2014-14 Guide to Yellow Springs

GUIDE TO YELLOW SPRINGS

THE VILLAGE AT WORK 2014

A SPECIAL PUBLICATION OF THE YELLOW SPRINGS NEWS 253½ XENIA AVE., YELLOW SPRINGS OH 45387 • YSNEWS.COM

2015

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T H E G U I D E t o Y E L LOW S P R I N G S 2 0 1 4 –1 5

EMERGENCY SERVICES Fire, police, ambulance ............................................... 911 Anonymous hotline ............................................... 767-1604 MIAMI TOWNSHIP GOVERNMENT .................... 69 Margaret Silliman, �scal of�cer .......................... 767-2460 VILLAGE GOVERNMENT ........................................... 69 Clerk of Council .................................................... 767-9126 Clerk of Courts .................................................... 767-3400 Council Boards, Commissions, Task Forces Economic development ........................................ 767-1279 Gaunt Park Pool .................................................... 767-9172 Fire department, non-emergency ........................ 767-7842 Police, non-emergency ......................................... 767-7206 Public works .......................................................... 767-3401 Utility billing ......................................................... 767-7202 Village Mediation, John Gudgel .......................... 605-8754 Village manager .................................................... 767-1279 Village of�ces, general information .................... 767-3402 Bryan Center scheduling and renting ................. 767-7209 Parks and recreation ............................................ 767-3401 Zoning/Code enforcement................................... 767-3702 LOCAL INDUSTRY .................................... 18 EnviroFlight ......................................................... 767-1988 Morris Bean & Company ..................................... 767-7301 Vernay Laboratories ............................................. 767-7261 YSI Incorporated .................................................. 767-7241 LIBRARY ................................................... 57 Yellow Springs Library ......................................... 352-4003 Library Association, Becky Eschliman ARTS & RECREATION Antioch Writers’ Workshop .................................. 769-1803 ....... 36 Art & Soul, Lisa Goldberg .................................... 767-7285 ....... 36 Artist Studio Tour, Lisa Goldberg ....................... 767-7285 ....... 36 Bridge, Ken Huber ............................................... 767-1160 ....... 36 Susan Freeman ................................................. 767-0235 Chamber Music in Yellow Springs reservations ... 374-8800 ....... 36 Chamber Orchestra, James Johnston ........................................ 36 Community Band, James Johnston ............................................ 37 Community Chorus, James Johnston......................................... 37 Carol Cottom ..................................................... 767-1458 Dayton Mandolin Orchestra ....................................................... 37 Kathryn Hitchcock ......................................... 408-3678 John Bryan Community Pottery .......................... 767-9022 ....... 37 Weavers’ Guild, Diana Nelson ............................. 767-9487 ....... 38 Would House Choir, Catherine Roma .......... 513-560-9082 ....... 38 Yellow Rockers, Ralph and Melanie Acton ......... 767-8951 ....... 39 Yellow Springs Arts Council ................................ 679-9722 ....... 39 Yellow Springs Contra Dance ..................................................... 39 Ben Hemmendinger .................................. 646-373-2361 Yellow Springs Strings, Shirley Mullins .............. 767-3361 ....... 39 COMMUNICATIONS Antioch Review, Muriel Keyes ............................. 769-1365 ....... 62 Channel 5, Paul Abendroth .................................. 767-1678 ...... 62 Jean Payne ........................................................ 767-2378 WYSO Public Radio .............................................. 767-6420 ....... 62 Yellow Springs News .............................................. 767-7373 ....... 62 COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS 365 Project .................................................................................... 24 AACW, Faith Patterson ......................................... 767-9114 ....... 24 African-American Genealogy Group .......................................... 24 Robert L. Harris ............................................... 767-1949 Alcoholics Anonymous ................................................................ 24 Arthur Morgan Institute for Community Solutions, Susan Jennings ................................ 767-2161 ....... 24 Better Health Co-op, Billie Eastman ................... 767-1511 ...... 24 Bryan High School Alumni Association ..................................... 24 Mickey Harwood .............................................. 629-3862 Chamber of Commerce, Karen Wintrow ............ 767-2686 ....... 25 Charlie Brown Patient & Caregiver Support Group ................. 25 Rubin Battino .................................................... 767-1854 Community Foundation, Virgil Hervey .............. 767-2655 ...... 25 Community Resources, ............................................................... 25 Kathryn Van der Heiden .................................. 767-2153 Corner Cone Farmers Market .................................................... 27 Phil Hagstrom ................................................... 265-5411 Enhance Worldwide ..................................................................... 27 Ashley Lackovich-Van Gorp ............................. 708-0144 Feminist Health Fund, Sue T. Parker .................. 767-9146 ....... 27 Marianne Whelchel .......................................... 767-1033 Food Co-op, Luan and David Heit ....................... 767-1823 ....... 27

COMMUNITY DIRECTORY

Friends Care Community ..................................... 767-7363 ....... 27 Great Books, Ken Huber ...................................... 767-1160 ....... 27 Green Environmental Coalition ........................... 767-2109 ....... 27 Grinnell Mill Foundation, Chris Mucher ............ 767-1391 ....... 27 Historical Society ......................................................................... 28 David Neuhardt ................................................ 767-7106 Nancy Noonan .................................................. 767-7773 Home Assistance Program .......................................................... 28 Erika Mahle ...................................................... 767-5751 James A. McKee Association ...................................................... 28 Harry Lipsitt ..................................................... 767-8061 Kent Bristol ....................................................... 767-7773 Bill Bebko ......................................................... 767-1521 Kings Yard Farmers Market ....................................................... 28 Michelle Burns ................................................. 319-6076 La Leche League, ........................................................................ 28 Laura Ann Ellison .........................767-1097 or 708-6392 Lions Club, Carol Gasho ...................................... 767-2168 ....... 28 Masonic Lodge, Don Lewis .................................. 901-6211 ....... 29 McKinney/YSHS PTO, Craig Mesure ................ 708-0559 ....... 29 Mills Lawn PTO ........................................................................... 29 Morgan Family Foundation, Lori M. Kuhn ........ 767-9208 ....... 29 NAMI of Yellow Springs .............................................................. 29 Donna Sorrell ................................................... 767-8622 Kathryn Hitchcock ........................................... 408-3678 Narcotics Anonymous .......................................... 505-0705 ...... 30 Neighborhood Gardens ....................................... 767-2729 ....... 30 Odd Fellows, Dean Severtson ............................. 286-2637 ....... 30 Ranch Menagerie Animal Sanctuary .......................................... 30 Nick Ormes ....................................................... 231-1046 Riding Centre ........................................................ 767-9087 ....... 30 Senior Citizens Center ......................................... 767-5751 ....... 30 Sowelo ................................................................... 767-2258 ....... 31 Tecumseh Land Trust, Krista Magaw ................. 767-9490 ....... 31 Tenant Cooperative, Paul Buterbaugh ................ 767-2224 ....... 31 UNICEF, Joy Fishbain .......................................... 767-7724 ....... 31 Winter Farmers Market ...................................... 767-7560 ...... 31 Yellow Springs Home, Inc., Chris Hall ................ 767-2790 ....... 31 Yellow Springs Tree Committee ......767-2981 or 767-2162 ....... 31 EDUCATION Private School

The Antioch School .............................................. 767-7642 ......... 9 Preschool

Community Children’s Center ............................. 767-7236 ....... 10 Friends Preschool Program ..................767-1303, ext. 119 ....... 10 Public Schools

Board of Education ............................................... 767-7381 ....... 13 Mills Lawn Elementary ........................................ 767-7217 ....... 13 Mills Lawn After School Care .............................. 767-8145 ....... 12 Y.S. High School, McKinney School ................... 767-7224 ....... 13 Greene County Career Center ............................. 372-6941 ....... 10 Greene County Educational Service Ctr ............ 767-1303 ...... 11 Greene County Learning Center ..........767-1303, ext. 141 ....... 12 Higher Education

Antioch College ............................................................................. 9 Antioch University ................................................ 769-1345 ......... 9 Antioch University Midwest ................................ 769-1818 ......... 9 GLEN HELEN NATURE PRESERVE ......................... 61 Glen Helen Ecology Institute ............................... 769-1902 Outdoor Education Center & Raptor Center ...... 767-7648 Nature Shop .......................................................... 767-1902 Trailside Museum and Visitor Center ................. 767-7798 Glen Helen Association ........................................ 769-1904 SPIRITUAL COMMUNITY

Bahá’í Faith, Roi and Linden Qualls .................... 767-7079 ....... 52 Bethel Lutheran Church ............................................................. 52 Pastor Larry Bannick ...................323-8954 or 284-3947 Central Chapel AME Church ............................... 767-3061 ....... 52 Rev. Timothy E. Loggins, pastor Dharma Center ..................................................... 767-9919 ....... 52 First Baptist Church .........................767-7659 or 767-7623 ....... 52 First Presbyterian Church, of�ce ........................ 767-7751 ....... 53 Rev. Aaron Saari, pastor Grandmother Drum Healing Circle ........................................... 53 Grandmother Wolfheart ................................... 767-9331 Grandmother Moon Fire .................................. 767-1170

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Heart Rhythm Meditation Class & Circle .................................. 54 Denise Runyon & Tom Malcolm ..................... 767-2293 Havurah, Steve Green .......................................... 767-9293 ....... 53 Pleasant Grove Missionary Church .................... 767-8011 ....... 54 Pastor Ken Moore ............................... (home) 372-8110 Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) ..................................... 54 John Eastman, clerk ......................................... 767-8486 St. Paul Catholic Church ...................................... 767-7450 ....... 54 Unitarian Universalist Fellowship .......372-5613, 767-1603 ....... 54 United Methodist Church .................................... 767-7560 Rev. Sherri Blackwell .................. (parsonage) 319-6103 ....... 55 Yellow Springs Assembly of God Christian Center ................... 55 Pastor J. Ray Tyson .......................................... 767-9133 YOUTH ORGANIZATIONS Boy Scouts, Scott Fletcher ................................... 863-0298 ....... 45 Cub Scouts, Dawn Fain ........................................ 510-8745 ....... 45 Fair Play 4-H Club........................................................................ 45 Kathleen Galarza ....... ....................... ...............838-7411 Girl Scouts, Susan Hyde ....................................... 767-7756 ....... 45 Perry League, Jimmy Chesire ............................. 767-7300 ....... 45 Sea Dogs, Nan Meekin ......................................... 767-2093 ....... 45 Yellow Springs Youth Orchestra Association ........................... 45 Youth Baseball ............................................................................ 46 Tim and Jennifer Sherwood ............................ 767-8702 Youth Soccer, Bill and Lynn Hardman ................ 767-8433 ....... 47 YS Kids Playhouse, Ara Beal ............................... 767-7800 ...... 47 STORIES Village Economy: At a Crossroad ................................4 Coming Home, but not for the Jobs ...........................14 Fewer Local Jobs, More Commuting .........................20 At Times, Home is Where the Work is ......................32 Sidewalks Packed in Tourist Town ............................40 How Locals See Our Economy ...................................48 Villagers Rate Economic Development Strategics ....58 Small Towns Use Creativity to Grow .........................64 ELECTED OFFICIALS U.S. SENATORS

U.S. HOUSE, 10th DISTRICT

Washington address: Senate Of�ce Building Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-3121

Mike Turner (R) 2239 Rayburn Building Washington, D.C. 20515 Phone: 202-225-6465 Fax: 202-225-6754 Web: turner.house.gov Dayton Of�ce 120 West 3rd St. Suite 305 Dayton, Ohio 45402 Phone: 937-225-2843 Fax: 937-225-2752

Sherrod Brown (D) 713 Hart Senate Of�ce Bldg.

Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-2315 Fax: 202-228-6321 Web: brown.senate.gov Columbus of�ce: 200 N. High St. Room 614 Columbus, OH 43215 Phone: 614-469-2083 Fax: 614-469-2171 Toll Free 888-896-6446

STATE SENATE, 10th DISTRICT

Chris Widener (R) Senate Building Capitol Square, 1st Floor Columbus, OH 43215 Phone: 614-466-3780 Robert “Rob” Portman (R) Email: SD10@senate.state.oh.us 448 Russell Senate Of�ce Bldg. Web: ohio senate.gov/widener Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-3353 STATE HOUSE, 84th DISTRICT www.portman.senate.gov Jim Buchy (R) Columbus of�ce: 77 S. High St 37 West Broad Street 14th Floor Room 300 Columbus, OH 43215 Columbus, OH 43215 Phone: 614-466-6344 Phone: 614-469-6774 Fax: 614-719-3977 Web: ohiohouse.gov/jim-buchy Toll-Free: 800-205-6446

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The Guide to Yellow Springs is an annual team effort, and the News has an extraordinary team. This year we thank Robert Hasek and Suzanne Szempruch for selling ads; Suzanne Szempruch and Matt Minde for designing them; Matt Minde for overall vision, design and cover art; Lauren Shows for organizing and editing all submissions; and Lauren Heaton, Megan Bachman, Carol Simmons and Diane Chiddister for coming up with story ideas, and for writing the stories. We thank our advertisers for taking part in this effort. Most of all, we hope you enjoy this year’s Guide to Yellow Springs.

Copyright © 2014 Yellow Springs News, Inc.

Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S A-C Service ............................................................28 Adoption Link, Inc.................................................53 Al Kahina Middle Eastern (Belly) Dance Studio ......................................18 Andreae, Kristen, RN, L.Ac. .................................14 Anthrotech .............................................................12 Antioch College .....................................................72 Antioch School ......................................................47 Antioch University Midwest ................................22 Antioch Writers’ Workshop..................................19 Arbor-Care Tree Service ......................................31 Arthur Morgan House Bed and Breakfast .........60 Asanda Imports .....................................................70 Atomic Fox.............................................................61 Battino Counseling Services ................................52 Battle, Esther S., Ph.D. .........................................65 Bauer Stoves and Fireplaces ................................28 Bentino’s of Yellow Springs..................................43 Bing Design ...........................................................45 Body Wisdom ........................................................19 Julie Pies, PTA, MFRT Patti Mielziner, NMT, cPT Bradstreet & Associates ......................................30 Brandeberry Winery ............................................15 Bryce Hill ...............................................................12 Chamber Music in Yellow Springs ......................17 Clifton Opera House .............................................46 Coldwell Banker Heritage Realtors, Bambi Williams, Sam Eckenrode, Minerva Bieri ....................................................7 Craig Mesure ...................................................15 Community Children’s Center, Children’s Center After School Care ............25 Complete Building Services LLC ........................44 Community Physicians of Yellow Springs ..........26 David Hyde, MD Neha Patel, DO Cliff Fawcett, MSN, CNP Community Solutions ...........................................39 Corner Cone ..........................................................33 Creative Explorations ...........................................36 Current Cuisine .....................................................41 Dark Star Bookstore .............................................37 Design Sleep ..........................................................15 Dirty Fabulous Boutique......................................14 Downing’s Do it Best Hardware ..........................32 Dunphy Real Estate, Inc. ......................................21 Ear Nose & Throat of Spring�eld .......................18

INDEX OF ADVERTISERS Earth Energy Medicine ........................................42 Abigail Cobb, RN Earth Rose .............................................................43 EdenWorld .............................................................57 Ehman’s Garage ....................................................10 Eldridge Roo�ng, Inc............................................62 Electric Service Company ....................................53 Emporium Wines/Underdog Café ......................19 EnviroFlight, LLC .................................................37 Enon Veterinary Hospital .....................................50 Flying Mouse Farms ............................................62 Friends Care Community .....................................56 Funderburg, Pamela, LMT ..................................13 Gailz Tattooz ..........................................................22 Glen Garden Gifts .................................................30 Glen Helen Nature Shop ......................................57 Glen House Bed & Breakfast ..............................54 Green Environmental Coalition ...........................24 Greene County Career Center.............................69 Greene County Combined Health District .........37 Greene County Council on Aging .......................50 Greenleaf Gardens ................................................22 Grinnell Mill Bed & Breakfast .............................13 Ha Ha Pizza ............................................................47 Hawthorne Place ...................................................67 Hearthstone Inn & Suites ......................................9 Holser, J. Marc, DDS ............................................61 House of Ravenwood ............................................28 Human Relations Commission ............................24 Humanist Center Massage Therapy ...................32 Jackson Lytle & Lewis Funeral Homes ..............70 Jail House Suites .....................................................5 JCox Company, Basho ..........................................42 Jennifer’s Touch Jewelry ........................................7 John Bryan Community Pottery .........................36 Kadis, Paul P., PsyD, LLC .....................................43 Kismet ....................................................................13 Legendary Roo�ng Company, The .....................38 Little Art Theatre ..................................................27 Live & Let Dye Salon ............................................11 Meadowlark Restaurant .......................................68 Miami Valley Equine & Small Animal Acupressure .............................57 Miami Township Fire-Rescue ..............................34 Miami Valley Pottery ............................................19 MillWorks Business Center .................................41 MinDesign/Jennifer Berman ..............................10 MindFully Well Center .........................................64

T H E G U I D E t o Y E L LOW S P R I N G S 2 0 1 4 –1 5 Mr. Fub’s Party, “Toys and More” ......................54 NAMI of Yellow Springs .......................................20 Nightingale Montessori School ...........................30 No Common Scents ..............................................45 Ohio Silver ...............................................................9 Ohio Valley Surgical Hospital ................................8 Pangaea Trading Company ..................................46 Peifer Orchards & Farm Market.........................66 Pleasant Grove Missionary Church ....................69 Positive Perspectives ............................................59 Re�exology, Susan Conner, CCR.........................63 Reichley Insurance Agency..................................22 Re/Max Victory ....................................................35 Chris & Rick Kristensen Shelly Blackman Rita Caz Jewelry Studio ........................................50 Rumpke Waste Removal & Recycling Systems ..........................................14 S&G Artisan Distillery .........................................27 Sam & Eddie’s Open Books .................................29 Sample, Lyniece ....................................................55 Servlet, Inc. ............................................................39 Soin Medical Center .............................................16 Solid Gold Self Storage .........................................46 Southtown Heating & Cooling .............................40 Spring�eld Arts Council .........................................4 Spring�eld Museum of Art ..................................55 Spring�eld Symphony Orchestra ........................43 Springs Healing Massage Kerri Speck, LMT Amy Spurr, LMT .............................................17 Springs Motel ........................................................24 St. Paul Catholic Church ........................................4 Star Pediatrics .......................................................66 Sunrise Cafe ...........................................................65 Super-Fly Comics & Games ...................................9 Sweet Sanaa ...........................................................21 360° Private Training Studio................................51 Melissa Heston, cPT Tibet Bazaar...........................................................17 T.K. Tile & Paint ....................................................38 Tom’s Market ........................................................65 Town Drug.............................................................45 Toxic Beauty Records ...........................................57 Twin Coach Apartments ......................................70 Un�nished Creations ............................................31 Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Yellow Springs ...............................................5

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Village Artisans .....................................................12 Village Automotive................................................55 Village BP ..............................................................38 Village Guesthouse ...............................................52 Village Mediation Program ..................................23 Village of Yellow Springs .....................................53 Vitamin Outlet .......................................................31 Wagner Subaru......................................................62 Wavelength Aveda Salon/Spa ..............................48 Wellness Center at Antioch College....................36 Wellth Health Alternatives ...................................20 Wheat Penny .........................................................68 Winds Cafe & Wine Cellar ...................................67 World House Choir ...............................................59 “would you, could you” In A Frame ....................27 Wright State Physicians .......................................51 WYSO 91.3 FM Radio ...........................................61 Xenia YMCA ..........................................................31 Ye Olde Trail Tavern & Restaurant .......................6 Yellow Springs Artist Studio Tour .......................42 Yellow Springs Botanicals ....................................58 Yellow Springs Brewery .......................................66 Yellow Springs Chamber of Commerce........52, 59 Yellow Springs Chiropractic.................................12 Mark G. Duckwall, DC Erika Grushon, DC Katherine Duckwall Hulbert, DC Yellow Springs Community Foundation .............63 Yellow Springs Farmers’ Market .........................11 Yellow Springs Home, Inc. ...................................49 Yellow Springs News ................................13, 33, 63 Yellow Springs Pottery ...........................................5 Yellow Springs Primary Care...............................49 Donald Gronbeck, MD Yellow Springs Psychological Center .................54 Bob Barcus, PhD Aïda Merhemic, MS Yellow Springs Tree Committee ..........................60 Yellow Springs United Methodist Church..........25 Yoga Springs Studio ..............................................20 Young’s Jersey Dairy ............................................41 YS Federal Credit Union ........................................6 YS Kids Playhouse ................................................23 YSI, Inc./Xylem. ....................................................29

AN EYE ON OUR ECONOMY THE ECONOMIC LANDSCAPE OF OUR VILLAGE

ON THE COVER

A show of hands at work from around the village.

The 31st annual edition of the Guide to Yellow Springs is a continuation of the News’ effort to provide both visitors and residents updated information and contacts for the over 100 public and private community organizations that make Yellow Springs a rich and self-sustaining place to live and work.

Interspersed among the community listings each year the News includes a series of articles, which this year focus on the issue of work and jobs in the village.

Last year the Village of Yellow Springs considered a controversial proposal to spend close to $1 million to install infrastructure through the local business park that has been planned since 2004. In order to provide context for the

arguments on both sides, News writers Megan Bachman, Diane Chiddister, Carol Simmons and I compiled a 10-part series on the state of businesses and jobs in the local economy that was published from March through May in the News.

Currently, just one in five workers in Yellow Springs lives in the village — and about 80 percent of local residents commute elsewhere to work.

However, villagers are creative, and about 10–12 percent of us are operating a home business here (twice the national average.) And according to local residents who were surveyed earlier this year, many villagers feel that local jobs don’t generally pay enough for the high cost of living here.

These are some of the facts and opinions that came out of the jobs series.

Since spring, Village Council has approved financing the buisness park project, and a group of citizens has turned it into a referendum for the November election. Because the topic remains debatable, the News decided to republish eight stories from the series in hopes that villagers will again consider the ways people work, live and do business here and what structures will best support a strong local economy.

At the very least, we hope villagers and visitors will enjoy this collection of stories that describe what it is to live and work in the village in 2014.

—Lauren Heaton, Associate Editor

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

VILLAGE ECONOMY: AT A CROSSROADS B y L AU R E N H E ATO N The Village of Yellow Springs government hasn’t generally involved itself in the local economy, but over the past 10 years, the Village has gotten increasingly active in supporting the local business community. And this spring, Village Council approved legislation to spend almost $1 million to build road and utility infrastructure through the business park, the Center for Business and Education (The issue will go to a public vote on Nov. 4.)

The proposal was first submitted in the fall of 2013 and immediately drew both supporters and opponents. Advocates said that the village desperately needs additional space for both new and existing businesses to grow. Detractors felt that the public money would be put at risk with such an uncertain project and might be better spent on existing economic activity. The discussion has raised deeper questions, such as how does the local economy complement the values of the community? Is the current level of business sufficient for the taxes and services villagers want? What role, if any, does Village government have to play in the business world?

The Yellow Springs News hopes to add some facts and local opinions to the conversation with a series of articles on the local economy, beginning with this installment on the existing economy and how some local economists and business practioners view the economic development question. Future stories in the series will focus on the history of our local economy, present data on the number of local businesses and jobs and examine how our profile has changed over time, consider past efforts to support and grow businesses in town and explore ideas for securing long-term economic prosperity for the future. The intent of the series is to enrich the discussion and aid the public decision-making process.

Several who spoke for this story feel that Village government does need to actively support business growth in order to avoid gentrification and stag-

nation of the community. Others feel that local government should not get directly involved, that business growth is already happening, and that the town’s innovative spirit and natural market forces will continue to sustain the village as a vibrant place to live and work.

“We’re kind of at a crossroads,” former YSI President Malte Von Matthiessen said. “One direction is becoming a gentrified community, which has certain implications. Or, we can re-energize the idea of a sustainable community. It’s a mixed bag now, with no consensus.”

STATE OF THE LOCAL ECONOMY

It’s not easy to assess in empirical terms how healthy the local economy is or whether or not it could use a boost. But there are some regional assessments and economic indicators that provide pieces of the story.

In the broader geographic context, over the past decade, Yellow Springs has been subject to the same negative effects of the global market as the rest of the region. The Dayton Development Coalition, an economic stimulus organization serving a 14-county region around the cities of Dayton and Springfield, analyzed the regional situation in a 2012 development strategy: “The Dayton Region has experienced a continuous economic downturn for more than a decade, losing jobs each year during the period 2001 to 2011.

In particular, employment levels in manufacturing have fallen dramatically throughout this period with job losses accounting for 32% of the manufacturing workforce.” More than 50,000 jobs have been lost in the region, the report states.

Similarly in Yellow Springs, the business landscape has changed since traditional manufacturing (Creative Memories, Vernay Labs) has shifted away from the region, resulting in the loss of about 300 jobs in the past 12 years.

Between 2001 and 2011, the number of jobs in the village dropped from 1,945 to 1,649, according to data from the U.S.

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

T H E G U I D E t o Y E L LOW S P R I N G S 2 0 1 4 –1 5

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PHOTO BY MEGAN BACHMAN

Business has been booming at the Yellow Springs Brewery since it opened in spring, 2013. The microbrewery serves up a wide variety of handcrafted beer, including Belgian saisons, Irish stouts and India pale ale, among many others, to both a steady stream of locals and tourists. Owned by Lisa Wolters and Nate Cornett, the business employs 17 mainly part-time servers.

Census. The spectrum of types of jobs remained relatively stable throughout the period, with education comprising roughly 35 percent of jobs, and health care, retail and accommodations/food service covering about 10 percent each.

Manufacturing took an industrywide hit, falling from 27 percent of local jobs in 2003 to 15 percent in 2011.

In addition to job statistics, the DDC uses some “distress indicators” to help determine the economic health of a community. Some of those figures for Yellow Springs indicate the village is doing well relative to regional and national figures.

The median annual income for Yellow Springs, for example, is higher at $56,000 than the national average of $51,000 and $46,000 in Ohio. Villagers are also relatively highly educated. More than 57 percent of local residents have a bachelor’s degree or higher, versus 24 percent

in Ohio and 28 percent nationally.

Other indicators suggest negative economic trends in the village. While poverty in the village between 1990 and 2000 hovered around 8 percent, lower than steady state and national averages of between 10 percent and 14 percent, the local poverty rate has jumped since then to a high of 15 percent, according to the Cost of Living report. In addition, the rate of job loss in the village was 18 percent, notably higher than the 6 percent loss of jobs (50,000 jobs) in the Dayton region during the same period, a trend the DDC said has been “difficult for the Dayton Region.”

But there is also quantifiable future growth potential in Yellow Springs.

While the Dayton region is looking at the potential job growth in particular industries (aerospace systems, advanced materials, information technology, and

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Meetinghouse on U.S. Rt 68 in Goes Station, two miles south of Yellow Springs.

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

>>> VILLAGE ECONOMY: AT A CROSSROADS

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human sciences), according to a 2014 industry report from the DDC, Yellow Springs is expected to see a net growth of 126 jobs between now and 2019.

According to the report, which uses the federal jobs database as well as national trends and very localized historical trends to predict job growth, the highest growth will likely be concentrated in the areas of education, training and library science (44 new jobs), food service and service-related occupations (37 new jobs), and healthcare/social assistance (19 new jobs). The report also shows that manufacturing will continue to decline at a slow but steady pace, and that information jobs will fall even further by about 34 percent. Partially supporting those claims is historical data showing that between 2005 and 2014 accommodations and food service grew 28 percent and healthcare grew 27 percent, while information jobs fell 77 percent. Most other areas such as retail, education, construction and professional and technical services, are expected to grow slightly or remain flat.

