the solidness of the Bible,” he said.

For the short-term, goals include getting monthly community meals back up and running and starting to collect excess produce from local gardens to fight hunger in southern Lorain County, he said.

Rollin said members are also steadily raising money to built a new multipurpose building, which will include a gymnasium, at the rear of the church.

She said the church will open its doors again to the public from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, May 29 during the Huntington Memorial Day parade, so people can look at historical photos.

“We’re the sort of church that likes to celebrate,” Rollin said.

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Sara Twining, Frances Rollin, Barb Quast and Howard Quast have been planning a special 200th anniversary for the United Church of Huntington, which they said has been central to the history of the township.

Beware this utility shutoff scam

The Lorain County Emergency Management Agency is warning of a scam that’s been on the rise.

Scammers are using an automated system to place calls, and when a victim answers they are prompted to press 1 to speak with a utility service representative.

Once the scammer gets on the line they threaten shutoff due to lack of payment, and pressure the victim into submitting a payment by Zelle, Venmo, Paypal or other services.

Once the payment is made, the scammer doesn’t let up, saying the money didn’t go through — and repeats the process until the victim is out of money.

Ohioans who fall prey to scams can report them to the Attorney General’s office at www.tinyurl.com/OhioScams.

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Page A4

Thursday, May 19, 2022

Lorain County Community Guide

Dewey Road is on track to be vacated at northern limit

Soaring to new heights

JASON HAWK EDITOR

AMHERST — The end of North Dewey Road is likely to be vacated to allow for construction of a new gated community, pending the outcome of a City Council vote.

By giving up both control of and responsibility for the street, city officials would make way for developer Britt Lilley’s plans to truck in 100 manufactured homes.

“It’s barely even recognizable as a street. It’s totally unusable,” said Mayor Mark Costilow in an interview last week.

Years ago, the street terminated where it ran up against Route 2, he said. Now it’s crumbled and fallen into disuse.

In late 2021, Lilley faced strong opposition from neighbors who sought to block his plans to sell manufactured homes in the $150,000 to $200,000 range, sitting on leased lots, to seniors ages 55 and up.

They begged officials to protect the wooded area where they’ve spotted eagles over the years, prevent an increase in traffic up and down the narrow road and complained about having what they deemed to be essentially mobile homes next door.

Whether the manufactured houses qualified as “mobile” homes was central to the debate, since Amherst has banned the creation of new mobile home parks since 1987.

Council approved the development anyway. Ward 2 Councilman Ed Cowger argued that Lilley’s model wasn’t much different from a homeowners association.

Costilow supported the development, saying it would create close to $20 million in new property valuation that would result in increased tax revenue to be split by the county, city and Amherst Schools.

In conversation last week, he again noted that land is at a premium in Amherst. With many developments in the past 20 years, the land available for new homes and businesses is quickly shrinking, he said.

Vacating the end of North Dewey “is just a formality in my mind,” he previously told the city’s Streets and Sidewalks Committee, which is comprised of Council members.

The roadway will remain public for the majority of its length, including where it provides access to other homes, he said. Only the end part, located on the Lilley property, will be vacated.

Council President Jennifer Wasilk said vacating the land also absolves the city of any legal liability associated with the property.

“So if there were any accidents or anything like that,” she said, checking with Law Director Tony Pecora.

“Right now, we have a very poorly maintained road up there. And so now if there’s any problem that occurs we’re not at all legally liable in the future.”

The measure to vacate is working its way through Council. It’s already been forwarded to a second reading, and unless Council decides to fast-track approval it is on track for a final vote June 6.

Volunteers needed

The Amherst Office on Aging is looking for volunteers to assist with meal deliveries.

Meal pick-up is at 10:30 a.m. and takes about 1.5 hours, one day a week. For more information, call (440) 988-2817.

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Ohio Driver’s License →Good Driving Record →High School Diploma/GED →Must Pass Drug Test/Physical

LEGALS PUBLICATION OF LEGISLATION The following is a summary of legislation adopted by Lorain City Council on May 2, 2022.

The complete text of each item may be viewed or purchased in the Clerk of Council Office @ Lorain City Hall, 200 W. Erie Ave., Lorain, OH, during normal business hours or contact Breanna Dull @ 204-2050 (Breanna_Dull@cityoflorain. org). The following summary of legislation passed has been reviewed/approved by the Law Director for legal accuracy as required by state laws.

Resolution 22-22 22-22

Celebrating & commending Makayla Velasquez upon her victory at the OHSAA Division I Bowling Championship. 23-22 Honoring the life and legacy of Mitch Gillam to the citizens of the city of Lorain. Ordinance 68-22 Approving the Chief of Police to accept an award from the ODNR Marine Patrol Assistance Program. 69-22 Auth S/S Director to enter into a contract for the purpose of replacement and expansion of the Water Distribution parking lot at 2111 West Park Drive. 70-22* Auth S/S Director to enter contract w/ Anser Advisory to provide technical assistance in administering ARPA funding. 71-22 Approving the proposed MOU between the City of Lorain & USW6621. 72-22* Auth S/S

Director to purchase 1 Chevy F3500 & 2 F2500HD Trucks for Storm Sewer Management.

73-22 Auth S/S Director to take all action necessary to apply for and enter into an agrmt for grant funding from the EPA for Black River Riparian Restoration Project. 74-22 Auth the S/S Director to enter into a contract w/ lowest and best bidder for 2022 lead service line replacement program.

75-22* Auth Auditor to pay an invoice submitted by Utilities Dept which invokes Then & Now Certification Exception Process. 76-22* Appropriation. (*Denotes legislation was passed as an emergency.)

L.C.C.G. 5/12-19/22 20700

Angelo Angel | Chronicle

Rilee Bassett (right) accepts her associate’s degree diploma from Lorain County Community College President Marcia Ballinger during commencement Saturday.

LCCC Class of 2022 shines in 58th commencement ceremony CARISSA WOYTACH THE CHRONICLE-TELEGRAM

ELYRIA — Lorain County Community College’s class of 2022 is ready to soar, college President Marcia Ballinger told graduates at the school’s 58th commencement ceremony Saturday morning.

The college saw 1,773 individuals earning more than 2,100 associate degrees or certificates and an additional 351 receiving bachelor’s or master’s degrees through the University Partnership program.

This year marks 25 years of the program, born out of a low number of Lorain County residents obtaining bachelor’s degrees in the mid-1990s.

When it started, the program had five Ohio colleges offering a dozen different degree programs at LCCC — now it’s grown to 14 universities offering more than 100 programs available to Lorain County students.

During Saturday’s ceremony, Ballinger noted more than 40 percent of those walking across the stage were the first in their families to attend college. Many of those are part of the Early College programs at Elyria and Lorain high schools, which allows high school students to earn an associate degree and high school diploma at the same time — with courses either at LCCC or their high school.

In a news release from the college, Elyria High School student Sierra

Mobley celebrated earning two associate degrees from LCCC. “LCCC and Early College helped me to save a lot of money and it’s given me a faster start on my education,” she said.

Mobley plans to continue toward her bachelor’s in nursing next, alongside 70 percent of Saturday’s graduates. Some of those will transfer to four-year colleges and universities, while others will continue through the University Partnership program.

And while a fraction of the more than 1,700 graduating, four individuals earned bachelor’s degrees from LCCC’s bachelor of applied science in microelectronic manufacturing degree program. This is the second year for the college to confer its own bachelor’s degree, building on the associate program started in 2013.

LCCC was the first community college to offer the associate program almost 10 years ago, and again made history as the first community college to deliver the bachelor’s program in 2018, according to a college news release.

All four MEMS graduates — Paul Gonzalez, Jonathan Ellis, Cody Wooton and Kurtis Jeffries — worked part time in the industry while earning their degrees, and will transition to full-time employment after graduation.

