The Union County Sheriff’s Office will be awarded money from the state for retaining staff since the pandemic. Sheriff Jamie Patton told the county commissioners Wednesday that members of his staff were among the more than 10,000 law enforcement officers, firefighters, and EMS personnel in Ohio that qualified for state retention incentives as part of the Ohio First Responder Recruitment, Retention, and Resilience Program. The program was created to address first responder burnout caused by “understaffing and overall job stress,” according to a release from Gov. Mike DeWine’s office. Patton said the county received just over $200,000 in funding from…
Author: Michael Williamson
Union County Commissioners met with students and chaperones from Yorii, Japan Wednesday morning during the board’s regular meeting. The students, from both middle and high school grades, made the rounds, taking tours of city and county offices with the help of City of Marysville and county representatives. The commissioners, including Dave Burke, left, and Dave Lawrence, right, presented on county business and were given gifts. The visit marks one of a series of events for local officials planning to visit Marysville’s sister city in the coming weeks. (Journal-Tribune photo by Michael Williamson) —
North Union Board of Education and administration officials tour the high school football stadium Monday, prior to the monthly board meeting. The group walked the campus facilities, noting progress on recent projects such as the football stadium and practice fields. (Journal-Tribune photo by Michael Williamson) — As the second week of the 2023-24 school year kicked off, North Union officials took note of the progress made on recent district facilities projects. At the first board of education of this academic year, school officials walked the grounds of North Union High School to see the recent updates to the building’s campus.…
Union County made nearly 10-times the interest by the second quarter of 2023 than it did by the second quarter of 2022. County Treasurer Andrew Smarra told the commissioners Wednesday that the county’s financial outlook was positive and thanks to the continuous rise in interest rates at the federal level, the county has been able to take advantage of the rates translating to high earnings. The conversation was partly over of the board’s quarterly investment advisory committee report. “Through six months, we’ve generated $2 million in interest,” Smarra said. “That’s 10-times what we did last year in the second period.”…
Large wooden fence posts have been installed around panels at the Union Solar project site on Route 31 in York Township. A combination of frustrations, ranging from fencing design issues to a general oversaturation of solar development, led the township trustees to ask the county commissioners to designate the county a restricted area to future wind and solar projects. Commissioners said they were open to the idea but made no official decisions. (Journal-Tribune photo by Michael Williamson) — York Township is asking Union County officials to restrict the county from any future alternative energy development. In a letter presented to…
Union County officials are working through the process of looking over their capital projects plan and what facility needs might look like in the coming years. At the recent county commissioners meeting, Dan Schall with Bradley Payne, an advisory firm out of Columbus, discussed the group’s plan for approaching building projects, updates and costs. Assistant County Administrator Letitia Rayl, who also operates as the county’s budget officer, said a main priority is the court offices, but several things may be on the table. “Our major concern comes with court offices and the courthouse itself,” she said. “With it being a…
Routes 31 and 4, where each road intersects Route 347 north of Marysville, will receive a single-lane roundabout thanks to the state’s $61 million dollar traffic safety project. The Ohio Department of Transportation’s Highway Safety Improvement Program identified each of the intersections as dangerous following numerous accidents including fatalities. Route 4 work is planned for fiscal year 2026 and Route 31 is scheduled for 2028. (Graphic submitted) — Union County will be receiving money from the state to install roundabouts at two key intersections north of Marysville. On Monday, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced $61 million in funding for 27…
The Champaign Aviation Museum’s B-25 bomber, Champaign Gal, will be returning to the All Ohio Balloon Fest this weekend. The historic World War II bomber will be at the event all three days, Aug. 10-12, but visitors can purchase tickets for a Saturday ride in the aircraft on the CAM website or on-site at the Union County Airport. (Photo submitted) — This week, visitors of the All Ohio Balloon Fest will have a unique opportunity to experience a piece of U.S. aviation history. Members of the Champaign Aviation Museum (CAM) at the Champaign County Airport will be bringing a World…
Union County is expanding its Community Reinvestment Area (CRA) in Jerome Township. At the regular meeting Wednesday, county commissioners approved the expansion, which broadens the existing 2,000-acre CRA to encompass nearly 14,000 acres total between U.S. 33 and Route 161 west of Dublin. Officials said the CRA was originally created four years ago for the Amazon Web Services (AWS) project after Jerome Township pulled out of the original tax agreement with the project. The area deals with parcels on Warner Road and Industrial Parkway. The agreement change prompted the county to do a CRA on its own that doesn’t require…
When the Beach Boys take the stage at the All Ohio Balloon Fest next week, they want the audience to feel something that has guided their career for more than 60 years: harmony. Mike Love, who co-founded the iconic 1960s southern California band with his cousins Brian, Carl and Dennis Wilson, as well as friend (and Ohio native) Al Jardine, said harmony was with the group at the very beginning. Luckily, he added, it never left. “From the time we were starting out, singing as kids and listening to groups like the Everly Brothers or the Four Freshmen, we loved…
A substantial amount of the design plans for the Magnetic Springs portion of the sewer project are done and ready to submit to the state. Project Manager Craig Mescher, with Access Engineering Solutions, said, though there are minor things to clear up, the company would submit the plans to ODOT and then the Environmental Protection Agency, but is also planning for a public meeting to update residents at the end of this month. Mescher told the county commissioners this week that the plans encompass the village’s collection system, pump station and force main to Richwood. Once clearance comes from the…
Richwood Council decided to allow the Opera House Committee to continue working, but not before giving some stipulations to the group. At the regular village meeting on Monday, members of the committee gathered for the recommendation presentation to council, which they hoped would have ended in a positive, decisive vote. That recommendation was for the committee to continue operating as it has been, searching for grant money, making repairs and beginning the fundraising portion of the project. While council ultimately voted to approve continuing the work, some members were reluctant and had suggestions and questions about moving forward. Council member…
Above, Michael Alago, left, poses with Metallica lead singer James Hetfield. Alago, who will be on hand for an event at the Avalon Saturday, is a record industry veteran, responsible for signing Metallica and several other high-profile bands. (Photo submitted) — What do Metallica, Cyndi Lauper, Rob Zombie and Nina Simone have in common? At one time or another, they all worked with record industry veteran, Michael Alago. Marysville residents may not know his name but this weekend, they can hear his story. Alago is bringing his documentary, Who the F**ck Is That Guy? The Fabulous Life of Michael Alago…
Local officials are close to pushing out a pilot program that could bring a ride sharing service to the area. Union County Economic Development Director Eric Phillips told the county commissioners Wednesday that while this wouldn’t fully be a public transportation program exactly, implementing it could help with some of the area’s need for ride services. He said a monthly roundtable meeting of local CEOs, which includes area officials from the City of Marysville, county and hospital as well as business owners, discussed the need for Uber, a company that offers those services. “People can get Ubers from Columbus and…
Fairbanks is working to fill its last open positions ahead of the start of the 2023-24 school year. The district filled all its primary bus driver positions, but Superintendent Adham Schirg said the district is still down one guest driver position. At the regular board of education meeting Monday, the group approved Paula Nicol to assist with the last open regular route. Schirg said Transportation Director Beth Wyckoff, who also still drives for Fairbanks, was able to fill that role before the start of the year, which puts the district in a better standing. “We had one vacancy that was…