LOCAL ECONOMIC STRENGTHS

Despite the overall local jobs loss, most people interviewed for this story believe the value of the existing mix of businesses and the innovative local culture holds the potential for a strong economic future. (How we as a community decide to expedite growth is another matter.)

In terms of economic strengths, according to Von Matthiessen, the village can claim the advantage of an innovative, experimental environment supported by three institutions of higher education, Antioch University, AU Midwest and Antioch College, the last of which has begun a business partnership with green feed producer EnviroFlight. A highly educated work force is also a result of the co-location of so many schools in one place — a factor that influenced EnviroFlight’s founder Glen Courtright to start his business here. The village also maintains a strong set of private sector leaders, both active and retired, who could serve as a consulting or investment resource to existing and start-up businesses, according to Von Matthiessen.

The downtown also has a lot to offer, according to Ellen Hoover, co-owner of MillWorks business/warehouse property.

With close to 77 retail businesses on three main streets, the central business district serves not only a strong tourist economy, but also local food and shopping needs. The village is also bolstered by what Hoover sees as a very responsive local government eager to answer zoning questions and meet the needs of local or new businesses. Roadway infrastructure has been greatly improved with a major street paving increase over the past five years, as well as reduced power outages due to better tree trimming, Hoover said of two problems past MillWorks clients

have talked about. And according to Thor Sage, director of the regional educational computing consortium MVECA, the village is also strategically outfitted to deliver high capacity technological services with the existing infrastructure.

The good news, according to local economists Dave Wishart and Frank Goetzke, is that with the combined strengths the village offers, Yellow Springs is naturally strong enough to survive even without a concerted economic game plan. The village has remained true to its very early 19th century Owenite roots set in egalitarian industriousness, Wishart said. The Antioch College culture that followed furthered the innovative and social justice mores that still make the environment ripe for business innovators committed to the community, he said.

“My impression of Yellow Springs is that it’s always been a place with a great deal of emphasis on creativity, alternative approaches to problems, and creation and transmission of knowledge,” Wishart said. “Those are the places in the world whose cultures have always done best — it all leads back to innovation, technology, creativity and human capital.”

POTENTIAL GOING FORWARD

While some advocate for patiently allowing the village’s natural strengths to carry it into the future, others worry about recent job losses and believe that the village needs to increase its

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Glen Courtright, founder of EnviroFlight, has attracted national media attention with his business, which produces animal feed and fertilizer made from black soldier fly larvae that feed on various waste products. He’s shown last year being interviewed by a CNN cameraman. Courtright chose Yellow Springs as the home for EnviroFlight because the company’s emphasis on sustainability aligns with Yellow Springs values. He aims to help alleviate the problem of global hunger by producing an affordable and sustainable animal feed. chances by investing in vital economic support systems. Yellow Springs may not be accustomed to economic planning because, in the opinion of local resident Evan Scott, a former DDC planner, Antioch College was so effective at growing the major industries that have sustained the village for the past half century. However, the village has some shortcomings and things it could do to increase opportunities for growth.

One is an economic plan for the village. Ellen Hoover was part of a commission appointed by Village Council to propose an economic sustainability plan, which it did in 2011 without follow-up by Council. Specifically, Hoover believes the village needs to evaluate the plan and discuss if incentives are available to retain/attract businesses

and detail what kind and how much.

Von Matthiessen agreed that an economic plan would establish clear goals to focus the community’s energy and make things happen.

“We’ve been wandering down the path without a clear, strategic direction, and one of the missing ingredients has been an economic strategy with goals and milestones,” he said.

Given the jobs analysis by the DDC, Yellow Springs would do well to let go of the dream that manufacturing is coming back. The trend is one Von Matthiessen sees as well, which is why he believes the village should focus on the innovative, technological, research side of business.

The idea dovetails directly into Scott’s point that the village’s most promising long-term economic solution is to

re-create the business incubator at the heart of the sustainable community vision of Arthur Morgan, president of Antioch College from 1920 to 1936.

Regarding the traditional economic development efforts that involve marketing and competitive tax incentive programs to draw businesses to the area, Scott believes those strategies are more effective when executed on a regional level. But on the local level, Yellow Springs in the long term will benefit most by focusing, inclusively, on not one, but all the local solutions that have been suggested.

“Is it public money funding private investment? No, it’s public money funding future public revenue,” Scott said. “We have to shift the conversation from ‘either/or’ to ‘both/and.’ Like every community in America, we have a list of 100 needs and resources to fund three. But let’s get both a sidewalk and a place for companies to land. The question is not which, but which order.”

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EDUCATION Antioch College info@antiochcollege.org www.antiochcollege.org

EMAIL: WEB:

Since entering its �rst class in 1853, with the eminent scholar Horace Mann as its �rst president, Antioch College has been a pioneering liberal arts college preparing students for lives of signi�cance, service and engaged and effective citizenship, whether they choose to pursue graduate education or embark directly on a career. The newly independent Antioch College continued this tradition when it welcomed its �rst class in the fall of 2011.

The mission of the college is to provide a rigorous liberal arts education on the belief that scholarship and life experience are strengthened when linked, that diversity in all its manifestations is a fundamental component of excellence in education and that authentic social and community engagement is vital for those who strive to win victories for humanity.

The college rede�ned liberal arts education by initiating an entrepreneurial and experiential curriculum through the development of its hallmark cooperative work program. Many of the now common elements of today’s liberal arts education — self-designed majors, study abroad, interdisciplinary study, and portfolio evaluation — had an early start at Antioch College. The college was also among the �rst to make a commitment to community governance and the authentic participation of students in institutional decision-making.

Throughout the generations, Antioch College faculty, students, staff and alumni have committed themselves to important causes.

Consistent with its mission, Antioch College has always given equal weight to understanding theory, to engaging in practice and to taking action.

An Antioch College education has always encouraged independent thinking and invention. As a result, the college has earned signi�cant notoriety for producing alumni who make signi�cant contributions. These include two Nobel Laureates, seven MacArthur Foundation Fellows and numerous Fulbright Scholars.

There are 200 acres and 25 buildings on the Antioch College campus, which �ts easily and comfortably into Yellow Springs, melding effortlessly into the surrounding neighborhoods. It incorporates the Romanesque and Greek revival architecture styles that were popular in the latter part of the 1800s. The campus opens onto a huge park of ancient trees, which leads the eye easily to the 1,000-acre Glen Helen Nature Preserve, the legacy of Hugh Taylor Birch, who, in 1929, donated the wooded glen to Antioch College in memory of his daughter, Helen.

The Antioch School

more energy-ef�cient and environmentally friendly.

The Antioch School is a place where childhood is respected and children are encouraged to pursue their innate curiosity wherever their abilities take them. The Antioch School offers programs for children aged 3½ to 11 based on the ideals of respect and trust and “challenge and choice” — a wide variety of educational opportunities are provided, with students encouraged to involve themselves in their own choices, matching their needs and abilities to resources for learning and growth.

The children are grouped in the nursery, for 3½- to 5-year-olds; kindergarten, for 5-to 6-year-olds; the Younger Group, for 6- to 8-year-olds; and the Older Group, for 9- to 11-year-olds. The nursery and kindergarten offer half- or full-day programs. The school also offers art and science programs, music instruction and an after-school program.

Development of reading, writing and mathematics abilities is emphasized, along with social and self-discipline skills — the interaction of children as a means for self-de�nition and growth is valued. Individualized instruction works two ways at the school: teacher-tochild and child-to-child.

In addition, there are opportunities for the children to participate in a variety of activities, such as unicycling, drama, music and art, including pottery, painting, sculpture and stained glass. An emphasis is placed on physical activities, with children playing together on the school’s expansive grounds and swimming and skating �eld trips, .

Directing the school’s operations is a board of directors consisting of parents and faculty members, facilitated by a full-time manager. Family involvement is vital to the school’s learning environment.

Because the Antioch School is small, our group size and enrollment numbers are limited. Tuition is comparatively low among area private schools. Applications are accepted throughout the year and �nancial aid is available. Tuition rates are available upon request. Visitors to the school are always welcome.

Antioch University Chancellor’s of�ce, 769-1345 www.antioch.edu

C O N TA C T: WEB:

A national university since 1964, Antioch University is founded on principles of rigorous liberal arts education, innovative experiential learning and socially engaged citizens.

Governed by a national board of gover-

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767-7642 www.antiochschool.org

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One of the oldest progressive educational institutions in the United States, the Antioch School was founded in 1921 by Ar thur Morgan, the president of Antioch College.

In 1951 the school moved to its current idyllic setting, nestled in beautiful green space neighboring the Glen Helen nature preserve.

The building was designed by architect Eero Saarinen to connect the indoors with the outdoors and was renovated in 2007 to be

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nors, the university campuses, which serve students both on and beyond the physical campuses, include Antioch University Midwest in Yellow Springs; Antioch University New England in Keene, N.H.; Antioch University Seattle; Antioch University Los Angeles and Antioch University Santa Barbara in California.

Antioch University provides programs of study nationwide leading to bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees, as well as other related special programs of study. In 2001 Antioch launched its �rst universitywide program, the Ph.D. in Leadership and Change program. The system’s administrative of�ces are located in Yellow Springs.

Antioch University Midwest Student Services, 769-1818, sas.aum@antioch.edu midwest.antioch.edu

C O N TA C T: EMAIL: WEB:

Antioch University Midwest, formerly Antioch University McGregor, provides adult learners with a unique educational environment that helps them achieve their speci�c personal and professional goals. Students have an extraordinary opportunity to shape their education through collaborative and experiential coursework.

Recognized as a national leader in adult learning, Antioch University Midwest, or AUM, is one of �ve regional campuses of Antioch University, which serves approximately 7,000 combined students nationwide.

The bachelor’s degree completion pro-

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The Community Children’s Center is a not-for-pro�t, high quality program offering education and care for children 18-months to 12 years of age. Licensed by the state of Ohio, the center is star-rated through the Job and Family Services Step Up To Quality program. The program meets high program and staff standards.

The philosophy of the school is based on the belief that children learn through play experiences. The teachers prepare hands-on learning activities to challenge and encourage children at each developmental level. A variety of open-ended materials, activities and social experiences are provided in an environment of comfort and security. Children choose activities, interact with each other, try new roles, experiment with their own ideas, build on their experiences and solve problems. Individualized attention is promoted by small groupings and a low childto-teacher ratio.

Parent and community par ticipation enhance program offerings. Staff and enrollment policies encourage diversity of racial, religious, ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds.

The Children’s Center operates Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., with a late program until 6 p.m. Full- and half-day programs from two to �ve days a week are designed to meet the needs of three age groups: 18 months through 36 months, 3 years through kindergarten and kindergarten through 12 years of age. The early morning and afternoon program for schoolage children provides a secure environment,

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Brenda Noble, early childhod director, 767-1303, ext. 119 E M A I L : bnoble@GreeneEsc.org C O N TA C T:

Friends preschool program is a public school program that is operated collaboratively by Greene County Educational Service Center, Yellow Springs school district and Council on Rural Services. Located at Friends Care Community, the program provides rich educational experiences to children with delays in development and children who meet Head Start eligibility. A few slots are also available for tuition students from the community. Therapy Services are available as needed.

The program is dedicated to helping seniors and children learn together through the development of intergenerational programs. The program includes a strong educational component with structured teaching, as well as a health, nutrition and social service component. Class sizes are small. All staff have bachelor’s or master’s degrees in education. The program follows a comprehensive curriculum that aligns with Ohio’s Early Learning Content Standards. Bus transportation is available. The program is free to Head Start children and children with disabilities. There is a nominal tuition charge for private pay children. Friends Preschool serves children ages 3–5 from both Yellow Springs and Cedar Cliff school districts.

Greene County Career Center 372-6941, 2960 W. Enon Road www.greeneccc.com

C O N TA C T: WEB:

Greene County Career Center has served as the region’s premier provider of careertechnical education for high school and adult students since 1967. The center serves as a hub for high school juniors and seniors who seek career and college preparation in a hands-on environment. Approximately 60

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C O N TA C T:

Friends Preschool Program

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light snack, variety of group and individual enrichment activities and access to community resources.

Governed by an elected board of trustees, the Children’s Center is funded through private tuition, United Way allocations, contracts with Greene, Clark and Montgomery county departments of Jobs and Family Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture and support from the community. The center staff welcomes inquiries and observation visits.

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gram for adult learners includes early childhood education, health and wellness, humanitites, human services administration, literature and creative writing and management. Master’s degrees, several of which are offered online with limited residency, include con�ict analysis and engagement, individualized master of arts, management and leading change, master of education with Ohio principal licensure and master of education and teachers licensure.

Antioch University Midwest also supports opportunities for community ser vice and partnership, from its 200-seat, state-of-the-art auditorium to its classroom facilities, which host events such as the annual Antioch Writers’ Workshop.

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percent of those completing a career-technical program at GCCC go on to a two- or four-year college or university, a career or trade school or an accredited apprenticeship program.

In addition to programs offered on the main campus, the career center also provides instruction at all seven school districts in Greene County in addition to the new Equine Science and Veterinary Science offered at the Agricultural Research Center. At Yellow Springs High School the agriculture business and science classes are provided by Greene County Career Center.

The school also is the home of one of the premier adult programs in Ohio, the Peace Officer Basic Training class. Each year, dozens of new police of�cers earn their certi�cation thanks to this program. Additionally, Greene County Career Center also provides refresher courses for current law enforcement professionals and runs an academy for upcoming corrections of�cers.

Beginning in 2014, a partnership through Clark State allows adults to take HVAC and Welding classes at the GCCC campus on West Enon Road.

Greene County Educational Service Center 767-1303, 360 E. Enon Road greene.k12.oh.us

C O N TA C T: WEB:

The Greene County Educational Service Center (GCESC) is located in the Arthur Morgan Building next to Yellow Springs High School and has been at this site for the past 24 years. The GCESC provides a variety of educational services to Greene County school districts and other regional agencies.

The GCESC employs over 170 workers in the areas of education and therapy and is one of the largest employers in Yellow Springs.

The mission of the GCESC is to promote widespread success for our students by providing essential, effective, specialized and innovative services that foster collaborative, valued partnerships amongst all stakeholders.

The Greene County Educational Service Center provides high quality special education and instructional services to the districts.

The services provided to each district vary depending on the size of the district and the special needs that each district has. The ESC contracts with each district on a yearly basis.

By coordinating services for the districts, the GCESC is able to help them reduce duplication of personnel and programs, therefore, reducing costs for the schools. The Center is

PHOTO BY LAUREN HEATON

The revived Antioch College, which reopened in 2011, is this fall welcoming its fourth class of students, for a total student population of about 275. Shown here is chef Isaac DeLamatre transporting watermelons grown at Peifer Orchards; the college dining room sources local produce whenever possible. The college is the second largest employer in Yellow Springs with about 160 employees. considered to be a premier provider of therapy services for students — including Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Speech Therapy, and Adapted Physical Education.

The GCESC also provides school-based mental health therapists to all of the county’s school districts. Further, the mental health staff has been working in speci�c districts on the PAX Good Behavior Game — a positive, disruption-reducing classroom management program that increases engaged learning and is considered to be a best practice by the American Federation of Teachers, the Surgeon General, and the Centers for Substance Abuse Prevention.

The Greene County Educational Service Center also provides educational programs for students with emotional and/or behavioral issues at the Greene County Learning Center in Yellow Springs and an Outdoor Education Program for students in grades

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Howard Coleman, a 1975 graduate of Antioch College, became president of the Antioch University Board of Governors in the summer of 2013. Coleman, shown in front of AU Midwest, said he’s especially excited by the university’s commitment to social justice. AU Midwest employs about 30 full-time workers.

6-8 as well as an alternative high school for students in grades 9–12 both of which are located at our site in Bellbrook, Ohio. At the Bellbrook site are also the Intensive Needs Classrooms for students with severe communication disorders and behavioral issues.

To �nd out more about the GCESC and updates on what is being offered, please visit the website at www.greeneESC.org.

Greene County Learning Center Jason Miller, director of education, 767-1303, ext. 141

C O N TA C T:

The Greene County Learning Center, or GCLC, is a public “separate facility” school program for students in grades K–12. We serve students from all school districts in Greene County. The caring staff at GCLC

work as a team to meet the academic and emotional needs of the youth that they serve.

The major objectives of the program are to help the individual gain self-awareness skills, learn new coping skills, increase the ability to make appropriate choices and improve social-interpersonal interaction with peers and adults. An additional objective is to help the students achieve academically to the best of their abilities. Our ultimate goal is to help each of our students to successfully return to the home school environment and to function more fully in the world around them.

Children’s Center After School Program C O N TA C T:

767-8145

Children’s Center After School Program, located at Mills Lawn School and adminis-

Providing Human Dimensions for Design Solutions

ANTHROTECH Visit us on the web at www.anthrotech.net

503 Xenia Ave. Yellow Springs, Ohio 45387

tel no. 937.767.7226 fax no. 937.767.9350

tered by the Community Children’s Center, is a recreational program offering after-school care for students ages 5 to 12. The program is designed to provide a safe, stimulating and enriching environment that is child-centered.

Children may choose activities according to their own interests, including inside and outside play, organized games, sports, arts and crafts and homework support. In addition, a daily snack is provided.

After School Program is a nonprofit organization with a community-based board of trustees. The program offers full-time all-year care and is staffed by a director and child care teachers licensed by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.

Fees, kept as low as possible, range from $100 to $200 a month. The program also accepts Title XX tuition assistance. For registration materials or more information, leave a message at 767-8145.

Yellow Springs Public Schools Mario Basora, superintendent, 767-7381; Matt Housh, Mills Lawn principal, 767-7217; Tim Krier, McKinney School/Yellow Springs High School principal, 767-7224 W E B : www.ysschools.org C O N TA C T:

project as graduation requirements.

Students in grades seven and eight attend McKinney Middle School, which is under the same roof as the high school, but McKinney School students have their own band and orchestra programs and participate in seasonal interscholastic sports activities.

Emphasis is placed on assessing and accommodating the uniqueness of the early adolescent child in a middle school environment.

Considerable effort is made to incorporate interdisciplinary studies through thematic units. McKinney students are afforded a variety of co-curricular opportunities including: athletics, Power of the Pen, Student Council and other activities.

Mills Lawn School focuses on excellence and quality in its mission to educate students in grades kindergarten through sixth. The school offers a safe and engaging environment that promotes inquiry and problemsolving. Mills Lawn School encourages students to “own” their learning and take pride in their work, as well as their school.

The school ensures that students develop strong reading and math skills by focusing on the individual and using data to drive instruction.

Mills Lawn School pursues an integrated academic approach that helps students see the connections between subject areas. The school’s focus on arts education and problem-based learning allows students to learn by doing, thinking and creating. Classes regularly leave the building to explore nature or visit important places that inspire their learning. The school actively recruits and welcomes guests to the school to help students understand their world from many perspectives.

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YSNEWS.COM

THE YELLOW SPRINGS NEWS WEBSITE.

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W O R L D-W I D E.

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Students in Yellow Springs have the opportunity to pursue an education in three Blue Ribbon National Schools of Excellence: Mills Lawn Elementary School, McKinney Middle School and Yellow Springs High School.

We are proud to announce that in 2014, the entire school district was chosen to join the Ohio Innovative Learning Network, a selective group (2 percent of districts statewide) of schools doing innovative work in public education.

The schools are dedicated to helping our students become the global change leaders of the future. Through the implementation of our 2020 Strategic Plan, we are giving our students the tools necessary to make a positive impact on our world and achieve their personal goals and dreams. The schools have a longstanding reputation for encouraging critical thinking, individual creativity, respect and appreciation for diversity, and authentic learning in science, the �ne arts and the humanities. The public schools are a vital and integral part of the Yellow Springs community and provide an education based on the belief that small schools can provide big opportunities. More recently, the schools have been noted for an instructional shift to Project-Based Learning, using inquiry and student voice/choice to guide learning.

Yellow Springs High School provides a comprehensive and varied curriculum for ninth- through 12th-grade students.

Advanced placement courses, college prep courses, vocational courses (through the Greene County Career Center), Post Secondary Options Education (PSEO), and a variety of electives are offered in many subject areas.

Numerous co-curricular oppor tunities are available to students: athletics, including a dozen varsity sports; band/orchestra; a theater program; academic clubs; the School Forest Club, Poetr y/Spanish Night, Charlotte Drake Youth Philanthropy Group, S.P.I.D.E.E., the Bulldog Contemporar y Dance Competition and other activities.

All students are required to perform 45 hours of community service and a senior

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

COMING HOME, BUT NOT FOR THE JOBS

By D I A N E C H I D D I ST E R

PAPER

PLASTIC BOTTLES & JUGS

GLASS BOTTLES & JARS

The high point of the Yellow Springs economy, like that of much of the rest of the nation, seems to have been during the post-World War II boom years of the 1950s and 60s. The town’s four small industries — Morris Bean, Vernay, YSI and Antioch Bookplate — employed hundreds of workers each, Antioch College was going strong, and small research firms — the Fels Lab and Kettering Research Institute, among others — fed off the college’s intellectual vitality. It was a time when young men like Wally Sikes and Tony Bent moved to the village for a job.

“It was easy to get a good job. There were lots of opportunities after World War II,” said Sikes, who came to Yellow Springs in 1949 to work in the Antioch College co-op department.

Both men brought their wives and settled in town, where they began raising families. It was a lively, vibrant time in the village, according to Sikes.

“It was great for young married couples here. There were lots of them,” Sikes said. “There were parties every week. If we didn’t go to a party on Saturday night, we felt deprived.”

More than five decades later, things

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have changed. Morris Bean, once the village’s largest employer with more than 500 workers, now employs around 100, and Vernay went from more than 400 employees to a handful, after moving its manufacturing plant to the South.

Antioch Bookplate, also once a large employer, gradually diminished, and then decamped entirely, as Creative Memories, to St. Cloud, Minn. Antioch College, after closing several years ago, has been reborn and is growing, but at a slow pace. Only YSI, now a part of ITT’s Xylem, continues to thrive.

Most people who move to the village no longer come for a job.

And yet they still come.

Wally Sikes knows this well. His granddaughter, Naomi Sikes Bongorno, is one of a close-knit group of YSHS Class of 1995 friends who in recent years have moved back to the village to raise their families.

“Although it’s different now, it’s still a vibrant town,” Sikes said.

The young women had all moved away for many years and began looking homeward only after they started families.

“I had such a good sense of community when I was growing up, and Yellow Springs is like no other place I’ve found,” Hilary Peirson, formerly Hilary Skea Lee, said. “I want that for my children, and for them to learn the values I learned growing up here.”

Moving back to the village offered considerable challeges to all four families, especially in terms of finding local jobs.

All of the women’s husbands did eventually find work — three of the four women are stay-at-home moms, for now. But none of the jobs are in Yellow Springs, and they all require commuting or the ability to work from home electronically.

Still, all four families made the move they dreamed about, so that their children could have the sort of small-town childhood that they themselves enjoyed.

“It took a lot of hard work and a little bit of magic,” Peirson said of

moving back to Yellow Springs.

THE GOLDEN AGE

In the early 1920s, Yellow Springs was a sleepy town with “an ancient sawmill, a nearly defunct canning plant, a grain elevator and a nursery that propagated evergreens from cuttings” with a combined total of perhaps 20 employees, according to Industries for Small Communities by Arthur Morgan.

Enter Dayton-area engineer Morgan, the new president of the moribund Antioch College, a man of great talent and big ideas. And his biggest idea featured smallness, specifically the importance of small communities.

“Throughout human history and for a long period before that, the small community has been the chief means for transmitting such basic cultural traits as good will, neighborliness and mutual confidence, without which no society can thrive,” Morgan wrote in the book.

Morgan believed that Yellow Springs could be a laboratory on the benefits of small community living, but when he arrived in 1920 this particular small town needed jobs. And the jobs needed to come from small industries, Morgan believed, ones large enough to offer work to a variety of people but small enough that their leaders cared about the town in which they lived. So he set about creating such a town. At the college he set up the Antioch Industrial Research Laboratory, aimed at engineering research and development. One of the first scientists lured to the college was Sergius Vernet, who was interested in a new principle of thermostat design.

Vernet’s work led to the creation of Vernay Laboratories, which went on to become the village’s largest employer.

The college was also instrumental in the development of Morris Bean, a foundry started by student Morris Bean; Yellow Springs Instrument, founded by Antioch alums Hardy Trolander and David Jones; and

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PHOTO BY MEGAN BACHMAN

Wally and Evelyn Sikes, foreground, moved to Yellow Springs in the 1950s to live and work in the community. Their children and grandchildren grew up in the village, and though the third generation has returned to raise their own children here, finding local jobs is not as easy as it once was. Pictured behind the elder couple are Linda Sikes and her son, Kevin Sikes-Gilbert, as well as her daughter, Naomi, and son-in-law, Chris Bongorno, with their children, from left, Nora and Elise.

Antioch Bookplate Company, founded

by Ernest Morgan (Arthur’s son) .

These small industries and others — such as Nosker Engineering, Vie Design, Odiorne Advertising and Dewine and Hamma Farm Seeds — grew to provide about 800 jobs in the late 50s and 60s, and were critical to the community not just for opportunities for employment, but for a town’s overall vitality, Morgan believed.

“The securing and developing of community industries is not just a matter of getting factories located and under way,” Morgan wrote in Industries for Small Communities. “It means building a total life and environment in which interesting and competent people would like to participate.”

In Yellow Springs, Morgan’s ideas seemed to work. Throughout the 50s,

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60s and 70s, local businesses buzzed right along, with several, such as Morris Bean and Vernay, which made automative components, riding the wave of the post-war boom of the automobile.

“It did seem as though small industry was thriving,” said Dr. Carl Hyde, who moved to town with his family in 1954 to start a medical practice. “Young people could stay in town to find jobs.”

And Morgan’s prediction that the leaders of small industry would engage with the community also panned out, as local CEOs gave time and energy for the betterment of the town.

“The leaders of the companies were involved with the village,” Bent said.

According to both Sikes and Bent, there was little social distance between the heads of companies and their workers, and the parties often

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

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>>> COMING HOME, BUT NOT FOR THE JOBS included people from all walks of life.

“The CEOs lived like anyone else,” Sikes said. “There wasn’t that much distinction between how the leaders of Vernay and Morris Bean lived and their employees.”

It was a time, nationwide, when working class people saw their living standard rise, and in Yellow Springs, Vernay employees benefitted from union representation while Morris Bean, though not unionized, sought to provide wages comparable to those of UAW workers.

“In the early days of Vernay and Morris Bean all their officers were Yellow Springs people and they employed Yellow Springs people,” according to Bent, who came to the village in 1952, also to work at the college. “That was the golden age. So many people were involved in making the community better.”

And according to Sikes, “There wasn’t much focus on economic development, because until the 1970s, things just happened.”

But at the beginning of the 1970s, that robust economy began changing.

A January 1971 Yellow Springs News article sounded a warning that local industries were losing about 10 to 15 percent of their jobs. YSI was down to 145 from 160, Morris Bean had laid off about 100 of the 600 it employed in Yellow Springs and Cedarville, and Vernay had dropped from 315 to 260. The job loss, which mirrored that nationwide, was linked to a downturn in the automotive industry, the article stated.

The local economic shift also reflected troubles at Antioch College, where the radical fervor of the ’60s and ’70s had taken a toll, according to Dr. Hyde. After the strike of the early 1970s, negative publicity led to fewer students, and the college’s enrollment slide, which ended with the school’s closure in 2008, had begun.

“People quit coming to Antioch because it was not a well-run college,” Hyde said.

“What happened in the town is reflected with what happened to the college.”

One way the loss of local jobs was felt by village families was that young people who went away to college were less likely to come back, according to Hyde.