“These graduates are building a workforce pipeline that makes Lorain county and our region an

important link in the production of microchips and semiconductors,” Ballinger said.

Jeffries said earning the degree felt “too good to be true,” noting that the work the college has done to connect students with local industries has made a huge difference in graduates’ lives.

The more than 1,700 graduates also brought the college one step closer to its goal of graduating 10,000 individuals with college degrees or industry credentials by 2025 — now 72 percent of the way there. The goal is part of LCCC’s 10,000 Degrees of Impact strategic plan from 2019.

Referencing Wilbur Wright, onehalf of the Wright brothers who built and piloted the first successful motor-operated airplane, Ballinger noted the perseverance students had to obtain their degrees. Like Wilbur and Orville Wright, students faced doubts and challenges while working toward Saturday’s ceremony, but with the support of the friends and family gathered in the Ewing Field House, they’re ready to fly to new heights in Northeast Ohio.

“All of you are earning degrees that put you on a pathway to the career of your dreams,” Ballinger said.

“Here in this community we have rooted for you, and you are never alone. Because as you rise up you elevate those around you — your families, your friends and your communities."

Kiwanis accepting orders for Parade of Flags The Kiwanis Club of Wellington is accepting new orders and renewals for its second annual Parade of Flags campaign to raise funds for new community playground

equipment.

Members of the 98-yearold club will place U.S. flags in village residents front yards for Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day, Patriot Day and

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Veterans Day. The program grew in popularity as 2021 progressed, reaching about 85 subscribers. It was capped in November when Mayor Hans Hans Schneider sponsored 20 flags for the Town Hall’s front yard on Veterans Day. Sponsors have been secured this year for the Town Hall for each of the five holidays and the club is looking to duplicate the effort at Union School Park on South Main Street at the former site of McCormick Middle School.

“We would like to at least double the number of subscribers this year and reach 150,” said Jennifer Post, who serves as the chairperson of the flag committee. “Playgrounds are for kids and Kiwanis is all about serving the children of our community.

This is a program where you can help our kids and show some good, old-fash-

ioned patriotism throughout the year.”

The cost to order is $30 for the year. It includes installation, removal and storage of the flag and pole. Village residents can place an order at www. wellingtonohkiwanis.org or by sending an email to wellingtonkiwanis@ gmail.org. Renewal notices have been sent to 2021 subscribers.

So far, Kiwanis has raised more than $23,000 for playground equipment through the flag program and the annual State of Wellington breakfast. This includes $7,500 from the Westwood Elementary K-Kids, a service leadership program sponsored by Kiwanis.

In addition, last year the club provided a $1,500 grant to the village to replace playground equipment at the Wellington Recreation Park.

Thursday, May 19, 2022

Lorain County Community Guide

Signing Day

SIGNING ON

Students and the companies they signed with are listed below by associate school:

Amherst

Taryn Clark, Early Childhood Education senior, signed with Childtime Learning Center; Aubry Haddix, Cosmetology senior, signed with Beauty Loft at Marketplace; Adam Henderson, Industrial Electricity senior, signed with Jim's Electric, Inc; John Jacobs, Heating and Air Conditioning senior, signed with EH Roberts; Brenden Kelly, Maintenance Services senior, signed with Don Mould's Plantation; Marializ Redden, Early Childhood Education senior, signed with Childtime Learning Center; Ryan Reed, Masonry Trades senior signed with The Stoners Custom Pavers; Caden Robbins, Carpentry senior, signed with Infinity from Marvin; Genevieve Shaffer, Cosmetology senior, signed with Sculpt Hair Studio; Logan Stewart, Welding and Fabrication senior, signed with Clark-Reliance Corporation; Mason Supple, Industrial Electricity senior, signed with South Shore Electric; James Webb, Carpentry senior, signed with Star Inc.; Alina Younkin, Masonry Trades senior, signed with Bricklayers Local #5 Union.

Photos by Jason Hawk | Oberlin News-Tribune

Olivia Floyd, a senior in the web and graphic design track at the Lorain County JVS, signs a letter of intent to work for the Lorain County Engineer’s Office after graduation.

Career-tech students accept offers from eager employers JASON HAWK EDITOR

PITTSFIELD TWP. — With graduation on the horizon, scores of Lorain County Joint Vocational School seniors signed letters of intent last week for jobs, apprenticeships and advanced technical training.

They’ve spent years studying hands-on fields like masonry, cosmetology, graphic design and automotive repair. Now they are pledging to put those skills to use, taking job offers from New Level Properties, Nordson Corporation, Heritage Plumbing, Kendal at Oberlin and dozens of other businesses.

The May 10 signing ceremony was significant for Zachary Casey, a carpentry student who will go to work for Erie Shores Contracting.

“It means you made it.

You put in the work, it’s your senior year and now you’re going somewhere,” he said. “It wasn’t all for nothing.”

Max Drumm, a precision machine technology student who will go to work for Clark Alliance Corporation, said entering the workforce right away after high school makes sense for him, since many skilled trades employers are ready to help pay for college.

He wants to be a lathe operator, making parts used in heavy machinery such as boilers.

“It was the only thing that interested me,” Drumm said. “I wasn’t that interested in engines — I tried seeing if I could wrench on cars, but it didn’t click with me. I found just making things

Avon

Matthew Drake, Heating and Air Conditioning senior, signed with Heritage Plumbing.

Avon Lake

Jake Keaton, Precision Machine Technology senior, signed with AJ Rose Manufacturing Co.; Matthew Markutsa, Industrial Electricity senior, signed with Jim's Electric, Inc; Cade Mycek, Hospitality Services senior, signed with Project Search - Educational Service Center of Lorain County; Edward Shilliday, Industrial Electricity senior, signed with Jim's Electric, Inc; Skyler Thompson, Collision Repair senior, signed with Discount Tire.

Brookside

Griffin Copley, Precision Machine Technology senior, signed with AJ Rose Manufacturing Co.; Dawson Gainer, Heating and Air Conditioning senior, signed with Total Line Refrigeration Inc; Connor Millet, Early Childhood Education senior, signed with Horizon Education Center’ Owen Ortiz, Masonry Trades senior, signed with Trio Concrete Construction, Inc.

Columbia

Maximus Drumm, Precision Machine Technology senior, signed with ClarkReliance Corporation.

Elyria David Shippy, a heating and air conditioning student at the Lorain County JVS, takes part in the school’s Career Tech Signing Day, held Tuesday, May 10. out of metal is what fit me.”

Glenn Faircloth, superintendent of the JVS, said it is important for the soonto-be-graduates to become wage-earners.

“Understand this: You will now be contributors to our county, which makes you liable also for the county,” he said.

Some will step out of school and into jobs earning $20 per hour or more.

Faircloth said that’s a big difference from the $4 per hour many of their instructors started out making decades ago.

It’s not that large a shift, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: $4 per hour in January 1980 equals $14.78 per hour in purchasing power today, when adjusted for inflation.

After remaining stagnant for years, wages

are sharply rising now.

They’re catching up with profit margins that are at their highest point in 70 years, according to the Federal Reserve.

So are prices, with housing costs jumping by nearly 50 percent in the past decade alone and food costs accelerating at a rate Americans haven’t seen in 40 years.

JVS students have the grit to make it work, though, said Faircloth.

Trained trades workers are in high demand, and employment scouts for regional companies saw the potential seniors have.

“You all have been trained by some of the best in the entire state.

Our instructors are wellcertified, ready and eager.

I know they pushed you to their limits,” he said. “…

So go out there and make us proud.”

Page A5

Madison Detamore, Carpentry senior, signed with New Level Properties; Olivia Floyd, Web and Graphic Design senior, signed with Lorain County Engineer's Office; Timothy Roberts, Industrial Electricity senior, signed with Jim's Electric, Inc.

Firelands

Aiden Harker, Precision Machine Technology

senior, signed with Bettcher Industries, Inc.; Mason Hickman, Precision Machine Technology senior, signed with Bettcher Industries, Inc.

