News
Little relief in Duke agreement A decision by Duke Energy to pay a larger share of personal property taxes this year has done little to ease the concerns of school districts and local governments in Hamilton County. Duke announced July 14 it reached an agreement with the Ohio Department of Taxation to pay 90 percent of the full-year 2009 tax assessment while it appeals the way its personal property is valued. The utility already paid the first half of its 2009 taxes in the first quarter of 2010. But Duke said in June it would withhold a portion of the last half of the payments during the appeals process. The latest agreement cuts in half the amount Duke planned to withhold. The agreement affects only the taxes to be paid this year, said Pat Hoffmann, Duke’s regional communications manager. The appeal process with the Ohio Department of Taxation will continue. “We hope to have a hearing this summer,” she said. Northwest Local School District Superintendent Rick Glatfelter said the district is still gathering information about upcoming federal and state budgets, so it’s a little to early to know exactly how the Duke change will affect the district. Northwest stands to lose an estimated $700,000 annually if the Duke appeal is wholly successful. Glatfelter said the change will have little effect immediately. “ODE sent its budget out this week, and if it goes through as they have requested, we will see cuts a little larger than the Duke situation has given us,” he said. “We will continue to make the cost containment cuts we deemed necessary and wait and see what happens.” Mount Healthy City School District Superintendent David Horine said his district will likely continue as if there has been no
change, as well. “The bottom line is that if Duke is successful, districts will have to give it all back,” he said. “No one wants to get caught with their proverbial pants down, so I see no choice but to move ahead as if we expect the appeal to be successful.” Mount Healthy stands to lose about $320,000 annually if the appeal is successful. Colerain Township Assistant Administrator Frank Birkenhauer said the change in the amount Duke is willing to continue paying during its appeal is not the issue. He says the appeal itself means no tax district can count on receiving the money in the future and to do so would be irresponsible. Green Township Administrator Kevin Celarek said the township will now lose about $80,000. “That will still have a significant impact on us,” he said. Right now it’s not clear how the township would make up for the loss, but he said the township would not be able to generate any new revenue to cover it. “We would simply have to absorb it or make cuts in other places,” Celarek said. Hamilton County Auditor Dusty Rhodes cautioned that local taxing authorities should be cautious in spending these funds. “I am just a little concerned,” he said. “If Duke is successful in its appeal, this money would have to be refunded, with interest, from each taxing authority in Hamilton County.” The amount of any refunds will be based on the values determined through the appeal. Rhodes says spending the money now could create significant shortfalls in future years. Rhodes says because of the timing of the additional payment, it will not be settled until the first half real property tax settlement in April 2011. To help offset the impact on
Western Hills Press
July 21, 2010
A3
Scout directs cemetery rehab
current budgets, the funds will be available for advances through the auditor’s office to those districts that request them. In Cincinnati, the city may save up to $10 million this year and next in a new deal with Duke Energy that allows the city to pay cheaper rates. Most of the savings, however, will not apply to the 2011 deficit, projected to be $50 million. Only about $280,000 of the savings – for the reduced cost of operating street and traffic lights – applies to the city’s operating fund. The deal was a renegotiation of a 2004 agreement with Duke predecessor Cinergy Corp. It allows the city to buy energy at below-market rates, something the previous contract didn’t do, adds a 10 percent discount off those rates and extends the contract from 2010 to 2013. Duke also waived a $2 million penalty for renegotiating early – the contract wasn’t set to expire until Dec. 31. “The administration and Duke did a very good job of looking for savings,” said Meg Olberding, spokeswoman for City Manager Milton Dohoney. Among the ways the city estimates the new deal will save: • $1 million this year and almost $3 million next by Greater Cincinnati Water Works, in part because the utility can set its utility usage at times that are offpeak for other Duke customers. • $75,000 in usage this year on traffic and street lights, plus more than $201,000 next year. That money would have come out of the city’s Department of Transportation and Engineering budget. • $20,000 this year on the convention center’s electric bill, plus more than $61,000 next year. Jennie Key, Heidi Fallon, Kurt Backscheider and Gannett News Service contributed to this report.
CS
By Melisa Cole mcole@communitypress.com
Green Township resident Travis Nieman recently received the rank of Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts of America. To earn this rank Nieman completed an extensive service project at the Cheviot cemetery. “I couldn’t get over what a wonderful job he did,” Cheviot mayor Samuel Keller said. His initial plan was to refurbish the cemetery at his church St. Aloysius Gonzaga where his troop, Boy Scout Troop 465, is based. When plans there could not be worked out, he decided to work on the abandoned Cheviot cemetery on Harrison Avenue. Nieman was required to plan, organize, manage and lead the project, which meant his first step would be to contact Keller. The first contact took place in January 2008. Nieman then began planning and collecting donations through October. “I would like to think he learned a lot about leadership,” Travis' mother Barb Nieman said. The first day of work at the cemetery took place on Oct., 12, 2008. Nieman had 29 volunteers that day. The main job on day one was to clear brush that nearly filled the parking lot sitting behind the cemetery. “We called in every family and friend favor we could,” Barb said. The work done to the cemetery includes new benches built by Nieman, construction of a mulch path, a new entrance gate and fencing in the front, removal of five trees, trimming of remaining trees, and the addition of several plants. “At first I thought he would clear a few weeds and vines,” Keller said. “I had no idea the depths and breadths of the project. It is incredible.” The Cheviot Westwood Community Association provided $30,000. Nieman was able to gather an additional $25,000 in
arnival of avings
MELISA COLE/STAFF
Green Township resident Travis Nieman sits in the refurbished Cheviot Cemetery, which was his Eagle Scout project.
donated labor and material. Over the next year 54 volunteers spent 1,769 hours cleaning up and restoring the cemetery. Nieman himself logged 335 hours between labor and planning. The project was finalized by the board of review on April 13 2010 officially making Nieman an Eagle Scout. “I had a lot of fun. It's a long term goal I set for myself since first grade,” Nieman said. Nieman owes a lot of support to the local community. Several neighboring businesses donated lunches and the use of their facilities for the volunteers. “There was lots of appreciation from the community. People would stop and watch what we were doing. One woman sat and watched us every day that we worked,” Nieman said. Cheviot plans to maintain the upkeep of the cemetery. “It’s a beautiful site now. Before it was an eyesore,” Keller said. Nieman will be a senior at La Salle High School this fall. He plans to attend college, but is undecided about where he will go.
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