And when the local leaders of local companies died or retired, replaced by leaders who no longer lived in the village, a huge change transpired, according to both Sikes and Bent. Those leaders were no longer engaged with the community, and not only their financial resources but their creativity and intellect no longer benefitted the town.

Sometime in the 1980s, Village leaders, worried about the economic downturn, began simple efforts to spark economic development.

While the economy in many American small towns thrived in the postwar years, Yellow Springs was singularly vibrant, Sikes believes.

“It had to do with the smallness, the success of our industries, the diversity of the people and the college

— without the college it wouldn’t be the same,” he said. “Living in Yellow Springs — it’s been a great ride.”

A NEW GENERATION

Wally Sikes’ granddaughter, Naomi Sikes Bongorno, never expected to come back to Yellow Springs. Like others in her group of friends from the YSHS Class of 1995, she chose city life, moving first after college to New York City, then in Cleveland.

But after she and her husband, Chris, had their first child several years ago, Bongorno found her-

“We were willing to sacrifice a great deal to get here. ... As you get older, having community means so much.”

Hilary Peirson self longing for Yellow Springs.

She and her husband had a good house in a good Cleveland neighborhood, but something wasn’t right.

“I couldn’t see a time when I’d be comfortable with Nora going out on her own,” Bongorno said recently. “I just couldn’t picture city life for my kids.”

Bongorno’s good friend Eden Robertson Matteson, living in Chicago with her husband and two children, was having similar thoughts. Her oldest, Eli, was getting ready for kindergarten and had been accepted in a highly rated school. But his school had more than a thousand kids, and no playground.

“I started crying every time I thought about being a kindergartner in this massive building, and no recess,” she said. “I thought of Mills Lawn and the grassy lawn.”

Two other good friends, Corrie Van Ausdal and Hilary Peirson, were also starting families and having similar thoughts. Peirson, who lived in Cincinnati, wanted her children to grow up in a tight-knit community.

“I knew Naomi since she was a baby,” Peirson said. “Growing up, we not only went to school together, we swam, played T-ball, went to Friends Music Camp at the same time.”

Matteson, wanting to be closer during a family member’s illness, was the first to return, in 2011. Her husband, Kevin, an ecologist, had a post-doc position at the University of Illinois at Chicago, but his boss agreed that he could work electronically part of the time, much to the couple’s surprise.

Then after they moved, he was offered a job at Miami University, to which he now commutes several days a week, almost three hours of driving each day.

Peirson and her husband were the next to move back to the village, but only after Ryan Peirson, a psychiatrist, was able to piece together a living from work at several area

institutions, including Wright State University and Montgomery County.

The Bongorno family was the last to move back, a year ago. They ended up with a house significantly smaller than their previous home and Chris Borgorno has the longest commute: an urban planner, he still works in Cleveland, where he drives every other week.

While her grandfather’s generation came to Yellow Springs for a job, Naomi Bongorno and her friends have come despite not finding jobs here.

“We were willing to sacrifice a great deal to get here,” Hilary Peirson said.

And they’re not the only ones. Other high school classmates have returned to the village, and all the women know other young families who moved here recently to raise their children. Higher enrollments at Mills Lawn School over the past several years seem to indicate that this may be a trend.

But the women also know families who wanted to move here but ended up somewhere else. The obstacles are real: a lack of jobs and a lack of affordable housing top the list.

With the help of family, their own determination and a little bit of luck, these four women managed to reach their dream of raising their children in Yellow Springs. And while they gave up some things, they don’t look back. Their children have prospered, all said, and they themselves have found the sense of com-

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munity they longed for. In the last few years they’ve been there for each other when parents died or faced major illness, when life sent the hard stuff their way.

“As you get older, having community means so much. We lose loved ones and death is more a part of our lives,” Peirson said. “There’s so much value in having good friends to share the happy and sad times.”

The phrase, “You can’t go home again” once gave her pause, Peirson said, but now she no longer worries that she’s chasing an unrealistic goal.

“You can go home again,” she said.

“I have, and I have no regrets.”

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

INDUSTRY EnviroFlight, LLC

Vernay Laboratories

C O N TA C T:

767-1988, 303 North Walnut Street W E B : www.enviro�ight.net

C O N TA C T:

EnviroFlight was founded in 2009 with the mission to develop sustainable animal and plant nutrients using regionally available, low-value materials. The company uses the coproduct from breweries, ethanol production, and pre-consumer food waste as a feedstock for black soldier �y larvae (hermetia illucens), a non pathogenic insect. EnviroFlight’s technologies enable the cost-effective production of sustainable, high quality nutrients without reliance on processed animal proteins or diminishing global resources such as �sh meal and �sh oil.

The company completed its research and development in 2011 and is now producing commercial feeds for the aquaculture, swine, pet industr y, and zoos.

EnviroFlight is part of a global team to improve food production in the developing world. The company was recently awarded a contract with the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA) and the United Nations Food Agriculture Organization (FAO) to develop technologies to assist Kenya in creating a local aquaculture and swine feed program.

Vernay Laboratories is a world leader and innovator in the design and manufacture of sophisticated fluid-handling components.

Since Sergius Vernet’s invention of the waxexpansion element that revolutionized the automotive thermostat in 1938, the company has been dedicated to meeting and exceeding the specialized needs of the global marketplace.

Vernay ser ves the industrialized world through sales and manufacturing facilities in Ohio, Georgia, the Netherlands, Italy, France, Brazil, Japan, Singapore and China. Vernay’s headquarters and research and development operation remain in Yellow Springs at its facility on East South College Street.

Vernay produces precision rubber products for the automotive, appliance, consumer, small engine and medical industries. Products include duckbill check valves, umbrella check valves, v-balls, diaphragms, bidirectional valves, combination valves, check valve assemblies, �ow controls and a variety of precision molded inserted products, such as the v-tip needle valves, poppets, solenoid armatures and seals.

Vernay was incorporated in 1946 and will celebratee its 68th anniversary in 2015.

Morris Bean and Company 767-7301, 777 E. Hyde Road www.morrisbean.com

C O N TA C T: WEB:

Morris Bean & Company had its beginnings as a co-op work project of Antioch College. It was once known as the Antioch Foundr y and occupied what is now the Antioch Theater on Corry Street. Morris Bean was assigned to the project as student manager in 1928, and the business incorporated with Morris as president and partowner in 1946.

The company supplies precision castings with extraordinary performance characteristics to manufacturers of commercial refrigeration, locomotive turbochargers, medical and cryogenic equipment. Morris Bean & Company is recognized as the source for castings exceeding normal industry capabilities. The company will celebrate its 69th anniversary in 2015.

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YSI Incorporated C O N TA C T:

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767-7241; 1700/1725 Brannum

info@ysi.com www.ysi.com

EMAIL: WEB:

YSI, Incorporated, a Xylem brand, is a manufacturer of precision scienti�c equipment. The company was founded in the village in 1948 by graduates of Antioch College.

YSI’s global headquarters, research and development lab, and largest manufacturing facility is located in Yellow Springs. YSI employs over 200 people locally and has additional employees who work in YSI facilities all over the world.

YSI’s major instruments and sensors are focused on environmental monitoring, namely water quality and velocity. These systems deliver high-quality data to governments and independent professionals who are actively maintaining our natural resources and ecosystems.

The Life Sciences division of YSI also manufactures bio-analyzers for pharmaceutical, health care and alternative fuel processing applications.

YSI’s slogan — “Who’s Minding the Planet?” ® — asks us to consider the commitment made by those who use our products to protect the planet and ensure a rich, sustainable future. Citizens who drink clean water, receive �ood warnings, enjoy recreational �shing, and patients with diabetes have all encountered the bene�ts of dedicated professionals utilizing YSI products.

You can connect with YSI on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and many other social media sites.

To read more about how our customers are using our instruments to manage local and global environmental issues — please visit our blog at: blog.ysi.com YSI is both ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 registered.

INDUSTRY

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FEWER LOCAL JOBS, MORE COMMUTING

By M E G A N B AC H M A N

YOGA SPRINGS STUDIO Est. 2003

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Heidi Hoover could be considered one of the lucky few. Her dream of living and working in Yellow Springs came true seven years ago when, after returning to her hometown to start a family, she was hired as a second-grade teacher at Mills Lawn Elementary School after substitute teaching there.

“Luckily something happened to open up here even though [the district] didn’t think it would,” Hoover said this week. “In my head teaching in Yellow Springs was always my ideal.”

Hoover, 40, now walks a few blocks to work, which means she doesn’t have to clear her car of snow in the winter and with less time commuting can spend more time with her 5-year-old daughter, Stella, and husband, Jonathan, who teaches at Clark State in Springfield. Hoover also loves seeing her students in town.

“I used to love to run into my teachers at Weaver’s [grocery store] and now they see me downtown — it’s really wonderful, that connection,” Hoover said. But, by her account, most Mills Lawn teachers don’t live in the village, and statistics show that only one in five local workers live in town.

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Antioch College literature professor Geneva Gano also considers herself fortunate to both live and work in the village, which to her means a more “laidback lifestyle of walking downtown and walking to work.” Hired in 2011 as the fifth tenure-track professor at the college, Gano and her husband, Joshua Paddison, made sacrifices to live here, such as buying a house that needed work when they would have preferred renting. But they wanted their two young children to attend Yellow Springs schools.

More than half of Antioch’s 28 faculty members live in town, according to the college, which Gano said she sees as fewer than there might be if more faculty positions were tenuretrack rather than contingent, and the college’s future was more certain.

Volker Bahn is another college professor who lives in the village, but he is among the 80 percent of working residents who commute. Bahn is also part of the 8 percent of villagers with a doctorate — eight times the state average.

Bahn moved to Yellow Springs with his wife, Deanna Newsom, and two small children in 2008 when he was hired as a biology professor at Wright State University. A fellow Yellow Springer who works at Wright State — one of at least a few dozen villagers with jobs at that university — sold him on the village soon after he got the position.

“It was walkable and the culture was liberal and well educated — it sounded fabulous,” Bahn said.

Now a tenured professor, Bahn doesn’t mind the 12-mile commute, which he tries to bicycle as often as possible. Last year he biked 150 days.

“Sure, it would be nice to work just around the corner, but I enjoy the bicycle ride — it’s a good workout,” he said. Still, the Village of Yellow Springs doesn’t collect any income taxes from Bahn.

Today, less than 20 percent of those who live in Yellow Springs also have their primary job here, a number that

has been falling over the last decade, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures.

With local jobs on the decline, to make ends meet residents are increasingly looking outside of town for employment — many traveling more than 50 miles for work — or working from home in greater numbers. That means less money is flowing to Village coffers, as employees are first taxed where they work.

Between 2002 and 2011 the village shed around 400 jobs, a 20 percent decline. Jobs in manufacturing and lower-paying jobs were lost at an even faster clip. Education is not only the principal occupation of local residents, but the main industry of the village economy, accounting for about one third of all local jobs — even though gains in that industry have only recently begun to make up for job losses incurred over the last decade.

Overall, annual payroll from local businesses has been stagnant for almost two decades, putting more pressure on Village government, which relies heavily on an income tax on local workers to pay for services. And this is not just part of a regional trend. Job losses here have been worse than regional and state averages and have taken place amidst job growth in Greene County and the U.S. from 2002 to 2011.

But the local economic picture has a silver lining. While the Yellow Springs economy has fared poorly in recent years, the financial situation for most households has improved, with local median household income outpacing state and federal growth to reach $58,750 in 2012. Over the last decade, the number of local firms held steady, with many smaller businesses now dominating the economic landscape and new businesses sprouting up each year. The unemployment rate in the village remained steady at around 8 percent over the last 10 years and is currently near the state average of 7.5 percent. And the local population has appeared to stabi-

“We are better together!”

Yellow Springs Offering support, information, understanding and advocacy for persons living with mental illness and their families. For more information, call 937-767-8622 or 937-408-3678 or email namiconnection. yellowsprings@yahoo.com or namifamily.yellowsprings@yahoo.com.

Affiliated with NAMI Greene County, NAMI OHIO, and the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

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Will LeVesconte assembled robotic connectors recently at the South High Street facility of local electronics distribution company Electroshield. LeVesconte, who grew up in the village and now lives in Fairborn, is one of the nearly 1,200 people who commute to Yellow Springs for their job. Commuters make up 80 percent of the local workforce.

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

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lize around 3,500 in the last few years after declining 25 percent since 1970.

To measure the health of the Yellow Springs economy, it’s critical to look at both what local jobs exist and where villagers work. Are there enough local jobs to fund existing Village services and to continue to attract and retain residents? Does Yellow Springs need more jobs, and, if so, what kinds of jobs?

How are villagers making ends meet if there are fewer jobs here? Is Yellow Springs a vital live-work community, or is it becoming a so-called bedroom community as the vast majority of residents commute for work? And how related is the available supply of affordable housing to growing new jobs here?

BEHIND THE BEDROOM COMMUNITY

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Based upon Census data, here are commuting patterns on a typical workday: 1,191 people commute into Yellow Springs to go to work, while 1,351 residents leave town to work elsewhere, and 304 people walk, bike or drive to their jobs within the village. That was the case in 2011, when about 18 percent of working residents had a job in town, a figure higher than comparable small towns like Bellbrook, Cedarville, Waynesville and Enon, on par with places like Xenia, Tipp City and Beavercreek and below the rate in Greenville, Springfield and Dayton. About 28 percent of villagers had a local job in 2002, or 450 people.

Why don’t more local employees live here? According to Village Council member and Yellow Springs Chamber of Commerce Director Karen Wintrow, high local housing prices are one deterrent.

Historically, local housing prices tracked with the regional average until 1990, when they diverged. Last year, local housing sales were double the Dayton area median sales at $201,750 according to the Dayton Area Board of Realtors.

For Will LeVesconte, 34, an assembler at electronics distribution company Electroshield, high housing prices were one factor that led him to move to Fairborn after growing up in the village, he said. LeVesconte has worked at the firm since he was 16 years old.

Currently, about half of Electrosheild’s 17 employees live in the village.

At the same time, local workers, in order to afford their high-priced homes, are leaving the village for work because they can’t find good jobs in the village, Wintrow added, in part because local industries are so specialized.

“Two things are going on — people that are coming here to work can’t find a place to buy, even though there would be a natural affinity for them to live here, such as those who work at the college,” Wintrow said. For those who live in town, “because our jobs are somewhat specialized — the major opportunities are the college, teaching at the [K-12] schools and YSI (Xylem) — there are only scatterings of other things,” they are forced to commute, she explained.

Figures show that villagers are traveling further distances to find work. More than one quarter of local commuters travel more than 50 miles from Yellow Springs to their job, which is double the state average, suggesting that many are now employed in places like Cincinnati and Columbus. Only eight percent of local workers made such a long-distance trek in 2002. Two-thirds of residents who work drive less than 24 miles to work, down from 80 percent in 2002. After Yellow Springs, the top five cities residents work in are Dayton (162 people), Fairborn (138), Springfield (106), Xenia (75) and Columbus (64).

Local resident Frank Doden, for instance, teaches English at the Colum-

bus School for Girls, which is about a 60-mile commute in each direction. In 1998, Doden was in a position called a “trailing spouse,” as he moved to the village with his wife, Lori Askeland, when she got a faculty position at Wittenberg University.

“Because of family circumstances, I also needed a full-time job with benefits, so I took a job teaching in Columbus, which was comparable to the job I had

“Two things are going on — people coming here to work can’t find a place to buy, [and for those who live in town], because our jobs are somewhat specialized, they are forced to commute.”

Karen Wintrow, President, Yellow Springs Chamber of Commerce had in Kansas,” Doden explained. But commuting doesn’t bother him, he said.

He likes the alone time listening to NPR, and he tries to save on gas money and to be environmentally conscious by driving a car with good gas mileage and longevity. His 2001 Volkswagen deisel-powered Beetle racked up 356,000 miles by 2013.

If Doden, Bahn and others don’t mind the commute, then what is the problem with the current trend of villagers seeking employment out of town?

First, the Village doesn’t benefit as much from the income of commuters, who pay income taxes where they work first. In addition, some locals have said they aspire to also work here in order to better balance work and home life.

And local businesses benefit by being more connected to the community.

Though specific data is not available, according to the memory of several villagers and News archives, historically many more people both lived and worked in town, in part because there were more local jobs available.

A 1982 News series on the local economy

Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S documented that, for example, half of Antioch Publishing Company’s 80 employees lived in town. When that firm closed up shop in 2012, none of the 38 mostly production employees lived in Yellow Springs.

One quarter of YSI’s 370 employees in 1982 lived in town — today the figure for the company, now Xylem, is eight percent of 197 employees. Though Vernay said that “less than 25 percent” of its 500 employees lived in town in early 1982, that number is significant compared with its 20 total employees in 2011 (it is unknown how many now live in town). Today about 6 percent of Friends Care Center’s 75 employees live in town and about 70 of Antioch College’s 160 employees (including the Glen, WYSO, Antioch Review) live in the village.

Former Antioch Publishing (later Creative Memories) CEO Lee Morgan witnessed the trend over the decades of fewer and fewer employees deciding to live in the village. Whereas it seemed that mostly “blue collar” workers would commute to town (from places like Springfield, from where Morgan said he could easily hitchhike in the early morning hours in the 1960s), and “white collar” employees lived in town, he saw that change when managers at his company also started to live out of town.

“The managers we hired wanted to live in Beavercreek and places that had no income tax so they could save money,” Morgan explained. “We would import managers and try to get them to live in Yellow Springs but they wanted more bang for their housing buck.

Over time it got worse and worse.”

Morgan said that the same was increasingly true for YSI and Vernay.

According to Susan Miller, who worked at YSI for 20 years, when CEO Malte Von Matthiessen left the company in 2002, none of those remaining in top management positions lived in town.

The trend was mirrored at other local companies, and can generally result in businesses “losing touch with the community,” she said. As an example, there were three major company foundations that supported local nonprofits here — the YSI Foundation, Vernay Foundation and Antioch Company Foundation — and now they are all defunct.

Miller attributed the trend of local employees living elsewhere to their lack of understanding about the benefits of paying a premium to live in Yellow Springs.

“They didn’t know the culture we love,” Miller said. “They thought, ‘I can get a lot bigger house and don’t have to fix it up.’ But once you live here a while, then you know why we pay a little more.”

According to Morgan, Antioch College was the only institution that tried to tackle the problem head on, by purchasing homes in the village for faculty housing. But those properties were later sold for cash.

“I believe it was a significant factor in the decline of the college — the college faculty should be strongly encouraged to live in Yellow Springs because it improves the quality of community life, and the whole essence of liberal

T H E G U I D E t o Y E L LOW S P R I N G S 2 0 1 4 –1 5 arts is a relationship between students and teachers,” Morgan said.

JOBS IMPACT VILLAGE FINANCES

The decline of local jobs means that fewer villagers can live and work in town and fewer people may be attracted to live here. But it also has dramatic implications for Village government, which is heavily dependent upon income taxes, and, to a lesser extent, for Yellow Springs Schools. Both entities, citing loss of income tax receipts, have asked for property tax levies in recent years to continue to deliver high-quality services (Village) and education (school district), further increasing the general cost of living in Yellow Springs.

In Ohio, municipalities can collect an income tax from local workers and residents to pay for government services (Some states, like Florida and Texas, don’t allow municipalities to impose income taxes at all). Yellow Springs first enacted an income tax of 1 percent in 1969 and increased it to 1.5 percent by a ballot initiative in 1985 that passed by 12 votes, according to a News article. Workers first pay the tax in the community in which they work and only pay income taxes to their home community if the home community’s rate is higher than where they work. In that case, the worker pays the difference. But since Yellow Springs’ income tax rate is lower than, or on par with, most municipalities in the area, it doesn’t take in much from those who don’t work here.

Generally speaking, the Village government relies on the income taxes collected from local employees to keep it running.

Last year these taxes, along with a tax on business profits, totaled $1.34 million, about half of general fund revenue and its single biggest revenue source.

In 2002, the Yellow Springs School District passed a 1 percent income tax levy that collects on the taxable income of all those who live in the school district regardless of where they work (and not on employees that don’t live here).

Income tax receipts from this levy, which generates between $200,000 and $300,000 for the schools, declined by 14 percent over a decade, whereas school leaders had initially projected steady growth, according to a News article. That decline was one reason the school district justified asking voters to approve a new 7.4-mill property tax levy in 2012, which voters did overwhelmingly.

Meanwhile, the 8.4-mill property tax levy for the Village approved by voters in 2006 by one vote and again in 2011 was first proposed to shore up Village finances during the local economic downturn. That levy has reduced the impact of job loss on the Village, according to Wintrow, while it has simultaneously reduced the affordability of living here.

“Without the money and additional funding that the property tax levy brings, we’d be in big trouble,” Wintrow said of Village finances. “We’re lucky a lot of villagers feel a socially conscious responsibility to the Village.”

And as the community ages faster than state and national averages (the

village’s median age was 12 years older than in Ohio in 2012), fewer villagers working in town also can mean less income tax coming in.

Just because there are fewer jobs doesn’t necessarily mean less income tax. In fact, local payroll has not declined as precipitously as the number of jobs, though it has stagnated. Data aren’t specifically available for the village, but in the 45387 zip code, annual payroll increased a paltry 1.1 percent between 1998 and 2011, to $63.4 million. That pales in comparison to growth in Greene County (66 percent), Ohio (30 percent), and the U.S. (56 percent) over the same time period. (In that 13-year period the number of employees in 45387 dropped 40 percent, from 2,854 to 1,640.) Meanwhile, expenses at the Village have grown from $7.1 million in 2005 to a $9.8 million in 2013 at an increase of about 5 percent per year.

VILLAGERS RESPOND

In the face of job declines, what are villagers doing to make ends meet? Data show that in addition to commuting more and further, villagers are also setting up shop in home-based businesses, and many are living more frugally. In addition, villagers are now discussing what can be done to turn the tide of local job loss. In what industries should local leaders focus their efforts? What are the best opportunities for growth in Yellow Springs considering the skills and education level of our residents? The article on page 32 addresses these topics.

(937) 605-8754

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS 365 Project John Gudgel jwgudge@sbcglobal.net

C O N TA C T: EMAIL:

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The 365 Project is a local volunteer organization that serves as a catalyst organization that challenges and supports the people of Yellow Springs and Miami Township to engage critically and respectfully in dialogue and action that promotes and sustains diverse African-American heritage and culture and educational equity, 365 days a year. The 365 Project meets monthly and has sponsored the annual Elaine Comegys Film Fest, community conversations and myriad other activities. For more information, contact John Gudgel at jwgudge@sbcglobal.net or P.O. Box 165, Yellow Springs, OH 45387.

AACW Faith Patterson, 767-9114 www.aacw.org

C O N TA C T: WEB:

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AACW (African American Cross-Cultural Works) is a grass-roots community organization operating under Ohio guidelines for nonpro�t organizations. Its activities focus on celebrating cultural diversity and working with other organizations to develop understanding of diversity in Yellow Springs, Wilberforce, Spring�eld, Xenia and neighboring communities.

The group has held more than 50 events at various times of the year, including the annual Blues Fest, which has been successful, in part, because of the increasing collaborative efforts of many individuals and

organizations in Yellow Springs and the surrounding area.

African-American Genealogy Group Robert L. Harris, 767-1949 rharris25@woh.rr.com www.aaggmv.org

C O N TA C T: EMAIL: WEB:

The African-American Genealogy Group of the Miami Valley is a nonpro�t service and educational organization devoted to the promotion of African-American genealogy and the study of black and family histories.

The organization’s main goals are to search for ancestors, their identi�cation and their documentation. Activities include lectures, networking, workshops and �eld trips for genealogical purposes. The organization also encourages the writing of personal family histories and historical and genealogical societies. Membership is open to everyone. Meetings are held monthly at various locations throughout the Miami Valley and southwestern Ohio.

Alcoholics Anonymous centralof�ce@aadaytononline.org www.aadaytononline.org

EMAIL: WEB:

Alcoholics Anonymous is a fellowship of men and women who meet to attain and maintain sobriety. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking.

There are no membership dues or fees.

Meetings are held in Yellow Springs on Sundays at 8 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church; Mondays at 8 p.m. at Bethel Lutheran Church; Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m. at United Methodist Church and Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7 p.m. at Rockford Chapel on the Antioch College campus.

Arthur Morgan Institute for Community Solutions Susan Jennings, 767-2161, 114 E. Whiteman Street E M A I L : info@community solution.org W E B : www.communitysolution.org, www. pluginscam.org, www.powerofcommunity. org, www.passivehouserevolution.org C O N TA C T:

The Arthur Morgan Institute for Community Solutions (CS) was founded in 1940 as

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Community Service, Inc. The Community Solutions program, started in 2003, provides knowledge and practices to support low-energy lifestyles, with a primar y focus on reducing CO 2 emissions in housing, transportation and food. The organization designs or locates solutions to the current unsustainable, fossil-fuel based, overly centralized way of living. The guiding principle for the organization is that small community living is optimal for society’s health. Community Solutions has presented five Peak Oil and Solutions conferences, written three books, including Plan C: Community Survival Strategies for Peak Oil and Climate Change, and produced the award-winning �lms “Power of Community: How Cuba Sur vived Peak Oil” and “The Passive House Revolution.”

Better Health Co-op C O N TA C T:

Box 262

Billie Eastman, 767-1511, P.O.

The Better Health Cooperative, Inc., is a lay organization working to achieve physical and mental well-being through emphasis on nutritional balance, physical exercise and spiritual awareness. The co-op’s main program is hair analysis.

Membership is open to anyone interested in working on maintaining and improving their health. Membership fee is $10 a year for individuals, $12 a year for families and can be sent to the co-op’s post office box.

Bryan High School Alumni Association C O N TA C T:

Mickey Harwood, 937-629-3862

The Br yan High School Alumni Association, formed in 1997, meets the first Thursday of February, April, June, August and October at 10 a.m., in meeting room A, Bryan Center. Any person who attended Bryan when it was a high school (1929– 1963) or anyone who attended junior high there is encouraged to attend meetings and become a member.

An annual event/reunion is held once a year at Bryan Community Center for all eligible persons and their guests.

An online local social service directory...

Are you a • non-profit • faith-based group • public service • business who offers need-based discounts If so, contact info@yellowspringshelp.org to be included in the directory.

Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

Yellow Springs Chamber of Commerce Karen Wintrow, executive director, 101 Dayton Street; 767-2686 W E B : www.yellowspringsohio.org C O N TA C T:

The Yellow Springs Chamber of Commerce is a nonpro�t corporation whose mission is to promote economic development and maintain and improve the prosperity of its member businesses and organizations, thereby improving the quality of life in the Yellow Springs area community. The Chamber supports more than 300 members.

The Chamber hosts member events on the third Thursday of every month. Chamber Chats are informal member gatherings to discuss areas of interest for members.

Seminar series bring in professionals to present educational programming. Meetings are held either at 9 a.m. or noon in the Bryan Center, rooms A and B. Business After Hours is a series of networking events held at member locations as an opportunity for them to highlight their business, which are held 5:30–7:30 p.m.

With its of�ces centrally located in the Yellow Springs Station on the Little Miami Bike Trail, visitors and residents can also stop into the of�ce for information and brochures. Chamber employees and volunteers staff the of�ce 9 a.m.–5 p.m. week days, and noon–5 p.m. on weekends.

Twice a year — on the second Saturday in June and October — the Chamber sponsors the Yellow Springs Street Fair to showcase the community. Other major events include YS Pride and Holiday in the Springs, plus numerous smaller events throughout the year.

Charlie Brown Patient and Caregiver Support Group Rubin Battino, 767-1854 rubin.battino@wright.edu

C O N TA C T: EMAIL:

The Charlie Brown Exceptional Patient and Caregiver Support Group meets the �rst and third Thursdays of every month from 7–8:30 p.m. in the Senior Center great room.