Keystone

Dylan Barrish, Masonry Trades senior, signed with Advanced Stone Creations LLC; Andrew Emerick, Masonry Trades senior, signed with Advanced Stone Creations LLC; Patrick Murtha, Industrial Electricity senior, signed with RJ Martin Electric.

Midview

Luke Machovina, Industrial Electricity senior, signed with JP Electrical Services Company; Joseph Metheney, Collision Repair senior, signed with Flatline Collision Ltd; Joseph Moore, Industrial Electricity senior, signed with Electrical Accents; Tyler Pilarczyk, Precision Machine Technology senior, signed with Avon Lake Sheet Metal; David Shippy, Heating and Air Conditioning senior, signed with Engineering Excellence; Samuel Singleton, Welding and Fabrication senior, signed with Clark-Reliance Corporation; Austin Wade, Heating and Air Conditioning senior, signed with Rewak Mechanical LLC; Jacob Winland, Precision Machine Technology senior, signed with EMC Precision.

North Ridgeville

Zachary Casey, Carpentry senior, signed with Erie Shores Contracting LLC; Rachael Chandler, Precision Machine Technology senior, signed with Clark-Reliance Corporation; Taylor Conaway, Cosmetology senior, signed with Sephora; Chloe Gamble, Hospitality Services senior, signed with Childtime - North Olmsted; Garrett Melton, Industrial Electricity senior, signed with Electrical Accents; Elizabeth Rickard, Industrial Electricity senior, signed with Jim's Electric, Inc; Abigail Ronyak, Early Childhood Education senior, signed with Horizon Education Center; Jordan Sherrill, Heating and Air Conditioning senior, signed with LK Heating and Cooling; Joshua Velez, Heating and Air Conditioning senior, signed with Total Line Refrigeration Inc.; Madylin Waugh, Industrial Electricity senior, signed with JP Electrical Services Company; Carver Williams, Heating and Air Conditioning senior, signed with Westland Heating and Cooling.

Oberlin

Korey Russell, Maintenance Services senior, signed with Kendal of Oberlin; William Wallace, Welding and Fabrication senior, signed with Skylift Inc.

Wellington

Nathan Peabody, Precision Machine Technology senior, signed with NN AutoCam Inc.; Omar Shean, Masonry Trades senior, signed with Bricklayers Local #5 Union; Kaleb Taylor, Industrial Electricity senior, signed with Fireland's Electric, Inc.

STARTING A FAMILY

SHOULD NEVER KEEP YOU FROM

FINDING A HOME.

If you would like to learn more about your fair housing rights or think you have been discriminated against in a housing-related transaction, contact the Fair Housing Center for Rights & Research for assistance.

| advocates@thehousingcenter.org

Timothy Roberts, Elizabeth Rickard and Matthew Markutsa of the vocational school’s industrial electricity program sign letters of intent.

| (216) 361-9240

The Fair Housing Center for Rights & Research, a nonprofit fair housing organization, is available to assist you with questions you may have about your fair housing rights.

www.thehousingcenter.org

Page A6

Thursday, May 19, 2022

Lorain County Community Guide

BULLETIN BOARD Diapers for Blessing House

Trinity Lutheran Church is holding a diaper drive to benefit Blessing House Children’s Crisis Care Center.

It is collecting diapers for newborns to size 6 through Saturday, June 11. Donations may be placed in the drop off box at the front door at the church, 3747 Liberty Ave., Vermilion.

Monetary donations are also welcome.

Enjoy some funny business

A comedy night fundraiser for Oberlin Business Partnership will be held at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, May 20 at New Russia Township Lodge, 46300 Butternut Ridge Rd. Doors open at 6:45 p.m. with live music before the show.

Featured comedians include Kevin Whelan, Carrie Parsons and Jason Moliterno. There will be a 50-50 raffle, prize raffle, free snacks and a cash bar.

Tickets are $25 each by May 13 and $30 after that date; or $175 for a table of eight. Register at www.oberlin.org or in the Oberlin Business Partnership office at 23 East College St.

See swimwear from the past

“Behind the Basement Door: Swimsuit Edition” will be presented at 3:30 p.m. on Friday, May 20 in a virtual format.

Kick off warm weather season with a look at the Oberlin Heritage Center’s historic swimwear collection. Join Collection Manager Maren McKee for a behind-the-scenes look at some rarities. This program will be broadcast live on the OHC’s Facebook page.

Beautify Lorain County

Lorain County Beautiful Day will be held from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, May 21.

Formerly known as Pride Day, the event is a chance for volunteers to clean up litter, do plantings and take part in other neighborhood enhancement projects. For information on options in your community, call (440) 328-2249.

Fire station open house

Meet firefighters and tour the Wellington Fire District’s Kelly Street station from noon to 3 p.m. on Sunday, May 22.

Visitors can see fire apparatus and displays and enjoy provided food and beverage during the open house.

‘The Urban Birder’ to speak

The Black River Audubon Society will welcomes David Lindo for a presentation on “A World of Urban Birds” at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, May 23 at the Sunset Terrace at Lakeview Park, Lorain.

Tickets are $10 and available at www.blackriveraudubon.org.

Born and raised in London, England, Lindo is a writer, naturalist, broadcaster and photographer. He is known around the world as “The Urban Birder.” His books include “The Urban Birder, Tales From Concrete Jungles” and “How to be an Urban Birder.” Lindo was voted the seventh most influential person in wildlife by BBC Wildlife Magazine. He is vice-president of the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, member of the British Guild of Travel Writers and a Fellow of the International League of Conservation Writers.

More than 20 percent of the globe’s bird species have been recorded within towns and cities.

“My main passion is for urban birds and I spend my time doing as much as I can to promote the appreciation and conservation of the birds that share our city lives. I now travel the world encouraging citizens and organizations to step outside

The Lorain County Community Guide Bulletin Board is for local nonprofit and not-for-profit events. Items are published on a space-available basis and will be edited for style, length, and clarity. Send your items to news@lcnewspapers.com. wherever they may be to enjoy urban birding,” Lindo said.

Historical society barbecue

A “Pogie’s Barbecue Fundraiser” to benefit the Amherst Historical Society will be held from 5-7 p.m. on Friday, May 27 at the Sandstone Event Hall, 113 South Lake St., Amherst.

The cost is $20 per person or $18 for Amherst Historical Society members, and includes entertainment and dinner.

Brownhelm memorial parade

Brownhelm Township will kick off Memorial Day observances early, with a parade at 1:45 p.m. on Sunday, May 29, traveling from Claus and North Ridge roads to Brownhelm Cemetery.

“The Shortest Parade in Town” invites participants to line up by 1:30 p.m. Amherst American Legion Post 118 will lead the parade, followed by the Brownhelm Historical Association, Brownhelm 4-H Club, antique cars, tractors and more. A short ceremony will be held at the township’s veterans memorial site.

Oberlin Memorial Day service

Oberlin veterans organizations will observe Memorial Day with a 10 a.m. program on Monday, May 30 at Wright Memorial Park on East Vine Street.

The keynote speaker will be Lorain County Health Commissioner Mark Adams, who is a Coast Guard veteran. The event will also be streamed live at stream.oberlinschools.net.

Bike brigade on parade

North Ridgeville’s Memorial Day parade will step off at 9:45 a.m. on Monday, May 30, starting from the North Ridgeville Senior Center parking lot on Bainbridge Road.

Participants should arrive by 9:15 a.m. Kids in first grade and up are invited to take part in the decorated bike brigade.

Parents must accompany children through the entire parade route to Ranger Stadium. There will be trophies for the bestdecorated. A short ceremony will take place at the stadium to honor military members.

Republican breakfast

The Avon-Avon Lake Republican Club will hold a breakfast from 8-9 a.m. on Wednesday, June 1 at Sugar Creek Restaurant, 5196 Detroit Rd., Sheffield.

