July 21, 2011
Board mulls cuts, weighs levy options Ideas include trimming $16M, variety of income taxes, property taxes By JENNIFER NESBITT ThisWeek Community Newspapers
The Westerville City Schools District is likely to see budget cuts paired with a November levy bid as the school board looks to fill a $2.9-million gap in its 20112012 budget. District administrators and board members discussed budget-balancing options, including budget cuts and levies, at a July 18 work session. Without any action being taken, the district’s five-year forecast
shows the $2.9-million shortfall increasing to about $20 million in the 2012-2013 budget. If $16 million in cuts were made over the course of the five-year forecast, the district could balance the budget through the end of fiscal year 2015 with a 7.9mill property tax or a 1-percent earnedincome tax, interim treasurer Steve Huzicko told the board. The 7.9-mill levy would cost $242 annually per $100,000 of assessed property value, he said.
The 1-percent earned-income tax would apply to a taxpayer’s income, excluding Social Security, retirement benefits or investment income. Keeping a positive cash balance through fiscal year 2015, which ends June 30, 2015, would also come with a change to some assumptions in the five-year forecast: Wage and salary growth would be decreased from 5 percent to 3 percent; growth in health care costs would be reduced from 15 percent to 10 percent; and the cost of the growth of purchased serv-
ices and supplies would be capped at 4 percent, Huzicko said. If the district chose not to make budget cuts, it would need a 9.9-mill property-tax levy to balance the budget through fiscal year 2015. A 9.9-mill levy would cost $303 annually per $100,000 of assessed property value. Other options are a 1.5-percent earned-income tax to fund the district through fiscal year 2014 and an earned-income tax of 1.25 percent combined with a $5-million emergency levy to balance the budget through fiscal
year 2014, Huzicko said. The emergency levy would be about 2 mills and would cost $61 per $100,000 of assessed property value. Most board members expressed a desire to combine budget cuts with a November levy bid. “I don’t think either the pure cost reduction or the pure revenue generation are palatable options for this community,” board member Kevin Hoffman said. See SCHOOL LEVY, page A2
Chamber’s Davis takes Otterbein position By JENNIFER NESBITT ThisWeek Community Newspapers
By Andrea Kjerrumgaard/ThisWeek
WesterFlora wedding garden
A hydrangea-lined trellis separates the wedding garden from the main backyard at the home of Jeff and Linda Laine. The Laine residence was on display for the 20th annual WesterFlora garden tour July 17. The Laines’ home features a dahlia variety for each letter of the alphabet, in addition to 10 birdbaths and artwork. The event, whose 2011 theme was “Celebrate Westerville The Beautiful,” is sponsored by the Westerville Parks & Recreation Department, the Westerville Beautification Committee, the Westerville Garden Club and deMonye’s Greenhouse.
Water company asks PUCO to OK rate hike By JENNIFER NESBITT ThisWeek Community Newspapers
Ohio American Water once again is asking the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) to permit it to raise rates for its customers, who include residents in the Huber Village neighborhood of Blendon Township. Earlier this month, the company filed a request to raise water rates between 20 percent and 26 percent and to raise wastewater rates by 12 percent. The average customer using 5 CCFs of water now pays a total of $89.89 per month for sewer and water service, plus a water-softening surcharge, according to OAW spokesman Jeff LaRue. The rate increases would mean the
water portion of the bill for the average user would increase by $9.02 per month, the sewer charge would increase by $5.13 per month and the water-softening surcharge would decrease by about 8 cents per month. That would bring the average monthly bill to $103.96. The PUCO has nine months to review and rule on the request. The latest Ohio American Water request comes just more than a year after the PUCO approved a watered-down rate hike for the company. Last May, the PUCO said it would allow Ohio American Water to raise rates in 2011 by 7.1 percent. The company originally had requested a multiyear 27-percent water-rate increase.
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Every time I turn around, it (the request for an increase) is over and over and over again.