The group provides support for anyone who has (or has had) a life-challenging disease, and also for caregivers. The service is free.

Meetings provide an opportunity for attendees to share in con�dence what is going on in their lives. Group members listen respectfully and attentively to each other’s stories.

COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS

T H E G U I D E t o Y E L LOW S P R I N G S 2 0 1 4 –1 5

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Meetings end with a healing meditation.

There is a free lending library.

Yellow Springs Community Foundation Virgil Hervey, foundation administrator, 767-2655 E M A I L : info@yscf.org W E B : www.yscf.org C O N TA C T:

The Yellow Springs Community Foundation is a tax-exempt, public charitable foundation established to bene�t the citizens and community of Yellow Springs and Miami Township.

The foundation’s mission is to enhance community life by providing means for charitable giving and grant making that fund a broad range of activities.

Created in 1974, the foundation has assets of $10 million. Endowment funds account for most of those assets, and bene�ciaries include Glen Helen, Community Children’s Center, Senior Citizens, educational scholarships and awards, community athletic and music programs, YS Endowment for Education, YS Kids Playhouse, Yellow Springs Library, a student-run youth philanthropy program, the Women’s Park, the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, Home, Inc., Chamber Music Yellow Springs, Friends Care Community, Greene Environmental Coalition and Tecumseh Land Trust. The Richard and Nolan Miller Endowment benefits Antioch students demonstrating commitment to working with nonpro�ts in Yellow Springs.

The work of the foundation is made possible by the contributions of communityminded donors. Gifts may be made for general or speci�c purposes. Donors may choose direct donations, bequests and a wide variety of other planned gifts. Families may choose to honor a loved one through a memorial fund.

Community Resources Kathryn Van der Heiden, chairperson, 767-2153, P.O. Box 214 E M A I L : communityresources@ yellowsprings.com W E B : www.yellowsprings.com/cr C O N TA C T:

Community Resources is a nonpro�t community improvement corporation whose aim is to foster economic and community improvement by supporting projects, busi-

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

K E T T E R I N G H E A LT H N E T W O R K

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS

nesses and ideas in Yellow Springs and Miami Township, and to make this region a vibrant, economically healthy, diverse and affordable place to live and work.

The group is focusing on development of the 46-acre Center for Business and Education at the northwest corner of Dayton Street and East Enon Road. A major effort is underway to provide utilities and roads for the business park.

Village and township residents with projects, ideas and proposals or who wish to help with one of the projects are encouraged to contact Community Resources.

organic food and other household products at affordable prices, with a minimum of work for its members. Members place orders online from a wide selection of products.

Delivery is every four weeks on Wednesday afternoon.

Corner Cone Farmers Market

Friends Care Community has a single goal: the af�rmation of life. Friends Care’s continuous care community has succeeded in meeting the needs of seniors who seek security and quality care, �rst with extended care, then with assisted living and independent living homes. Friends Care is located on a 22-acre campus. Friends is owned and operated by the Friends Health Care Association and has been a nonpro�t community for over 30 years.

Friends Care is a 66-bed skilled and longterm nursing facility. In August of 2011, Friends completed construction on a new, 16 private room rehabilitation center, providing a distinct unit for care of short-term stay rehab and nursing services.

Friends Assisted Living Center is a licensed 20-unit facility designed to enhance independence, security and socialization in a quiet setting.

Friends Independent Living Homes are senior living duplexes. Buyers can choose between two- and three-bedroom units and two building design plans. Each duplex features a garage, appliances and maintenancefree living.

C O N TA C T:

Phil Hagstrom, 265-5411

The Corner Cone Farmers Market is in its third season and welcomes small and large growers to sell their produce and homemade products. There are 13 spaces, and at times, participants will squeeze together to accommodate an additional vendor. This market supports economic diversity and openness with as few rules as possible. The Corner Cone Farmers Market does not require rent or dues and is made possible by the generosity of Bob and Sue Swaney, owners of Corner Cone, located at the Corner of Dayton and Walnut Streets.

The market is open 7–11 a.m. Saturdays.

Enhance Worldwide Ashley Lackovich-Van Gorp, 937708-0144 E M A I L : enhanceworldwide@gmail.com W E B : enhanceworldwide.org C O N TA C T:

Enhance Worldwide envisions communities where girls and women have the skills to lead meaningful, digni�ed lives and where each individual has agency, autonomy and aspirations. Working toward this vision, Enhance Worldwide helps girls, women and their communities discover strategies to navigate the challenges to their wellbeing in order to develop as individuals in their own right. Established in spring of 2014, Enhance is beginning its �rst project in fall of 2014, in collaboration with another nonpro�t, Common River. Working together, Common River and Enhance are implementing a vocational training and life skills program for women in Aleta Wondo, Ethiopia.

Feminist Health Fund Sue T. Parker, 767-9146; Marianne Whelchel, 767-1033; P.O. Box 323 B O A R D M E M B E R S : Denise Cupps, Elizabeth Danowski, Esther Hetzler, Sue T. Parker, Kathy Robertson, Janet Jenks Ward, Marianne Whelchel.

C O N TA C T S :

The Feminist Health Fund grew out of a local woman’s need for alternative health care during her struggle with cancer in 1978, and was founded by local feminist Gene Trolander.

Funds are raised yearly or as the need arises, and grants have ranged from $100 to $3,000. An average of eight to ten women are helped each year.

To apply for help or to discuss a donation, contact us at our post of�ce box listed above.

Food Co-op/ Buying Club C O N TA C T:

Luan and David Heit, 767-1823

The Yellow Springs Food Co-op is a local buying club. The group orders natural and

Friends Care Community 767-7363, 150/170 E. Herman Street W E B : www.friendshealthcare.org C O N TA C T:

Great Books Ken Huber, 767-1160 kenneth.huber@att.net

C O N TA C T: EMAIL:

Currently, meetings are held September through June on the �rst Thursday of the month at 6:30 p.m. in the �replace room of the Y.S. Senior Center, 227 Xenia Ave. The Great Books Foundation, a pioneer of book discussion, brings together people whose love of reading is part of their zest for lifelong learning. The group uses the Foundation’s method of shared inquiry. This encourages participants to look to their own experiences rather than to outside sources of expertise in the discussion of a work.

For 2014–2015, the group will discuss “Swann’s Way” by Marcel Proust in September and “The Things They Carried, a collection of short stories by Tim O’Brien, in October; it will then continue with the two remaining selections from the fourth volume in the Foundation’s Great Conversations series -— “Lava Cameo” by Eavan Boland and “Life of Nicias” by Plutarch. The group has not yet decided on the works it will discuss during the �rst half of 2015.

Green Environmental Coalition 767-2109, P.O. Box 553 gec@greenlink.org www.greenlink.org

C O N TA C T: EMAIL: WEB:

The Green Environmental Coalition (GEC) is a grass-roots activist group founded in 1990. The coalition’s mission is to have a positive impact on local, state and regional environmental issues.

Currently GEC is involved in several proj-

ects in the area, including: • Monitoring the water quality of Hebble Creek which runs through the Pitstick Pork Farm after ODA approval to raise its capacity to over 7,000 pigs, making it the eighth largest CAFO in Ohio.

• Conducting a cancer study of cases in Yellow Springs using data from the Ohio Department of Health.

• Assisting Greene County residents in their opposition to a rezoning application from Cemex to build another quarry near a residential area.

• Launching a major campaign against hydraulic fracturing for natural gas and oil, which includes holding public meetings, educational outreach and working with local and state government.

GEC helps support neighbors’ involvement in a range of local environmental issues, as well as becoming involved in state and federal environmental regulation efforts. Interested persons are welcome to attend the regular business meetings on the �rst Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m., on the �rst �oor of the Union School House, 314 Dayton Street.

Grinnell Mill Foundation

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The Grinnell Mill foundation is a nonpro�t foundation comprised of Miami Township, Glen Helen and the Yellow Springs Historical Society. Its purpose is the preservation and promotion of the historical and educationally

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T H E G U I D E t o Y E L LOW S P R I N G S 2 0 1 4 –1 5

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COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS

valuable Grinnell Mill located at 3536 Bryan Park Road. For more information, please visit grinnellmill.org.

Historical Society David Neuhardt, president, 7677106; Nancy Noonan, 767-7773; P.O. Box 501 W E B : www.yshistory.org; blog.yshistory.org; “Yellow Springs Historical Society” on Facebook C O N TA C T:

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The Yellow Springs Historical Society is dedicated to telling the stories of Yellow Springs’ histor y. The society looks for fresh ways of making the histor y of Yellow Springs, Miami Township and the region real and exciting to local residents and visitors.

The society plans four or more programs a year at which a dif ferent stor y is told. In addition, the society seeks to make these stories accessible to a wider audience through other means. These other ef for ts have included photo and other exhibits at the Street Fair and other public events; publications, including the popular reprint of Harold Igo’s local ghost stories from the Yellow Springs News and a biography of William Mills by Jane Baker; cooperation with local histor y programs in schools; stories and announcements on the website and Facebook; community events and celebrations; suppor t of oral and video histor y projects; advocacy for the preser vation, and for collecting the stories, of historic structures and maintenance of the Antioch Bookplate archives.

Future projects include walking tours

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with supplemental brochures, a formal inventor y of a growing collection of artifacts, in-depth research on the historical houses of Yellow Springs and the longterm vision of a museum and research center. The Historical Society is a co-sponsor of the Grinnell Mill Foundation, which promotes the preser vation of the mill. The historic Grinnell Mill Museum is open to the public year-round on Saturday and Sunday.

Membership fees are modest, and the group’s public programs are free and open to the public.

Home Assistance Program Erika Mahle, LSW; located at the Senior Center, 227 Xenia Avenue, 7675751, ext. 107, fax: 767-7435 E M A I L : ysschap@gmail.com C O N TA C T S :

The Home Assistance Program is a service of the Yellow Springs Senior Center with partial funding from the Greene County Council on Aging for residents of Yellow Springs and Miami Township. Assistance is available to help older persons and people with disabilities remain in their homes, �nd solutions to problems that arise with diminishing abilities for self-care and care of the home, and strengthen the support offered by family and friends.

James A. McKee Association Harry Lipsitt, president, 7678061; Kent Bristol, secretary, 767-7773; Bill Bebko, treasurer, 767-1521 W E B : www.45387.org C O N TA C T S :

The James A McKee Association, aka Jim’s Group, formerly known as the Yellow Springs Men’s Group, was organized by the late James A. McKee, the longtime police chief of Yellow Springs who was known to many villagers as simply “Chief.”

At Jim’s Group’s bi-monthly meetings a guest speaker is invited to help keep the group informed about some element of the community — Village, Township or school representatives, business owners, and representatives from community organizations. The regular meeting agenda includes updates on Village, Township and school governance activities, as well as local business news.

Jim’s Group sponsors the annual James A McKee Scholarship award to deserving graduating high school seniors who have

Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S demonstrated both academic achievement and leadership skills. Jim’s Group also sponsors the annual Founders Award to recognize individuals and/or groups (nominated by villagers) who’ve made a significant contribution to the community through voluntary effort.

Jim’s Group also supports the annual Martin Luther King Jr. oratory contest, the Lions Club �reworks fund, as well as other community organizations.

Jim’s Group continues to sponsor Candidates Night — a forum for candidates for local of�ce to present their views to and to interact with voters.

Kings Yard Farmers Market C O N TA C T:

Michele Burns, 319-6076

For over 20 years, the Yellow Springs Farmers Market has offered an opportunity for area growers to sell extra produce from their farms, gardens and homes. The Kings Yard Farmers Market is open Saturdays from May through October, 7:30–11:30 a.m., in the Kings Yard Market Place parking lot.

Now there are over 20 vendors at the market, and all products are raised or grown in Ohio by licensed agri-businesses. Many are certi�ed organic, and all are part of the Ohio Proud Program.

La Leche League Laura Ann Ellison, 767-1097 or 708-6392 E M A I L : ellisonla@mindspring.com W E B : www.llli.org C O N TA C T:

Mothers who wish to breastfeed their babies will �nd encouragement and information from La Leche League International. La Leche League leaders are available by phone 24 hours a day. Leaders are available for private consultation, home visits and hospital visits.

La Leche League is a mother-to-mother breastfeeding suppor t group. La Leche League leaders are accredited through La Leche League International. Leaders stay informed of current medical research and best practice. Leaders encourage the sharing of personal experiences from mother-tomother.

Lions Club C O N TA C T:

Carol Gasho, 767-2168

Chartered in 1951, the Yellow Springs Lions Club aids the blind and visually dis-

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S abled and supports community projects. For many years the club has funded eye exams and glasses for local needy individuals, primarily schoolchildren.

The Lions are responsible for bringing the 4th of July �reworks show to Yellow Springs.

They plan this event year-round. Club members also erect American �ags downtown on national holidays. The club administers the $3,500 Foos Scholarship, which goes to a high school senior planning to major in math or science.

Most Lions Club funds raised in Yellow Springs are returned to the community, but regular support is also given to area and state eye banks, Ohio Lions eye research and helper dog programs. A special effort every year to collect and recycle eyeglasses and lenses for the use of people in other countries is an ongoing project, and collection boxes can be found in several locations throughout Yellow Springs.

Dinner meetings are held at the Friends Care Assisted Living facility on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month, except in July and August, and include a brief program on a topic of interest from a guest speaker.

Masonic Lodge C O N TA C T: WEBSITE:

Don Lewis, 937-901-6211 www.YellowSprings421.org

The Yellow Springs Masonic Lodge was chartered in 1868. Its mission is to provide a fraternal brotherhood that supports the principles of brotherly love, relief and truth.

Masonr y is a place where one can find unlimited opportunities to acquire leadership experience, self-development and personal

COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS growth while enjoying fellowship and service to the community.

McKinney/ Yellow Springs High School PTO Craig Mesure, 937-708-0559 yshspto@gmail.com

C O N TA C T: EMAIL:

All parents/guardians of students attending the McKinney School or YSHS will be considered members of the PTO. There are no membership dues.

The PTO meets monthly; the regular meeting time will be announced at the beginning of the school year. Discussion, speakers and events are planned to strengthen the community and develop parent and educational success. For additional information, email yshspto@gmail.com or call PTO co-chair Craig Mesure at 937-708-0559 or Melissa Heston at 937-901-0344.

Mills Lawn PTO Nancy Sundell-Turner, president sundellturner@woh.rr.com W E B : www.yellow-springs.k12.oh.us/MLS_ PTO.aspx C O N TA C T: EMAIL:

The Mills Lawn Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) is a volunteer organization that strives to support students, families and teachers in the educational process by providing educational enrichment programs and services, as well as social activities for the Mills Lawn Elementary School community.

The PTO sponsors fundraising events to pay for these activities, programs and services.

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Morgan Family Foundation Lori M. Kuhn, executive director, 767-9208 E M A I L : info@morganfamilyfdn.org W E B : www.morganfamilyfdn.org C O N TA C T:

The Morgan Family Foundation is a private family foundation based in Yellow Springs, Ohio, and funded in December 2003

by Lee and Vicki Morgan. The foundation believes in: • building stronger, more inclusive communities; and • broadening horizons and inspiring action through the power of education and experiential learning.

The foundation awards grants to public charitable organizations that primarily serve Yellow Springs and St. Cloud, Minn., and their immediate vicinity. In addition, other communities and organizations that are supported by board and family members may receive grants from time to time. Through 2015, unsolicited grant requests are being considered only from St. Cloud.

NAMI Donna Sorrell, 767-8622; Kathryn Hitchcock, 408-3678.

E M A I L : namiconnection. yellowsprings@yahoo.com; namifamily. yellowsprings@yahoo.com C O N TA C T S :

The National Alliance on Mental Illness, or NAMI, of Yellow Springs is a grassroots organization offering two free peer-led support groups for persons living with mental

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illness, their families and friends. Also, we advocate to end the stigma associated with mental illness through our educational and outreach efforts. Moreover, we advocate for change in the current mental health system.

We are af�liated with NAMI Greene County, NAMI Ohio and the national NAMI organization.

NAMI Connection is an ongoing support group for adults with mental illness. At Connection meetings, participants can safely and con�dentially talk about their illness, learn new coping skills and �nd hope. Meetings are held weekly on Wednesdays from 6:30–8 p.m. at the John Bryan Center, rooms A and B, lcoated at 100 Dayton St. in Yellow Springs.

NAMI Family is an ongoing suppor t group for family and friends who live with or care for someone with mental illness.

Participants share their experiences and offer help and support to others. Meetings are held the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month from 6:30–8 p.m., at the YS Senior Center, located at 227 Xenia Ave. in Yellow Springs. For more information or to �nd out how you can help with our mission, please contact Donna Sorrell, 937-767-8622 or Kathryn Hitchcock, 937-408-3678. Email: namiconnection.yellowsprings@yahoo.com or namifamily.yellowsprings@yahoo.com. In case of any medical emergency, dial 911.

Narcotics Anonymous Helpline, 937-505-0705 www.�veriversna.org

C O N TA C T: WEB:

Narcotics Anonymous is a fellowship for achieving recovery from addiction. The only

requirement for membership is a desire to stop using drugs. The program has found that one addict helping another works to achieve that, when all else fails. An open meeting is held in the basement of the Yellow Springs Methodist Church Saturday nights at 7:30 p.m.

Neighborhood Gardens C O N TA C T:

767-2729

Neighborhood gardening is based on a simple idea: to have places within walking distance of one’s home where neighbors can garden together. Presently, �ve neighborhood gardens are open: at Friends Care, Bill Duncan Park, Corry Street, Fair Acres Park and Glass Farm. This year, 70 gardeners signed up for plots. Most of the present gardeners do not own land, or do not have suitable sites for gardens because of shade.

Currently, no fees or deposits are required, in order to promote a central value of affordability.

The group’s steering committee is comprised of representatives selected by each neighborhood garden group, liaisons with the Environmental Commission and Village manager and experienced garden mentors. For more information, or to sign up for a plot, contact Thor and Friends at 767-2729.

Odd Fellows C O N TA C T: EMAIL:

Dean Severtson, 937-286-2637

ysioof279@yahoo.com

The Yellow Springs Lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows dates back to 1855. Odd Fellows follow the precept to “visit the sick, relieve the distressed, bur y the dead and educate the orphan.”

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The local lodge sponsors annual scholarships for Yellow Springs High School seniors and contributes to charitable organizations. Recent activities include sponsorship of the Fourth of July parade and Fourth of July fireworks at Gaunt Park, road cleanup, park maintenance, Street Fair participation and various fun social activities.

IOOF Lodge #279 meetings are held on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month in the Lodge Hall, 261 Xenia Avenue, starting with a social hour at 6:15 p.m. Men and women over the age of 16 are welcome to join.

Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

Ranch Menagerie Animal Sanctuary Nick Ormes, 937-231-1046, P.O. Box 123 E M A I L : theranchmenagerie@yahoo.com W E B : TheRanchMenagerie.org; Facebook. com/TheRanchMenagerie C O N TA C T:

For the past seven years, the ranch has become a home for many mis�ts and small, mixed breed farm animals that otherwise would have been euthanized or sent to slaughter. Over the past few years, the ranch has re-homed or adopted out over 50 sheep and goats.

Riding Centre The Riding Centre, 767-9087 www.ridingcentre.org

C O N TA C T: WEB:

The Riding Centre was established in 1960 by Louise Soelberg as an educational, nonpro�t project dedicated to the teaching of horsemanship, the care and management of horses and the training of young teachers.

Located on a portion of Glen Helen, Riding Centre facilities include a large outdoor ring, a lighted indoor ring, a cross-country hunt course, several trails and two stables, which house the school’s horses, boarders and the Therapeutic Riding Program.

The Therapeutic Riding Program, started in 1974, ser ves adults and children with developmental disabilities. Carolyn Bailey is the riding teacher for the program.

The Riding Centre also features summer riding day camps, in which children attend a four-hour-daily schedule for one week, learning about the care of horses and the skills of riding.

Senior Citizens Center 767-5751, 227 Xenia Avenue ysscof�ce1@gmail.com www.seniorcitizenscenter.org

C O N TA C T: EMAIL: WEB:

The Yellow Springs Senior Center is dedicated to enhancing the dignity and quality of life for seniors in Yellow Springs and Miami Township. The Senior Center assists with transpor tation needs, homemaking needs, and navigation of bene�ts available to seniors. The Senior Center also offers many activities. The loaning of wheelchairs, bath benches and other ambulatory care equipment is also available. Hearing aid assistance, health screenings, and caregiver support can also be received at the

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Membership in the Senior Center is open to ever yone. Family members are encouraged to join and become aware of the resources available. The Senior Center is open Monday through Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Please come by for a visit.

Sowelo C O N TA C T:

767-2258, P.O. Box 450

Sowelo (pronounced so-wee-low) is a nonpro�t community-based network of practitioners with diverse expertise in end-of-life issues, committed to serving the Yellow Springs area.

Sowelo offers support, education, facilitation and empowerment to those who are coping with complex health choices and needs. It also helps people who are not dying but who may be facing mortality issues. Although Sowelo is not hospice, it may be helpful prior to, in the absence of, or in conjunction with hospice. The group also provides support to dying animals and their human companions. Fees are based on ability to pay.

Tecumseh Land Trust C O N TA C T:

417

Krista Magaw, 767-9490, P.O. Box

krista@tecumsehlandtrust.org www.tecumsehlandtrust.org

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Tecumseh Land Tr ust is a nonprofit conservation organization serving Greene and Clark counties and surrounding areas.

The purpose of the organization is to preserve agricultural land, natural areas, water resources and historic sites, in voluntary cooperation with landowners, and to educate the public about permanent land preservation. The organization assists landowners in navigating state and federal easement programs and accepts donated easements on farmland and natural areas. Tecumseh Land Trust has helped preserve over 24,000 acres of land in the area. Landowners may contact the organization’s of�ce to learn more about the potential tax and economic bene�ts of conservation options.

Tenant Cooperative Paul Buterbaugh, 767-2224 paulbuterbaugh@sbcglobal.net

C O N TA C T: EMAIL:

The Tenant Cooperative of Yellow Springs and Miami Township offers free consultation on matters of tenant/landlord disputes.

Typical problems relate to security deposit return, maintenance, eviction and discrimination in rental offerings.

COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS

UNICEF C O N TA C T:

Joy Fishbain, 767-7724

UNICEF, the United Nations Children’s Fund, has worked since 1946 to protect the lives of children around the world. Assistance is provided in the areas of health care, safe water supply, sanitation, nutrition, education and training.

The Yellow Springs community has given generous support to UNICEF. Many residents make an effort to purchase Unicef cards and children collect donations during Halloween “Trick or Treat for Unicef.” The holiday card consignee program has been discontinued, but cards can be purchased from Hallmark Gold Crown Stores, Pier One Imports or by contacting Joy Fishbain for assistance.

Winter Farmers Market 767-7560 wintermarket@yellowsprings.com

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Located in the basement of the United Methodist Church at 202 S. Winter Street, the winter market is open every Saturday morning, January–March, 9 a.m.–noon. The market features hoop-house produce, baked goods, jellies, honey, eggs, pork, cheese, maple syrup, granola and more items from many of the same vendors who attend the summer markets. Some Saturdays feature local musicians.

Follow the market on Facebook at “Yellow Springs Winter Farmers Market.”

Yellow Springs Home, Inc. Chris Hill, program manager, 937767-2790, P.O. Box 503 W E B : www.yshome.org, www.facebook.com/ yellowspringshomeinc C O N TA C T:

Yellow Springs Home, Inc. (Home, Inc.) is a nonpro�t organization whose mission is to strengthen community and diversity in Yellow Springs and Miami Township by providing permanently affordable, sustainable housing through our Community Land Trust model. Home, Inc. accomplishes its mission through four major areas: • Working with low- and moderate-income households to prepare for home ownership • Building and rehabbing homes and rentals affordable to low- and moderate-income families • Supporting homeowners in the program through stewardship activities • Advocating for sustainable development Home, Inc. has built or rehabbed 17 homes and has not had a single foreclosure

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since founding.

Home, Inc. is organized as a membershipbased Community Land Trust (CLT) with a board of directors that is at least one third low income, and which includes at least one homeowner. The CLT model encourages the permanent affordability of each home built.

Funding from local donors, foundations, and county and sate government helps to support its housing development efforts.

Yellow Springs Tree Committee C O N TA C T:

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767-2162 or 767-2981, P.O. Box

The Yellow Springs Tree Committee was founded in 1982 with these goals: • To provide leadership in the planting and care of trees on the public lands of Yellow Springs • To serve as an advisory group to the public on tree and shrub care, selection and removal • To promote the improvement of private property through the wise selection and use of trees The Tree Committee grew out of two community tree-planting projects: a 1976 planting of trees on the Mills Lawn school grounds to honor Yellow Springs News editor Kieth Howard, and a continuing beautification program of tree plantings throughout the village.

The committee offers a tribute and memorial tree-planting program to honor a life, a service or a signi�cant event. New members are always welcome to join the Tree Committee.

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The Vitamin Outlet in the Yellow Springs News, 2531/2 Xenia Ave. • 767-7373

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

AT TIMES, HOME IS WHERE THE WORK IS

By M E G A N B AC H M A N

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Downing’s

Like many of today’s college graduates, Emma Woodruff left Antioch College under a mountain of debt and with few job prospects. So she fell into a growing local industry catering to tourists and residents — accommodation and food service — working stints as a Sunrise Café server and in the kitchen of the Emporium Café.

But the 28-year-old local musician is having a hard time paying off the debt she incurred getting her 2008 performing arts degree. When unemployed last year, Woodruff was able to crash at different people’s homes in town because of the “safety net” of the Yellow Springs community, she said.

She is now looking for a stable, higherpaying job to afford a place of her own — perhaps a job out of town — but is not confident in the current market.

“Living and doing my art is important but I’m starting to realize that in order to sustain a life here, currency is a huge thing,” Woodruff said. “Food service is not something I want to do forever.”

Forty years earlier the experience of a then 19-year-old high school graduate Susan Miller couldn’t be more different.

Miller, without a college degree, walked into the office of Kettering Research

Hardware

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Laboratories near the Antioch campus and was hired on the spot. After working there until the business closed in the 1980s, Miller was unemployed for less than two weeks before landing a position at YSI, Inc., where she worked until retirement a few years ago at age 62.

Even without a college education, Miller had no problem finding work in Yellow Springs.

“I have really never looked for a job,” Miller said.

David Flowers, 29, moved to the Yellow Springs area after studying engineering at Cedarville University and initially tried his hand at contracting. But when the prospect of investing in the equipment needed to start a construction business would have left him in debt for 20 years and doing work he found somewhat wasteful, he instead decided to start an ecologically friendly business manufacturing custom wooden eyeglass frames.

Featherwood Frames, a two-person company based on Yellow Springs-Fairfield Road, is now 80 percent pedal-powered, uses salvaged wood and nontoxic finishes and has its products sold in retail outlets in Manhattan, Minneapolis and other cities across the country.

While the business is a success by his standards, he couldn’t make enough from it to afford a house in Yellow Springs, so he’s matched his lifestyle to the limited returns of the venture.

“I’ve realized for me to pursue my goals, I’d have to live within my means,” Flowers said. “The biggest thing is trying to have a balanced life. I don’t want to be a workaholic. I want to have good friendships and be a member of the community.”

How are Yellow Springers adjusting to the economic realities of today?

The “golden age” of the Yellow Springs economy of the 1950s and 1960s, when a noncollege educated resident could get a good-paying job or a stable manufacturing job at a growing local firm, are over, a reality that also reflects the stagnant national economy.