Barbara Whitmore of Ohio Votes Count will speak about fair and honest elections, violations of election procedures and ensuring election integrity. Attendees are responsible for their meals.

Learn to clean headstones

A gravestone cleaning workshop will be held from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, June 4 at Rugby Cemetery on North Ridge Road in Brownhelm Township.

The Brownhelm Historical Association will teach participants how to properly and safely clean and treat headstones. The admission fee includes instruction as well as a small cleaning kit

to take home for use on family headstones.

Tickets are $25. Purchase them at www.tinyurl.com/ RugbyCemetery.

Art and gardening camp

A Growing Artists Summer Camp will be offered from 9 a.m. to noon from June 13-17 at The People’s Garden, 285 South Professor St., Oberlin.

The event, sponsored by Oberlin Community Services and the Allen Memorial Art Museum, is for children ages 8 to 10. The free camp will celebrate art and gardening, exploring connections between people and the land they live on.

To register, visit www.bit.ly/Growing_Artists.

South Amherst alumni banquet The South Amherst alumni board has announced its annual banquet will be held on Saturday, July 16.

It will honor the classes of 1970,1971 and 1972. Invitations will be sent out after Memorial Day and must be returned by June 24. If you have changed your address, be sure to contact Barbie Standen at (440) 988-3505.

Donations are also being accepted for the alumni scholarship fund.

Sandstone fundraisers

The Amherst Historical Society will hold garage sale fundraisers at its Sandstone Village, 763 Milan Ave., from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Saturday through October.

Nominate an outstanding older adult

COLUMBUS – May is Older Americans Month, and the Ohio Department of Aging is seeking nominations for the Ohio Senior Citizens Hall of Fame.

The hall honors current or longtime Ohio residents age 60 and older who have made and continue to make a lasting impact on their communities, professions or vocations.

Visit www.aging.ohio.gov/halloffame to nominate an outstanding older Ohioan in your community.

Nominations must be received by Tuesday, May 31 to be considered for induction during a ceremony to be held in September.

Free school meals ending

The Amherst Schools are alerting parents that while breakfast and lunches will still be available to students, as of this fall they will no longer be free to everyone, as they have been since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. That means families will need to complete an application to qualify for free or reduced-price meals.

Due to a donation, most of the district’s student charges and negative balances for breakfast and lunch have been cleared. This means most students will start the 2022-2023 school year fresh, with no debt. Next year, all children will need to enter their student number into the PIN pad for the cashier to ring them out. They must all know their six-digit student number before the first day of school in August.

McFarlin tapped to fill empty Oberlin Council seat JASON HAWK EDITOR

OBERLIN — Michael McFarlin was not elected, but essentially hired Monday as Oberlin City Council’s newest member.

He was picked from a list of applicants to fill an empty at-large seat through the end of 2023, completing the remainder of former Councilwoman Heather Adelman’s two-year term.

After being backed by voters for a third term and serving

as president of the legislative body for a little more than three months, Adelman stepped down last month to take a job as Oberlin College’s new sustainability manager.

The switch-up doesn’t mean McFarlin becomes president — that role has already been enstrusted to Councilman Bryan Burgess by a vote of his elected peers.

Burgess said Adelman’s seat had to be filled within 30 days of her official April 24 resignation date.

©

“One of our main considerations was how quickly will the new member come up to speed?” he said.

Getting used Michael to the job takes McFarlin time for any new Council member, said Burgess. In McFarlin’s case, it may go a little quicker.

He has served as chair of the

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Oberlin Historic Preservation Commission, is familiar with city staff and has made presentations to Council on occasion.

He was also part of the team that worked on development of the city’s comprehensive plan, said Councilwoman Kristin Peterson.

Like Adelman, McFarlin also is employed at Oberlin College, where he is a technology librarian at the Mary Church Terrell Library.

Neither did he start his new job immediately. According to Bur-

gess, McFarlin was out of town Monday on a pre-planned family vacation.

He is expected to cast his first vote as a councilman when Council convenes June 6.

Council Vice President Kelley Singleton said he hopes the applicants who sought to serve out the remainder of Adelman’s term consider running for Council.

The next election cycle begins next August.

“I think we can have a really strong council if all those people were elected,” he said.

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Lorain County Community Guide • Thursday, May 19, 2022

Oberlin councilman censured over emails JASON HAWK EDITOR

OBERLIN — In an exceedingly rare move, Oberlin City Council has censured one of its members.

By a 5-1 vote in a special meeting last week, it formally rebuked Councilman Ray English over an email exchange that allegedly revealed details of a behindPublic record closed-doors meeting.

English opposed the disCouncilman Ray English objects to his censure ciplinary measure. during a special Oberlin City Council meeting on “I want to say first that Monday, May 9.

I made a mistake,” he said, before disagreeing at length with the accusations against him and objecting to the situation being hashed out in a public hearing.

“To me, this is a classic case of cascading misunderstandings that result from a poorly communicated email and subsequent exchanges,” English said.

The situation stems from a May 4 email sent by English to City Manager Rob Hillard, copying all members of Council and Law Director Jon Clark, as well

as a follow-up. The resolution of censure that was adopted says the emails referred to an executive session held April 11, which English disputed.

While most government meetings are open to the public under the Ohio Sunshine Law, executive sessions can be used for narrowly-defined talks about employment, preparing for union negotiations, briefings on pending lawsuits and a few other exceptions.

There’s an expectation under state law that most

Special Olympics

— but not all — of what is discussed in those meetings is confidential. Oberlin’s charter cracks down on leaks from those private sessions even harder.

“Council has discussed in your past evaluation a number of instances that involved oversights in your work,” English wrote to Clark.

Copies of the emails show he also was upset that Clark has had discussions with fire Chief Robert Hanmer and police Chief Ryan CENSURED PAGE B2

‘We cannot find enough people’

Jason Hawk | Amherst News-Times

Seniors at Marion L. Steele High School in Amherst crowd around a table to learn about job opportunities at Sliman’s Sales and Service. The dealership was one of 32 companies to send recruiters to the school’s inaugural job fair in hopes of filling openings.

Photos by Jason Hawk | Community Guide

Accompanied by their falcon mascot, Firelands Special Olympics athletes proudly carry their school banner around the track at Ely Stadium on Friday at the 40th Lorain County Special Olympics.

Celebrating 40 years in Lorain County While many districts held solo competitions last year, coach Chris Shidlaw of the Sheffield-Sheffield Lake Schools said it was good to be back in front of the packed stands.

Hearing the roar of the crowd is a tremendous boost to athletes’ self-confidence, he said: “They’re always shining, but this is a day for them to shine in front of their peers and parents.”

The Elyria High School Marching Band kicked off the day with a rendition of the Olympic Fanfare, then led athletes in a parade around the stadium.

In the press box, Elyria girls basketball coach Tony Brown served as master of ceremonies. His goal for the day was to provide each athlete with indelible memories of being cheered on.

“It’s an eye-opening experience for

JASON HAWK EDITOR

ELYRIA — Jeremiah Taylor had just one wish as he prepared to compete in the long jump Friday at the Lorain County Special Olympics.

“I want to be like a grasshopper,” said the senior from Marion L. Steele High School in Amherst, envisioning flying through the air in his favorite event.

Taylor was one of about 500 athletes with special needs, hailing from 15 local school systems and filling Ely Stadium for the local games’ 40th anniversary.

It was a triumphant return after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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everyone to come out and see, to be humbled and be blessed,” he said.

Lorain senior Cain Olejko said his family was in the bleachers to make noise when he lined up for the 50-meter dash. Olejko is a two-time winner in the event, and said winning feels good, but knowing his family was there for him was even better.

“It feels real good. It gives me pretty good confidence,” he said.

His friend, Lorain junior Zay McGehee, was warming up for a full day of softball, the long jump and the 25-meter dash. McGehee said he was especially looking forward to the footrace.

