Fort Seneca
Fort Seneca, OH · Municipal
The Blade
Editorial: Cuts will be coming in Oregon after vote
It will not be a merry Christmas for Oregon city employees, as significant job cuts are now the only way to plug a multimillion-dollar budget deficit following voters’ rejection of a billion-dollar data center project. Oregon City Council Finance Committee Chair Dennis Walendzak asked fellow council members to clear the first Saturday in December for a daylong meeting dedicated to balancing the city’s budget. Read more editorials Mr. Walendzak addressed the council at the end of Monday’s session, which had opened with resident comments mostly cheering the passage of the ballot initiative blocking the data center planned for city-owned land at Corduroy and Wynn roads. “Obviously, 60 percent of Oregon residents are pleased with the election outcome,” Mr. Walendzak noted, adding that because personnel and benefits make up 81 percent of the budget, balancing the books takes far more than cutting back on office supplies. Voters’ rejection of the ballot measure eliminated a projected $250 million revenue stream — derived from the property sale and a 15-year payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement shared with the school district — forcing both the city and schools to operate with significantly fewer resources. During Monday’s meeting, supporters of the anti-data center charter amendment acknowledged the financial
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The Blade
Data center restrictions gain momentum across northwest Ohio
Successful citizen-led ballot initiatives limiting the size of data centers have led to a flurry of activity in other Toledo-area municipalities since the Nov. 3 election, including Whitehouse, Waterville, and Rossford. Volunteers turned over signed petitions for those three communities on Thursday, Friday, and Monday, respectively. They claim they gathered more than enough signatures for the Lucas County Board of Elections to certify them and require each of those municipalities to put similar ballot issues in front of voters in those communities. Next up are Perrysburg, Maumee, and Bowling Green. Toledo, which would need many more signatures because of its size, could eventually be targeted as well, said Lyn Cox, county lead for Conserve Ohio’s grassroots efforts in Lucas and Wood counties. Petitions have come back from printers for Perrysburg and Maumee, and are expected to be available in the next day or two for Bowling Green, she said. In the coming weeks, citizen-led ballot initiatives also will begin in Sylvania and Holland, Ms. Cox said. The activity comes in the aftermath of Oregon’s overwhelming vote in favor of a charter amendment that bans the construction of data centers that require 25 megawatts or more of electricity, which eliminates hyperscale
crawfordcountynow.com
Shredding the competition: Galion business makes paperwork disappear
GALION, OH (CRAWFORD COUNTY NOW)—A new business in town is “making the cut” by offering customers shredding services at their doorstep. Mid-Ohio Paper Shredding or MOPS, 5420 Millsboro Road, sends a shredding truck to homes and businesses, destroys documents in the driveway or parking lot while you watch, and then leaves clients with proof – a signed certificate of destruction.
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The Blade
Loss of data center causes Oregon to tighten its budget for next year
Now that the proposed data center has withdrawn plans to come to Oregon, city officials are preparing for budget hearings to find ways to raise revenue and cut expenses for next year. Officials for two years had expected that the data center, which was going to be located near Corduroy and Wynn roads, would bring in millions of dollars to city coffers. When voters on Nov. 3 passed a data center charter amendment that limited its size, the company withdrew its plans, causing some supporters to worry about its impact on the city’s budget. City Administrator Brody Walters is not currently too concerned about the financial condition of the city. In fact, there is a $3 million surplus this year. Expect cost cutting, though, for next year, when revenue is expected to be less than expenditures. Council will have to make the tough decisions at the budget hearings, the first expected this month. “Right now, we’ve reviewed the general fund budget, and found savings in the neighborhood of $1.3 million across all departments,” Mr. Walters said of the $32 million projected budget estimate for 2027. “These are not painful cuts. It’s trimming the fat.” In a Nov. 9 letter to
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The Blade
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Ohio honors a lifetime of service for Veterans Day
MARION, Ohio — According to recent U.S. Census Bureau data, there are over 16 million living military Veterans in the United States, making up roughly 6% to 7% of the adult population. While for some of them, their service happened decades ago, the sacrifices they made are still being...