Did they say $ 75,000? How about $ 265,000...and counting?

The continuing saga of the old pool house renovation project....again.

A little history refresher.

1 mil of our property taxes gets put in a fund that is used exclusively by the city's recreation dept. They are the only city department to have such guaranteed funding. It's a hefty sum.

In December the city's Parks & Recreation Committee (P&R) (an advisory group whose members get paid $ 75 per meeting) presented council with their new 5 year plan for the Community Park---a wish list of items and projects to be funded from the city's general fund---not using rec department funds.

Councilman Pilla specifically asked P&R to present a single wish list, with items listed in order of priority, to allow for a fruitful discussion about priorities and to allow for better financial planning for the park. P&R did not follow that direction.

Rather than working to reach consensus with council about park priorities and funding for the next five years, Councilman Anderson, the P&R rep, simply announced that P&R had decided that renovating the old pool house was their top priority and that the project should be done ASAP. The price tag, according to P&R? $ 75,000.

The reason this was a priority? According to Anderson, the old pool house should be renovated because the Highland Heights camp no longer wanted to use to Millridge School (which the camp has traditionally used at very little cost) when it rained. About 100 kids from inside and outside the city sign up for the 8 week camp each year.

I guess it is no surprise that in their ardor in pushing the old pool house renovation project, P&R grossly underestimated both the scope of the project and how much the proposed new camp shelter will cost city taxpayers.

Service Director Evans reported last night that as things stand now, the renovation project has expanded to include the following:

(1) An addition will have to be added to the pole barn in the park --and water, electricity, and sewer systems added there too---to accommodate the relocation of the service crew, the park maintenance workshop, and equipment storage area from the old pool house;

(2) New storage areas will have to be obtained for the huge amount of boy scout equipment, BB equipment, and the Home Days equipment that is currently stored in the old pool house.

(3) A new electrical system for powering home days will have to be developed and constructed, as the P&R renovation plan also includes removing the exterior electrical outlets that have traditionally been used for Home Days.

The current "guesstimate" pricetag for the project according to Evans? $ 265,000.

That's more than 3 1/2 times what P&R told council the project would cost.

But that might not be the end of it. As Evans (in his role as messenger) cautioned: " Don't throw a noose over a tree (if he's wrong)".

One person who definitely won't do that is Mayor Coleman.

The Mayor has been consistent in his verbal support of the project---all the while choosing not to include any money for it in his 2009 budget.

He announced at the Committee of the Whole meeting this week that he is anxious to get the project out to bid as soon as possible.

So what's the strategy here? Spend $$ first, and worry about paying for it later?

Or is the mayor simply leading P&R down the path, hoping to be able to point the blame elsewhere, once (fiscal) reality sets in?

I guess only time will tell....

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List of individuals signing gas well lease in our residential neighborhoods

A new addition has been added to the residential neighborhood bordering on the north side of Wilson Mills Road, near Bishop Road.

Cutter Oil has begun drilling the "DASHER" well.

Drilling companies name the wells after the person who agrees to have a gas well placed on their property.

The DASHER that is that well's namesake is Jim Dasher, the recently retired Mayfield High School Athletic Director.

Assording to the permit filed by Cutter Oil with the state, the individuals who signed leases, allowing Cutter Oil to clear the woods on the north side of Wilson Mills & drill a well in that residential neighborhood, are:

1. Jim & Kay Dasher
2. Phillip Henley
3. William Conn
4. Robert & Yvonne Dasher
5. John & Cleo Engbert
6. Robert & Gail Storey
7. William & Arlene Demyan
8. Alex Simkhayan
9. Francine Basile

This lease area is an "L' shaped parcel touching both Bishop and Wilson Mills Road

Cutter Oil is also the company responsible for installing a gas well in the Miner Road/Wilson Mills residential neighborhood. That well is called the Sovchen well.

That lease parcel is irregularly shaped (remember, according to ODNR regulations, the individual properties that comprise the leasehold only have to touch each other; the lease parcel can be serpentine in shape). The individuals who signed that lease are:

1. Richard & Danielle Sovchen
2. Jim Giallabardo & Marilyn Stinnett
3. Stuart Kaufman
4. John & Evelyn Stevenson
5. Alio & Angela Benedetti

6. Anita, Melianda & Lisa Benedetti

Who else are the drilling companies going after? Is your neighborhood next?

1. Cutter Oil has apparently vowed to ring the community park with gas wells.

I have heard the family in the white house on the east side of Bishop Road, next to Jean Woodie, have signed a lease with them.

2. I have heard both Bass Energy (who has sued the city) and Seagull (the company that was trying to drill on MV land) are both trying to use the old Catalano's property as part of a drilling lease.

Bass has asked the Presbyterian church on the south side of Wilson Mills Road, next to the old Catalanos, to sign a lease allowing it to put a gas well on church property.

And Bass apparently told church leaders that both the new owners of the old Catalano's property and the Mayfield City School District, which owns Millridge School, may be on board----although the Mayfield City School District wants to wait until after the election to sign the lease----apparently in an attempt to avoid messy public outrage, maybe? Of course, Bass had made claims about drilling that are untrue in the past---remember their claim that the owner of the pet cemetary had signed a lease?

Let me know if you hear of anyone else signing leases, and I'll add them to this list.