“I like that it’s short because I can’t really run too fast,” he joked, a big smile across his face.

McGehee said the Special Olympics SPECIAL OLYMPICS PAGE B2

Recruiters looks to Steele HS to fill record job openings JASON HAWK EDITOR

AMHERST — Mike Galbin kept his eyes peeled last Thursday for the perfect job candidate.

His company, Cleveland-based Apollo Supply, needs warehouse workers, inside sales reps and truck drivers to keep roofing, siding, gutters and windows moving to contractors across the region.

But like many employers nationwide, it’s struggling to fill job openings.

“We cannot find enough people. That’s why we’re branching out into things like this, trying to find some young blood,” said Galbin, nodding to the hundreds of seniors who moved from table to table at Marion L. Steele High School’s inaugural career fair.

The event attracted recruiters from 32 companies, including Sherwin Williams, Sprenger Health Care, the Cleveland Clinic, Mercy Health, Hyland Software, Bendix, several military branches and more.

While seniors were given the first shot at talking to business reps, Principal Joe Tellier said the goal was to give the entire student body a chance to CAREER FAIR PAGE B2

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Page B2

Thursday, May 19, 2022

Lorain County Community Guide

Amherst eliminated from the Scholastic Games In the final elimination contest of the Lorain County Scholastic Games high school quiz show, Olmsted Falls defeated Amherst and will advance to face Lake Ridge Academy in the championship.

The season-ending broadcast can be heard at 6 p.m. on Monday, May 23 on WEOL radio AM930 and FM 100.3.

Representing Olmsted Falls were Elena Strozewski, David Vidovich and Jacob O’Connor. The team from Amherst’s Marion L. Steele High School, consisting of D.J. Theisen, Mark Vitelli and captain John PerezStrohmeyer, led in scoring for a substantial part of the competition — but the teams were tied at the end of the fast-paced final round of toss-up and bonus questions.

The result was a seldom-used sudden death showdown, which Olmsted Falls won by correctly identifying objects named as being asteroids.

Pitts appointed by DeWine

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has appointed Peter Pitts of Wellington to the Ohio Home Inspector Board for a term beginning May 10, 2022, and ending April 5, 2027.

Pittsfield bridge project

The Lorain County commissioners have awarded a $195,382 contract to N&N Construction of Wakeman for the Pitts Road bridge replacement project in Pittsfield Township.

Five bids were opened on April 12 for work consisting of replacing the bridge with a new, precast 12-foot by 6-foot box culvert.

The work will be done by Oct. 31. The Ohio Public Works Commission is paying $144,583 toward the project and the remaining $50,799 balance is being paid from the county’s motor vehicle gas tax receipts.

SPECIAL OLYMPICS

CENSURED FROM B1

Warfield regarding an ordinance banning fireworks without Hillard being aware.

Clark replied he serves as legal counsel for all city departments and routinely has conversations with department heads, who are his clients.

English also raised the question of why Council sometimes receives information from Clark just before meetings, which are typically held on Monday nights.

English said he did not mean to sound like he was reprimanding Clark, but his fellow Council members found the entire back-and-forth to be unprofessional and embarrassing, according to the censure language.

“I did read the email as a reprimand. I did read it as speaking for Council. I felt that Council’s ability to do an honest, thoughtful evaluation, particularly in this case that we are right in the middle of has been damaged,” said Vice President Kelley Singleton.

He apologized to Clark for being put in a tough position by the hearing, and said he fears what may be in other emails that have not yet surfaced.

English said multiple times that he did not consider the email exchange to be public — Councilwomen Kristin Peterson said she was “extremely surprised, maybe shocked” that English did not understand all written Council communications, including emails, are public record under Ohio’s Sunshine law. Councilwoman Elizabeth Meadows agreed, saying she will not put any controversial thoughts down in writing for that reason.

English described his email messages as “unfortunate” and said he and Clark have since talked and “agreed we both made mistakes.”

He also said he is concerned about “patterns of communication” between city employees, and said President Bryan Burgess has a different view of the role of Council members than he does.

“There are clear issues in terms of communication,” he said. “We need to find ways to discuss those issues and work to resolve them. We need to do it in ways that are honest, respectful and caring.”

Burgess said carrying out the censure was one of the most difficult things he’s ever had to do.

“We’ve dealt with discipline issues for city employees in the past, but never one of our own,” he said. “It’s unprecedented. We’ve never had to deal with this before.”

Burgess said Oberlin City Council censured one of its members over an incident about 15 years ago, but that was done by motion. Monday was the first time the body has ever done so by resolution, he said.

In this instance, censure is entirely symbolic and does not come with any concrete penalties.

However, Oberlin’s charter does allow Council to invoke censure as a means to remove an elected official from office. That was not part of the discussion last week.

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FROM B1 are important to him because he doesn’t get to be part of Titans varsity sports teams. Nothing would make him happier than continuing on after school to play professional football for the Los Angeles Rams, he said.

Andy Menner, who coordinates the Elyria Schools team’s efforts, said the smiles on each athlete’s face was the best reward anyone could hope for.

“That’s what it’s all about. I want to make sure they have a good time,” he said. “It’s been a little hard for a while, things are a little off, but it’s been two years and I’m glad we’re back.”

An intervention specialist at the Elyria Early Childhood Village, Menner has been involved with the local Special Olympics for 20 years, since his own son, Drew, was part of the games.

Following a stroke, Drew is paralyzed on his right side. But Menner said he’ll always remember how his son looked while standing out on the field with his friends.

“He just a good time,” Menner said.

“He enjoyed it, no matter what color the ribbon was that he won. That’s what we want to give these kids.”

▲ Athlete Johnny Mural of St. Jude School takes the Special Olympics torch for the first leg of a run around the track. ◄ The Elyria High School Marching Band leads a parade Friday morning at Ely Stadium, helping to kick of the 40th year for the local Special Olympics.

CAREER FAIR FROM B1 mingle.

Companies jumped at the chance to get face time with Steele students, he said.

“They wanted to bring applications,” he said.

“They need what they have to offer, and our students have what these businesses need. It’s just a matter of marrying the two.”

School counselor Katheline Santos said at least 60 percent of students aim to go to college. The career fair aimed to provide options for the other 40 percent that is considering jumping straight into the workforce.

But finding a job has changed a lot in the past few decades. Gone are the days of pounding the pavement with resume in hand, replaced by online applications that are bereft of face-to-face interaction, said intervention specialist Kristen Kowalsic, who planned the career fair with Santos.

Students are hungry for jobs, Kowalsic said — they just need a little help taking the first step.

“They know they want to go out and find employment, but they don’t know how to

go about it,” she said.

A big barrier to the whole process, said Santos, is convincing kids to talk themselves up. They’ve been taught that humility and modesty are virtues — and they are — but you have to market yourself when looking for a job.

That’s a formula that senior Aidan Boden seems to have solved. He attended the career fair even though he’s already gotten a job cutting hair, which he hopes to make into a career.

Still, Boden said he was keeping his options open and looking for the next step up. “I feel like I haven’t looked hard enough,” he said, circulating among the recruiters at Steele.

That’s the kind of initiative Nordson Corporation talent acquisition specialist Brandi Kessler was looking for.

Armed with a scholarship for graduating seniors or college students, she was hunting for teens with strong business and engineering instincts.

“Just forming these initial connections with these

young students is important for us so that we have a relationship when they’re ready to graduate from college,” Kessler said.

Nordson, which was founded in Amherst and has grown into a multinational corporation headquartered in Westlake, has a large number of entry-level openings across the nation, she said. It also has about 50 internships filled this year, and opportunities for newly-created leadership development programs in finance, marketing and sales.

There are about 11.5 million job openings in the United States, according to May numbers released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

That’s the largest number on record.