U.S. Census figures show that local residents are increasingly staying home to make their living, and at rates that exceed state and national averages. Many are working in home-based businesses or are self-employed in their own small ventures around town, and these businesses sometimes strive to be socially and environmentally responsible. Other residents are barely getting by with the limited local work available and have had to downsize their consumption to keep living here.

What does the new local economy look like? How does that bode for the village’s future? How have these trends specifically affected younger villagers?

MORE LOCAL JOBS TRENDS

There are some seeming bright spots in local jobs trends. For one, though

there are fewer overall jobs in the village than 10 years ago, there are more higher paying jobs, which is likely why total annual payroll from local companies remained flat over the period, even while 400 jobs were lost. The share of higher-paying jobs, those paying more than $40,000 per year, rose from about one quarter of the total number of jobs in 2002 to more than 40 percent in 2011.

The village added more than 100 jobs paying more than $40,000 per year over that period, while it shed more than 500 paying less than $40,000 per year.

Another positive development is that both local jobs and the number of villagers working has been growing again in recent years after hitting lows in 2009–10 during the national recession, a trend that is reflected in the rebounding income tax payments collected by the village. And in the Dayton region, the decades-long hemorrhage of manufacturing jobs appears to have stopped and some leaders see growth for the “re-shoring” of jobs, according to economic development leaders.

According to the U.S. Census American Community Survey 2008–12, almost 10 percent of working village residents work from home, a rate that is twice the national average and almost three times the Ohio average.

While the village has not been immune to national economic trends, some trends are more pronounced here. For example, the loss of 400 jobs from 2002 to 2011 — 20 percent of all jobs — was higher than average losses in the area, with manufacturing work taking the biggest hit locally. Lower-paying jobs and jobs employing young and middleaged people declined even faster than total job loss in the last decade.

With fewer low-paying jobs and more high-paying jobs, more villagers living in poverty and a growing median household income, income inequality seems to be increasing here, as in the rest of the country. What are people doing to make ends meet in the face of these trends?

YOUNGER WORKERS RESPOND

One consequence of fewer lowerpaying jobs could be that young people just starting out in the workforce — like Woodruff — have a hard time getting their foot in the door and others, seeing no job opportunities, are going on to

Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

T H E G U I D E t o Y E L LOW S P R I N G S 2 0 1 4 –1 5

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David Flowers, right, and Brett Nagafuchi manufacture custom wood eyeglass frames from a workshop on Yellow SpringsFairfield Road that is 80 percent pedal powered. Over the last 10 years as the number of local jobs has declined, more villagers are working at home or starting their own small businesses, like Featherwood Frames.

create their own businesses. Census data show that the age of local employees is increasing. Jobs for workers between 29 and 54 took the biggest hit over the decade, and losses occurred for those under 29 as well, while the number of workers over 55 increased.

For Woodruff, it was natural to go into the accommodation and food services field since the village is increasingly becoming a tourist destination. That sector was one that showed some growth between 2002 and 2011, gaining 13 jobs.

Other sectors that showed the largest growth over the decade were information (24 jobs) and construction (16 jobs).

Andrew Kline, who started his own construction firm, Green Generation Building, four years ago, has witnessed growth for his company and sees room for more expansion for other contractors and subcontractors in town.

According to Kline, the many high quality contractors the village boasts have no shortage of work, and Kline himself is barely keeping up with the demand for his green building services, he said. He hopes to complete two to three homes this year, two of which are in or around Yellow Springs.

“In the entire time I’ve been working in Yellow Springs I haven’t found a want of work, I’ve always had what I needed,” Kline said. “And I don’t need more than I need.”

For Kline, the goal of his small company, which he owns with his

wife, Anisa, is to provide enough money so they can live in town.

“We are not trying to make millions, we are not interested in pursuing that kind of lifestyle,” Kline said.

“Anisa and I value spending time with each other and children.”

A new generation of villagers seems to be eschewing solely profit-driven motives in favor of a more ecologically friendly and personally fulfilling path. For Flowers, the hardest part about owning his own business isn’t the taxes or marketing, but “trying to make it as ethically sound as possible.”

At his workshop, drills, sanders and saws are rigged to a stationary bicycle to provide carbon-free power. While he saw many of his engineer friends go on to make big bucks designing HVAC systems for factories and other largescale industrial projects, he chose to spend more time living in community.

“I know so many people who have more money than they know what to do with because of engineering but who are lonely,” Flowers said, adding that he is lucky to have both engineering skills and the opportunity to live in a community where people know him.

Flowers’ two-person operation (a joint venture with Brett Nagafuchi) won’t begin to chip away at the nearly 300 manufacturing jobs lost here in the last decade, and it isn’t likely to earn enough income for them to buy a home in the village, but it will provide a small living for the two of them.

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T H E G U I D E t o Y E L LOW S P R I N G S 2 0 1 4 –1 5

PHOTO BY LAUREN HEATON

Alice Young-Basora is shown working in her home studio for Nina Carina, her jewelry-making and design business. She is one of many villagers who work out of their homes.

>>> AT TIMES, HOME IS WHERE THE WORK IS STARTING BUSINESSES, AT HOME

But it’s not just young people who are starting their own companies here, and it’s not just recently that this trend started.

According to the U.S. Census American Community Survey 2008–12, almost 10 percent of working village residents work from home (152 people), a rate that is twice the national average and almost three times the Ohio average. That figure doubled over the last decade here. And though some of that increase could be attributed to more telecommuting in the Internet age, some 12.3 percent of working residents were self-employed in their own unincorporated businesses between 2008 and 2012, twice the national average.

A glance through the Yellow Springs Community Directory shows the variety of people who appear to be self-employed and largely working from home: artists, cleaning services, lawyers, accountants, counselors, dog trainers, piano teachers and tuners, electricians, graphic designers, massage therapists, hair stylists, violin repair, home organizers and more.

CHALLENGES OF THE JOB TRENDS

Alternative businesses, though they may be beneficial for individuals and are great for community-building, are not necessarily going to solve the stagnant tax revenues that the Village of Yellow Springs collects, according to Chamber of Commerce Director Karen Wintrow. Instead, what is needed are new companies with prospects for significant growth, such as EnviroFlight, and perhaps firms that exist

to supply such businesses, she said.

Though the economic model of the 20th century appears to be on its way out, there remains one local company that still has a variety of low-, middle- and highpaying jobs, and they also happen to be the village’s largest employer: YSI/Xylem.

Jobs at the company range from customer service representatives, janitors, machinists and assemblers to the executive director of research and development, director of sales in North America and manufacturing engineering manager. There are also sales representatives, accountants, software engineers and test technicians.

It’s unlikely that a new YSI/Xylem will locate in Yellow Springs, but Wintrow sees growth for new small-scale manufacturers here. David Burrows, director of the Dayton Development Coalition, shares her optimism, as manufacturing jobs are projected to remain flat in the Dayton region, rather than continue to fall precipitously as they have been.

There are 2,500 small manufacturers in the Dayton area and many are now growing due to “re-shoring” occurring as labor costs increase abroad. There is also growth in the aerospace and automotive industry in the region, Burrows said.

“We can’t ignore manufacturing jobs as we do need those jobs,” Burrows said. “We have a lot of educated people here, but we also have a lot of people making things — the region was built on making things and creativity.”

A MORE PERSONAL ECONOMY

Of course, many local firms here grew from small startups and home-

based operations to become significant employers here, so the trend of locals starting new small firms may portend well for the local economy. The spirit of entrepreneurship has long existed in Yellow Springs, and so has the interest in running more socially conscious businesses. Personally, villagers may find more fulfillment in small-scale endeavors that fit their values, even if it doesn’t enhance the greater economy overall. But perhaps there is a way for the economy and villagers to benefit equally through such work.

Graphic designer Bob Bingenheimer, for example, founded Bing Design here in 1979 out of a home office. A longtime dream to own his own company and to live and work in the same community, Bingenheimer’s outfit grew to employ around a dozen people and to fill an entire house near the Antioch campus. Clients of the design/advertising firm included Fortune-500 companies like NCR and Lexus-Nexus.

But Bingenheimer ran his business ethically too, paying his employees’ healthcare and continuing education instead of pocketing the profit himself and not laying off employees when business declined. As a result, he never got rich like many of his design school classmates who worked at big East Coast firms, he said. But it was a trade-off he doesn’t regret.

“The trade-off was I didn’t have to live in Chicago or New York,” Bingenheimer said. “And I didn’t have the horrific commute — it took me a minute to get to work in the morning.”

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For nearly 40 years, this non-profit studio has been providing opportunities for learning and working with clay to the Yellow Springs community and surrounding areas.

The studio is well equipped with a newly built wood kiln, a gas reduction kiln, raku kiln, electric kilns, 12 wheels, slab roller, extruder and glaze room. Renters have 24-hour access to the studio.

Visitors welcome.

Gallery and Open Studio Hours Saturday and Sunday from 12-4 P.M.

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100 Dayton Street Yellow Springs Look for a schedule and description of upcoming classes at

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

ARTS Antioch Writers’ Workshop c/o Antioch University Midwest, 900 Dayton Street, 769-1803 E M A I L : info@antiochwritersworkshop.com W E B : www.antiochwritersworkshop.com C O N TA C T:

The Antioch Writers’ Workshop (AWW), in partnership with Antioch University Midwest, presents writing programs including its annual week-long summer workshop. The workshop was initiated in 1985 by two retired Antioch College professors: Judson Jerome, a well-known poet, and William Baker, an experienced college administrator, dean and teacher.

From the beginning, the workshop created a community of writers that mingled faculty and students informally throughout the day as well as during classes and seminars. Its mission was to encourage good writing, and the AWW organized a summer week-long workshop as well as (in some years) a oneday fall workshop. In 1991, a group formed a board of trustees and reorganized to sponsor the summer Antioch Writers’ Workshop using the college as �scal agent, then in 1993, formed its own nonpro�t organization, the Yellow Springs Writers’ Workshop. Starting in 2009, AWW is presented in partnership with Antioch University Midwest.

AWW has brought many well-known and talented writers to Ohio over the years, including Sue Grafton, Ellen Gilchrist, William Least Heat-Moon, Joyce Carol Oates, Melissa Fay Greene, Natalie Goldberg, Sena Jeter Naslund and Nicholas

Delbanco. The organization has also highlighted prominent Ohio authors, including Allan W. Eckert, John Jakes and Virginia Hamilton.

AWW embraces diversity and strives to meet the high professional and artistic expectations participants bring to ever y program. By cultivating excellence in all the workshops, AWW works to ensure Yellow Springs remains at the forefront of writing communities nationwide.

Art and Soul Lisa Goldberg, 767-7285 www.ysarts.org/artSoul.html

C O N TA C T: WEB:

Art and Soul: A YS Art Fair, a YS Arts production, entered the art scene in Yellow springs in November of 2012. It is held on the third Saturday of November from 10 a.m.–-5 p.m. at Mills Lawn Elementary School, 200 S Walnut Street. It is an intimate juried art fair with thirty artists from the region that gather in Yellow Springs to exhibit and sell their �ne arts and Crafts for the day. The name Art & Soul was chosen because “artists put their souls into the making of their work.”

Artists will have plenty of pottery, jewelry, �ber, paintings, photography, wood, glass, and mixed media work available for sale.

Traditionally, art work produced by students attending the Yellow Springs school system has been on display for patrons to admire.

During the �rst two years of Art and Soul, show promoters have donated over $2,000 to the Yellow Springs school system and the Police Coat Fund.

Artist Studio Tour Lisa Goldberg, 767-7285 www.ysarts.org

C O N TA C T: WEB:

The Yellow Springs Artist Studio Tour provides visitors the opportunity to explore artists’ studios while getting a glimpse into the inner workings of technique used by local artists. The tour also allows visitors to see the latest creations of some of the premier painters, sculptors, jewelers, woodworkers, glass artists, potters and �ber artists from the region. The tour includes eight local studios, with each host artist inviting two to four guest artists to join them for the weekend.

The self-guided driving tour is held once a year for two days, usually the third weekend of October, 10 a.m.–6 p.m., both days. Come visit new and returning artists each year. For more information or to download a tour map, visit www.ysarts.org.

Creative Explorations Women’s Retreat

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• Relax • Reconnect • Renew

937-750-4117 253 Xenia Ave Yellow Springs www.creativeexplorations.net

Bridge Ken Huber, 767-1160 (Tuesday group); and Susan Freeman, 767-0235 (Wednesday group).

C O N TA C T S :

Two informal bridge groups meet weekly in the village. On Tuesdays, 1–3:30 p.m., a group meets for party bridge in the Lawson Place common room. On Wednesdays, 6:30– 10 p.m., a group meets for duplicate bridge in the great room of the Senior Center, located at 227 Xenia Avenue.

Chamber Music in Yellow Springs 374-8800 info@cmys.org www.cmys.org

C O N TA C T: EMAIL: WEB:

Chamber Music in Yellow Springs will present �ve world class concerts this year at 7:30 p.m. on Sundays at the First Presbyterian Church, 314 Xenia Avenue, Yellow Springs. CMYS will celebrate the 30th anniversary of its Annual Competition for Emerging Professional Ensembles by bringing back four previous winners.

The 2014–15 season will open on Oct. 5 with the Jasper String Quartet (2008 winner).

The second concert, on Nov. 2, will feature the award winning Shanghai String Quartet (1987 winner). The 2005 winner, The David Piano Trio (violin, cello and piano) from Italy, will perform on Feb. 15, 2015. On March 22, 2015, CMYS will welcome 2004 winners the Amstel Saxophone Quartet, from the Netherlands.

The 30th Annual CMYS Competition for Emerging Professional Ensembles will be held April 26, 2015. Entrants, selected by local judges, will present a double concert before a live audience and three distinguished judges, who will award $7,000 in prizes.

CMYS subscription concerts are recorded

by SoundSpace Yellow Springs, for broadcast on “Live and Local” at WDPR-FM (88.1) and WDPG-FM (89.9) on Saturday mornings at 10 a.m. These broadcasts can also be heard anywhere in the world on streaming audio at www.discoverclassical.org. The broadcast schedule for this season is Nov. 1 (Jasper Quartet), Feb. 7 (Shanghai Quartet), March 14 (David Piano Trio), April 18 (Amstel Sax Quartet) and June 27 (Competition Finals).

Millard Mier videotapes the concerts for the community access cable channel.

Most CMYS concerts include works by living composers or works with a cross-cultural in�uence. All are preceded by a free preconcert talk by musicologist and retired WSU Professor Chuck Larkowski (or a comparable substitute). There is a post-concert gourmet dinner and reception for the artists for which a reservation and donation are required.

CMYS is grateful for a sustainability grant from the Ohio Arts Council. Assistance from generous donors and local advertisers helps to keep ticket prices low: $20 for adults and $7 for students, with additional savings if season tickets are purchased at $85 and $25.

Tickets are available online at www.cmys. org, or by phone at 937-374-8800.

Chamber Orchestra James Johnson delphi@ameritech.net

C O N TA C T: EMAIL:

The Chamber Orchestra welcomes all intermediate and advanced string players

ARTS

Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S and selected woodwind and brass players in consultation with the music director. Ability to read music is necessary. The ensemble gives two to three concerts a year, frequently with chorus, and performs standard repertoire from the 18th to the 21st centuries.

Rehearsals are Tuesday evenings, 7:30–9 p.m. in the First Presbyterian Church.

Community Band James Johnston, Brian Mayer, music directors E M A I L : delphi@ameritech.net or bmayer@ysschools.org C O N TA C T:

The Community Band is open to all woodwind, brass and percussion players without audition. Music reading is necessary. The band plays about seven concerts a year: two in fall, two in winter/spring and three outdoor summer concerts in June and July.

The repertoire includes standard marches, medleys of Broadway and Hollywood songs, big band and jazz sets and other works for concert band in a variety of styles. Rehearsals are held Monday evenings, 7:30–9 p.m., in the high school band room.

Community Chorus James Johnston, Carol Cottom, 767-1458 E M A I L : delphi@ameritech.net C O N TA C T:

Founded in 1972, the Yellow Springs Community Chorus is open without audition to all who enjoy singing, can attend rehearsals regularly and are able to learn and perform the music. The ability to read music is desirable, but not required. The chorus usually gives two or three performances a year, often with orchestra, and sings music from a variety of styles, periods and genres.

Rehearsals are on Sunday evenings, 7–9 p.m., in the YSHS band room. The chorus gratefully receives United Way funds and other donations through the Yellow Springs Arts Council.

Dayton Mandolin Orchestra

John Bryan Community Pottery Krystal Luketic, studio director; Todd Hickerson, studio technician; Geno Luketic, wood kiln manager, 767-9022, 100 Dayton Street E M A I L : jbcp.ys@gmail.com W E B : www.communitypottery.com C O N TA C T:

John Bryan Community Pottery (JBCP) is a community studio that offers an extensive array of classes, workshops and studio rentals. The potter y also features a gallery, exhibiting and selling the work of its members and other contemporary ceramic artists.

For nearly 40 years, the nonpro�t studio has been providing opportunities for learning and working with clay to the Yellow Springs community and surrounding areas.

The studio is well-equipped with a newly built wood kiln, a gas reduction kiln, raku kiln, electric kilns, 12 wheels, a slab roller, extruder and glaze room. Renters have 24hour access to the studio.

Visitors are always welcome to stop in at the Penguin Building and take a tour. Gallery and open studio hours are Saturday and Sunday, noon–4 p.m. A schedule and description of upcoming classes is available at www. communitypottery.com.

Little Art Theatre 767-7671 littleart.ys@att.net www.littleart.com

C O N TA C T: EMAIL:

Kathryn Hitchcock, 937-408-3678 www.daytonmandolin.net

C O N TA C T: WEB:

instruments, guitar and contra bass. DMO, the only mandolin orchestra in Ohio, is directed by James Johnston. Rehearsals are held in the fellowship hall of the First Presbyterian Church of Yellow Springs on the �rst three Mondays of each month, 7:30–9:30 p.m. Rehearsals are held at other times as required. The orchestra plays a wide variety of music and the season runs from late August to early June. Visitors are welcome at rehearsals, and those who would like to play along should contact the orchestra in advance so that sheet music may be made available.

The Dayton Mandolin Orchestra takes its name from an orchestra that performed in the early 1900s, the heyday of mandolin orchestras. DMO was resurrected in 2004, becoming part of a nationwide revival. Now in its tenth season, DMO is a community orchestra made up of the family of mandolin

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The Little Art Theatre has provided �lm entertainment and enlightenment — and so much more — to Yellow Springs and the surrounding Miami Valley for over 80 years.

A donor supported 501(c)(3) nonpro�t facility, it made the leap into the digital age with a $500,00 renovation completed in 2013, but remains very much a hometown, single screen experience that cannot be replicated

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T H E G U I D E t o Y E L LOW S P R I N G S 2 0 1 4 –1 5 at the multiplexes.

The Little Art takes pride in its mix of independent and mainstream of ferings, with commercial favorites not being prioritized over important low budget documentaries. The diverse programming is ver y much a reflection of the diverse local community. The Little Art is among the most recognizable and beloved landmarks in Yellow Springs, and the iconic houselights, the classic marquee and the one-of-a-kind concession treats all represent an experience that is more personal than in large for-profit venues.

The Little Ar t is also known for its special programs, such as “Community Presents,” which encourages local filmmakers, organizations and community members to utilize the theater in numerous ways, including bringing documentaries that champion their cause. “Let’s Talk Movies” is a new program featuring area educators discussing �lmmaking and �lm analysis. And thanks to the renovation, the Little Art now offers “National Theatre Live” events, bringing the famous London theatre’s rebroadcasts, as well as the Bolshoi Ballet, to its screen. Also popular are the monthly “Retro Matinees” with classics like “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” and “To Kill a Mockingbird.”

Additionally, the Little Art hosts community events, including an Oscar party and New Year’s Eve celebration, and collaborates with other local nonpro�ts, such as the Tecumseh Land Trust, Green Environmental Coalition and WYSO, as well as others from the greater Miami Valley, such as the Dayton International Film Festival.

The theater is available for people to rent

37

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38

ARTS

T H E G U I D E t o Y E L LOW S P R I N G S 2 0 1 4 –1 5

Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

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767-2319 or 768-5450

937 CELL 937

FAST & FRIENDLY | LOCAL SERVICE

PHOTO BY MEGAN BACHMAN

Perin Ellsworth-Heller, left, and Ben Hemmendinger are two locals who sometimes earn money playing music on downtown streets.

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Village BP 4 Xenia Ave. 767-1349 MON–THURS: 7 am–11 pm FRI: 7 am–12 midnight SAT: 8 am–12 midnight SUN: 8 am–11 pm

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• Over 250 selections of domestic, imported and micro brew beers • Expanded selection of wines including a wide variety of organics • Natural flavors of coffee & cappuccino • Sunday beer all day & wine sales after 11 a.m.

• Lottery/ATM machine Locally and Family Owned Ben Van Ausdal, Manager

for their own special events as well. For more information or to become a Friend of the Little Art, email littleart.ys@att.net, call 767-7671 or visit www.littleart.com.

Weavers’ Guild Diana Nelson, 767-9487, P.O. Box 825 W E B : www.wgmv.org C O N TA C T:

The Weavers’ Guild of the Miami Valley, organized in 1949 to promote interest in handweaving and spinning, moved to Yellow Springs from Dayton in 1998.

The guild is a nonpro�t educational organization that promotes handweaving, handspinning and the textile arts. The guild offers education programs in �ber techniques and processes and encourages artistic awareness through topical lectures, discussions, exhibits, workshops and demonstrations.

World House Choir Catherine Roma, 513-560-9082 caroma129@gmail.com www.facebook.com/worldhousechoir

C O N TA C T: EMAIL: WEB:

The World House Choir is a diverse, multicultural, mixed-voice choir, whose repertoire is drawn from different traditions, including world music, spirituals, gospel, folk and peace and justice. The choir’s mission is to perform music that motivates and inspires communities toward justice, diversity and equality in the pursuit of peace. New members are welcome.

For more information about rehearsal times, locations and performances, contact choir director Catherine Roma at 513-5609082, or caroma129@gmail.com

ARTS

Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

Yellow Rockers C O N TA C T:

8951

Ralph and Melanie Acton, 767-

Yellow Springs Yellow Rockers is a western square dance club that dances at the plus level.

Club dances are held on the second Sunday of each month, 7:30–10 p.m., in the Bryan Community Center. Square dancers who have completed the plus-level dance lessons — both singles and couples — are welcome.

Yellow Springs Arts Council 937-679-9722; street address: 111 Corry St.; mailing address: PO Box 459 E M A I L : ysartscouncil@gmail.com W E B : www.ysartscouncil.org C O N TA C T:

The Yellow Springs Arts Council supports local arts infrastructure through program opportunities, publicity, education, advocacy and coordinated partnerships across the community. Each year, the YSAC supports over 200 local creative workers. The organization began in the 1950s as the Yellow Springs Arts Association. In 1972, it incorporated as a 501(c)3 nonpro�t and adopted the full name, Yellow Springs Arts Council.

In 2008, the YSAC expanded its mission to encompass all arts disciplines and launched the YSAC Community Gallery and Multi-Arts Center. YSAC increased its arts advocacy role in 2012, which led to the Yellow Springs Village Council’s adoption of a Public Arts Policy in January of 2013. Regional publicity for YSAC supported events, in partnership with the YS Chamber of Commerce, brings thousands of visitors to Yellow Springs annually for arts-related events.

The Arts Council provides many opportunities for local artists to share and develop their work. Monthly exhibits in the gallery provide a diverse range of visual artists with a space to show and sell their work. Once a month, Arts Alive! showcases musicians, comedians, dancers, storytellers, poets and more in live performances in the Multi-Arts Center or on the outdoor stage. In September, the focus shifts to arts collectors with the Art House Hop. Art classes are offered periodically for children and adults in the MultiArts Space, which is available to the community as a class, meeting and performance space. YSAC also participates in public art projects, such as the Mills Park Hotel Fence Art Gallery Project and the National Bronze Sculpture Trail.

YSAC is a member organization which relies on membership dues and donations and the dedication of a marvelous group of

volunteers. The organization is also supported through grant writing and fundraising projects. Artists, appreciators and supporters of all arts disciplines are welcomed and encouraged to participate in the organization.

Yellow Springs Contra Dance C O N TA C T:

2361

Ben Hemmendinger, 646-373-

contra@benhem.com yscontra.wordpress.com/

EMAIL: WEB:

Contra dance, in one writer’s words, is “social interaction, meeting people, and making new friends, set to music. The rest is just details.” There aren’t many moves, and the caller tells us which ones come next. Contra dance has a very gentle learning curve, but the more experienced you become, the more fun it is! It’s energetic, the music is live and exciting, and it is a generally joyous experience. (No partner needed; we end up dancing with everyone in the hall by the end of the night.)

Our dances are held (usually) every fourth Saturday of the month, throughout the year.

Our usual location is at the Antioch campus, but that is always subject to change. We begin at 6 P.M. with a musical session, and dance from 7-10 P.M. We suggest a $5 donation, and there is no charge for students.

This is a contra dance for all experience levels, including absolute beginners! We open with some instruction at 7:00, and each dance begins with a walkthrough. Our dance is open to musicians and callers as well. If you play contra dance music, you’re welcome to join the band, and if you have a dance to call, please bring it along! This is a great place to practice your skills.

Yellow Springs Strings C O N TA C T:

Shirley Mullins, 767-3361

Yellow Springs Strings is a string orchestra for adults that meets Tuesdays, 7–8:30 p.m., at the Yellow Springs Senior Center’s great room. Players of modest-to-advanced levels of pro�ciency are welcome. There are no fees for participation. The ensemble is conducted by Shirley Mullins.

Children and young adults join with the ensemble for special occasions, such as the Celebration Concert. Membership is �uid; college students home for vacation, children of orchestra members, etc. are welcome.

The Yellow Springs Strings is assisted by the YSYOA.

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T H E G U I D E t o Y E L LOW S P R I N G S 2 0 1 4 –1 5

Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

SIDEWALKS PACKED IN TOURIST TOWN

By C A R O L S I M M O N S In order to maintain a vibrant, vital village that offers the amenities we most want, “we need visitors beyond the 3,500 villagers who live here,” says Karen Wintrow, executive director of the Yellow Springs Chamber of Commerce as well as president of the Village Council.

And visitors we have.

Any local resident downtown on a beautiful spring weekend can attest that the sidewalks, shops and restaurants are filled with people who hail from other zip codes. What their presence means to the life of the village is a topic of ongoing discussions by the local government, administration and business community, with varying levels of ease and acceptance. In light of those conversations, and as part of the Yellow Springs News’ ongoing series of articles on the village’s financial landscape, the paper is looking at some of the effects of tourism on the local economy.

“It’s huge having tourists come to town,” said Brian Rainey, the head chef and co-owner with his wife, Amy Boblitt, of Sunrise Cafe. He estimates that about 50 percent of his customers are from elsewhere, including “Cincinnati, Columbus, and all over Indiana. ... I’ve had people

tell me, ‘I drove from Kentucky to eat your pancakes.’” And he welcomes them.

“I’m perfectly happy to have it a tourist town. It’s what Yellow Springs is, what it’s been as long as I’ve been here.”

Safe to say, visitors have been a fact of life since the village’s beginnings.

The mineral-rich, fresh-water spring for which Yellow Springs is named inspired luxurious 19th century resorts and restorative spas, the remnants of which are still visible in parts of what is now Glen Helen Nature Preserve.

“By the time [Antioch’s first president] Horace Mann came through on the train, we already had a healthy tourist economy,” says Samantha Eckenrode, a local Realtor as well as the owner and co-founder of Sam & Eddie’s Open Books. “The college is here because the village was already a cool, attractive place for many races and creeds.”

