May 19, 2011
Orange plans new pact for sheriff’s service
GRAND OPENING
By BONNIE BUTCHER ThisWeek Community Newspapers
Photos by Tim Norman/ThisWeek
(Above) A crowd of people on self-guided tours explores the new Orange Township branch of the Delaware County District Library system, 7171 Gooding Blvd., on May 14. (Right) Mary Jane Santos, director of the Delaware County District Library, speaks to the audience who gathered for the dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Orange Township is not interested in being in the middle of a controversy and will negotiate a new contract with the county sheriff next year, trustee Nelson Katz said. The township contracts for deputies with the sheriff’s office. For those contracts, the township pays about 50 percent of the cost and the sheriff’s ofNelson Katz fice pays the rest. The contracts came under fire in February during discussions at a Powell citizens budget advisory meeting, after which county commissioners received complaints from a few residents. Those residents said such contracts increase costs for all county taxpayers, because the sheriff’s office still pays for training, equipment and other costs. Residents said Orange Township should pay the total cost. See ORANGE PLANS, page A2
Olentangy prepares for talks with two unions
Powell discusses employee insurance By BONNIE BUTCHER ThisWeek Community Newspapers
Powell’s 2010 decision to switch to a high-deductible health insurance plan for employees was wise, the city’s insurance broker told the city council finance committee. Brian Gatch of Wells Fargo discussed the city’s medical insurance at the finance committee meeting May 10. High-deductible plans were developed by insurance companies as a way to control costs and educate consumers
on the actual costs of medical services, Gatch said, noting the plans are used by employers wanting to cut insurance costs. Over the years, costs began to increase rapidly because consumers readily went to doctors, maybe unnecessarily, because the cost to them was so low, he said. The escalation in use resulted in escalating costs, he said. Though Powell “generously subsidizes” its employee health insurance plan, it is not an “outlier” but “more toward the norm,” Gatch said. He did
not have data on how other public or private sector employee medical insurance plans compare to what the city provides, but said he will bring it to the committee’s June 14 meeting. The insurance discussion was the beginning of the committee’s in-depth look at city expenses. The city has been on a high-deductible plan since 2010, said finance director Debra Miller, though the traditional plan is still offered. “Everyone in the city is on the highdeductible health savings account
By TOM SHEEHAN ThisWeek Community Newspapers
plan,” city spokesperson Jeff Robinson told ThisWeek. “Total cost per month (for) the plan is $374.90 for a single, $749.80 for an employee and spouse, $731.06 for an employee and children and $1,162.20 for a family. Employees pay 7 percent of that cost.” In 2001, the city paid 100 percent of the employee insurance cost, Miller said. With the high-deductible plan, the employee also gets a health savings
An executive session on upcoming contract negotiations was held preceding the Olentangy school board work session on May 11. Superintendent Wade Lucas and treasurer Becky Jenkins said before the meeting that three-year contracts with unions representing custodial, maintenance and other classified workers, as well as one representing transportation employees, will expire June 30. Both groups are represented by the Ohio Association of Public School Employees. Lucas and Jenkins anticipate contract talks will begin before the school year ends in early June.
See EMPLOYEE, page A5
See OLENTANGY PREPARES, page A2
Liberty residents complain about data center’s noise By BONNIE BUTCHER ThisWeek Community Newspapers
Winter Road residents whose property borders the Citigroup data center on May 17 told Liberty Township trustees that noise from the site wakes them in the middle of the night. Kurt Paulus said he has discussed the problem with the township and the business for about two years. Generators that operate cooling towers for the computer equipment create a low-pitched, droning, resonating sound, Paulus said. “Last week, I obtained a noise meter and inside the bedroom was 60.4 (decibels), which is a pretty hefty sound level,” Paulus
Watch a video of Liberty High School student Chris Choban describing his Eagle Scout project to the township trustees. Visit www.ThisWeekNews.com.
said. “It woke the entire neighborhood up at 4:25 a.m. and it went on pretty much all last week.” Paulus said 42 decibels is considered acceptable in a residential community. The sound from the center is not continuous, but intermittent, he said. “When a new business comes into your area, after you allow
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them zoning, you have no recourse ... on noise,” Paulus said. “So, be careful who you allow in. I was a little disappointed that this wasn’t caught at the time they were allowed in. Data centers have big generators and cooling towers.” Citigroup spokesperson Janis Tarter on May 17 told ThisWeek, “We have been working with the residents who live near the zoned industrial park where our data center is located. While our center operates within approved standards for the area, we are sensitive to the comments of our neighbors. We will continue to maintain an open dialogue on this issue, to make certain that
‘Ask, Listen, Learn’
By Chris Parker/ThisWeek
Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine, left, and Hyatts Middle School student Kristen Levering watch as eighth-grader Zach Hudson plays a video game during the “Ask, Listen, Learn” presentation at the school on May 11. See story, page A7.
See LIBERTY, page A4 In this edition: Read about Amazing Student Volunteers across central Ohio.
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