But hires were stuck at 6.7 million, showing little change from previous months and leaving employers short-staffed.

Companies are gaining ground when it comes to filling positions in transportation, warehousing, utilities, education and government, according to the BLS. But workers are increasingly shying away

from taking jobs in retail and durable goods manufacturing.

Workers have the upper hand right now, the labor department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey shows.

Results of a Pew Research Center survey published in March show the “Great Resignation” isn’t the result of laziness. Instead, workers are tired of low pay and no chances for advancement — so they are going where the money is, leaving vacancies behind.

Among those who quit a job in 2021, 63 percent said pay was too low, 57 percent said they felt disrespected at work, 48 percent cited child care issues, 45 percent wanted more flexible hours, 43 percent said their benefits stank and 39 percent said they were working too many hours.

“The survey also finds that those who quit and are now employed elsewhere are more likely than not to say their current job has better pay, more opportunities for advancement and more work-life balance and flexibility,” according to Pew Research.

Thursday, May 19, 2022

Lorain County Community Guide

Page B3

Back to school, the 1890s way JASON HAWK EDITOR

AMHERST — Jeannie Rice stood in the doorway of the Hickory Tree Grange and Schoolhouse Friday morning, ringing a large hand bell.

Its peels called a group of third-graders from St. Joseph School in Amherst to attention.

“This way, children,” said Rice, dressed in the style of an 1890 school marm.

Boys and girls filed separately into the 151-year-old school room at the Amherst Historical Society’s Sandstone Village on Milan Avenue. Inside, they sat at wooden desks with small chalk slates, and pretended for a while that they’d traveled back in time to a simpler, more rugged era in the town’s past.

The role play is a tradition the society’s volunteers have been carrying out now since 1992, helping small children learn about history by living it for an hour or two.

Rice said she wanted to impress on kids how much education has changed over the course of more than a century, but also how it is essentially the same.

Students “still have to learn math. They have to learn to multiply, to add and subtract,” she said. “They have to learn to read well, and to grade level.”

Built in 1879, the building was used for classes up to eighth grade until 1925, when Amherst’s Central School was built. Then it became the grange hall, where farmers gathered to socialize; the Workshop Players used the building to put on plays for a few short years in the mid1900s before moving to their theater-in-the-round on Middle Ridge Road, where performances are still held today.

At the Quigley Museum on the other side of Milan Avenue, tour guide Gina Welch showed fourth-graders relics used during the wars of yesteryear.

Among them was an old bayonet, an air raid helmet from World War II, a Civil War muzzle loader and ration books from the Great Depression.

“Just like during COVID, when everything was shut down,

Photos by Jason Hawk | Amherst News-Times

01: Jeannie Rice teaches children from St. Joseph School about the history of the Amherst Historical Society’s Hickory Tree Grange and Schoolhouse, which was built in 1871 and used until 1925. a lot of people started gardens for the first time,” she told students. “During World War II, they were called victory gardens.”

In another gallery, volunteer Grant Thompson showed off artifacts from Amherst businesses of a long-gone era — taverns, jewelers, clothiers and general stores.

Kids struggled to understand a dangerous-looking tangle of wires and metal strapped to a chair that sat in one corner. It wasn’t an electric chair, but a hair-curling machine.

Children also had trouble grasping the need for a spittoon, and marveled when Thompson explained how barbers in town were also trusted to extract teeth for the low price of 75 cents.

Sandy Kaiser, director of the Amherst Historical Society, said the return of children to the grounds was welcome.

Tours had been on hiatus the past two years because of the pandemic.

Historical society member Grant Thompson provides a tour of the Quigley Museum on Milan Avenue in Amherst, explaining to St. Joseph School students how artifacts from old businesses were once used.

$45K gift aims to lower extreme heat dangers, bills JASON HAWK EDITOR

OBERLIN — A $45,000 challenge grant will be used to weatherize homes in Oberlin, saving energy and money by helping residents replace broken windows, fix leaking roofs and insulate.

First Church in Oberlin has fronted the money, hoping that other members of the community will match it.

The cash will help the nonprofit called Providing Oberlin With Efficiency Responsibly, better known as POWER, which has been in operation since 2009.

“It is an enormous gift, by far the largest gift we’ve ever received by a magnitude of 10,” said Cindy Frantz, secretary and co-founder of POWER. “It’s thrilling, an honor that our work is respected that much.”

Weatherization is an important undertaking, she said — extreme weather events are already on the rise as a result of climate change.

Dangerously hot weather is a huge concern. The National Climate Assessment was created in 1989

by President George H.W. Bush and a bipartisan Congress, and now predicts 20 to 30 more days of 90-degree or higher heat by 2050.

If greenhouse gas emissions aren’t vastly scaled back, average daily high and low temperatures are expected to increase by at least 5 degrees Fahrenheit.

That’s a health threat that needs to be addressed now, said Frantz. Especially vulnerable are senior citizens who are often on fixed incomes and may not be able to weatherize their homes without assistance.

Before a home can be weatherized, it often needs other repairs, said Gene

Matthews, a First Church member who previously served as president of the POWER board.

During his time with the nonprofit, he often found broken or unsealed windows. “In some ways, it doesn’t make sense to insulate until those are fixed, because the windows are so bad,” he said.

Frantz said POWER will use the grant money on a case-by-case basis for electrical upgrades, to replace ventilation fans, fix roofs or in extreme

cases for furnaces or water heaters.

None of the money will be used for operating expenses such as payroll, she said — the grant will be exclusively set aside for projects.

POWER also receives grant financial assistance from the city of Oberlin’s Sustainable Reserve Fund.

The Rev. David Hill of First Church said Jesus’ great commandment was to love our neighbors. The challenge grant seeks to do just that, making sure

all Oberlin residents have access to housing that is energy efficient, safe and healthy.

“Clearly I think the position the church is taking is that part of our responsibilities is to be a good neighbor,” said Matthews.

Contributions to First Church’s challenge grant campaign can be sent to 106 North Main St., Oberlin, OH 44074 or made at www.firstchurchoberlin. org. Donors should put “POWER MATCH” in the memo line of checks.

The campaign will run through June 15.

All Oberlin residents, including renters, are eligible to receive POWER’s free services and apply for home efficiency grants.

Utility rebates and POWER grants typically cover between 60 to 100 percent of the cost of weatherization, the nonprofit says.

To schedule a free walkthrough assessment of your home, call POWER Energy Advocate Greg Jones at (440) 935-0995.

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go when you sell, but this seller’s market has allowed Realtors to become creative to help you. For example, I recently sold a house and the seller knew he needed time to find his new house.

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Page B4

Thursday, May 19, 2022

Lorain County Community Guide

SPORTS

Send sports news to news@lcnewspapers.com. Deadline for all submissions is 10 a.m. each Tuesday. Printed as space is available.

NAGY’S HOMER DOES THE JOB

Photos by Joe Colon | Amherst News-Times

Amherst lived up to its billing as the top-seeded team in the Avon Lake district, taking down No. 22 Elyria 8-4 in the Division I sectional final last week. After trailing 5-0 in the third inning, the Pioneers clawed their way back into the game, starting with a solo home run by Jaidah Gonzalez. But the Comets’ Emma Nagy put all doubt away in the sixth, clobbering the ball over the center field fence for a pinch-hit home run.

LEFT: Amherst’s Cassidy Kettleman eyes up the pitch against Elyria. ABOVE: Brianna Sadler slides into second beating the tag of Elyria Morgan Palos.

TWO WINS FOR PHOENIX GIRLS Photos by Erik Andrews | Oberlin News-Tribune

Oberlin closed out its regular season home slate with a solid 9-4 win over the Clearview Clippers, propelling the team to a 2-2 week. The team’s second win of the week came against Villa Angela St. Joe's, pushing the Phoenix to the OHSAA sectional final before falling to top seeded Masillon Tuslaw.