Eckenrode, who grew up in Yellow Springs, attended Antioch College and raised her son here, says that the village’s reputation for openness continues to attract people. She agrees that visitors play an integral role in the local economy, but she isn’t comfortable calling them tourists. “We don’t have people

coming in with Hawaiian shirts and cameras around their necks. We have visitors who come here with a sense of purpose.”

As a Realtor, Eckenrode says she has come to question what “local” means — is it living within the village limits, living in the school district, having a Yellow Springs mailing address, working in town, being an alum of the high school or college, feeling at home within the community? “We all found our way here one way or another,” she says.

TOURISM GROWS

Marketing the village as a desirable place to visit, live and own a business is the work of the local Chamber of Commerce. Wintrow believes that visitors play an integral role in the village’s economy.

On weekends when the weather’s nice and schools are out, “the streets are packed,” she said. While the Chamber doesn’t have hard data on the number of visitors to town or their direct financial impact, its members collectively feel that the numbers are substantial — and necessary — Wintrow said.

The goal, she said, is maintaining the “stability” of the village.

She dates contemporary efforts toward that goal back to the early 2000s and a project started by the James McKee Men’s group. The project’s purpose was to get information about Yellow Springs out into the wider world to help assure the village’s continuing health and viability.

“The tag line was, ‘Work, Play, Learn, Live.’ It was actually more about attracting business and attracting people to live here,” she said.

The project evolved into “a concerted effort to rebuild the residential and business base” by attracting visitors as an important strategy. Wintrow was the administrator of that project, which featured the logo “Find Yourself Here” and included the launch of a portal website.

She said she was then hired for the newly created chamber position, and the effort continued under the chamber’s auspices.

The thinking was: “Get people here for a few hours, extend that to a weekend.

Highlight the schools and the village as a place where they might want to open a business. We basically took what Yellow Springs had to offer — what was so great about Yellow Springs. We didn’t make anything up. For us, it was never about changing what this community is. It

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T H E G U I D E t o Y E L LOW S P R I N G S 2 0 1 4 –1 5

SPACE TO LEASE

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��������������� Office, light industrial or art space available

PHOTO BY LAUREN HEATON

A warm summer evening recently attracted tourists and villagers alike to The Winds Cafe, where tourists make up a significant portion of the longtime restaurant’s business. Shown here is server Naomi Hyatt tending to diners on the newly built patio.

was about taking what was great about this community and growing on that.”

The Village’s current website, which Wintrow said will be getting an overhaul soon, sports the tag line: “Destination Yellow Springs,” with sections for visitors, businesses and residents. “There is so much great about this community that it’s almost hard to communicate,” Wintrow said.

VISITING, THEN STAYING

Locally based artist Alice Robrish is an example of an active community member who first came to town as a visitor. She says that she was so charmed by the village during a long weekend visit with a friend in May 2004, she came back for a week that July, renting accommodations just outside the village limits to see if it maintained its

allure during a longer visit on her own.

“I rode my bike into town; I checked out the pottery. It felt like a fit. By the end of the week, I started looking for a place to rent,” she recalled. She made the full-time move that fall and now has a home and studio on Dayton Street.

The bike trail, which was part of Robrish’s early encounters with Yellow Springs, brings visitors to town without any effort on the Chamber’s part, Wintrow said. “We’re seeing family vacations, retired couples, groups of retired couples. ... The trail system in southwest Ohio is one of longest and best trail systems in the country, and we’re lucky to be sitting in the middle of it,” she said.

The village is in a position to serve those visitors and in turn benefit from the revenues they bring to town, she said. The same is true of visitors to

305 N. WALNUT ST., YELLOW SPRINGS For more information, call Sam Young 767-2700 or Rod Hoover 767-9338

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S Locally based ceramicist Lisa Goldberg has instituted several high-profile events that bring visitors to town, the most prominent of which is the annual artist studio tours, which she started in 2004. In the beginning, the tours were held on a single day, twice a year, but that evolved into two-day events held the third weekend in October. This year will mark the 14th tour, “and it grows every year,” Goldberg says. “Each studio averages 600 people over the two days.”

Most visitors are from Ohio and surrounding states, but “some people plan their vacations” around the event.

She’s been told that the resulting restaurant business that weekend “is on par with street fair weekend. And stores like Design Sleep have done better, too.” What’s more, “the people who come to town (for the tours) tend to be more buyers than lookers.”

And the economic effect is not limited to that one weekend, Goldberg says. The visitors build “long-standing relationships” with local artists and “establish strong ties” to the community. They come back, and they bring family and friends. “There are short-term and long-term effects.”

The Yellow Springs Arts Council sees the arts as an economic driver with unlimited potential, increasing the village’s regional and national visibility with such programs as YS Experience events, the National Bronze Sculpture Symposium and the temporary mural panels lining the construction site at the future Mills Park Hotel.

MIXED RESPONSES

Nonprofits also maintain a presence at the twice-yearly street fairs, the Chamber’s biggest moneymaker, and according to Wintrow, the best days of business for local shops. An estimated 20,000 to 25,000 people attend the events, held the second Saturday in June and October. “They seem to be growing,” Wintrow said. What started more than 30 years ago as a sidewalk sale now includes more than 200 vendors, she said. The recently added music festival expands the day’s offerings while trying to maintain a local flavor, she said.

But the success of the event is a mixed blessing for some villagers, who express discomfort with the mas-

T H E G U I D E t o Y E L LOW S P R I N G S 2 0 1 4 –1 5 sive influx of strangers into town.

The Sunrise’s Brian Rainey, while welcoming the out-of-town business, sympathizes with villagers who worry about tourism’s unwanted effects. “I can definitely see where it’s a double-edged sword for the town. Lately, I kind of fear we’re getting more carnivalesque in tone.”

Former Village Council President Judith Hempfling offers a different kind of caution. While she recognizes the financial revenues and the liveliness visitors bring into town, she says she wonders about the costs to our infrastructure and Village services. “Our police budget is $1.2 million, three times that of Cedarville’s.” As Yellow Springs moves forward, she hopes decision-makers consider the full costs of tourism, and whether the costs outweigh the benefits.

She also notes that tourism-related employment is often lower paying, and she worries that the people serving our visitors won’t be able to afford to live here themselves. Is the emphasis on tourism financially sustainable for the village? Hempfling thinks putting village support behind institutions like Antioch College will have more longterm benefits. “We need to be willing to have critical conversations,” she said.

In terms of the police department, staffing levels related to tourism were discussed in recent Village Council meetings as it approved the village’s fiscal budget. Then-Police Chief Anthony Pettiford had sought more money for the department to finance the hiring of additional officers, a request that was eventually denied. His argument was that the number of visitors to town necessitated a larger safety force than other like-size communities.

The request might sound as though the police see tourism as a problem, but Sergeant Naomi Penrod says that’s not the case. “It makes us much more busy,” she said. The types of calls are “easy,” but need attention — “lock outs, keys in cars, disabled vehicles, the occasional lost person — and spread the department thin. ... As far as concerns of violent crime, we don’t see that as an issue as far as tourism goes.”

The number of visitors also seems to be rising, Penrod said. “Since I started in 2007, I would say there

is a small steady increase.”

The availability of parking as well as public restroom facilities are of concern for Sam & Eddie’s Samantha Eckenrode.

“One of the perennial issues we have — in the 50-plus years I’ve lived here — are easy and accessible places” to park and use the restroom.

“Visitors are usually so happy to be here because there are so many attractions, so many things to do. ... [But] we‘re never going to be a real tourist town” until we address these issues adequately. We seek out visitors and then make their trip an effort, which feels like a mixed welcome, she said.

“We have to focus on the entirety of the message that we send.”

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>>> SIDEWALKS PACKED IN TOURIST TOWN

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Glen Helen, John Bryan State Park and Clifton Gorge, which together offer more than 2,000 contiguous acres of wooded public areas. According to Glen Helen’s most recent annual report, the nature preserve welcomed an estimated 100,000 visitors between June 2012 and July 2013.

Wintrow, who said the Chamber has extended its advertising into Columbus and Cincinnati, credits visitors who shop and dine here with helping many local establishments get through the recession that began in 2007-08.

“Retail and restaurants are some of the hardest hit” in economic downturns, but most local businesses held on, she said.

“We’re supporting the retail community.”

RISE IN SHORT-TERM LODGING

A swell in the number of local overnight accommodations over the past decade also reflects that the word is getting out. More than a dozen establishments — ranging from the longestablished 12-room Springs Motel on the south end of town and the six-bedroom Arthur Morgan House Bed and Breakfast on West Limestone Street, to a variety of newer suites, cottages and guesthouses — offer overnight stays close at hand. And construction of the future Mills Park Hotel has begun at the corner of Xenia Avenue and East Limestone Street, suggest-

ing the desire for additional rooms.

More is at work filling the inns than local advertising efforts, says Susanne Oldham, owner and proprietor of the Arthur Morgan House.

“I barely get a morning off, because I’m rarely empty. And it’s not due to me. It’s Yellow Springs.”

Some customers are coming for special events in the area; some are repeat visitors who enjoy returning to town; some are traveling on Interstate 70 looking for an alternative to chain motels along the highway. Oldham says a big boost came after Yellow Springs was featured in the international Lonely Planet travel guide. “I’ve had guests from New Zealand, Australia and all over Europe.” They learned about Yellow Springs from Lonely Planet, which wrote, “Dayton has the aviation sights, but little Yellow Springs ... has much more personality for accommodation and places to eat.”

Oldham says the village and her B&B have been listed also in “Particular Places, a Traveler’s Guide to Ohio’s Best Road Trips,” while the monthly Outside and Ohio magazines featured Yellow Springs in 2009 pieces about “our 10 favorite adventure burgs” and “Ohio’s best hometowns” respectively.

Patti Dallas and Marianne MacQueen opened Village Guesthouse, a four-room apartment connected to their house on West Davis Street, about four years ago. And business is good. The months of June through August are full “except for a day here and there,” while April, May, September and October are “fairly full,” MacQueen says. In the winter months, they’ve had success with more long-term rentals — people interested in getting a deeper feel for village life. The result, MacQueen says, is that three of the four winters they’ve been in operation have concluded with long-term guests deciding to relocate to Yellow Springs permanently.

While they’ve had some short-term stays from Europe and Great Britain, most guests are from the region and state, MacQueen said. “The big reason people come is because they have relatives here. That’s a really big group of people. Another group comes for work-

shops, like the Antioch Writers’ Workshop, or a specific event. People from Columbus and Cincinnati are often coming for a weekend getaway; while people from Cleveland and Toledo come because they love Yellow Springs and they feel they’ll be accepted here.

They really enjoy the ambiance and community feeling in Yellow Springs.”

Although the evidence is more anecdotal than statistical, Yellow Springs’ overnight establishments did not experience the slight downturn seen elsewhere in Greene County last year, where “travel (or at least from the aspect of visitors staying in hotels) was down about 2 percent in 2013,” according to Kathleen Young, the executive director of the Greene County Convention & Visitors Bureau.

“As far as narrowing the tourism impact for Yellow Springs, there really is no way to measure that from the CVB view point,” she wrote in an email, but based on the number of phone calls her office receives concerning Yellow Springs, the village did not seem to be part of the temporary downward trend, which she blames on sequestration and its affect on hotels around Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.

ARTS EFFECT

In Yellow Springs, a significant contributor in bringing people to town is the arts community. An August 2012 National Public Radio’s Destination Art series featured the village in a piece titled “Yellow Springs: Art is the Core of this City.” While the performing and visual arts have played an important role in the life of the village for generations, promoting the village as an arts town is a newer effort that brings more people into town, Wintrow noted. Live music is available each weekend at several downtown venues, giving local musicians an audience and income. And the Little Art Theatre draws business from throughout the region not only with first-run film screenings, but also a variety of unique special events that include National Theater broadcasts, lectures and retro-movie screenings.

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YOUTH Boy Scouts Scoutmaster Scott Fletcher, 937863-0298

C O N TA C T:

Local Boy Scout Troop 78 has been in existence for more than 60 years, meeting regularly at the First Presbyterian Church.

Outdoor activities are the highlight of the program. The troop is also involved in community service, leadership training and fostering cooperation. Recent and planned activities include backpacking in southern Ohio and Kentucky, caving, summer camp, an 80-mile bike trip, whitewater rafting and a four-day canoe trip.

The troop sells Christmas wreaths in late November and December to raise money for trips and conducts the annual Christmas tree removal in January, which is its largest community project.

Cub Scouts C O N TA C T:

8743

EMAIL:

Dawn Fain, cubmaster, 937-510-

lilbity2002a@yahoo.com

Cub Scouts is a volunteer program for boys who are in the first through fifth grades (ages 6–11). It is a home-centered program with activities that involve the whole family.

The Cub Scouts in Yellow Springs are represented by Pack 578, sponsored by the First Presbyterian Church. Pack 578 is grouped into dens of Webelos, Wolf, Bear and Tiger Cubs. Boys in the �rst grade may participate in the Tiger Cub program. Den meetings are held twice a month, with a pack meeting once a month at the Presbyterian Church.

The Cub Scout program helps boys grow through character development, craft skills, citizenship training and activities that involve skits and games and physical �tness skills. Pack events include a Pinewood Derby and other races, an overnight camp, Cub Scouts Days at Camp Birch and a family picnic.

Currently, individual den leaders run the dens in Yellow Springs. Volunteers are always welcome and needed.

Fair Play 4-H Club Kathleen Galarza, 937-838-7411 galarzaohio@earthlink.net

C O N TA C T: EMAIL:

The Fair Play 4-H Club includes boys and girls ages 5–18, and helps them grow into productive, contributing members of society. Fair Play 4-H Club offers fun, active opportunities for personal learning and growth through club meetings, projects, hands-on learning, leadership opportunities, fairs and activities. Participants are encouraged to explore their own unique interests and share their knowledge with others in the club.

Girl Scouts Susan Hyde, 767-7756; Girl Scouts of Western Ohio, 800-233-4845 E M A I L : susanhyde@aol.com C O N TA C T:

The Girl Scouts of the USA strive to develop self-esteem, a strong personal value system, skill in interpersonal relationships and the ability and desire to contribute

meaningfully to society.

Locally, girls 5 to 17 can participate in a variety of activities such as camping, earning badges, community service and product sales. Troop camping, resident and day camps are available for all ages.

Leaders for troops are needed every year; leaders do not need to be a parent of an active scout. Volunteers are welcome.

Perry League C O N TA C T:

Jimmy Chesire, 767-7300

Perry League, Yellow Springs’s unique, hilarious and wonderful T-ball program, is a noncompetitive beginner’s baseball program for girls and boys ages 2 to 9. Two- and 3year-olds are welcome if accompanied on the diamond by an adult.

There is no fee, no registration. Children can begin to play on any of the 10 Friday nights, and there is no requirement to play every week.

Organizers try to keep it simple, try to make it fun and are serious about keeping it noncompetitive. There are no outs, no runs, no scores and no one ever strikes out: you get a 1,000 strikes in T-ball. Every child gets a chance to �eld and to bat a couple of times each evening.

Organizers tr y to be as tender, patient and loving as possible. The program is open to all children regardless of race, color, creed, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, ability or disability or spiritual inclination.

Children come out to play ball, to play in the water at the drinking fountain, to play in the grasses around the two fields, to hang out with their old and or new friends and they often come out to just sit and play in the dust of the Gaunt Park ball diamonds.

The Perry League is a self-sustaining, all volunteer program. Donations from parents, grandparents, loving aunts, ugly uncles, big brothers, big sisters, friends of the program, the children themselves, the sale of T-shirts, and a special gift from the Yellow Springs Lion’s Club, for the last ten years, and now, for 2014–15, the Odd Fellows, which pays for the children’s trophies each summer, allow the program to pay for itself.

Perry League is held every Friday night from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at Gaunt Park. The season runs for 10 weeks beginning on the �rst Friday in June and ending on the �rst or second Friday in August with a wiener roast potluck picnic, at which we award every

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child a Perry League trophy. It’s great fun for kids and adults alike, so why don’t you come on out and play with us?

Sea Dogs Nan Meekin, 767-2093 ysacseadogs.swimtopia.com

C O N TA C T: WEB:

The Yellow Springs Sea Dogs is a competitive swim team for kids ages 5–18. There are eight dual meets and a seven-team championship meet during June and July. The Sea Dogs swim team teaches kids the essentials of all four competitive strokes in an atmosphere of camaraderie and fun. Practices are held Monday–Thursday. For more information, go to ysacseadogs.swimtopia.com.

Yellow Springs Youth Orchestra Association EMAIL:

ysyoa@earthlink.net

The Yellow Springs Youth Orchestra Association, or YSYOA, was formed in 1964 as an organization interested in promoting and supporting music education and activities for the youth of Yellow Springs. This is accomplished through loan and repair of instruments, scholarships and concerts.

YSYOA of fers a two-week summer music camp for students who have played an instrument for at least a year. The camp includes group and individual instruction, and ends with a grand finale concert for the public. In recent years, the YSYOA

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� Every weekend you can find a variety of musical offerings & entertainment. � The Opera House is currently hosting live concerts and events every Friday and Saturday night.

767-2343 www.villageofclifton.com INFO :

PHOTO BY MEGAN BACHMAN

The arts provide jobs for some villagers, including Ara Beal, left, who this summer took the helm of YS Kids Playhouse from founder John Fleming. The nonprofit children’s theater is in it’s 20th year.

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has expanded to include intergenerational playing groups such as Yellow Springs Strings, a strings group which meets on Tuesdays at the Yellow Springs Senior Center.

Email ysyoa@yellowsprings.com for more information.

Yellow Springs Youth Baseball C O N TA C T S :

767-8702

Tim and Jennifer Sherwood,

The Yellow Springs Youth Baseball Program has two divisions: the Minor League for children aged 6 to 9 or 10; and the Major League for children ages 10 or 11 to 14.

This is recreational baseball with a focus on fundamentals, spor tsmanship, teamwork

and fun. The season runs from after Memorial Day through July and is a volunteer organization. A volunteer coordinator is needed for each of the leagues. Parents and other adults are needed as volunteers to coach teams and referee games. Volunteers are also needed to prep the �elds before games (except mowing.) High school community service credits are available for this function.

The Minor League plays coach-pitch with some modification of standard baseball rules to promote learning and the basics of baseball. The Major League plays by standard baseball rules with only a few changes to promote learning advanced concepts of the game. All games are played at Gaunt Park, with the Minor League playing on the diamond nearest the forest tree line, and the Major League playing on the large diamond

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closest to the pool area. All teams usually play two games per week with the games during evening hours and on the weekends.

There is a registration fee to help cover team uniform and league supply expenses. Scholarships are available.

Yellow Springs Youth Soccer C O N TA C T:

8433

EMAIL:

Bill and Lynn Hardman, 767-

hardmansoccer@sbcglobal.net

The Yellow Springs Youth Soccer Organization sponsors recreational soccer leagues for children ages 5 to 14. Copper Cup play is for those ages 5 and 6; Bronze Cup play is for kids 7 and 8; Silver Cup play is for 9- to 11-year-olds; and Gold Cup play is for kids 12 to 14.

Teams are coached by adult volunteers who offer players level-appropriate instruction in the fundamentals and �ne points of soccer.

This is a recreational program where having fun, learning soccer skills and learning teamwork are the primary goals.

Two seasons are held, in the fall, beginning with the annual clinic the weekend before Labor Day and continuing through October, and in the spring, April through May. The Yellow Springs youth recreational soccer league can always use experienced, knowledgeable adults to help coach, of�ciate and organize fall and spring games on Friday evenings and Saturday mornings.

YS Kids Playhouse

PHOTO BY MEGAN BACHMAN

One of many Yellow Springs yoga teachers, Marcia Sauer, is shown here at a class for kids at the recently opened business MindFully Well Center.

Ara Beal, 767-7800 www.yskp.org

C O N TA C T: WEB:

The YS Kids Playhouse is a multimedia theater experience by and for youth. YSKP holds introductor y and advanced acting and technical theater ar ts immersion experiences for youth ages 7–18 throughout the year. Each summer immersion focuses theater arts education around both knowledge and hands-on experiences by producing newly commissioned musicals and plays for youth. As the only Daytonarea theater to exclusively present original work, YSKP of fers professional quality and innovative entertainment for all ages.

It promotes creative interaction between area youth, professional artists and a variety of art forms. YSKP’s projects reflect cultural and ethnic diversity and issues important to today’s youth. Participation in productions is open to all. Participation fees are offset by scholarships as needed.

Through YSKP, area youth have the opportunity to engage in a structured learning experience within a broad range of theater skills.

Founded in 1995 by John Fleming, and currently under the direction of Ara Beal, YSKP is critically acclaimed by area theater critics and regularly cited in their lists of the best theater work in the Dayton area. YSKP is the recipient of numerous grant awards, including the National Endowment for the Arts, the Ohio Arts Council, CultureWorks, the Morgan Family Foundation and the YS Community Foundation. As a nonpro�t community theater arts education program, it also receives individual, business and corporate support.

For more information, visit www.yskp.org, www.facebook.com/theyskp or email admin @yskp.org.

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Where Learning is an Adventure • Established in 1921 • Ages 3½–11 • Ungraded, multi-age classrooms • Child-centered, active learning • Individualized instruction • Physical activities

• Arts & science programs • Music & performing arts • Full or half day Nursery program • Full or half day Kindergarten • Enriching field trips

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HOW LOCALS SEE OUR ECONOMY B y M E G A N B AC H M A N

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Local jobs don’t pay enough for people to afford to live here.

That’s how many villagers summed up the problem with the Yellow Springs economy in a recent online survey.

A total of 299 residents of Yellow Springs and Miami Township participated in the 20-question survey, which ran from April 25–May 11.

Survey respondents noted that a combination of high local housing costs and a seeming abundance of low-wage service industry jobs here are driving many low-wage workers to live elsewhere, while most local residents now commute to higher-paying work outside of town.

In a later interview, one respondent, 27-year-old Lindsay Burke, called this predicament a “Catch-22,” pointing out that while housing costs are high in the village, local wages in her age demographic are low.

“You can either have high wages or you can have lower housing prices [in the village], but you can’t have both of those things,” Burke said.

Burke knows the local economic reality well. Along with a whopping one-third of survey respondents, she works more than one job to make ends meet, a rate that appears to be far higher than the national average of 5 percent, according to 2010 Census figures. Burke cleans houses, teaches piano, plays piano for a church, works at a couple of downtown shops and does childcare.

“People in my demographic, we don’t make a lot of money and we work a lot, cobbling together many jobs to live in Yellow Springs,” Burke said. While two incomes from a variety of local jobs has allowed her and her husband, Stephen Hunt, to live here with their two-year-old son, Logan, “we don’t have the energy to do it forever,” Burke said. Meanwhile, high housing costs have meant a sacrifice in their lifestyle that not all are willing to make.

“We enjoy living in Yellow Springs so we’re willing to pay for it, but if you’re wanting to attract young families who will invest in this town you need to make living here possible for them,” Burke said.

The economic pressure is not only on younger workers. Many retirees on fixed incomes are feeling the stress of stagnant tax revenues from local payroll in the form of a growing property tax burden, according to those surveyed.

Dianne Collinson, who retired in 1997 from the Antioch School and purchased a home here in 2003, has found her property taxes rising much faster than her income. In recent years the problem has become more acute, as Yellow Springs weathered the subprime-mortgage housing collapse with strong housing values, while wages have stagnated and the region has suffered job losses.

“In Yellow Springs, real estate has not depreciated, so you get the doublewhammy of evaluation going up and continuing levies, and the [job loss] of the recession,” Collinson said. “It’s hard for seniors to live within their means.”

The importance of the two issues — housing and jobs — was underscored by the fact that the top two village goals for those surveyed was a healthy economy, followed by affordable housing. Energy conservation and sustainability and infrastructure and services came next.

Survey respondents also identified the decline of large local industries over the last few decades, the paucity of new businesses coming or starting here, the lack of diversity in local jobs, an overreliance on tourism and a negative attitude toward businesses as ways that the Yellow Springs economy is unhealthy.

At the same time, tourism was overwhelmingly seen as one of the bright spots of the local economy, bringing in outside money and contributing to a “thriving downtown,” according to those surveyed. The village would do best to promote local arts, cultural and recreational assets, a strategy identified as the most effective way of growing the economy.

“We draw a lot of visitors to town who shop, dine, recreate and enjoy our cultural offerings,” a local female professor who works in Fairborn wrote.

“Antioch College is beginning to rebound.

We have a critical mass of small businesses that serve local residents.”

The top two village goals was a healthy economy, followed by affordable housing.

What Yellow Springs needs most are jobs that pay a living wage, especially in the technology field, along with more professions like architects and doctors and jobs in manufacturing, according to survey participants.

The village should capitalize on its strengths in education, sustainable food and energy production, health and wellness and the arts and tourism in revitalizing our economy, they said.

Growing established local businesses and helping startups here should take precedence over attracting new firms to town, survey respondents added, and after promoting Yellow Springs’ cultural and environmental assets, the village should create a business mentorship program for entrepreneurs and launch a business incubator, other highly effective strategies for economic development.

TOURISM: A DOUBLE-EDGED SWORD

The most advantageous, but also troubling, aspect of the Yellow Springs

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Wright State University biology professor Volker Bahn commutes from his Yellow Springs-Fairfield Pike home to the Fairborn campus on bike. The 12-mile commute takes about 35 minutes from door to door, just 10 minutes longer than if he drove. Last year, Bahn biked to work 150 days.

economy is the prominence of tourism here, according to the survey, with many extolling its benefits and encouraging the village to build on this strength and others hoping the village moves away from tourism.

Almost half of all the aspects survey respondents said was “healthy” about the local economy related to tourism, including the strong downtown, the many retail shops and restaurants here and the numerous events that draw visitors here. At the same time, many felt the economy was too reliant on tourism.

Survey respondents were concerned that downtown retail businesses and restaurants pay lower wages, are subject to seasonal variability and don’t offer workers a chance at career advancement.

“We have a great many folks in the service industry who find it difficult to make ends meet,” noted one respondent. “Because of the lower wages of service jobs they provide less revenue to the tax base also.”

One respondent wrote that the growth of the tourism industry is creating a “monoculture economy” that is more susceptible to fluctuations in the state and federal economy. Another summed up the sentiments of many survey respondents when he wrote that the problem with tourism is that “there is too much reliance on it, or that it’s reliance is ruining something about YS,” adding that “many tourists only come for the atmosphere, not to purchase gifts.”

Others saw the gifts sold at many retail shops as not meeting the needs of villag-

ers and wished for more items to be sold here so they wouldn’t need to leave town to purchase them, such as children’s clothing or meat from a butcher shop.

“The more you can do for yourself, the more you will grow your own economy,” Burke said of shops selling more products for locals. “If we have to leave Yellow Springs to go get basics, that’s growing the economy somewhere else.”

While a service-oriented economy can be helpful for the local economy, much of the proceeds of that go to the county and state in the form of sales taxes, which is why a baseload of employers in larger markets like education, healthcare and manufacturing, are desirable for many communities, according to survey participant Matthew Kirk, who works in the economic and community development field.

How big a part of the local economy is tourism? By number of jobs, the industry that relies most on tourism (retail and restaurants) is the second largest in town (18 percent), far behind educational services (34 percent) and just ahead of manufacturing (17 percent), according to 2011 Census figures.

While jobs were lost in tourism over the last decade, they did not decline as dramatically as in other sectors like manufacturing and health care.

But jobs that cater to tourists are not only some of the most visible jobs in the Yellow Springs economy, they symbolize the low wages many local workers accept in the face of fewer living wage jobs here. Over the last decade the

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

>>> HOW LOCALS SEE OUR ECONOMY

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��������������� ��������������������������� Extended Hours: M,T,Th 7:30am–7pm • Wed 8am–5pm Fri 7:30am–5pm • Sat 8am–Noon • Closed Sundays

village lost more jobs paying between $15,000 and $40,000 per year than in any other pay scale. A total of 336 jobs in that range were lost between 2002 and 2011, far greater than the 165 jobs lost that paid less than $15,000 per year.