JIM WELCH Blendon Township trustee
At the time of the PUCO decision, an OAW spokeswoman said the company would have to weigh its options for recouping $27.5 million in infrastructure investments it has made since 2008. According to a company press re-
lease on the most recent request, OAW is looking for another round of rate increases to cover those costs. Blendon Township trustee Jim Welch was co-chairman of Fight the Hike Ohio, a group created to rally against Ohio American Water’s last increase request. Welch said he’s not surprised by the latest request, especially because Ohio American Water has sought six waterrate increases in the last seven years, but he said he still finds it disheartening and worries about its impact on Blendon Township. “Every time I turn around, it (the request for an increase) is over and over See WATER RATES, page A2
Development proposed at Africa and Polaris By JENNIFER NESBITT ThisWeek Community Newspapers
Developers are seeking approval for a new plan for the vacant 22-acre parcel at the northwest corner of Polaris Parkway and Africa Road. Casto and the Daimler Group will present their plans to the Westerville Planning Commission at 6:30 p.m. July 27 at the Westerville Senior Center, 310 W. Main St. Casto originally earned approval from the planning commission a few years ago to build a retail strip center with outlots on the site, Westerville sen-
ior planner Bassem Bitar said. Now the group wants to build a retail center facing Polaris Parkway with two four-story office buildings off Africa Road, to be managed by the Daimler Group, Bitar said. “It would be a similar concept” to what was previously approved, he said of the retail space, with the office component adding a new element to the site. Also at the July 27 meeting, Huntington Bank will present plans to demolish its branch at 630 S. State St. to construct a new branch on the property.
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The new building is proposed to be a larger 4,600 square feet, would be constructed closer to South State Street and would be built in accordance with the city’s South State Street building overlay standards, Bitar said. “(City staff) is working with them on a few things,” he said. “They’re trying to accommodate the overlay standards.” The current Huntington branch, built in 1966, is just under 3,000 square feet. The planning commission also will hear a someSee CASTO, page A2
Westerville Area Chamber of Commerce president Janet Tressler-Davis will leave her position next month for a newly created post at Otterbein University. Chamber board chairman Travis Sanders announced July 18 that Tressler-Davis will resign, effective Aug. 19, to become chief of staff to Otterbein University president Kathy Krendl. Tressler-Davis has served as chamber president for 19 years. While she’s excited to have a new opportunity at Otterbein, her alma mater, she said it’s hard to leave a position she’s held and loved for so long. “It’s sad. It’s just difficult right now,” TresslerDavis said. “I’ve lived and breathed this. It’s been my life.” In her time leading the chamber, TresslerDavis said, she has led many initiatives she’s proud of, including the establishment of the chamber’s Ambassador program, which reaches out to members to encourage them to be more involved by attending events or using chamber programs to help them get a “return on investment” for their chamber membership. Tressler-Davis said she’s also seen Leadership Westerville evolve from a six-week program to a nine-month program. “It’s now a full-fledged community leadership program,” she said. She also helped to create the Chamber Foundation, which provides high school scholarships and scholar- Janet ships for professionals who Tressler-Davis are seeking masters in business administration degrees or who are looking to continue their education to improve their careers. “The foundation went from four people sitting at a table to a full code of regulations and its own budget, its own fundraising, its own selection of people who receive the scholarships,” Tressler-Davis said. “It’s its own organization.” She said she’s seen the chamber move into its own building and seen membership and benefits grow over the years. Tressler-Davis also has helped the chamber earn two accreditations during her tenure, including one through the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Tressler-Davis has earned professional accreditations and served on the board and as president of the Chamber of Commerce Executives of Ohio and serving on the board of the American Chamber of Commerce Executives. Locally, she has been involved in the Westerville Library Foundation, the Otterbein Alumni Board, the Westerville Symphony board and the Westerville Industrial Commission. Tressler-Davis said it’s the variety of the job and the people in the community who have kept her in her post for so long. “I can’t imagine being a chamber president in another community,” she said. Sanders said the chamber will begin working on a succession plan for Tressler-Davis’ departure and will begin looking for her replacement in the coming weeks.
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