LEFT: Senior Emily Emerich gets down the bunt to move runners along in the first inning last week against the Clippers. RIGHT: Winning Pitcher Katlyn Streator fires another strike across the dish in last week's tourney action against VASJ.

Dudziak breaks through to gymnastics nationals PAUL HEYSE THE CHRONICLE-TELEGRAM

The long journey has proved to be well worth the effort.

Danielle Dudziak made her national meet debut Sunday at the USA Gymnastics Development Program National Championships in Mesa, Arizona, placing 27th.

The Amherst senior competed in the Senior F (born before Jan. 19, 2004) category for allaround competition in Level 10. The six-day championship meet,

which began last Tuesday, serves as the culmination of the competitive season for several of the USA Gymnastics development programs.

Many of the nation's elite gymnasts are alumni of the men's and women's championships, which were previously held separately and called the Junior Olympic Nationals.

Dudziak has trained in gymnastics since she was 2 and has spent her entire career competing for Great Lakes Gymnastics in Avon Lake. She advanced to the regional level seven or eight times,

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but this is her first time qualifying for a nationallevel competition.

“Obviously I’ve been doing it for a long time so I’ve always wanted to reach my full potential," she said. "I feel like I haven’t reached that so I want to keep practicing until I feel like I’ve done what I could.”

Dudziak made nationals by taking the seventh and final qualifying berth with a score of 36.275 at the region 5 meet (Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio) on April 21 in Illinois. She advanced to regionals with a qualifying score of 36.3 on March 25 at the state meet in Columbus.

“Staying healthy throughout the season has been a big key,” Dudziak said. “I did have a couple concussions (one in November and one in February) and did have vertigo at one point, but I had no other major physical injuries.”

Dudziak almost made nationals as a freshman, finishing eighth at regionals and serving as the alternate. She plans to continue her gymnastics career next year at Division III University of Wisconsin at Whitewater.

“I just love doing gymnastics in general,” she said. “I like competing

Angelo Angel | Chronicle

Amherst’s Danielle Dudziak at the Great Lakes Gymnastics on May 9. floor the best and I like practicing beam. That’s one of my favorites. For floor I compete my basic tumbling passes, which are double pike, double tuck and then a handspring full front pike, but I practice a round-off back handspring full and a Rudy layout which I plan to compete next year

(at college).

"My favorite trick for beam, which I don’t compete this year but will next year for college, is my triple series, which is a back handspring, layout, layout.”

Dudziak was the lone Level 10 USA Gymnastics competitor for Great Lakes, with the rest of her

practice group Level 8s.

There are also no other high school seniors or juniors in her practice group, with the remainder mostly freshmen and sophomores.

“A lot of the gymnasts over the last few years that were in my age group they either quit or switched gyms,” Dudziak said.

Dudziak is looking forward to college.

“I’m really excited for next year because I’m going to college at Wisconsin-Whitewater and there I’ll be able to compete with a team," she said.

“There are only about 84 schools from Divisions I, II and III combined that offer women’s gymnastics. You can get a full ride or walk on at a Division I or II school. I could have perhaps walked on at a Division I or II program, but I wanted to be able to compete for my team at each meet.

"I wanted to go to a Division III school where there would be more of a team atmosphere and no one would be worrying about scholarship money and losing a spot, so that’s why I wanted to go Division III. I’m planning to major in education. I want to teach someday. Both of my parents (Jeff and Marcia) are teachers.”

Thursday, May 19, 2022

Lorain County Community Guide

Page B5

SCENES FROM THE LORAIN COUNTY LEAGUE MEET Photos by Russ Gifford | Community Guide

Lorain County League track and field athletes showed their strength and speed in two solid days of competition in this year’s conference meet.

Brookside won the girls title with 174 points, followed by Firelands with 141.5 and Wellington with 103.5 points. Keystone won the boys title with 181 points, followed by Black River with 144 and Brookside with 99.

GIRLS • Coach of the Year: Brad Barhorst, Brookside • Field Athlete of the Year: Lauren Valerius, Firelands • Sprinter of the Year: Jessica Gower, Brookside • Distance Runner of the Year: Madeleine Finton, Columbia

LEFT: Wellington's Joleisa Sizer places second in the girls pole vault.

BOYS • Coach of the Year: Jeff Holzhauer, Keystone • Field Athlete of the Year: Ryne Shackelford, Keystone • Sprinter of the Year: Ryne Shackelford, Keystone • Distance Runner of the Year: Sam Sikorski, Columbia

ABOVE: Firelands’ Ariannah Floyd clears a hurdle in the Girls 300-meter race. Floyd finished second.

RIGHT: Black River's Daniel Jeske places first in the boy's shot put.

SPOTLIGHT: ANDRE YARBER Erik Andrews | Oberlin News-Tribune

The Oberlin Phoenix honored their lone senior, Andre Yarber, prior to the final home game of the season. Yarber has held leadership roles on the Phoenix football, basketball and baseball teams this year. His plans include playing football at Muskingum University in the fall. Leading OHS team in batting and in the field, he drew the start on the mound against the Brookside Cardinals for this final career home game. Playing at Dill Field at Oberlin College, the hosts fell to the Cardinals, 14-1. Teammate Julian Anderson had a pair of hits in the loss.

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The Comets’ George Gotsis dives safely to first base on a pickoff attempt in the fourth inning against Keystone. Amherst rallied for a 5-2 win, thanks to a two-run homer by Jordan Koury in the sixth inning — Koury also racked up two RBIs and a run. Gotsis was key to the win with a run and two stolen bases. Cam Gendics also had an outstanding game with a run, RBI, triple and stolen base; Christian Gendics came through with an RBI. Jonathan St. Peter rounded out the scoring with a run.

85 SOUTH MAIN STREET OBERLIN OHIO 44074 MAY 19, 2022 BOARD AND COMMISSION MEETING DATES ALL MEETINGS WILL BE Live Streamed @ http://oberlinoh.swagit.com/live MAY 23, 2022 ........................ RESOURCE CONSERVATION & RECOVERY– 5:00 P.M. MAY 24, 2022 ........................ OPEN SPACE COMMISSION – 5:00 P.M. MAY 25, 2022 ........................ ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS – 4:00 P.M. – 36 PROSPECT ST.

PURPOSE: To consider two applications for variances - a side yard setback variance for a proposed garage at 279 Elm St. and a sign variance for a proposed projecting sign at 53 S. Main St.

JUNE 6, 2022 ......................... PUBLIC HEARING – 6:30 P.M. – COUNCIL CHAMBERS

PURPOSE: To consider recommendations from the Planning Commission to amend the Zoning Map from “R-1”/Single - family Dwelling District to “P-1”/Public Park & Recreation District located at 66 and 69 South Park St. in Oberlin, Ohio; and to consider amendments to the Zoning Map for 27 residential properties in the City, partially or wholly zoned “P-1” Public Park & Recreation District including 291 Morgan St., various properties in the Willowbrook Farms Subdivision No. 2, 141 S. Professor ST., 493 E. College St., and 425 E. College St., all located in the City of Oberlin, Ohio.

NOTICE: DISABLED MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY WHO MAY NEED ASSISTANCE, PLEASE CALL 775-7203 OR E-MAIL: banderson@cityofoberlin.com NOTICE REQUIRED: TWO (2) WORKING DAYS IN ADVANCE OF MEETING (48 HOURS) CLERK OF COUNCIL’S OFFICE.

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Page B6

Thursday, May 19, 2022

Lorain County Community Guide

Bruewer heading to Buckeye Girls State this June

BLACK TIE AND COWBOY HAT AFFAIR Photos by Russ Gifford | Wellington Enterprise

◄ Daniel Jeske and Mollie McDonald were crowned king and queen of the Black River High School senior prom Saturday, as the Pirates hit the dance floor in some formal and not-so-formal wear.

