Southeast Messenger - June 16th, 2019

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PAGE 2 - SOUTHEAST MESSENGER - June 16, 2019 www.columbusmessenger.com Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, Multiple Myeloma, and Leukemia may result from RoundUp exposure. A recent was awarded in a RoundUp injury case. Call 1-619-493-4791 or email RoundUp@breakinginjurynews.com and let us begin work on your RoundUp case today. Soapcitylaundry.com 2056 Lockbourne Rd. Columbus, OH 43207 (614) 443-7627 Now Hiring! ADVERTISING ACCOUNT REPRESENTATIVE The Advertising Department is seeking a Sales Representative. •No Experience Necessary. •Base salary plus commissions, auto allowance. •Senior Cizens and Recent Grads encouraged to apply. Columbus Messenger Newspapers Please send your resume to: Doug Henry, Adversing Manager Columbus Messenger Newspapers 3500 Sullivant Aveune, Columbus, Ohio 43204 Doughenry@columbusmessenger.com www.columbusmessenger.com Levy, bond issue, or both? Plus, school building repairs and open classroom updates By Rick Palsgrove Southeast Editor The Groveport Madison Board of Education plans to decide at its June 26 meeting whether to place a levy, levy and bond issue, or a bond issue on the November ballot. “A decision has to be made by the next meeting in order to make it onto the November ballot,” said Groveport Madison Schools Superintendent Garilee Ogden. Ogden recommended the board place a request on the Nov. 5 ballot to renew the existing, 5-year, 6.68 mill operating levy with no tax increase. She said the district could then consider placing a bond issue on either the May 2020 or November 2020 ballot to obtain funding for potential new buildings. Before pursuing a bond issue for new schools, Ogden said the district needs to establish an overall plan that includes the look of the buildings, where the building would be, the order the buildings would be built, and where students transition to attend schools while new buildings are constructed. The current operating levy will expire on Dec. 31, 2019. According to school officials, if the levy is not renewed the district will see deficits of $2.7 million in 2020 and $5.6 million in 2021. Also, if the levy is not renewed, the district’s cash balance by June 2023 will be reduced to $3.4 million. Ogden has said if the levy is not renewed the “consequences could be severe” with potential cuts and reductions starting in the fall of 2020. What those cuts and reductions would be has not yet been determined. “We will be as efficient and fiscally responsible as we can be,” said Ogden. “If the levy fails again, it will have drastic impacts on our curriculum and SALTZGABER Continued from page 1 The city’s Gateway Corridor Plan addresses redevelopment along two of the main roadway corridors into town: the South Hamilton Road corridor between U.S. 33 and Bixby Road; and the west Groveport Road corridor from State Route 317 west to Swisher Road. The west Groveport Road corridor currently is a mix of warehouses, small businesses, and residences. It features two areas for redevelopment: Groveport Road from Swisher Road to State Route 317; and Saltzgaber Road from Groveport Road south to Toy Road. The 37 acre tract on the east side of Saltzgaber Road at Groveport Road is “one of the few remaining vacant parcels in the immediate area,” according “We will be as efficient and fiscally responsible as we can be.” - Garilee Ogden, superintendent Groveport Madison Schools programs.” To place an issue on the Nov. 5 ballot, the board must file a resolution of necessity to do so by July 7 and a resolution to proceed by Aug. 7. The board must decide if it will place an operating levy by itself on the ballot and wait to place a bond issue on a future ballot; or place a levy and bond issue on the ballot. The board’s next meeting is June 26 at 7 p.m. in the District Service Center, 4400 Marketing Place, Suite B, Groveport. Repairs to existing school buildings Groveport Madison Deputy Superintendent Jamie Grube said roofing repairs are being made to the district’s schools where needed. “We have roof leaks in lots of different places,” said Grube. He said roof leak repairs have been made so far at Middle School Central and Groveport Elementary. “Groveport Elementary is not leaking right now,” said Grube. “But we’re assessing to see if the curved metal vents on the roof are still necessary and to see if they could be a source of leaks.” Grube added the district is obtaining quotes for blacktop and concrete repairs and for painting work. Grube said building maintenance and repairs, as well as preventative maintenance, have been ongoing and that 98 percent of the specific repair work requests have been completed this year. “We’re trying to make our current facilities as functional, safe, and as pleasant as possible,” said Grube. “We’re doing our best to maintain what we have.” Upon hearing Grube’s report about building repairs and the work’s positive impact on the learning environment in the schools, board member Nancy Gillespie said, “I love it - safe, dry, and warm.” Open classrooms at middle schools Grube said district officials looked into constructing walls in the open classroom areas of Middle School North and Middle School South, but found the idea to be costly and not feasible. “If you enclose the rooms by adding walls, because of legal restrictions you must add sprinklers or add fire rated corridors,” said Chris Dumford of VSWC Architects. “Both options are expensive and hard to do.” to the Gateway Corridor Plan. Groveport Finance Director/Assistant Administrator Jeff Green has stated the Gateway Corridor Plan helps the city address: recommended land use, appropriate zoning, overall aesthetic, what types of commercial development would best complement the existing industrial development, and what the best uses are for vacant land. The Gateway Corridor Plan considers commercial development that would be compatible with existing industrial and commercial development. This could include restaurants, gas stations, last-mile logistics providers and mixed-use flex space.
