Saturday August 13th is National Filet Mignon Day 7 oz. Bacon-wrapped
We are celebrating now thru the 13th!
4
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FILET MIGNON
8 ooz. Bon Bonele Boneless ele Loi Loin
8 oz. Boneless Ribeye
each when you buy 10
August 4, 2016
Orange Township
Pair of levies could shift cash to roads By THOMAS GALLICK THISWEEKNEWS.COM
Hugs-n-Hearts Early Learning Center directors Jessica Cline-Karr (left) and Amanda Cruse look over a map of the area during the groundbreaking ceremony for the Evans Farm development Saturday, July 30. The day care center is considering a location at the Orange Township development, which could begin to rise by the end of the year. For video from the groundbreaking, visit ThisWeekNEWS.com/olentangy. LORRIE CECIL/THISWEEK
Future Farmers get closer look Ceremony draws residents, businesses mulling move to walkable Evans Farm addition
By THOMAS GALLICK THISWEEKNEWS.COM One of the largest developments planned in the history of southern Delaware County took another step forward last weekend. Developers, local officials and prospective residents
gathered Saturday, July 30, for a groundbreaking ceremony at the future home of the Evans Farm neighborhood north of Lewis Center Road in Orange Township. Plans for the project, which is based on the tenets of the New Urbanism design movement, call for a walkable
community with a mix of businesses and different types of housing. Daniel Griffin, a partner in Evans Farm Land Development Co., said local officials and residents are excited about the community. “The welcome we’ve (received) from the township and the county and the residents has been incredible,” he said. Evans Farm officials expect prospective residents will be able to choose lots sometime this month for the
142 single-family houses planned for the first phase of the community. Those residents then will select from 14 custom-home builders approved by the developers to construct their houses. Officials said commercial and residential buildings likely will start to rise around the end of the year north of Lewis Center Road, east of the CSX railroad crossing. The first residents and businesses could move in to the
FARM >> A4
Orange Township voters will be asked to consider putting fewer tax dollars toward parks and more toward roads in the fall. Trustees voted 2-1 at a special meeting July 26 to put two levy requests on the Nov. 8 ballot. The first request, a threeyear, 1-mill renewal levy for parks, would decrease the yearly revenue the township takes in to support its parks system. Township voters last renewed the levy in 2013 at a rate of 1.5 mills. The second request, a threeyear, 0.5-mill road levy, would be the township’s first levy tied solely to funding roadway projects. Orange Township Trustee Lisa Knapp voted against putting the levies on the ballot. She said the proposals had been “thrown together” over the past few weeks, leaving officials with “nowhere near enough time” to properly vet them and discuss them with the public. The board voted to send resolutions of necessity for the levies to the auditor’s office and to put the levies on the ballot at the same meeting.
Knapp’s fellow board members disagreed with her. Trustee Rob Quigley said the levy proposals are the culmination of years of discussion about funding for parks and roads. “I don’t think it’s been thrown together at the last minute,” he said. Trustee Debbie Taranto said the possibility of decreasing the millage of the parks levy and asking for a small roads levy has been discussed for three to four years. She also said residents have been clamoring for more road repairs. “I’ve seen all the emails and messages we get saying, ‘You need to (fix) my street,’ and, ‘Why did that street get done instead of mine?’ ” Orange Township property owners have paid $44.21 per $100,000 in market value annually for the 1.5-mill parks levy. The levy has generated about $1.66 million in revenue per year. If the reduced-millage parks levy is approved, property owners will pay $29.47 per $100,000 in market value annually. The levy would generate about $1.1 million per year. If the new roads levy is approved, property owners
LEVIES >> A4
Downtown Powell businesses
Sugar rush: Candy shop, other stores drive traffic By THOMAS GALLICK THISWEEKNEWS.COM Ask and Sonny Randall will tell you – downtown Powell is a sweet spot for small businesses. Randall, who co-owns the Santa Cruz Candy Co. with his wife, Lori, is one of a number of entrepreneurs who have taken over storefronts in the city this year. Randall, who once lived within driving distance of the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk in California, said he thought
Inside
a boardwalk-style candy store could work in Powell. Cruz Candy opened in May at 27 S. Liberty St. “The one thing we really needed to make it work was location, location, location,” he said. “We wanted someplace that backed up to (Village Green) Park, someplace that was around the restaurants and could really benefit downtown.” Powell spokeswoman Megan Canavan said the city does not track vacancies downtown, but noted open store-
Things to do >> A3 Table Talk >> A5
fronts don’t stay that way for long. She said she has heard from local business owners that downtown Powell is attracting an increasing number of customers from other municipalities. “Powell has become a very popular destination for southern Delaware County,” she said. Tanya McCarthy, executive director of the Greater Powell Area Chamber of Commerce, said proof of business growth in Powell can be seen in the chamber’s membership rolls.
She said the chamber reached 352 members in July, up from 307 in July 2015. “For a small community like Powell, it’s huge to have 50 new members in a year,” she said. McCarthy said she credits increased residential growth in and around Powell for the increase in commercial activity. While the city still has its share of boutiques, McCarthy said she also thinks the increased variety of restaurants Sonny Randall, co-owner of the Santa Cruz Candy Co. in Powell, stands in front of his store’s “spin to win” wheel July 28. CANDY >> A7 THOMAS GALLICK/THISWEEK
Police beat >> A6 College notes >> A11
Sports >> B1 Classifieds >> B4