Richwood’s Ohio Department of Transportation outpost was torn down this week. Crews started the demolition Tuesday and officials with ODOT’s District Six, which covers several areas around central Ohio including Union County, said the demolition would consolidate crews into the single location in Marysville. The facility on Route 47 served mostly as a break area for crews removing snow and ice. ODOT will keep the salt barn on the property. (Journal-Tribune photo by Sherryl Sheets) —
Author: Sherryl Sheets of the Richwood Gazette
Due to the Christmas and New Year holidays, council held their end-of-the-year meeting Monday night with barely a quorum in attendance. Councilmen Von Beal and Reddy Brown were both absent from the meeting. Two items on the agenda included continuing the Enterprise Zone Tax Incentive agreement with Richwood Banking Company. This tax incentive agreement is scheduled to expire on Dec. 31, 2027. Due to time constraints, council waived the three-reading rule for the resolution to approve the continuance of the tax incentive with RBC. The bank has met the terms of the agreement,which includes creating/retaining jobs, the payroll generated by…
Joe Mowery and Lisa Martin approached village council Monday night to share concerns regarding some properties within the village of Richwood. Mowery and Martin, who are brother and sister, have two properties in the village that they are looking to sell. One property they are trying to sell is located at 143 Blaine Avenue. There have been six showings and possible buyers of the house, but they all contend that the house at 145 Blaine Avenue has a lot of vehicles in the yard, on the sidewalk and in the street. Some may not be property licensed, which is against…
The North Union Board of Education heard a presentation from Richwood resident Joe Rhea about forming a club shooting program in the schools. A member of the county Pheasants Forever organization and an avid clay target shooter, he asked the board to consider implementing a club for North Union students. He said he has been approached by several parents who would like to see a program begin. Currently, Rhea is a coach in the Olentangy Liberty School District. He said that there are two seasons, in the fall and spring, although if board approved, it would not be able to…
Many months ago, the Richwood Revitalization Committee approached village council with a proposed plan on what to do with the former town hall/opera house building. The building is in desperate need of work to save the structure: fixing the roof and inside facilities and determining what the building would be used for if revitalized. The committee recommended the top floor would be redesigned as a venue that could be rented out for parties, weddings, meetings, etc. The downstairs would be remodeled to house village council, administration offices, water billing department and the police department. During Monday night’s regular meeting, some…
The Richwood Village council called a special meeting Tuesday evening to deal with the Dudley Circle project. councilman Reddy Brown was absent from the meeting. The original agreement with contractor Jason Wills, regarding the completion of Phase 1 of the Dudley Circle development ended May 31. Two areas needed to be completed, grading the gravel for the base of the street and the black top layer. Wills came to the special council meeting Tuesday to ask council for an extension. He provided a signed contract with Park Enterprise of Marion, whom he has subcontracted with to lay the finishing layer…
After 15 years, contractor given six days to pave Dudley Circle Developer Jason Wills signed a contract with the Village of Richwood in 2006 regarding a plan to complete work in the Dudley Circle housing project. Fifteen years later, Dudley Circle residents are still waiting to have a paved street to drive on. Monday night, council decided that if Phase 1 of the project is not completed by the May 31 scheduled deadline, then council will take over the project. Last summer, council invited Wills to a meeting in which he submitted a plan to complete work such as preparing…
The North Union School Board was asked to make masks in school voluntary by a crowd attending Monday’s meeting. Boys basketball coach Brian Terrill told the board that during basketball season, he was in 11 different school district’s gymnasiums. Every district seemed to have different views on wearing masks during sporting events, but noted that of all the districts he visited, North Union was the most strict with their guidelines when it came to COVID-19 and the wearing of masks all during the school day. Terrill said that many schools had more than the limit in attendance during sporting events…
Kelly Jerew, a Richwood resident and Tanisha Matus of the Union County Health Department, approached Richwood Village Council for its support. A new manager of the Richwood Farmer’s Market was needed for the 2021 season and Kelly Jerew stepped forward to see that a vital program in the village will continue. With guidance and support of the Union County Health Department, the two asked council members if they would let the funds generated from the farmer’s market be funneled through the village coffers as a line item. Jerew wanted to make sure that there is a check and balance system…
The North Union Board of Education held a special meeting Monday to handle several items to come before the board, which included the resignation of high school principal Janel Chapman. Chapman has served as principal for the past five years at North Union. She has been instrumental in increasing academic performance, led the creation of the career pathways, created opportunities for student internships, and worked with her staff to improve student behavior and social emotional health. School Superintendent Rich Baird stated “Janel has done wonderful work with our staff and students that will have long-lasting benefits to our community. We…
The North Union Softball For Girls organization came to council again asking for a signed contract with the village for the use of the softball diamonds in Richwood Park. Two board officials, Wendy Veach, president and Wendy Wilson, secretary/treasurer, were at Monday night’s regular council meeting. They told the council that there have been some changes in leadership and that they want a signed contract for the use of facilities. Historically, the village leases the diamonds for $1 and the contract is from March to November. During that contracted time, they are in charge of scheduling games, holding fundraisers, and…
A coronavirus pandemic hit everyone in the world causing schools to be creative in providing an education for children. The Ohio Department of Education is asking school districts to discuss a plan for a digital academy should districts be hit with another interruption during a normal school year. The North Union School Board of Education raised questions to School Superintendent Rich Baird, who said the district is looking at several options. Baird stated that the board feels it is a priority to have students back in the classroom full-time for the best learning opportunities. Baird also stated that one option…
The North Union Softball For Girls (NUSG) organization came to village council’s Monday night meeting asking to sign a contract to use the village’s softball diamonds. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, no games were played, so the last signed contract was in 2019. Wendy Veach, the softball vice president, approached council regarding the contract because there has been limited contact with the group’s president, John Queen. Queen is also involved with the middle school club ball organization. It was agreed on by both parties that the middle school club ball could play three games on the softball diamond…
Richwood Village Council heard a few weeks ago of a finding from the State auditor’s office that payment of approximately $19,000 was missing from the village audit. It appears that former Fiscal Officer Timothy Goodwin was late in mapping payments of employee benefits, insurance, and late fees were noted. Following an executive session during Monday night’s regular council meeting, council approved a motion to recoup those funds. Mayor Scott Jerew said that they will contact Goodwin to discuss a payment plan for the former fiscal officer. Council is hoping to have an agreement with Goodwin to avoid a lawsuit in…
North Union School Superintendent Rich Baird shared some exciting news to the board at Monday night’s regular meeting regarding the Coronavirus in the local school district. Baird stated that over 150 staff members have received their second dose of the COVID 1- vaccination. There are no current cases of COVID in the schools, the first time the district has been virus free since November, and three students are in quarantine. There were 57 total cases so far, and close to 700 who were in quarantine for the year. Baird also said that community numbers are down. He said that the…