I think it’s a universal experience to dread clearing your inbox of emails filled with coupons and ads for yet another sale. While my personal email is bogged down with temptations to buy something else, my work email is overloaded with messages from public relations firms hoping I’ll write a story about a specific product. They generally try to pull you in with a shocking data point that emphasizes the importance of the product or company they are advertising. Given that this is the goal, I’m going to go out on a limb in saying that I don’t think there…
Author: Kayleen Petrovia
The Union County Board of Health recently approved the health department’s 2023 budget, though officials noted a 10-year projection indicates the board may need to prioritize and reconsider some programming over the next several years. The board unanimously approved appropriations for 2023 totaling $6,964,294. Fiscal Officer Amy Hamilton noted that she expects the Union County Health Department to see a 12.18% increase, or $648,954, revenue increase from the 2022 original revenue. The majority of the increase is from the “Confinement Facilities” grant, which will provide UCHD with $309,466 to be used for COVID-19 detection and mitigation within West Central Community…
Plain City Council is one step closer to approving a 2023 budget that would increase wages for administrative employees and police officers. During their meeting Monday, council members unanimously approved a compensation plan update that will bump the budget by $211,633.67. In a memo to council, Village Administrator Haley Lupton said police department wages will be increased by approximately $135,000, with the remaining $76,000 going toward administrative pay. Lupton said the compensation study, which was completed by an outside consultant, indicated that employee pay needed an “overall adjustment” rather than changes to specific positions. Council member Frank Reed said his…
Students are pictured relaxing in the shelter they created during Mrs. Tamara Walls’ outdoor survival class at Triad Middle School. Walls said she was impressed by the students’ ingenuity in their decision to use pieces of tree bark to line the ground and create a better insulated space. (Photo submitted) — Triad Middle School students are pictured enjoying a foil pack meal they cooked over the fire during a last-day-of-class celebration at Camp Shiffer in Champaign County. Outdoor Survival Class Teacher Mrs. Tamara Walls said one student told her that the meal of hamburger, potatoes, carrots, cabbage and garlic bread…
Jerome Township officials are happy with the progress being made on the construction of a second fire station. Division of Fire Chief Douglas Stewart gave an update to the Board of Trustees during its most recent meeting surrounding the construction of Station 211. “The shape of the building is really starting to come together,” he said. He said the majority of the mason work has been completed for the interior of the building and the outside walls. Stewart added that construction crews plan to begin work with installing steel on the roof and wall panels “to get this closed in…
Plain City’s new Village Planner is doing a “complete review” of the zoning code rewrite before council votes on the document, although he said it will likely only extend the process through early 2023. “As a whole, we’ve got a really good start,” said Village Planner Derek Hutchinson, adding that he plans to make “a few minor changes.” The village hosted a public hearing surrounding the zoning code updates during the council meeting Monday, as the hearing was scheduled prior to the resignation of former Village Planner Taylor Brill and subsequent hiring of Hutchinson. Hutchinson emphasized, though, that no decision…
The illustration above depicts the area in which work will be completed on the Uptown streetscape in Plain City. Village Administrator Haley Lupton said the streetscape along West Main Street and North Chillicothe Street will be reconstructed from the pedestrian alley to Pioneer Pizza. Village crews, rather than the contractor, will complete work in front of Lovejoy Plaza. (Graphic submitted) — Plain City officials will use a portion of the village’s federal funding for COVID-19 relief to improve streetscapes in the Uptown district, despite opposition from one council member. During their most recent meeting, council members voted, then reconsidered and…
ORW cosmetology student Crisha Wallace, standing at right, touches up one of the styles she created during a performance at the prison’s recent hair show. Wallace was among a number of cosmetologists-in-training who had an opportunity to show off their skills during the show. (Journal-Tribune photo by Kayleen Petrovia) — After almost 1,500 hours of practice, a group of local cosmetologists-in-training were ready to show off their skills. With their hair styled in everything from fishtail braids to sculpted cornrows, models stood backstage waiting for their cues to strut down the runway. Although the makeshift stage was crafted from…
Members of the Military Preparedness Program are pictured doing 22 push-ups in unison during the ORW Veterans Day ceremony following a presentation from Satoya Moffett, at podium, regarding statistics that indicate 22 U.S. veterans die by suicide each day. Another MPP participant, pictured at rear, did 22 back-handsprings in their honor. (Journal-Tribune photo by Kayleen Petrovia) — The incarcerated veterans at the Ohio Reformatory for Women are often reminded by Unit Manager Jason Heard that they may have made mistakes, but they still served their country. “We always preach to the women, once a veteran, always a veteran,” Heard said.…
Plain City officials are looking forward to taking on economic development projects in 2023 while being “realistic” about the amount of work they can do. “Next year we want to focus on just biting off what we can chew,” Village Administrator Haley Lupton told council members during a presentation at their most recent work session. Still, the administration’s goals for the 2023 budget are wide-ranging, from infrastructure to personnel. They include creating a budget that is infrastructure-focused, taking on economic development initiatives, working on community support projects, adjusting personnel and “prioritiz(ing) services while maintaining efficiency and smart spending,” Lupton said.…
Local developers will be able to move forward with their work on the McCune Building after Plain City Council unanimously upheld a decision by the village’s Design Review Board. Council spent its work session Wednesday deliberating following an October appeal hearing regarding the decision by DRB to approve plans to build an external elevator shaft on the north side of 114 W. Main St. Although the appellant, Tim Dawson, who owns the adjacent property, argued that removal of the one-story lean-to structure at the rear of the three-story building would substantially change the historic building, council disagreed. “They’re making it…
After disbanding the Parks and Trails Committee, the Jerome Township Trustees may still proceed with some work on area playgrounds despite objections from one member of the board. Trustee Barry Adler said he does not feel the Roads Division should be contacting vendors for playground equipment given the decision to disband the Parks and Trails Committee, which he previously served on. In May, Trustees Megan Sloat and Wezlynn Davis voted to disband the committee, both sharing the opinion that the vision for improving connectivity, parks and trails needed to be led by the trustees. From there, they said work should…
The Jerome Township Trustees on Tuesday approved a development plan for the Memorial Jerome Medical Center, illustrated above. The 40,000-square-foot building will be located south of U.S. 42 between Industrial Parkway and U.S. 33. (Graphic submitted) — The Jerome Township Trustees approved two development plans Tuesday, though one decision was all but made before the meeting even began. A local healthcare system’s facility will become the second medical project in the same planned development district, while the Curry Farm neighborhood was officially given the green light after a legal settlement mandated its approval. The trustees unanimously approved a development plan…
A Columbus man evaded capture after leading local law enforcement agents on a foot pursuit Friday night. A number of charges are pending against Craivion Johnson, 22, although he is not in police custody, according to a release from Marysville Police Department Chief Tony Brooks. The release indicated that an MPD officer initiated a traffic stop with a white Nissan Altima in the 100 block of Second Street at approximately 10:52 p.m. Friday. The driver, who was later identified as Johnson, “quickly pulled into a residence in an attempt to avoid the officer,” the release stated. Officers learned that the…
Plain City Council is considering an appeal for the Certificate of Appropriateness issued by the Design Review Board that would allow property owners to build an external elevator shaft on the north side of the McCune Building. A portion of the addition, depicted on the far left of the architectural drawing above, would be visible from West Main Street. (Graphic submitted) — The plans for one Uptown Plain City development are hinging on an appeal by another developer. Plain City Council heard on Monday an appeal filed by Tim Dawson regarding a decision by the village’s Design Review Board to…