However, according to Census figures, the number of jobs here that pay more than $40,000 per year increased over the last decade (by 108 jobs), a fact that survey respondents did not reference. Some however, did speak to a seeming increase between the rich and poor in town, which itself is a sign of economic trouble.

“This is becoming a village of two types: very poor, and ultra rich. So sad ... ” wrote one respondent.

A 2010 Yellow Springs High School graduate, Moriah Johnston, sees wealth inequality and lack of jobs as driving a demographic change to an older, whiter town with fewer ties to its “original culture” of diversity. Hailing from a multi-generational family, Johnston said that there are few professional jobs paying more than minimum wage with the possibility of advancement here, driving many high school graduates out of the community. Johnston, who has worked at many local retails shops, including at Glen Garden Gifts and Young’s Dairy, said such jobs are good for some workers, but don’t pay enough for people to settle in town.

YELLOW SPRINGS ECONOMIC SURVEY Top ten responses to the question, “In what ways is the Yellow Springs economy...”

HEALTHY

1. Tourism draws many 2. Numerous small businesses

• Caregiver Support Caregiver Resource Center – information and materials on a wide variety of topics to review, borrow & keep. Caregiver support groups, educational and wellness programs and respite care.

937-376-5486 or 1-888-795-8600/www.gccoa.org Programs provided by the Council on Aging are possible through a countywide senior services levy.

2. Taxes high/expensive to live here 3. Major industries declined

4. Thriving downtown

4. High housing costs

5. Antioch College returning

5. Too much tourist industry

6. Strong in education (higher ed and primary)

6. Lack of job variety

7. Arts and recreation

7. No new busineses

8. Healthy environment

8. No jobs

9. Stores meet local needs

9. Lack of space for businesses

10. Villagers personally wealthy

10. Colleges struggling SOURCE: YELLOW SPRINGS NEWS ONLINE SURVEY

“These jobs are great if you’re getting started or are trying to pick up extra income or if you don’t need the money, but there is no upward mobility,” Johnston said. She added that most retail jobs here pay the minimum wage, while sometimes they pay less than minimum wage to under-16 employees under the table.

Support for Greene County Seniors & Caregivers

• Partners in Care (PIC) Program Designed to keep seniors (60+) in their own or family member’s home for as long as possible. Depending on need, in-home services are purchased from local agencies. Council staff works with the Yellow Springs Senior Center when assisting Yellow Springs seniors and families.

1. Wages too low

3. Good retail stores & restaurants

�������������� ���������������� • Information and Assistance Seniors and caregivers can call/e-mail the Yellow Springs Senior Center or Council for information on senior/caregiving issues and services. The Council’s Directory of Services and Support is available at the Center.

UNHEALTHY

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But throngs of tourists can give some local businesses the boost they need to survive, and in general tourism is responsible for a large influx of money and energy from outside town, survey respondents said. Several cited the success of startup Yellow Springs Brewery as an example of a business leveraging the village’s regional draw. One respondent wrote that the mass of tourists spending their money here has meant a rise in “micro-businesses that embrace and thrive on that energy.” Small businesses were generally hailed as a sign of health in the local economy, and many such businesses are geared towards a tourist crowd.

Attracting visitors to town is also a way of attracting new residents, who may move their businesses here or start new ones. Jenny Good is just that sort of resident. She moved to the village with her two children in November after visiting for many years, and has brought her home-based life and business coaching company with her. Good cautions against what some outside the community perceive as an unwelcoming attitude towards outsiders, while the village should also do what it can to keep tourism from changing its character.

“We need to do what we can to strike a balance between making visitors feel welcome and appreciated and retaining the authenticity of Yellow Springs,” wrote Good in her survey. As for the reasons visitors come to town that should be retained here: “They see this area as an the exact counter to what they see in their own life — the corporate world, rush hour traffic, pollution, disconnected government and police force — so when they come here it’s a dose of escapism for them. I think we need to welcome that.”

HIGH TECH, HIGH WAGE JOBS

More than anything else, villagers surveyed pointed to technology jobs as a way

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PHOTO BY MATT MINDE

Tom’s Market has remained a steady downtown business by responding to customers’ requests, according to owner Tom Gray, and now employs about 15 full- and 15 part-time workers. Produce Manager David Trollinger is shown in the market’s new produce section, which was recently expanded in order to offer a wider variety of fruits and vegetables.

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������������������������� forward for the local economy. Such jobs were described as the following: “hightech,” information technology, computer programming, software development and including science and engineering fields, research and development and biotech.

But some respondents saw barriers in getting such jobs here. As one wrote: “High tech/IT jobs. These jobs require power, good Internet access and a place to meet and sit. Our power is OK (usually), Internet access is satisfactory, but the office spaces are extremely limited and expensive.”

The second most common thing that survey respondents said the village needed was more living wage jobs.

Recently, there have been debates over raising the federal minimum wage from $7.25 per hour, and some Yellow Springers surveyed feel strongly that wages should increase. According to some research, over the last 40 years minimum wages — and the wages of most workers — have not kept pace with rising living expenses. This could be especially the case in Yellow Springs, where housing sale prices diverged in 1990 and were double the Dayton area average last year.

Real wages in the U.S. peaked in the late 1960s, according to a study from the Center for Economic and Policy Resources, and some estimate they have fallen as much as 60 percent since. It is sometimes noted that today it takes two incomes in a family to make the same that one used to make. As a result, many two-income households in the

village cannot afford a house here, a situation that Burke and her husband know well. Enacting a living wage in the village would help workers as well as business owners who would suddenly have employees that are more invested in the businesses’ success, Burke said.

“If people are getting paid peanuts they don’t care if they’re doing a good job and don’t care if their employer succeeds,” she said.

But a local business owner wrote in the survey that he was skeptical that a strategy that enforced an acrossthe-board wage would benefit anyone, since a business could go under if it were forced to pay employees more.

“Companies should pay an appropriate wage for their industry,” he wrote.

“Unfortunately in some industries, the lowest level workers cannot make a living on the prevailing wage. That said, if a local business — with competition in the marketplace — pays more than the competition, they will likely go out of business, which again, doesn’t help anybody.”

When asked about the practices of village businesses, that they pay their employees a living wage was cited as the most important by those surveyed.

Others getting high votes were operating as sustainably as possible and providing health insurance for their employees, while businesses giving preference to hiring locally, making sure top managers live in town and providing a good or service for local citizens were seen as less important.

Expert Care. Families welcome.

Wright State Physicians Family Medicine offers patient-centered care for the entire family in a convenient location close to home.

Our physicians are specialty trained to provide care for people of all ages, from newborns to the elderly. All of our physicians are certified by the American Board of Family Medicine.

And we’re located just nine miles from Yellow Springs on the campus of Wright State University.

For appointments call:

937.245.7200.

Wright State Physicians Health Center 725 University Blvd., Fairborn, OH 45324

wrightstatephysicians.org/fm

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The Village Guesthouse

A spacious four-room apartment close to downtown and Antioch, available for short and extended stays

The Village Guesthouse 120 W. Davis Street Yellow Springs, OH 45387 (937) 831-1320 or 838-5054 www.thevillageguesthouse.com

Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

SPIRITUAL Bahá’í Faith Roi and Linden Qualls, 767-7079, 502 Dayton Street E M A I L : ysbahai@gmail.com W E B : www.ohiobahai.org C O N TA C T:

In the words of Bahá’u’lláh, the founder of the Bahá’í faith, “The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens.”

Bahá’u’lláh taught that there is one God who progressively reveals his will to humanity. Each of the great religions initiated by one of God’s divine messengers — Moses, Zoroaster, Krishna, Buddha, Jesus, Muhammad — represents a successive stage in the spiritual development of humankind. All religions are seen as one in spirit because, essentially, they share a common aim and origin.

Bahá’ís regard Bahá’u’lláh as the most recent of these messengers, whose teachings address the ethical and spiritual challenges of the modern world. For more than a century, Bahá’í communities around the globe have worked to dissolve prejudices based on nationality, race, religion and gender. They have collaborated with other like-minded organizations to promote social justice, world peace and love for all humankind.

Bahá’ís living in Yellow Springs meet regularly for worship. Their holy day celebrations, devotional services, children’s classes and study circles are all open to the public.

The Bahá’í Center in Yellow Springs is located at 502 Dayton Street.

Business Support, Networking & Education Discount Programs Cooperative Marketing Plan Website & Social Media Community Information Center Street Fair & Events

YSchamber.org 937.767.2686

Bethel Lutheran Church Pastor Larry Bannick, 937-3238954 or 284-3947; 2731 W. Jackson Road

C O N TA C T:

Bethel Lutheran Church was founded in 1844 by Ezra Keller, who was also a cofounder of Wittenberg University. It is the oldest Lutheran church in Clark County. This ELCA church has developed from its traditional country heritage to serve a diverse congregation. It is a small, family-oriented church in which every member or visitor is valued. Sunday School is held at 9:30 a.m. and church services are held at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday mornings.

The Rev. Larry Bannick became the pastor in Januar y of 2006. In addition, the Kay Glaesner Community Center was completed and is available to rent for receptions, etc.

The center has full kitchen facilities and accommodates up to 90 people. For rental information, contact Lois Pelekoudas at 3257781.

Central Chapel AME Church Church of�ce, 767-3061, 411 S. High Street; Rev. Timoty E. Luggins M.Div., pastor; Ernestine Benning, administrative assistant and public relations E M A I L : TheChapelOne@aol.com C O N TA C T:

Central Chapel is a local church in the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) denomination. It began in 1866 in the Old Central School House on State Route 370, and the church moved twice before settling at High and Davis streets. Members now worship in the second sanctuary located at that location.

In order to better serve the congregation and community, the church family erected an addition, the Education and Family Life Center.

The church has and will continue to address the spiritual, civil rights, physical and educational needs of all persons in Yellow Springs and beyond. The AME motto is “God our Father, Christ our Redeemer, The Holy Spirit our Comforter, Humankind our Family.”

Sunday church school is held at 9:30 a.m. and Sunday morning worship begins at 11 a.m.; Bible study takes place Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m.

Dharma Center 767-9919, 502 Livermore Street info@ysdharma.org www.ysdharma.org

C O N TA C T: EMAIL: WEB:

The Yellow Springs Dharma Center is a Buddhist meditation center supporting practice in the traditions of Vipassana, Zen and Tibetan Buddhism. The center seeks to create an environment that supports the development of calm, compassion, and generosity; to encourage an awareness of one’s own thoughts; and to consider how one’s words and actions impact the world. To this end, the center sponsors many activities at the big brown house on Livermore Street.

Daily silent meditation is offered at 7 a.m. every Monday through Friday, and at 7 p.m. every evening except Saturday. Zen meditation is offered on Saturday, 7:30–9:30 a.m., and Vipassana meditation is offered on Sunday, 8–9:30 a.m. Information about Vajray-

ana practice is available on the website.

Those new to meditation and wanting to familiarize themselves with a beginning practice are invited to attend a brief orientation session held on the second and fourth Mondays of every month at 7:45 p.m. Additionally, six-week Basic Meditation Courses are offered throughout the year by senior practitioners at the Dharma Center. Half-day retreats at the center and residential retreats of up to one week duration are held at various times during the year as well. The Book Discussion Group meets regularly on Thursday evenings at 7:45 p.m. Schedules, titles, and leader information are posted on our website.

A lending library is available for community use, with the contents posted on our website.

Visiting teachers from the three traditions frequently hold teachings and practice retreats. Please visit www.ysdharma.org for additional information, changes and updates to the schedule, and follow the center on Facebook.

First Baptist Church Church of�ce, 767-7659 or 767-7623, 600 Dayton Street; William E. Randolph Jr., pastor.

C O N TA C T:

The First Baptist Church was originally called Zion Baptist Church when it was founded in May 1863. According to its records, it was formed to meet the needs of freed slaves. In 1876 members were able to purchase the new former First Baptist Church located on Xenia Avenue. After 134 years at the Xenia Avenue site, members held a �nal service on Aug. 17, 1997, and departed to the new location on 600 Dayton Street. On March 25, 2006, the church, by God’s grace, achieved the extraordinary by celebrating the mortgage burning for the new building. Besides many groups and events serving its members, the church is noted for annual community events, the most noteworthy of which is the annual Calendar Tea, which has taken place for 55 years. The church is a member of the Yellow Springs Christian Association.

The church also has an AWANA Program held each Thursday evening at 6:30 p.m.

AWANA is a Bible-based club for youth, kindergarten through seventh grades. AWANA combines fun, physical activity, Bible memorization and the basis of a relationship with God. Sunday worship service is held at 10:45 a.m. and Sunday school for adults and children meets at 9:15 a.m. Bible study is held each Wednesday at noon, with prayer and Bible study also held at 6 p.m. on Wednesday evenings.

The church prescribes for itself a core belief in the love of all mankind generated by the love of God.

First Presbyterian Church Rev. Aaron Saari, pastor. Church of�ce, 767-7751, 314 Xenia Ave. Of�ce hours: 9 a.m.–noon, Monday–Friday.

Pastor’s hours: 10 a.m.–5 p.m., Tuesday and Thursday.

E M A I L : �rpys@att.net W E B : yspresby.blogspot.net C O N TA C T:

The First Presbyterian Church was organized in Yellow Springs in 1855. Its presence in the community has been a very visible one, and the new addition build in 1958 was

SPIRITUAL

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PHOTO BY MEGAN BACHMAN

The Rev. Aaron Saari, of the First Prebyterian Church, and the Rev. Sherri Blackwell, of the United Methodist Church, are villagers who hold jobs leading local churches.

dedicated for ministry oriented toward the community.

A strong musical emphasis has brought excellence and diversity to its own musical program, as well as making the church a center for community music programs.

It also offers space for meetings by many community groups as a part of its ministry, including Alcoholics Anonymous, Boy Scouts, Monday Morning Artists, Chamber Music, Montessori School, Dayton Mandolin Orchestra, support groups, social justice and peacemaking and dance and movement classes.

The church offers diverse styles of worship on Sundays at 10:30 a.m., Sunday school for children and youth and both adult and children’s choirs.

The church is an inclusive community of God’s people continuing Christ’s ministry of justice, mercy and love in the world.

Grandmother Drum Healing Circle Grandmother Wolfheart, 7679331; Grandmother Moon Fire, 767-1170.

C O N TA C T:

The Grandmother Drum Healing Circle holds monthly gatherings on the Saturday nearest the full moon, from 6 to 9 p.m., at Rockford Chapel on the Antioch College campus.

The group draws from indigenous spiritual practices that recognize and honor the wisdom of female elders, the healing power of the drum and the importance of our connection to the earth. The group aims to build community and support one another.

Each gathering begins with a silent meditation, followed by a �re ceremony and drumming. Colored cloths represent the four

directions, and these colors swirl together to form pastels that �ow out in all directions with a voice for peace. The circle is open to everyone to honor the sacredness of the full moon. Following drumming, participants share �nger foods and conversations.

Havurah C O N TA C T:

275

Steve Green, 767-9293; P.O. Box

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The Yellow Springs Havurah provides Jewish spiritual, religious, cultural, social and educational experiences. The Havurah holds Shabbat services the �rst and third Saturday of each month at 10 a.m., at Rockford Chapel on the Antioch College campus.

A schedule of Havurah activities is posted at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/yellowspringshavurah/.

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Heart Rhythm Meditation Classes and Meditation Circle Denise Runyon and Tom Malcolm, 767-2293 E M A I L : darun@sbcglobal.net W E B : friendsoftheheartcenter.com C O N TA C T:

Appreciating our community…

Bob Barcus, Ph.D. Aïda Merhemic, M.S.

Yellow Springs Psychological Center

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767-7044

Heart Rhythm Meditation focuses on the breath and heartbeat to shift consciousness from the mind to the heart. Practitioners experience bene�ts to health, relationships, accomplishments and spiritual life as they awaken to the love, harmony and beauty within our hearts and �nd healing, peace and wisdom for our lives. The practices are based on sacred teachings from the Su� path.

An ongoing guided meditation group meets weekly on Tuesday evenings, and all are welcome, regardless of spiritual af�liation. No one is asked to be a believer of any doctrine, only a believer in living from the heart. Newcomers are encouraged to arrange personal instruction in HRM in advance of participation in the group.

Introductor y classes are offered in the spring and fall at the Friends of the Heart Center, Yellow Springs. More information and arrangements for personal instruction are available anytime by contacting the teachers, Denise Runyon and Tom Malcolm, at 937-767-2293, darun@sbcglobal. net or friendsofthehear tcenter.com.

Denise and Tom are master graduates of the Institute of Applied Meditation on the Heart.

SPIRITUAL

Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

Pleasant Grove Missionary Church

Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)

Church of�ce, 767-8011; Pastor Ken Moore, home, 372-8110; 491 W. Hyde Road W E B : www.pleasantgrovemc.org

C O N TA C T:

C O N TA C T:

The Missionary Church is an Evangelical denomination, committed to church planting and world missions. The Pleasant Grove Missionary Church has been a part of this community since 1945. A warm welcome awaits visitors by the people of this country church.

Adult Bible Fellowship, Elective Class and Sunday School classes for children are held on Sundays at 9:30 a.m.; worship service for adults and children’s church are held at 10:30 a.m. Sundays; a nursery is available for all Sunday morning services. Sunday evening service is held at 6 and includes worship, training, music, ministry opportunities, choir practice and kid’s Bible quizzing. Adult Bible Fellowship is held Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m., and small groups meet on Fridays at 6:30 p.m.

St. Paul Catholic Church 767-7450; fax, 767-7465; 308 Phillips Street E M A I L : stpaulof�ce@woh.rr.com or stpaulpastor@woh.rr.com W E B : www.stpaulchurchyso.org C O N TA C T:

The cornerstone of the first St. Paul Catholic Church was laid in 1856 on a lot at the corner of West North College and High Streets. In 1908 the current church at the corner of Phillips and Elm streets was dedicated in a building that once housed the First Christian Church.

St. Paul has 320 registered family units on its roster, a religious education program for approximately 45 children and youth, and adult education programs offered throughout the year.

The parish praises God in word, song and Eucharist in its masses on Saturday at 5 p.m. and Sundays at 11 a.m.

The church is the site of the annual Lenten luncheon series. The church has an outreach to various groups and persons in the area. It rejoices in the richness of the Roman Catholic tradition and in the diversity of a worshipping community drawn from the variety of Yellow Springs and its environs.

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WEB:

767-8486; John Eastman, clerk www.yellowspringsfriendsmeeting.org

Members of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) meet each Sunday at Rockford Chapel on the Antioch College campus. Meetings for worship are held in silence at 8:30 and 11 a.m., with individuals delivering spoken ministry when led by the spirit. Quakers recognize a measure of divine presence in every person, and their quiet worship times, called meetings, are intended to deepen devotion to this Spirit.

Religious education is offered for children and adults Sundays from 10 to 11 a.m., September through May. An additional meeting for worship is held at Rockford Chapel each Wednesday from 7 to 8 a.m. The meeting sponsors a peace witness every Saturday at noon on the corner of Limestone Street and Xenia Avenue.

Yellow Springs Friends have been active in peace and social concerns at local, national and international levels. In the 1970s, this body initiated formation of an extended-care facility in Yellow Springs now known as Friends Care Community; assisted living and independent living accommodations have been added.

Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Yellow Springs 937-372-5613, 767-1603 www.uufys.org, www.uua.org

C O N TA C T: WEB:

Unitarian Universalists value a free search for truth, the importance of reason and the right of conscience, drawing inspiration from science, histor y and all world religions. Unitarian Universalists believe that spiritual wisdom is ever-changing, and seek to act as a moral force in the world, putting faith into action through social justice work in the community and the wider world.

Unitarian Universalists are united by seven principles: • The inherent worth and dignity of every person.

• Justice, equity and compassion in human relations.

• Acceptance of one another and encouragement for spiritual growth.

• A free and responsible search for truth and meaning.

• The right of conscience and the democratic process.

• Peace, liberty and justice for all.

• Respect for the interdependent web of life.

Individuals of all races, ethnic origins, religious philosophies, life styles, abilities and gender orientations are welcome at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Yellow Springs.

The fellowship is located two miles south of Yellow Springs at 2884 U.S. 68 in Goes Station. Services are held at 10 a.m. on Sundays year-round, with religious education for children and youth and child care for babies and toddlers. The building is wheelchair accessible.

All are invited to explore the UUFYS website, visit the fellowship and discover the inclusive community of Unitarian Universalism.

SPIRITUAL

Rev. Sherri Blackwell, 767-7560 (church), 937-319-6103 (parsonage); 202 S. Winter Street E M A I L : pastor-ysumc@yellowsprings.com W E B : yellowspringsumc.com C O N TA C T:

The Yellow Springs United Methodist Church is a warm, friendly, communityoriented congregation. The membership is diverse and consists of professional, working class, and farm people, theologically representing the entire spectrum of faith understandings, from conservative to progressive.

The congregation is also racially and ethnically diverse. The force that holds the group together is love: the love of Christ and a love for humankind.

The United Methodist Church has been a presence in the village since 1837. Its current building was completed in 1846, dedicated in 1850, and has experienced a number of additions and improvements over the years. Today, the church ser ves the community by providing space for local suppor t groups and organizations, the community Emergency Food Pantr y, the Yellow Springs W inter Far mer’s Market, and Home, Inc., a non-profit housing corporation.

Sunday worship is held at 10:30 a.m. yearround. Church school begins at 9:30 a.m., September through May. Bible studies and other programs sponsored by the church are always open to the community. The Yellow Springs United Methodist Church is a faith-based community where everyone is welcome.

Yellow Springs Assembly of God Christian Center Pastor J. Ray Tyson, 767-9133; 324 E. Dayton-Yellow Springs Road W E B : yscc@ag.org C O N TA C T:

The assembly is a small family church where the special unique quality of each individual is cherished and nurtured. The body of believers is warm and supportive with strong belief in the Bible as God’s manual for everyday living. Worship is informal and participatory.

The Yellow Springs Assembly of God Christian Center began in 1975 as an independent fellowship, and in 1977 associated with the Assemblies of God Fellowship.

Spiritual Life Coaching & Reiki

Lyniece Sample B.S. of Psychology & Certified Life Coach

937-244-3767 ° home sessions available ° call for YS office location “Enhance your spiritual & emotional well being.”

www.SundaraHealing.vpweb.com

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LIBRARY Yellow Springs Community Library 352-4003; Connie Collett, head librarian; Janet Ogden, youth services librarian E M A I L : ccollett@gcpl.lib.oh.us W E B : www.greenelibrary.info C O N TA C T:

Do you need entertainment that is free and close to home? Do you need a fast Internet connection? Do you need a learning and social time for your baby, toddler or preschooler? Do you need something for your kids or teens to do? Do you need a good book to read? Do you just need some answers? Your local library provides all of this for free!

The Yellow Springs Library houses almost 60,000 items, including books, movies, audiobooks, music, magazines and newspapers.

Millions more can be borrowed from other libraries, including six other public libraries right here in Greene County. Quickly gaining popularity are free, downloadable audiobooks and e-books for your iPad, Nook or Kindle.

Computers and iPads for the public and a high-speed Internet connection make the library the place to go when there’s slow or no Internet at home. Wireless for your own laptop lets you connect to the Internet and use all the library’s online services. One-onone instruction for computer novices ensures that no one is left behind.

Story times for babies, toddlers and preschoolers are a fun way to make sure your child gets an early start in reading. Special activities for older kids and teens — including a Teen Advisory Group — keep them busy, connected and reading.

The Summer Reading Program keeps people of all ages reading over the summer, educates and entertains with great programs and prizes to keep everyone motivated.

If you have questions, there’s always someone to help �nd an answer, whether in person, by phone, via 24/7 chat, text or email. The library’s subscriptions to premium databases often make getting answers easier than Googling on your own.

If you’re homebound and can’t make it to the library, the library’s Outreach Department will bring books and other materials to you.

All these services are available to you for free, paid for by your tax dollars. When our community joins together to fund a public library, the payoff for each of us is much greater than the cost of our individual contri-

butions. More use means more value. Don’t miss out!

The Yellow Springs Community Library is located at 415 Xenia Ave. Hours of operation are: Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sundays (during the school year), 1 to 5 p.m.

Library Association Becky Eschliman, president rebecca.eschliman@gmail.com

C O N TA C T: EMAIL:

Membership in the Yellow Springs Library Association, or YSLA, is open to anyone interested in serving the community and willing to pay the small annual membership fee of $5. YSLA assists the Yellow Springs Community Library in many ways, providing funds for many of the extras that make the library so useful and appealing.

The YSLA: • Publishes a newsletter, Ex Libris, four times per year • Provides refreshments and prizes for library programs • Funds speci�c projects such as new bike racks, updated media shelving and meeting room lighting improvement • Provides a forum for the library-using public and a means for book lovers to gather together • Supplies supplemental activities for the summer reading program • Gives a book to local newborns • Presents a book bag to children when they get their �rst library card • Augments the librar y’s collection of DVDs, CDs, toys and books • Helps the library with the purchase of equipment and furnishings • Raises funds through such activities as the Founders’ Day bake sale, used-book sales at the library and on Amazon • Works on library landscaping, including removal of invasive honeysuckle and maintaining garden plots The YSLA has a long history of volunteer achievement. The doors of the �rst library in Yellow Springs opened in 1899 through the efforts of a group that, in 1901, incorporated as the YSLA. The group was responsible for maintaining every aspect of the library until 1926, when the library became part of the Greene County library system.

In 1980, the association produced “This Town Is Our Town,” a slide and tape history of Yellow Springs, and in 1978 it founded the Corky Schiff Circulating Art Collection and

established a local authors shelf. The association commissioned Jon Barlow Hudson to create “Tree of Knowledge,” an outdoor sculpture that was dedicated in 1993.

All are invited to �nd the YSLA on its Facebook page, facebook.com/YellowSpringsLibrar yAssociation. Annual membership dues are $5 per household, with the opportunity for lifetime membership for $100. YSLA borchures with membership application forms are available at the entrances to the library The YSLA is now a “Friends of the Library” organization. The governance of the library and its day-to-day operation are the responsibility of the Greene County system.

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VILLAGERS RATE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES B y M E G A N B AC H M A N As an adjunct English professor at Clark State Community College, Cyndi Pauwels is among the one-third of Yellow Springs residents who work in the field of education and four-fifths of working villagers who commute. Despite six years of trying, Pauwels hasn’t been able to find a more secure and higher-paying job in teaching or administration at one of the two local universities, and has had “dismal luck” finding even local secretarial or office work in town, she said.

“Adjuncting is not something I wanted to do,” said Pauwels, who is in her 50s. “Not to put down being an adjunct, but there are no benefits and I’m never real sure how many classes I’m going to have.”

But for Pauwels and her husband, who moved to the village in 2010 after four years of eyeing local real estate for a home that was affordable for them, the village is nevertheless where they want to be.

“Yellow Springs is a unique community, as much for its physical environment with the trees and bike path as the small businesses and people here,” Pauwels said.

Local musician Ben Hemmendinger, 30, could commute, but instead prefers to stay in town for much of his work, which has included stints at downtown restaurants, substitute teaching at local schools and private music lessons. While Hemmendinger appreciates the community support and networking that has helped him develop as a musician, he doesn’t know how long his job situation can last, even though he hopes to eventually raise a family here.

“I don’t expect to be OK with just subsistence forever, but right now I’m just supporting myself and I’m happy that I have meaningful work,” Hemmendinger said. “I would be lucky to come back if I had kids because it seems like there are great schools here and it’s a draw for a lot of families.”