AMHERST — Emma Bruewer, a junior at Marion L. Steele High School, will represent American Legion Auxiliary Post 118 as one of nearly 600 to take part in the 76th annual session of Buckeye Girls State at the University of Mount Union.

The session will run from Sunday, June 12 to Saturday, June 18. It is a fast-paced program of mock government at the state, Emma Bruewer county and city levels.

The main objective of the Girls State program is to train young women who have completed their junior year in the duties, rights and privileges of citizenship. As they arrive at the event, they are assigned to one of two political parties, and the residence hall in which they live during the program is their designated county and the floor on which they live is their city.

Students will file petitions for candidacy for a variety of mock offices from governor to city council and participate in the election process. After elections and inauguration, they will put government in action.

Bruewer is interested in pursuing a career in the medical field. She is enrolled in the medical health technology program at Steele to help guide her into a field. She also plays basketball.

▲ Black River's Keyera McLean and Cayden Hinderman-Powell share a smile at prom. ▼ Black River's Treyce Wood carries Jared Bradford on the dance floor.

DeWine increases funding for local bridge repairs COLUMBUS — Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine is increasing yearly funding allocation for local bridge projects by $47.5 million for the next five years.

That brings the state’s annual investment in county and municipal bridges to $112.5 million per year, according to the Ohio Department of Transportation.

Funding provided by ODOT for bridges maintained by the state's 88 county engineers will increase from $34 million to $74 million annually, and municipalowned bridge funding will increase from $11 million to $18.5 million each year.

The additional $47.5 million is part of the $104 million in bridge funding that Ohio will receive in each of the next five years as part of the recently enacted federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The law requires Ohio to invest $15.6 million of the $104 million each year into bridges owned by municipalities, townships, and counties, but DeWine’s announcement more than triples the amount going to local communities.

"Many of the expensive repairs needed on small, locally-owned bridges cost far beyond what our communities can afford, which is why I’ve directed ODOT to devote more money to support local bridge projects,” he said. “By partnering together to ensure the necessary improvements are made, those driving over Ohio’s bridges can feel confident that they are safe.”

Hospice seeks volunteers

Volunteers are needed at Hospice of the Western Reserve.

It is seeking new volunteers to serve patients and families in hospice and palliative care programs throughout northern Ohio. Various opportunities are available and may vary by location; there are also virtual and non-clinical opportunities to serve. To start the process of joining the team, visit www. hospicewr.org/volunteer or call (216) 255-9090.

AARP launches online resource to help protect veterans against fraud Ohio’s 864,923 military veterans and active-duty service members are at risk of being targeted by scammers, according to the AARP. The organization has launched a new online tool to help educate and protect veterans, service members and their families against people who would take advantage of them.

The AARP Veterans Fraud Center can be found at www.tinyurl.com/ ProtectVets.

According to an AARP survey, one in three military or veteran adults

reported losing money to scams that specifically target the military community. They are 40 percent more likely to lose money to scams and fraud than the civilian population.

These individuals lost more than $267 million in 2021, up from $102 million in 2020 — a 162 percent increase, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

“Targeting scams at members of the military community is unconscionable,” said State Director Holly Holtzen. “AARP Ohio has launched

this effort to alert veterans and their families of the latest scams and how to avoid them.”

Top scams aimed at veterans include: • Benefit buyouts: turning over U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) pension and/or disability benefits for a supposed lump-sum payment that never materializes.

• Fraudulent records scam: paying for updated personal military records.

• The fake charitable giving request: donating to fake veteran charities.

Commissioners: County could float three levies this fall DAVE O’BRIEN THE CHRONICLE-TELEGRAM

ELYRIA — Lorain County voters could see as many as three countywide renewal levies on the November ballot, the county Board of Commissioners said last week.

Commissioners voted to request Lorain County Auditor Craig Snodgrass certify the county's tax valuation to determine the amount of money that would be raised by three potential levies: • A 0.5-mill or a 0.75-mill, five-year renewal levy for Lorain County 911.

• A 0.6-mill, five-year renewal levy for the Mental Health, Addiction and Recovery Services Board of Lorain County.

• A 0.08-mill, five-year renewal levy for the Lorain County Drug Task Force and Lorain County Crime Lab. 911 levy The 911 center on Burns Road is an operation that requires technology, and "technology is expensive," said Commissioner Matt Lundy, a Democrat.

Emergency dispatchers "do an amazing job over there," he said.

"This is a critical operation for the county."

But staff have a high turnover ratio, Republican Commissioner David Moore said, and a 0.5-mill levy is "insufficient" for 911's needs.

"Right now they're operating at a deficit," with projections putting 911 at $2.5 million in the red next year, Moore said. "The point is we need a 0.75 (mill) levy."

Republican Commissioner Michelle Hung said employee salaries including overtime are $1.5 million to $2 million annually, and it costs $460,000 every year just to run the computeraided dispatching systems.

Hung said she and Moore agree that a "good, deep-dive assessment" is needed on where 911 service needs to be for the next five years.

MHARS Board levy The MHARS board would be going to voters for the first time under a merged board.

The former Lorain County Board of Mental Health merged with the former Alcohol & Drug Addiction Services Board of Lorain County in 2019 to form the current MHARS board.

Moore voted "no," saying he was concerned MHARS had $19 million in the bank, a number he said he got out of a recent county

Budget Commission hearing.

"I don't think they need the money, so I will not be supporting this levy," Moore said.

Lundy and Hung voted "yes."

Both said that the money Moore is talking about is mostly already invested in the MHARS board's plan to commit $10 million over the next five years to build a Crisis Stabilization Center for those needing immediate drug addiction and mental health services on the grounds of The Nord Center on South Broadway in Lorain.

"With all due respect, we were in the same meeting," Lundy said. "I heard a very informative presentation."

MHARS is making that investment as well as annual payments to cover the cost of treating patients, with the hopes that Medicaid will also cover some of that cost, Lundy said. He also noted that the largest detox facility in the county currently is the Lorain County Jail.

"We're looking to the future" at costs associated with the Crisis Stabilization Center each year, Hung said.

Moore was unmoved.

MHARS is "doing a great job.

I'm not taking anything away from that. But I think they have

too much money and going to the taxpayers that are pretty much tapped out right now," he said. "I will not be supporting any more money until they come back to me and say, 'Here's what we're doing with the money, we are spending it down, and this is how we're going to do it.' I didn't hear that at the budget commission hearing."

"Renewing this critical levy, which won't raise taxes, is essential to maintain the mental health services we have come to expect in Lorain County — to get individuals and families in crisis the help they need," the MHARS Board said in a statement emailed to The Chronicle-Telegram after the meeting.

Drug task force/crime lab levy Commissioners were unanimous in their support of the proposed criminal justice renewal levy. Moore said the levy currently generates $1.1 million annually, and the Lorain County Sheriff's Office gets $975,000 to support the drug task force.

The remaining $210,000 goes to the crime lab, housed in the basement of the County Administration Building in Elyria.

"We are not proud of the fact

our county has not one but two designations for 'high intensity drug activity,'" Lundy said, adding that he wants to see drug dealers off the streets "so they're not killing our loved ones, quite frankly."

"We've got to get these drug dealers off the street, and let them known not to do business in Lorain County," he said.

Moore said this year's budget for the Crime Lab is about $409,000, and he wondered if the renewal levy could be reconfigured to fully support the Crime Lab and reduce the sheriff's office's portion by about $200,000.

Chief Assistant Lorain County Prosecutor Dan Petticord said he and County Administrator J.R. White would look into that possibility.

Health Commissioner Mark Adams, who also attended the meeting, said the need for action is great, especially when it comes to opioid addiction and overdose deaths.

Ten years ago, there were 26 deaths from opioid overdose in Lorain County. In 2021, there were 147 such deaths.

If not for the use of naloxone to reverse overdoses this year, "we'd have 247 more graves to dig" as of last Wednesday, Adams said.