Allen Township is receiving reimbursement funds from the state after a bookkeeping issue delayed the process. Trustee Ken Reiff told the Union County Commissioners last week that the township hadn’t received the funds, something that has been corrected by the auditor’s office. The township receives two rounds of money each year from the state after the removal of tangible personal property taxes more than 10 years ago. The township is one of several communities that receives funds and Reiff said the board usually gets a disbursement in March and one in late summer or early fall. Last year, and this…
Author: Michael Williamson
I found out this week that the Columbus York Steak House, the last remaining location of the old-school restaurant chain, got a new owner. If you know York and have been there before, you’ll know what this news means. If you don’t and haven’t, I’ll do my best to fill you in. York Steak House on West Broad Street is the last example of a dying (or mostly dead) breed of family-style steakhouses that once populated the midwest. The chain was opened in 1966 by Berndt Gros and Eddie Grayson, a chef and a businessman, who were looking to streamline…
Richwood’s 16th annual Mid-Ohio Antique Farm Machinery Show is set to kick off this weekend with a packed Friday full of activities. Event organizer and president, Tom Meyers, said that first day has the show’s highest number of events at the Richwood Fairgrounds, all leading up to the evening’s parade through town. “I look forward to that parade every year. It’s the crowning jewel of the show on Friday night,” Meyers said. Previously, the parade conflicted with the North Union Athletic Committee raffle held in Waldo, but Meyers said that won’t be the case this year. “It’s not on the…
Union County is in the process of updating its Economic Development Incentive Policy (EDIP) in an effort to make the document more streamlined. Economic Development Director Eric Phillips told the county commissioners recently that the policy needs reworked to be more efficient. He said the current document is 47 pages and should be much shorter. “It needs to be updated. It needs to be reduced in size. The reason it was so long previously is (because) a lot of it was giving the history of why incentives are important and I don’t think we need to do that anymore,” he…
Union County and Jerome Township are one step closer to finalizing agreements between the groups after more than a year of tension and negotiations. The county commissioners passed a resolution Wednesday that outlines the board’s commitment to signing off on a series of agreements between the entities at a future joint meeting. County Administrator Bill Narducci said recent negotiations between attorneys and staff have made significant progress. “Last week, we had a bit of break-through in our discussions and feel like we’re on the same page now about our agreements,” he said. “We feel like we’re in a really good…
Jonathan Alder is getting an additional chunk of grant money that will go to helping the district’s homeless students. At the July board of education meeting Monday, the group approved a McKinney-Vento Homeless subgrant, a $12,320 per year grant that school officials can use for various students needs over the next three years. According to the Ohio Department of Education, the grant is supposed to help “facilitate the identification, enrollment, consistent attendance, academic success and wellness of students experiencing homelessness.” Becky Krall, director of student services, said when she saw the grant posting, she went after it because the district…
Franke’s Wood Products, Inc., on Collins Avenue, has been an award-winning staple in Marysville since 1968. The company is run by Chris Franke, who took over the family business in 2023 after the passing of his father and the company founder, Bill Franke, who is pictured in the top news-clipping. (Journal-Tribune photo by Mac Cordell) — Editor’s note: This is the eighth in a series of stories celebrating multi-generational family-owned businesses in the community. The stories will run each Thursday leading up to an Aug. 1 special edition highlighting the Marysville Journal-Tribune’s 175th anniversary. — For Chris Franke, the essence…
Jefferson Starship’s Dave Freiberg said Ohio holds a special place in his heart. “I grew up outside Cincinnati and played at Ohio State in the band,” he said. “Coming there is like coming home.” Freiberg will be bringing his legendary rock band Jefferson Starship to the All Ohio Balloon Festival next month where the audience will be able to hear hits such as “White Rabbit” and “We Built This City” from the band’s many iterations. While it has taken many forms and name changes over the years, Freiberg said that’s all part of the evolution of playing in a group.…
Officials are moving forward with the grant application for the Magnetic Springs sewer system project. The Union County Commissioners approved a resolution Wednesday supporting the move after hearing the latest cost estimates from Access Engineering. Those numbers list a total project cost of $3.9 million, which includes engineering and permitting costs. It also includes, among other items, $836,000 for sewer piping, $385,000 for asphalt repair and $1.2 million for the force main, which will connect the system over six miles from Magnetic Springs to Richwood. Thomas Perry from the Community Development Consultants of Ohio told the county commissioners that the…
Union County Board of Developmental Disabilities has a levy on the ballot this November and if it fails, it could mean a stoppage in funding for the Harold Lewis Center. Board officials are looking at contingency plans, which may mean the cost of preschool services could fall back on the home districts. Superintendent Kara Brown said expenses are currently higher than revenues, so if the levy doesn’t pass, the board will continue being out nearly the same amount of money required to run those services. “The bottom line for us is that we will have a $3.5 million gap at…
Following the state legislature’s passage of a new cell phone law for schools, Jonathan Alder is looking at how it will update its own policy to follow state guidelines. The board of education discussed the policy update in a first reading at the regular June board meeting last week. The new state law aims to noticeably reduce student use of cell phones in K-12. Policy-wise, the preferred plan is more or less set, following recommendations from Neola, an education consulting firm. That policy would prevent phones from being “on or out” during educational instruction times with a goal of eventually…
Connolly Construction, led by second-generation owner, Phillip Connolly, holds a groundbreaking for Green Pastures in the early 1990s. (Photo submitted) — Editor’s note: This is the sixth in a series of stories celebrating multi-generational family-owned businesses in the community. The stories will run each Thursday leading up to an Aug. 1 special edition highlighting the Marysville Journal-Tribune’s 175th anniversary. — Connolly Construction has been a family business from the beginning. “When we say family, we really mean it,” said John Connolly, the third generation to run the company with his wife, Pamela. “Grandpa and grandma owned it together, mom and…
Plain City Public Library will be asking for a levy renewal this fall, a little earlier in its usual five-year cycle. Chris Long, the library director, said going earlier ensures there will be time to correct any foreseeable issues with paperwork or if the levy doesn’t pass the first time. She said it will remain a straight-forward renewal meaning the library is not asking for any new taxes. Long told the Jonathan Alder Board of Education Monday that the library is currently working to put the 1.5-mill property tax renewal on the ballot this November. The library has had the…
Last week, I had the opportunity to go to New Haven, Connecticut for a brief but very enjoyable visit. As are most things in my life, much of the trip was centered around food. I did see some historical things, the buildings of the 323-year old Yale University alone are quite a sight, for instance. Plus, a trip to Connecticut was an excuse to check off one more New England state on my list of places to visit (if only I could’ve popped over to Rhode Island then the region could’ve been completed). When I say this was centered around…
A Fairbanks student is working to add a unique communication option to one of the district’s playgrounds. Kadence Kise, an incoming senior at Fairbanks High School, is working on her Eagle Scout project and wants to install communication boards on the elementary school grounds. “I want to do at least one here at the elementary and I’m doing one at the Milford Center park by the practice football field,” Kise said. She told the board of education Monday that Eagle Scout projects are meant to have a benefit to the community and her project would directly help students and kids…