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 zoning regulations. None of the six prospects have made an offer to buy the house, due to the surroundings.
With this being a buyer’s market right now, the realtor is shocked that no offers have been made. Another neighbor attended the meeting asking if it were legal to park cars with two tires on the sidewalk and two tires in the street. Police Chief Monte Asher stated that is also illegal and that people should contact the police department, who will then make a visit to the property to check it out.
Another property that might also be up for sale is located on South Franklin Street. Due to the current construction, the family has not listed the property yet. But members are concerned about the property located at 290 Pearl Street, which backs up to the South Franklin Street property. There is furniture sitting outside and a make-shift fence that is not appealing. This also is against zoning regulations and Zoning Inspector Marion Bump stated that he will look into that situation.
Both Mowery and Martin were raised in Richwood and said they are very proud of the village, but wish that others would also be proud of their own properties. Bump told council that this week, he has sent out 17 letters to property owners who are in violation of village ordinances, which is the most he has every issued at one time.
Mayor Scott Jerew said he would like to see more pride taken within the village.
Laurie Elliot Shea resigned her position as a council member at the previous council meeting, so there is an empty seat on council. According to protocol, council has 30 days to appoint someone to fill the seat. Since there are five people running for four seats on council, members opted to see who gets elected on Nov. 3, and will proceed from there. This person will be filling the position until December 31, 2021, the end of Elliot-Shea’s term on council.
Jerew announced that the Richwood Trailblazers will be hosting a Park Appreciation Day at Richwood Park in cooperation with the Richwood Area Business Association’s Customer Appreciation Day, which is set for Saturday, Sept. 18. Customer Appreciation Day will be held uptown Richwood from 8 a.m. to noon. There will be many vendors who will be offering specials throughout the day. The public is invited to walk through the business district looking at food, crafts, merchandise, etc. that will be offered in appreciation for their support of local businesses.
Then the fun gets moved to Richwood Park from noon to 5 p.m. where visitors will enjoy food truck vendors, musical entertainment by Magnetic Springs’s well-known former resident Chuck MaGill. Kids will spend hours in the bounce house and the older guests can participate in tournaments of Pickleball, Shuffle Board and Corn Hole. This event is to thank everyone for their support of the park and all the improvements that have been made.
Council allows camping at the north end of the lake, which is a limitation of a three-night stay at $10 per night. Currently, there is someone who has been camping more than three-day-limit. A request was made to council to let the camper stay until Sept. 2. The camping fees have been paid by local churches while the person is looking for a job. Council decided to make an exception due to the circumstances. k
Jerew told council that the new ADA compliant kayak launch and floating pedestrian bridge was installed this week. These two additions to the lake were possible by a request of funds from the Capital Budget. The cost of the kayak launch was $20,700 and the floating bridge cost was $31,111. The launch is located at the end of the boar ramp that is already installed at the lake and the new pedestrian bridge is located on the east side of the lake, accessible from the walking path. The new additions came at no expense to the village.
Village Administrator Monte Asher gave an update on the South Franklin Street Project. The first two and one-half inches of road are down and the crews are finishing the concrete work this week. Grass seeding began today and should be done by the end of the week.
Asher said that the street will be open for the Richwood Independent Fair, Sept. 1-6. If the last layer of the street is not finished before the fair, ODOT and Kokosing will wait to complete the project after the fair.
The next regular meeting of council will be held Monday, Sept. 13 at 7 p.m. The public is invited to attend.