Highland Heights = Gas Well City.

Where is our mayor? Why isn't he speaking out in defense of our neighborhoods?

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Rumors and More

Is Walmart taking over the Home Depot location on Wilson Mills Road?

That's a rumor that's getting louder and louder, according to Council President Scott Mills.

Mayor Coleman reported that he talked to Walmart officials 3 weeks ago and was told that it was not happening.

But---and this is only speculation on my part---could that be why the well-connected owner of the empty lot at the corner of Bishop and Wilson Mills is anxious to get an issue on the ballot, allowing drive-throughs in the city for the first time ever?

First Aid and CPR class.

The city's fire department is sponsoring another CRP and First Aid class on June 27th. From 10 am to 1 pm. Call them if you are interested in attending.

The new assisted living facility on Bishop Road.

Although their construction sign was a bit optomistic as to the completion date, it sounds like the operators of the assisted living facility are getting close to asking for an occupancy permit.

Unfortunately, they will also need to submit a new landscaping plan because they have discovered that deer are plentiful in our city and that the deer very much enjoy the plants, trees, and shrubs in the original landscaping plan.

The continuing saga of the old pool house renovation project

When Councilman Anderson asked for approval to hire an new architect (who did not have a conflict of interest) to work on the project, he specifically promised that the architect would render not just drawings, but specifications that could be used to immediately put the project out to bid--and that he would be done with his work in as quickly as two weeks.

That was over a month ago. While Mr. Anderson has pointed the finger at other council members in the past, accusing them of being at fault for delaying his pet project, it appears that the architect he selected still has a ways to go before council can begin discussing any next steps.

Apparently the architect has produced some drawings, but they were not stamped, it is unclear whether they include specifications, and any final specs that the architect produces will have to be put together with other material--not provided by him--to make up a bid package.

Currently there are a number of issues that remain to be resolved. Among them:

Mr. Valentino of the Park & Rec Committee apparently insisted that all of the exterior electrical plugs near the old pool house---plugs that the city uses for HOME DAYS---be eliminated.

So, does that mean residents will have to trip over extension cords during Home Days from now on?

Councilwoman Murphy pointed out that a lot of different groups (baseball, Home Days Committee, and other park-centered groups) currently use the old pool house for storage, and Service Director Tom Evans confirmed that his employees have a workshop and use other areas of the old pool house to store the equipment and other things that they need for park maintenance.

The project design calls for a community center-like building, with multiple meeting rooms, having a capacity of almost 200 people, which eliminates most of the storage area that is currently in use.

After Mayor Coleman said he didn't want to build a new storage building, Mr. Anderson suggested that everything could be stored in the old church building on the city hall property.

So does that mean that our city workers, who maintain the park, will have to relocate their workshop and equipment to the old church building--the same building that Council President Scott Mills has declared is unsafe and closed to residents?

The architect's plan also didn't show the location of water and sewer connections.--although how one could renovate the buidling, install new bathrooms, etc., without know where they were located is beyond me.


The city engineer contract

For the first time in the city's history, Mayor Coleman asked council to approve a contract hiring Andy Blackley's firm, Stephen Hovanscek & Associates, for a two year term. Until now, such contracts were awarded on an annual basis.

Council, by a 4-3 vote, approved that contract.

Voting to engage Mr. Blackley's firm through 2010 were: Ed Hargate, Frank Legan, Ted Anderson, and Jamie Pilla.

Voting no were: Cathy Murhpy, Scott Mills, and Leo Lombardo.

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Action Plan for City Leaders--Will They Take Action??

A nagging question, as more and more of our residential neighborhoods are being overrun by gas well drilling, is this:

Where are our city leaders? Why aren't they speaking out?

Last month, I spoke to Mayor Coleman and to our council reps and urged them to speak out, to inform residents about the truths---economic and otherwise---about gas wells, and to encourage residents to say no when drilling companies knock on their doors with their Beverly Hillbillies promises.

This is what I told them:

We have local control. All residents have to do is JUST SAY NO, and there will be no drilling in our neighborhoods.

I presented a four-point action plan, outlining things that our city leaders can do, to fight for our neighborhoods:

Step One. Get the legal issues resolved and find out where we stand.

Ask the Ohio Attorney General for an advisory opinion as to what ODNR really has the ability to control. Have state fire codes for access roads really been preempted? What authority—federal law, etc.—does the city have to protect the streams and wetlands? What can residents do to protect themselves from mandatory pooling--being forced into a drilling lease?

Step Two. Literature.

It is time for our city leaders to communicate directly with residents about the health/safety/financial issues associated with drilling and to communicate their feelings regarding drilling in our residential neighborhoods.

Step Three. Pass a resolution and send it to Gov. Strickland and state legislative leaders.

It is time to communicate directly with the individuals in Columbus who decided to allow drilling in residential neighborhoods in our state. Its time for our city leaders to take a stand and be heard in Columbus.

Step Four. Plan a community meeting to discuss drilling issues.

Invite NEOGAP (Northeast Ohio Gas Accountability) to come to the city to give a presentation discussing the health and safety aspects of gas wells and urban drilling. And for goodness sake, publicize the meeting well, so that residents know about it and have an opportunity to discuss together how drilling impacts our city and our neighborhoods.

A month has passed. What have our city leaders done to fight for our neighborhoods?

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