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B1 Your Community Press newspaper serving Miami Township and Milford
Web site: communitypress.com
E-mail: milford@communitypress.com We d n e s d a y, J u l y 2 9 , 2 0 0 9
Vol. 29 No. 29 © 2009 The Community Press ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Breath tests are more accurate
Clermont County is the first county in the state to use a new device designed to provide quicker and more accurate testing of possible drunken drivers. FULL STORY, B1
Collection time
In the next few days your Community Press carrier will be stopping by to collect $2.50 for delivery of this month’s The Milford-Miami Advertiser. Your carrier retains half of this amount Grace along with any tip you give to reward good service. This month we’re featuring Grace Pfister, who is 12 and is homeschooled. She plays basketball for the Cincinnati Trailblazers. She and her siblings have been saving their earnings to help support the adoption of their new baby sister from India. Grace has been a carrier for two years. For information about our carrier program, call Steve Barraco, 248-7110.
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Sidewalk work may begin in the fall By Mary Dannemiller
mdannemiller@communitypress.com
Construction on Miami Township sidewalks could begin in September, almost a year after residents gathered at the community’s civic center to give their input on the project. Though township officials said they would have liked to see construction start earlier, plans have been delayed because multiple government entities are involved with the project, said Trustee Mary Makley Wolff. “If we can get an agreement between the township and ODOT (the Ohio Department of Transportation) this month, we could probably get that project bid sometime in August with Wolff construction hopefully starting in September,” said township Administrator Larry Fronk. However, if the township and ODOT do not reach an agreement this month, construction is not likely to begin until next year, Fronk said. “Anytime you’re dealing with multiple government entities, you struggle with bureaucracy and that slows everything down,” Wolff said. “We just need to make sure we’re doing the best job we can communicating residents about what’s going on.” Under the current plan, sidewalks would be installed on the west side of Buckwheat Road from Community Park to Deblin Drive and on the east side of Buckwheat from Linden Creek Drive to St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church, where it will connect with an existing sidewalk. “On a grassroots level, the residents have expressed to us that there is a desire to have sidewalks so they can walk from their homes to parks, schools and churches,” Fronk said. “We’ve taken that to heart and have been looking at the best places to put these connections.” Wolff said sidewalks were essential for a thriving, healthy community and she was excited to see the project come together. “I grew up in a community that had sidewalks,” she said. “They add character to the community and allow people to be active and walk places and ride bikes.” For more on the sidewalk project, visit miamitwp.org.
Fair royalty
KELLIE GEIST/STAFF
THERESA L. HERRON/STAFF
Milford budget looks better By Kellie Geist kgeist@communitypress.com
While Milford’s budget is looking a little better than originally projected, the city is going to remain frugal and look into additional cuts. When city council did the 2009 budget earlier in the year, they were projecting a $494,000 deficit. However, at the mid-year budget work session July 21, Finance Director Tim Petric told council that number would be about $150,000 lower. Petric said revenues are up about $25,000 and expenditures are down about $121,000, bringing the expected deficit down to about $348,000. “We were very conservative in our estimates,” Petric said. “Those drops in expenditures really do help in our quest to keep things on an even keel.” Much of the savings is due to eliminated and decreased overtime. Despite the improved numbers, council wanted to get the budget as close to balanced as possible by the end of the year. To save money, council decided to offer brush pickup only the first and third Wednesday of each month through October. The service department previously offered
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The 2009 Clermont County Fair royalty was crowned Sunday to kick off the annual event that runs through Saturday, Aug. 1. From left in front are: Prince Tyler Stegbauer of Lynchburg who is a member of the Select 4-Hers; King Cody McConnell, Felicity, Rump Roast Riders 4-H Club; Queen Brittany Bayne, Miami Township, Ruff ’n’ Stuff 4-H Club; Carley Snider, Felicity, Ultimate 4-Hers; Caprine Representative Samantha Manning, Felicity 4-H Winners and Felicity-Franklin FFA Moscow; In back: Small Animals Representative Jeri Plante, Milford, Patriots 4-H Club; General Projects Representative Anna Green, Batavia Township, Buzzing Enthusiasts 4-H Club; Swine Representative Mariah Messink, Milford, Maple Rey Milk & More 4-H Club; Equine Queen Kristin Koch, Bridgetown, Winners Circle 4-H Club; Beef Queen Shelby Church, Bethel, Bethel Beefers & Sheepers 4-H Club.
Hannah Currin, 6, of Amelia and Brandon Current, 8, of Milford were the train conductors for a the Monterey Baptist Church float. For more from the fair, see page A5.
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this service every week, but the new policy will save 96 man-hours per month. Mayor David Hunter also asked each Hunter department head to look into cutting an additional 10 percent of their non-personnel expenditures rather than look at layoffs. Some of those expenditures could include office supplies or training. “We’ve got a lot of long-term employees that we can’t replace overnight. So I think we need to look at other ways to keep that (deficit) going down,” Hunter said. “If the alternative is people, let’s see what the people who would be affected can come up with.” In addition to the cuts, council also asked Petric to provide a financial report at every other council meeting. That way, if the deficit doesn’t continue to shrink, council can be proactive. “I’m pleased to see we were down to $350,000 and I think we can ride with that ... But if we come back in February and we’re looking at another year of $350,000, we’re going to have to
Changes to pick-up Brush will be picked up only on the first and third Wednesday of the month through October. The Milford Service Department previously picked up brush every Wednesday, but because of budget issues, council has limited the service. This policy change will save 96 man-hours per month and let the service department attend to other duties such as cemetery upkeep. cut something,” said council member Bryan Hawkins. Council member Sam Pschesang agreed and asked department heads to list and prioritize each of the services they perform and think about what services could be provided at a lower level, if necessary, such as snow removal and leaf pickup. “At some point we’re going to have to say to the public, ‘Look, we’re at a different level of service because of revenues,’” Pschesang said. Every council member agreed asking citizens for additional tax revenue was out of the question. “We’re dealing with crystal balls here ... There’s no way to know for sure what’s going to happen,” Hunter said. “I think it’s up to us to keep on top of this.”