Mayor lists positives in State of City

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

Van Wert Mayor Don Farmer included a laundry list of goals in his 2013 State of the City address presented Monday night during City Council’s second meeting of the year (click here for a written version of the speech).

Those goals included working within budget restraints, continuing efforts to prepare the 1,600-acre Jobs Ready Site (JRS) at the north edge of Van Wert, creating an attractive community in which to live and a positive attitude to complement it, promoting a positive dialogue between City Council, the city administration and the community, continue to improve main traffic arteries with the reconstruction of West Main Street and set a schedule to improve secondary streets.

“I am pleased to report that we, as a group, have been able to accomplish most of the goals established,” he noted.

Mayor Farmer provided more detail about meeting those goals and the accomplishments of his administration in 2012, with the budget at the top of that list. The mayor noted that the city’s General Fund situation has improved heading into 2013. With a reserve fund of $270,943, a General Fund carryover of $656,532, the return of $500,000 advanced to the Jobs Ready Site project last year to the General Fund, $150,000 in inheritance tax money earmarked for 2013 and a $75,000 windfall from a class-action lawsuit, the city is looking at unappropriated funds totaling nearly $1.4 million.

Mayor Farmer gave the credit for the city’s improved financial condition to department heads and employees.

“During the economic turn down of the past several years, our department heads and employees have done a great job of conservation, and cost-savings measures that are responsible for the major portion of the improvements we see today,” he said.

Second on the list was the JRS megasite, where work is moving forward on site infrastructure, including construction of a railroad spur and bridge to the site. Mayor Farmer gave credit to the Ohio Department of Development, and its director, Christiane Schmenk, for the city’s ability to delay — and perhaps avoid altogether — construction of a natural gas pipeline to the site. The pipeline would have been a large expense and a substantial financial challenge for the city.

“We truly appreciate the help that her department and people have given this administration, and the City of Van Wert,” he added.

Once infrastructure is completed this year, the mayor said, extensive efforts will be made by both state and local economic development agencies to market the site.

“This site represents a longtime endeavor to attract a major industry to our community,” Mayor Farmer noted, adding that construction of the rail spur would also provide an immediate benefit to existing plastics and metal recycling plants on the north side of the city, as well as create the possibility for an additional 100-acre development site in the area.

The mayor also talked about efforts to beautify the city, including the planned demolition of between 7 and 10 derelict structures this year, and the securing of the Home Guard Building, which had been a downtown safety issue during 2012.

“We currently are in the process of an overall plan of improvements for downtown that will allow us to apply for another improvement grant in the near future,” Mayor Farmer said.

The mayor also spoke of cooperation among the private sector, City Council, his administration and many community groups and organizations in making Van Wert more attractive to business and industry, noting that he feels it is important for that cooperation to continue in the future.

Planned improvements to West Main Street this year and also in 2015, were also a topic of the State of the City address. The mayor spoke of plans to reconstruct West Main, from Shannon Street to Fisher Avenue, this year, with the remainder of the street to be reconstructed in 2015 through the assistance of a Small Cities Grant.

“When West Main Street is finished, the main arteries of our community will be complete,” Mayor Farmer said. “At that point, we will have the funding to look at our interior streets and set priorities for their improvement.”

The mayor also talked about the city’s drug problem and its impact on Van Wert’s economy. “As I said last year, it is one thing to lose our work force to other communities because of jobs … it is not acceptable to lose them to drugs,” Mayor Farmer noted. “This administration will continue to support the Police Department in these endeavors.”

In his speech, the mayor also cited a number of economic improvements in the city, including the sale of the former Teleflex/Kongsberg building to Miller Precision in August, the future opening of the former IGA store in the Summit Shopping Center as Ruler Foods, the remodeling of the former Universal Lettering site as O’Reilly Auto Parts (Universal Lettering is now in Vision Park), the doubling of space at the new Sears store site next to Fricker’s, the new 32-unit senior housing complex on Westwood Drive that will open in February, the remodeling of the former Van Wert Inn into an 80-room assisted living facility with public restaurant, and plans to construct a new facility for the Shell service station and convenience store on land purchased from The Kenn-Feld Group on South Washington Street.

“In addition, we are working with prospects that are considering Van Wert as a location, and a few of our local industries that are considering physical expansion,” Mayor Farmer said.

The mayor also listed a number of community assets, including the new school facilities, tennis facility, the Niswonger Performing Arts Center of Northwest Ohio, Wassenberg Art Center, Vantage Career Center, the YWCA and YMCA and its Camp Clay, Brumback Library, Van Wert Civic Theatre, Van Wert County Hospital and its Wellness Center, Van Wert County Council on Aging and the city’s park system.

“Many of these assets have come about through private donations, fundraising and their labor,” Mayor Farmer noted. “Our community is fortunate to have so many that contribute both time and money to make our community what it is.”

The mayor also spoke about what he hopes would be a new community asset: a planned aquatic center to replace the swimming pool that closed a few years ago (see more on this subject in the story below). Mayor Farmer talked of the $1.2 million in pledges raised to provide maintenance and capital repairs for the facility and said voters would also have the chance to approve a 1.2-mill, 25-year tax issue to fund construction of the facility, which is estimated to cost anywhere from $2.4 million to $3 million.

“The center, again, will be a tremendous asset for our community, offering all ages a facility they can enjoy and another draw and invitation for others to visit our community,” he added.

Mayor Farmer closed by thanking those who have helped the city through their efforts in 2012 and noted he hopes that cooperation would continue this year.

“I look forward to the challenges that this year has to offer, and will always strive to do what is best for the community and the people we serve,” the mayor said in conclusion. “Hopefully, we can all view our glass as half full and not half empty.”