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• Cardinal Stritch • Clay • Eastwood • Genoa • Gibsonburg • Lake • Northwood • Oak Harbor • Waite • Woodmore
Title aspirations See Sports A supplement to The Press Newspapers December 4, 2017
Jacob Plantz Cover photo: Genoa junior guard by Russ Lytle) p ((Press file photo
Oak Harbor
Mayor resigns, creating village council vacancy By Larry Limpf News Editor news@presspublications.com
What a view
Nine-year-old Addison McNutt, of Whitehouse, climbs the 77 spiral steps at the Marblehead Lighthouse to enjoy a spectacular view of Lake Erie and Marblehead. (Photos by Maggi Dandar)
Navarre Avenue
Senior housing project moves forward By Kelly J. Kaczala News Editor kkaczala@presspublications.com Plans for a new senior housing development on Navarre Avenue are moving forward. Funding for the project was approved recently. “Their funding source was approved about a month ago,” Mayor Mike Seferian said of Miller Valentine Group, the developer of the project. Plans call for the construction of a four-story, 81-unit housing complex. The location, at 4436 Navarre Avenue, is next to the senior center, and across the street from Pearson Metropark. It is less than ¾ of a mile from Walmart and is less than a mile from the Mercy medical office buildings. “We had contact with Miller Valentine very recently,” said Seferian, who also is a member of the Oregon Planning Commission. The city wants to pave some additional parking spots that go around the senior center, but would ultimately like to connect the parking lot with the senior
housing lot when it’s built. “Just last week, we talked about access between the senior housing and our senior center,” he said. In addition to housing, the complex would provide senior care and services through the senior center. It will also have a full-time on-site manager and maintenance staff. Service providers such as the in-home meals program, housekeeping, and transportation, will also be available, Each unit will feature master bedrooms, walk-in closets, washers and dryers, and an open floor plan with full kitchens. The complex would be a mix of oneand two-bedroom apartment units and would be age restricted to seniors over 54 years old. Prime location Seferian predicted that the complex will be filled quickly. “Every unit will probably be taken before construction is completed,” he said. “It’s going to be a nice building. It’s a good deal for seniors. For those who are still quite mobile, they could walk across
to Pearson Metropark. Mercy St. Charles Hospital is right down the street. And a fire station is nearby on Wynn and Seaman Road.” Last year, Oregon City Council had approved a Special Use Exception request for the construction of the project. Previous plans had been proposed for a different location earlier last year. That development was to be on three parcels on Munding Drive near Mercy St. Charles Hospital. The site was backed up to I-280 to the south, adjacent to the Orchard Villa nursing home. Plans had called for St. Mary’s Development Corporation, of Dayton, to buy the property and then develop the housing complex. Those plans had been dropped due to problems in obtaining financing for the site. Miller Valentine Group then took over the role of developer. The Miller Valentine Group owns several senior housing developments. The group developed similar housing in the area, including locations in Sylvania, Perrysburg, and in Whitehouse.
The Village of Oak Harbor is seeking applicants to fill a seat on village council after Don Douglas, council president, was appointed acting mayor in the wake of the abrupt resignation of Joe Helle, who stepped down last week after a dispute over his residency. Joe Helle Letters of interest for the vacant council seat will be accepted until 4:30 p.m. on Aug. 20 and should be sent to the village fiscal officer, 146 Church St., Oak Harbor, P.O. Box 232. The appointed person would finish Douglas’s term on council, which expires Dec. 31, 2019. Applicants must be residents of the village for at least one year and at least 18 years old. Council voted 5-1 Monday to accept Helle’s resignation after questions were again raised about his residency. Quinton Babcock, Jackie Macko, Barry Hall, Michelle Ish and Douglas voted to accept and Ted Foust cast the “no” vote. Helle was elected mayor in November 2015 and his term also expires at the end of 2019. Babcock said Wednesday the issue of the mayor’s residency had come up in prior meetings but no one was pressuring him to resign, Rather, Babcock said, he was trying to have the mayor indicate a timeline when he would be moving back into the village. “I brought it up and said this is dragging on and when is this going to be resolved. The bulk of the conversation was around whether or not he could provide a timeline,” Babcock said. “He couldn’t provide a timeline and didn’t want to have a conversation. He brought up the issue of resigning.” Helle said Wednesday he believes partisan politics was central to council’s
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...charity can be motivated not just by generosity, but also by tax avoidance. Helen Flannery and Chuck Collins See page 7