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Buckeye Cable is moving to Northwood
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By Kelly J. Kaczala Press News Editor kkaczala@presspublications.com
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He could make anything I could see. Betty Dobrosky See page 13
Mayor Mark Williams, left, with Mike Thomas, Park Director, at the Genoa Quarry. (Press photo by Ken Grosjean)
Genoa Quarry
Open to all but membership dwindling By Larry Limpf News Editor news@presspublications.com As memberships at the Genoa quarry continue to drop, village officials wonder if it and an adjacent park area are succumbing to a change in lifestyle for families and children. Two years ago quarry memberships reached 120 but dropped last year to 61. This year, only 41 memberships have been purchased. “It’s been trending down,” Mayor Mark Williams said. “I’m told back in the 1950s the village sold more than 300 passes in a season. But few people had pools.” However, at a time when health advisories for beaches along Lake Erie are not uncommon and stories of algal blooms in the lake dominate the headlines, the mayor and Mike Thomas, the parks director, are puzzled why the quarry, with its beach area, two diving boards, four rafts and a tube slide, doesn’t draw larger crowds. “We get the water tested every year by the Ottawa County Health Department,” Thomas said. “This water is very clean. It’s spring fed, so it’s constantly regenerating itself. On a clear day you can see about 10
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Times have changed, kids have changed.
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A site on Oregon and Wales roads in Northwood will become the central campus of Buckeye CableSystem and Telesystem, it was announced last week. The company will move over 500 employees from Toledo to a 150,000-squarefoot facility that is currently being used by Taylor, Nelson and Sofres (TNS), formerly NFO, at 2700 Oregon Road. Buckeye CableSystem recently bought the building, said Northwood City Administrator Bob Anderson. According to the Wood County Auditor’s website, the building was purchased June 26 for $6.25 million. TNS, a market research company, employs 137 people. The city, which has a 1.5 percent income tax rate, collects about $125,000 annually in revenue from the company’s payroll. The city will help TNS find another location, said Anderson. “I would love to keep them in the city,” said Anderson. “Bob and I are going to be working hard to keep them in the community,” said Glenn Grisdale, a planning and economic development consultant for Northwood. Northwood is expected to collect about $345,000 annually in income tax revenue from Buckeye CableSystem, according to Grisdale, who has been involved in negotiating the agreement. Officials from Block Communications, Inc., the parent company of Buckeye, commented on the move to Northwood in a prepared statement issued on Tuesday. “A central campus will enable the companies to continue to grow and innovate to meet the needs of their residential and business customers,” said Allan Block, chairman of Block Communications, Inc. “By bringing under one roof employees now spread out at over a dozen buildings, we will bring efficiencies to our business and even better service to our customers.” W.H. (Chip) Carstensen, the recently retired president of Block Communications, Inc., who led the site-selection process, said “We explored numerous possible approaches to consolidating our operations. This site was far and away our best option to serve our customers.”
feet deep into the water.” Usually three lifeguards are on duty during the week and another is added during the weekends, depending on the size of the crowds. The quarry is even open to those who like to fish and is stocked with perch, walleye, bass, blue gill, trout, catfish and more. A 45-acre park adjacent to the quarry features a sand volleyball court, two tennis courts, two basketball courts, two shelter houses, four ball diamonds and three soccer fields. A half-pipe constructed about 15 years ago when skateboarding was the rage, still gets some use but more by kids on small bikes.
The village is completing the construction of a new building that will be used for storage and to register members and a bath house has been renovated. With all the amenities, Williams and Thomas are wondering if the park and quarry still appeal to a generation that spends much of its time in front of a computer screen. “Times have changed, kids have changed,” Thomas said. “But we just want people to use the quarry.” Membership is open to residents and non-residents. Village residents are charged $40 for a family seasonal pass and $35 for individuals. Residents who live outside the village but in the Genoa School District are charged $55 for families and $45 for individuals. Those living outside the school district are charged $75 for families and $65 for individuals. The daily rate is $4 for anyone 12 years and older and $3 for ages three to 11. The in-town rates have not been increased in 15 years, the mayor said. Village officials are making plans for an end-of-season beach party, he said. “We want people to know this is a family place.”