www.columbusmessenger.com Another solution proposed for Toy Road By Rick Palsgrove Southeast Editor Another plan is underway to improve road conditions and traffic congestion on Toy Road, Swisher Road, and Saltzgaber Road. “We’re proposing roadway and drainage maintenance improvements,” said Fritz Crosier, chief deputy of engineering for Franklin County Engineer Cornell Robertson. Representatives from the Franklin County Engineer’s Office, the city of Groveport, and Madison Township met with area residents on June 4 to discuss the plan. Residents living on Toy Road, Saltzgaber Road, and Swisher Road have been frustrated for several years by the poor conditions of these roads as well as the heavy traffic from nearby commercial warehouses that use these narrow, formerly rural roads. The residents are seeking relief from the vehicle and semi-truck traffic they say damages the roads, tears up yards, knocks over mailboxes (one resident said he has replaced his mailbox 11 times due to it being damaged by traffic), causes noise, generates trash, and creates congestion. The three roads have the added problem of falling within several different government jurisdictions including Madison Township, the towns of Groveport and Obetz, and Franklin County. The three roads total 2 miles with 1.5 miles in Madison Township and a half mile in Groveport. “All three roads are in poor condition,” said Crosier. Crosier said the plan is to resurface all three roads, improve drainage, consider installing speed humps in places to slow down traffic, and construct back-to-back cul-de-sac bulbs on Toy Road just east of Centerpoint Parkway. The cul-de-sacs will close Toy Road, except for emergency vehicles. The closure is not permanent and the county is not vacating that portion of the road that will be closed. Crosier said the closure will allow the county to see how it impacts the surrounding area. “The cul-de-sac bulbs will keep truck traffic to the west and residential traffic to the east,” said Crosier. “It separates commercial Toy Road from residential Toy Road.” Additionally, Crosier said the speed limit on Swisher Road was reduced from 45 mph to 40 mph in April. Toy Road and Saltzgaber Road have a 35 mph speed limit. Crosier said the county could have an opportunity to go back and “take another look” at the Swisher Road speed limit in the future. Crosier said the county is designing the plan, developing cost estimates, seeing how utilities and property owners would be impacted, and seeking funding sources. The plan will need the approval of the Franklin County Commissioners and resolutions of support from Groveport, Madison Township, and Obetz. Funding sources could include the Ohio Public Works Commission and local funds. “We’re not waiting on developers for funding any more,” said Crosier. “We will also need an intergovernmental agreement (between the county, city of Groveport, and Madison Township) to determine who pays for what.” Crosier said he anticipates construction on the project would begin in 2020. Previous plan scrapped Last summer a $2.8 million proposal was made to reconstruct about a half mile of Toy Road that is located in the city of Groveport from Centerpoint Parkway to Swisher Road. The plan included a cul-desac on Toy Road west of Swisher Road. The city of Groveport had applied for, and received, approval for an Ohio Public Works Commission grant of $1.1 million plus a $433,254 loan to help fund the city’s portion of the project’s cost. The county was set to contribute $218,757 of in-kind monies. A prospective developer had proposed to kick in $1 million towards the project. However, according to Groveport City Engineer Steve Farst, the developer had a condition that it had to be successful in acquiring real estate in the area before it would provide its share of the funding. “The developer could not obtain the purchase agreements, realized it could not make it happen, and withdrew their $1 million,” said Farst. “The city could not make up the difference. We were disappointed.” In April, Groveport officials notified the OPWC the city could not proceed with the project without a private financial partner and so had to decline the OPWC funding. June 16, 2019 - SOUTHEAST MESSENGER - PAGE 3 Groveport Garden Club The Groveport Garden Club meets the first Tuesday each month at Groveport Zion Lutheran Church, 6014 Groveport Road. Call Marylee Bendig at (614) 218- 1097. AUTO HOME BUSINESS LIFE INSURANCE Beplerinsurance.com 614.837.4379 staff@beplerinsurance.com 3246 Noe Bixby Rd., Columbus, Ohio 43232 Yappy Hour Messenger photo by Theresa Garee Reiko chased after a ball thrown into the dog pond during the Yappy Hour event at the Walnut Woods Metro Park dog park on June 6. Friends of the Metro Parks hosted the event as a fundraiser.
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Southeast Messenger - June 16th, 2019

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