Pauwels and Hemmendinger were two of 303 residents of Yellow Springs and Miami Township who completed a Yellow Springs news online survey on the local economy. In addition to sharing their personal stories, villagers offered opinions on local jobs, businesses and economic development.

The article on page 48 revealed that villagers see high-tech, living wage jobs and more affordable housing as essential to local economic growth, and that the village may be split on whether tourism is the town’s greatest economic strength or an industry

the village is too dependent on.

This article covers what villagers think about local jobs for local residents and commuting, what jobs they would like to see here, and what the village should do to strengthen the local economy.

JOBS THAT BUILD ON STRENGTHS

Survey respondents had many ideas for new jobs and businesses in the Yellow Springs economy. Many said that more of what people called professional jobs are needed, such as architects, lawyers, doctors, engineers, graphic designers and those working in finance. A large number who took the survey encouraged more manufacturing jobs and industries, which they variously described as light, low-impact and nonpolluting.

Others saw jobs that built on the town’s strengths in sustainability, wellness and education as having the best prospects here. Some specifically cited jobs in the energy field, such as those in green building and renewable energy.

“Production of products for export that support energy conservation and/or green energy production — find ways to be part of the solution to problems about which we are concerned,” wrote one respondent.

Sustainable farming and local food is another sector primed for growth here, survey participants said. Some ideas include butcher shops, gardening supply stores, worm farms, food hubs, food processing centers and dairy and grain production. The health and wellness field is another strength of the village that could be capitalized on, with room for both holistic health and conventional practices and specialties like pediatrics, allergenics and out-patient surgery centers, wrote those who were surveyed.

Hemmendinger sees the most promise in building off of Yellow Springs’ strengths as a sustainable, community-centered and artistic culture. For example, the village should promote home-based businesses like Norah’s breakfast, Tom’s Market should stock more local food and Antioch College should move its Steinway grand piano from storage to the First Presbyterian Church for concerts, Hemmendinger suggested in the survey. This could offer an authentic contrast to the “kitschy” gifts sold in many local shops and the generic “hippy vibes” that many promote here.

“The people are what make it special and it’s when they are encouraged to do their own thing or cooperation is facilitated so that something unusual can happen,” Hemmendinger said.

Added another survey participant:

Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES RATED AS ‘VERY OR EXTREMELY EFFECTIVE’ 120 100

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Villagers weighed in on how Yellow Springs should grow its economy in a recent YS News survey.

“Our strength is our colorful uniqueness. Not doing things the way everyone else does. Thinking out of the box. Not insulting the earth. Living sustainably. Setting an example.”

But David Turner, a retired YSI engineer, argued that higher-paying professional, manufacturing and technical jobs are needed to pay for essential village services in the coming years rather than a “fantasy that we will get money by having artists and empty land.”

“The people who are going to provide a lot of money to support the village and school system will have to be making more money, so that means professionals — not to be disrespectful to the people who sell me things in the shops,” Turner said.

Turner believes that the village will need an additional $1 million in revenue in the coming decade, which he calculates equates to the need for 667 new jobs paying $100,000 per year, which he said won’t come from “massage therapists and artists and green space,” but mid-sized businesses.

JOBS FOR LOCALS?

Many, like Pauwels, lamented in the survey not being able to live and work in town. Some even identified local jobs for local people as an important goal for the economy. But while the vast majority of residents surveyed said they would personally prefer to work in town, the importance of many villagers both living and working in town was not widely shared. Asked how important it is that a significant portion of Yellow Springers both live and work in the village, more

than 50 percent said it was not important at all, or only somewhat important.

Most commuters, who represent 80 percent of the local working population, said they would prefer to walk or bike to work or cut down an unsafe, unenjoyable, inconvenient, time-consuming commute that takes them away from their family and the community they love.

But about 20 percent of commuters said they don’t mind working outside of the village or couldn’t see a place for themselves in a town with limited opportunities in their field.

Others who own a business outside of Yellow Springs find the village too isolated, with too small a market for their goods or services or with too little talent to find the right employees.

One respondent who works in the arts field in Springfield said she couldn’t see herself working in Yellow Springs because of the lack of public support for the arts.

“I work in the arts and prefer to commute to a larger community with more financial resources for the arts. ... Without some basic financial support of an arts infrastructure in YS, I would not consider working in Yellow Springs again,” she said.

WAYS TO GROW THE ECONOMY

When faced with a choice of where the village should put its efforts to bolster the local economy, survey respondents said that the village should first focus on helping existing local businesses grow. This covers some 144 local firms, according to 2011 figures. Those surveyed said that assisting new startups

in town was nearly as important. Both were well ahead of the idea of attracting new businesses from the outside and are strategies that survey participant Rick Donahoe agrees with.

“Successful communities have looked within and looked at what they have and tried to build on that and that has been more successful for them than going out in the world and trying to bring in the big thing that tries to fix everything,” Donahoe said.

Donahoe added that helping Antioch College succeed is the best economic development strategy for the village to pursue, since Antioch is rapidly hiring local residents and may itself pursue a business incubator that could seed new businesses for the local town.

Given nine strategies to rate on how effective they might be to growing the local economy, survey respondents selected promoting Yellow Springs arts and recreational assets, creating a business mentorship program for entrepreneurs and launching a business incubator as the most effective strategies. The next three, increasing other potential properties for business (not at the proposed Center for Business and Education), developing the CBE, and rebooting the Village government revolving loan fund were seen as moderately effective solutions, while the last three, starting a private financial investment group, arranging a Village government incentives toolkit and hiring a Village economic development director were relatively ineffective options.

Matthew Kirk, a 32-year-old new resident who formerly worked for the

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EVERYONE’S FAVORITE PLACE

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>>> VILLAGERS RATE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES Ohio Department of Development, sees much potential in growing new small-to-midsize businesses in Yellow Springs — “10 more businesses that employ 25 people each,” he said. The goal for the village should not be to “start the next Facebook,” but to start up “scalable businesses” that can return investors a lot of money. To get to that point, the town should create an “innovation culture,” Kirk said.

“People often talk about the need for an incubator or accelerator and those things are great, but the real importance behind all of those things is you need some intellectual leadership in the community

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— someone who is championing starting new businesses and providing resources, and not just money,” Kirk said. That jives with the strategy of mentorship that those surveyed saw as second-most effective.

Kirk is in the early stages of starting his own business, a community engagement Web application, after moving to town in November with his wife, native Yellow Springer Kristina, an ER physician at Dayton Children’s Hospital, and their 18-month-old son, Oliver.

Theresa Thinnes, who owns Dancing Light Photography in the village, experienced a kind of informal mentorship when she started her business in town in the mid-1990s.

“What happened was villagers supported our business and were very generous with us,” Thinnes said. “I don’t think [the business] would have taken off so fast anywhere else.”

Though focusing on increasing the number of properties for business development was seen as only somewhat effective by many survey participants, Bob Moore finds space for professionals to be among the more important strategies the village should pursue. The plant broker company Moore works for in Beavercreek has a clean, professional office space that impresses clients and bankers alike and is not easily found in Yellow Springs.

Moore, like Kirk, added that creating an entrepreneurial culture is paramount

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JOBS IN YELLOW SPRINGS,

BY SECTOR, IN 2011 Construction 3% Public Administration 3%

Other 10%

Construction 4%

Educational Services 34%

Professional, Scientific, Technical 4% Retail 8%

Health Care 9% Manufacturing 17% Accommodation and Food 10% SOURCE: U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

through mentoring of entrepreneurs by those experienced in business. He also agreed with most survey participants that the government funding businesses directly through a revolving loan fund is not as effective, since, in Moore’s words, they are “bad at managing risk,” while banks are more expert in that realm.

As another survey participant wrote: “The village should under NO circumstances involve itself in the financing of business. We have a terrible track record of it — leave it to banks/investors. Leave the government to cheerlead, facilitate and make life EASY for any startup.”

Turner, however, sees an important role for the Village in identifying exactly what businesses need to move or grow here, which it can then offer to prospective firms in the way of available space, infrastructure and incentives.

“Just because we have green space and a nice place to buy stuff doesn’t mean people will want to locate their business here,” Turner said. “Those things might be nice for their employees once they’ve come here, but ultimately businesses need infrastructure.”

Overcoming a perceived bias against Yellow Springs as unprofessional and anti-business is another problem, Moore and many survey participants noted. One respondent wrote, “There are outspoken folks in YS who convey an attitude that anyone with a capitalist dream is the enemy.”

MIXED VIEWS ON THE CBE

As for the proposed Center for Business and Education (CBE), survey respondents were mixed on how effective it might be, with many stating their opposition or support in survey comments. One saw focusing on the

CBE as akin to getting outside companies to invest in the village while “we have a village full of people who would love to own a small business here.” Another said the village should improve its own infrastructure rather than develop the CBE because its owner, Community Resources, had done a mediocre job attracting interest.

One survey participant wrote that the village should find the businesses who will move to the CBE before developing it: “I am not entirely sure, however that ‘If you build it, they will come.’ ... I think we need to know who the ‘they’ is before we start building. Perhaps if we targeted specific companies and asked them what it would take to move their operation to YS, we’d have more luck.”

Several of those surveyed expressed concern that the CBE would create sprawl. As one put it, “I’m not really against the CBE, but I think that a stripmall type business park, and business parks in general, are a thing of the past.”

Other respondents saw the CBE as a viable way forward. One, Tanja Rensch, said she is a “big proponent” of the CBE because it would bring in jobs that would allow people to live here. Rensch works outside of town at the National Archives to support her family since she hasn’t been able to find a good-paying job in the village.

Added Dianne Collinson, a fixed-income senior worried about increasing property taxes: “Ideas have come along, like the CBE, where you have to take a chance.

If you don’t build it they won’t come. I think Yellow Springs is such a desirable place, the businesses will come.”

For complete survey results, including the full list of anonymous comments from villagers, visit www.ysnews.com.

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GLEN HELEN Glen Helen 769-1902, 405 Corry Street ashaw@glenhelen.org www.glenhelen.org

C O N TA C T: EMAIL: WEB:

Glen Helen is the legacy of Hugh Taylor Birch, who donated the wooded glen to Antioch College in memory of his daughter, Helen Birch Bartlett. With this gift, Antioch accepted the responsibility of preserving the land into perpetuity. Today, that mission is carried forward by the Glen Helen Ecology Institute, which manages the land and coordinates the educational programs of “The Glen.”

The 1,000-acre preserve is rich in scenic features, all accessible from a 20-mile trail system. On even a short walk, visitors can view spectacular wild�owers, 400-year-old trees, limestone cliffs with waterfalls and overhangs, and the beautiful yellow spring that gives the town its name. Trails are open year-round during daylight hours.

Glen Helen’s quarterly list of public programs — including guided hikes, after-school programs, public lectures, and workshops — can be accessed at www.glenhelen.org.

The Ecology Institute depends on the support of individuals, through the Glen Helen Association, to maintain the preserve and its programs. The Association is a membership-based organization founded in 1960 to support Antioch and its efforts to protect the Glen. Association members are entitled to complimentary parking at the Corry Street entrance, discounts at the Glen Helen Nature Shop, plus free or discounted admission to many of the events in the preserve. Basic membership in the Association starts at $40.

To support the Glen, please visit www.glenhelen.org or by mail: Glen Helen Association, 405 Corry Street, Yellow Springs, OH 45387.

Glen Helen programs and activities include the following:

Outdoor Education Center — For over 50 years, the Center has shaped the lives of the �fth- and sixth-graders who visit. The Outdoor Education Center is also the site of summer EcoCamps – day and overnight camps immersed in nature. 1075 SR 343 (grounds closed to the public when school is in session); call 767-7648.

Raptor Center — This nationally recognized facility rehabilitates injured hawks, owls, and related birds of prey, providing birds a second chance at life in the wild. Resident birds, used for educational programs, can be viewed on site. Open during daylight hours, limited parking for bird viewing is available at 1075 SR 343; call 767-7648.

Trailside Museum — The hub for regularly scheduled programs and hikes in the preserve. Stop in for a map, gear, or information before venturing onto the trails. Hours vary seasonally. 505 Corry Street; call 767-7798.

Nature Shop — Operated by the Glen Helen Association, the shop features a wide variety of field guides and other nature books, crafts, t-shirts, bird feeders and greeting cards. Hours: Mondays–Fridays: 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Saturdays–Sundays: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Vernet Ecological Center, 405 Corry St.; call 767-1902.

Extension Programs — Glen Helen can bring a host of programs to your site, and our naturalists can join your group hike as guides; call 767-7648.

Rent the Glen — The Vernet Ecological Center, Birch Manor, the Outdoor Education Center complex, and select outdoor settings within Glen Helen are available for rental for special events like weddings, retreats, conferences, meetings, and memorials. Call 937-769-1902, ext 1103 for information.

Volunteering — Glen Helen has ongoing volunteer opportunities for habitat stewards, Nature Shop clerks, hike leaders, museum docents, and more. Call 937-769-1902, ext 1103 for information.

PHOTO BY MATT MINDE

Glen Helen Outdoor Education Center’s annual EcoCamp has introduced generations of children to nature around them and employs many older high school and college students as counselors and naturalists.

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Gentle Dentistry “Caring for Your Teeth and Your Feelings”

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COMMUNICATION Antioch Review C O N TA C T :

Muriel Keyes, assistant editor, 937769-1365; P. O. Box 148 E M A I L : mkeyes@antiochreview.org W E B : www.antiochreview.org

PROUDLY SERVING Yellow Springs and the surrounding community since 1966

The Antioch Review is a quarterly publication of critical and creative thought that prints award-winning �ction, essays and poetr y from emerging and established writers. It is variously identi�ed as a literary journal, a scholarly quarterly and a little magazine.

Established in 1941, the Review has attracted an international readership with an active interest in our culture as it is re�ected in the arts, politics and current affairs. For more than 70 years, creative authors, poets and thinkers have found a friendly reception in the Review, regardless of formal reputation.

Antioch Review authors are consistently included in Best American anthologies and Pushcart prizes. The Review was a �nalist for the National Magazine Award in 2009, 2010 and 2011 in the �ction and essay categories.

Subscriptions and single copies are available from the website or P.O. Box 148, Yellow Springs. Single copies are also available at Tom’s Market and Sam & Eddie’s Open Books. Excerpts from the current and upcoming issues can be viewed on our website.

Channel 5 Station Manager Paul Abendroth, 767-1678; Program Director Jean Payne, 767-2378; of�ce hours: 10 a.m.–noon each Saturday, Council Chambers, John Bryan Community Center, 767-7803 E M A I L : communityaccess@yso.com W E B : cap.yso.com C O N TA C T:

Yellow Springs Community Access Television Channel 5 is the public access station for the village. The station regularly broadcasts meetings of Village Council and its commissions, Township Trustees, School Board and other organizations. In addition, local groups and residents provide shows of interest to the community. Between shows, Channel 5 volunteers broadcast announcements of local events. Forms for announcements are on the website and in the Bryan Center lobby.

E-mail your favorite pictures, and Channel 5 will use them. The station’s cameras, editing equipment and training are available to the community to create content to show on the station. An informal group of villagers is forming to help put together productions. A wide range of training is also available through the Miami Valley Communications Council.

Channel 5 can use help from the general public in taping meetings and events, working with others to create shows and operating the station.

WYSO Public Radio 767-6420 wyso@wyso.org www.wyso.org

C O N TA C T: EMAIL: WEB:

WYSO Public Radio, 91.3 FM, is the most listened-to public radio station ser ving the Miami Valley. It is the area’s primary source for National Public Radio programming, including “Morning Edition” and “All Things Considered.” Entertainment favorites include “Car Talk,” “This American Life” and “Fresh Air.” For its overnight schedule, WYSO features news programming from the BBC World Service.

WYSO produces news reports and features for its Miami Valley listeners as well as its own weekly magazine, “WYSO Weekend” and many other locally hosted music programs.

Programming, membership information and audio streaming are available online.

WYSO is licensed to Antioch College and broadcasts at 50,000 watts from the Antioch campus to a weekly audience of almost 70,000 persons. WYSO depends on listener and business support for most of its operating budget. Businesses interested in reaching WYSO’s audience through underwriting messages may contact the station for more information.

Yellow Springs News 767-7373, P.O. Box 187, 253½ Xenia Avenue E M A I L : ysnews@ysnews.com W E B : www.ysnews.com C O N TA C T:

For more than 130 years, the Yellow Springs News has re�ected the myriad activities in Yellow Springs and Miami Township, from coverage of the local governments and schools, to stories about interesting people who live here, to the many events that take place throughout the year. Published every Thursday, the News is read regularly by more than 80 percent of Yellow Springers.

Over the years, the paper has consistently won state and national journalism awards for its reporting, editorial writing, advertising, typography and community service.

The News won Paper of the Year in its size category in 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 at the annual convention of the Ohio Newspaper Association.

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Nikki Dakota is the music director at WYSO radio, owned by Antioch College and located near the campus. The public radio station employs 12 people, five of whom live in the village.

d1111111111111111111111111111c 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 AN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL 7 8 7 8 O F N E W S A N D O P I N I O N S I N C E 18 8 0 7 8 7 8 Subscribe to an award-winning weekly newspaper 7 8 dedicated to its commmunity, with a 7 8 Web site updated daily 7 8 7 8 SUBSCRIPTION RATES: 7 8 7 8 Local (45387 ZIP) ...........................$50 7 8 Greene County ..........................$55 7 8 Dayton/Springfield ...........................$60 7 8 7 8 Elsewhere in U.S. ...........................$65 7 8 Electronic edition ...........................$65 7 8 Student subscription (9 mos.) ...........................$40 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 7 8 Your H O M E T O W N paper 7 8 7 8 2 5 3 ½ X E N I A AV E . • P. O . B O X 1 8 7, Y E L L O W S P R I N G S O H 4 5 3 8 7 7 8 937-767-7373 • YSNEWS.COM b4444444444444444444444444444a

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YELLOW SPRINGS NEWS

Enhancing Community Life For forty years the Yellow Springs Community Foundation has been enriching community life by supporting a broad array of activities: art, education, senior services, public recreation, conservation, scientific research, environmental improvement and more. Our generous donors make this possible. Thank you—and please know that every cent you give to the foundation is used to make grants; none goes to overhead.

Lisa Abel* Matthew Denman Leigh Duncan Emily Fine Mary Fisher* Terry Graham Tia Huston

Trustees* and Members Ellis Jacobs* Lisa Kreeger Chris Kristensen Maureen Lynch* Rachel McKinley Sandy McHugh Susan Miller*

Evan Scott Jane Scott* Tim Sherwood* Mary Kay Smith Malte vonMatthiessen Sterling Wiggins* David Wishart*

Yellow Springs Community Foundation • P.O. Box 55 • Yellow Springs, OH 45387

767-2655 • yscf@yscf.org • www.yscf.org

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Y E L LOW S P R I N G S N E W S

SMALL TOWNS USE CREATIVITY TO GROW B y L AU R E N H E ATO N Between 1993 and 2009, Ponca City, Okla., population 24,000, lost a total of 6,300 jobs due to the downsizing and merging of Conoco Oil, the modern iteration of the industry that built the place. According to a 2010 study by the International Economic Development Council, “Ponca City was not only a one-company town but a oneindustry town, with the local economy 80 percent oil-dependent and totally invested in the success of Conoco.”

Some towns might have laid down and took it. But Ponca City fought its way back, first forming an economic development advisory board and later the Ponca City Development Authority to start an aggressive business retention program, a workforce training program, a business incubator and a business accelerator. And through sustained and personal work with existing businesses, the city has been able to help create 2,999 new jobs and about $80 million in new wages in Ponca City.

The story of Ponca City, recently named one of the top 10 best small towns for business in the U.S. by Jack Shultz, author of “Boomtown, USA,” is a case study for how to rebuild a flagging small town economy. As part of the YS News’ economy series, this article aims to look at a few examples of the efforts other towns across the country have made to address economic development and the results that have emerged from those efforts. Some towns, such as Ponca City, have focused on local growth, while other regions, such as Warren County, Ohio, have managed to attract more of their business from outside the area.

There is no one answer, but a lot of creative ideas and options, many of which could be emulated by Yellow Springs for development in the local region.

GROWING FROM WITHIN

Some communities are convinced that as a rule, growing from within is the most effective path to community self improvement. Ponca City, Okla., is one such town.

One need not spend long talking to Ponca City Development Authority Director David Myers to understand the energy behind the local growth. Myers, who speaks publicly about sustainable growth strategies, believes that towns don’t need to recruit from the outside to grow if they focus on internal needs and do the work to meet them.

“Communities need to know that what they need to succeed is already there,” Myers said.

Ponca City regrouped after Conoco left in 2002, and its leaders decided they needed a common economic metric to

work toward. Ponca City, the chamber of commerce and its small online adult college decided that every agency in the city should measure local economic growth by the increase in local property taxes.

“Cities measure their success by city revenues, and economic development measures success by the number of jobs, but we said if property taxes go up then everyone’s benefitting — housing values go up, industrial values go up — we wanted a metric that benefitted everybody,” Myers said in an interview last week.

The development authority didn’t worry about recruiting industry from the outside, but instead started going on what Myers calls “donut runs” to all the businesses in town, getting to know them, understanding their needs and building trust toward a partnership. It took three years, Myers said, but the four-person agency was dogged in its belief that the effort would pay off.

Through their very regular and personal conversations, the agency learned that a skilled workforce pool was a need shared by several companies. So in addition to partnering with local schools and universities to shape workforce training programs, the Ponca City development agency devoted one of its employees to act as a headhunter for local businesses searching for people with a wide range of skills, from welders to human resource managers.

One company in particular needed 40 welders with a particular kind of skill in order to secure one of its contracts.

Through deeper conversations with the company and the local vocational school, the agency figured out how to simplify and fulfill the training needs, set up a biweekly night training and successfully trained and recruited 40 new welders and an additional 200 employees needed to fill the four-year contract. In 2013 alone project Blue Wave added 151 new jobs and $4 million in wages for the city’s residents.

The development agency also learned that many businesses wanted to invest in energy saving measures but did not have the capital to do so. So they recruited local banks to finance the costs of energy efficient lighting and HVAC systems, and the companies repaid the loans with the money they were able to save on energy bills.

“The goal was to make the facilities here by far the most productive, so if a company was looking for where to expand, they would choose to do it here,” Myers said.

Ponca City has also recently breathed new life into its formerly passive business incubator housed at the local

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P H O T O B Y SU Z A N N E S Z E M P R U C H

Several hundred villagers showed up on a crisp fall evening to witness the first bronze pour and grand finale of the two-week National Bronze Sculpture Symposium, which also drew many visitors to town. While the event was delayed due to cracked molds, the foundry crew repaired the molds with sand and successfully carried out the pour as molten metal sparked and glowed.

The bronze pieces created by the four resident sculptors are displayed in public spaces in the village.

community college. The agency’s current focus is to increase what Myers called “economy-based jobs,” or jobs that export products and services and import cash (versus businesses such as restaurants, which are important, but generally recirculate the existing cash in the region). Myers believed that by marketing to and actively recruiting research-oriented academics and giving them space to experiment and share, the development of new products and ideas would ensue naturally.

As an additional economic boost, the city started a business accelerator, which offers more intensive, short-term counsel to young but established businesses, as well as investment based on venture-

style returns. Counsel for accelerators is largely focused on how to expand existing markets, versus an incubator, which tends to offer more long-term help to new businesses who are just getting started.

The city’s efforts have paid off in a major way. Since 2003, the year after Conoco left, Ponca City has increased employment by 2,999 jobs and due to the increase in science-related jobs, the average wage also increased to about $15 an hour. Though the city didn’t actively recruit new businesses to attain the job increase, they did attract a few who liked the way existing businesses were being supported.

“By paying attention to existing businesses we were recruiting

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new businesses,” Myers said.

What made the difference was the personal nature of the development efforts — the development authority wasn’t just talking about getting more jobs, it was actively educating the community’s leaders about how to respond to businesses’ needs. Myers and his team talked to banks about financing needs, to the chamber of commerce about promotional needs, to the schools about training needs, and even the local hospitals about employer insurance needs.

“Medical providers need to understand that they need to be taking the insurance their local businesses have, because if there’s a mismatch, you’ve got a problem,” Myers said.

The connections take time, Myers admits, but he likens the outcome to the old commercial about the difference between the car rental companies Avis and Hertz — “There was no difference except that Avis tried harder,” he said.

Likewise, all communities, if they do the work to interconnect the players and services available, can and will grow.

FAIRFIELD, IOWA

Fairfield, Iowa, population 10,000, is known in its region as a “rural boomtown” because of its longtime attention to sustainable, community-oriented growth. It is another town that felt that the competition between an enor-

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mous pool of cities for a small set of manufacturers appeared more difficult than growing the businesses that were already there. Its attitude toward growth was honed by a consortium of public and private industry leaders who created the Fairfield Economic Development Association, or FEDA, in 1971 on the belief that economic development and community development do best when they happen together, according to FEDA’s president Lori Schaefer-Weaton, who is also director of business development for Agri-Industrial Plastics Company.

“We understand that 90 percent of the economic development in a town like Fairfield is going to come from existing businesses — none of it will be because we attracted the next Google,” she said in an interview this week.

“We want to make sure we’re taking care of our own, and the only way to do that is to sit down with all the businesses on a regular basis and ask them what it is they need to succeed.”

The formula has worked. Over the past 10 years, FEDA has led efforts that have resulted in a total of $275 million in venture capital invested in local businesses that have, in turn, created over 2,000 jobs. For the community, that growth has also translated into a $10 million arts and convention center, and a new library, hospital and health center. The pattern of growth

and local investment isn’t new, ShaeferWeaton said, but reflects the continuous work on behalf of both community leaders and local businesses to communicate regularly about the needs of each and finding ways to meet them.

Fairfield invests in its schools and supports the career tech paths that

“We want to make sure we’re taking care of our own, and the only way to do that is to sit down with all the businesses on a regular basis and ask them what it is they need to succeed.”

Lori Schaefer-Weaton, president, Fairfield (Iowa) Economic Development Association tie to local businesses. Toward that end, FEDA helped create the Fairfield Regional Career Academy, a postsecondary education option offering technology and industrial training that met Fairfield’s business needs and that Fairfield’s youth expressed interest in.

The two-year program, housed in an unused elementary school, is a consortium of Indian Hills Community College and three local high schools and was created in response to a business survey that indicated the number one concern was workforce recruitment problems.

Fairfield also launched the Come Home Initiative working with Manpower, the regional office of the global workforce solutions company ManpowerGroup, to attract former Fairfield students and residents back to town by connecting them to local employment opportunities.

The FEDA has other programs to encourage businesses to invest and grow locally. According to FEDA Administrator Adam Plagge, REDI Loans provide gap financing to companies that need to invest in equipment but are unable to obtain all the necessary funding through the private financing system. The development office also manages a $1 million grant from the county’s Energy Rewards Program to provide loans for businesses that want to increase their energy efficiency, including solar paneling, insulation and LED lighting.

The accumulated effort is about creating a symbiotic atmosphere between business and culture that weaves a healthy, vibrant community.

“If we’re raising the right pool of kids today, that means workforce for me tomorrow; if I recruit someone but I don’t have a vibrant community where they can live or their spouse can work, I won’t be able to keep them,” she said.

“At the end of the day this is all of our community — it’s not about indi-

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STAYING IN TOWN

For over a decade the Environmental Protection Agency has given national smart growth awards to communities whose innovative policies strengthen their economies and benefit both residents and the environment. The town of Brattleboro, Vt., population 12,000, received an award in 2012 for green renovation of a centrally located multipurpose facility housing both the Brattleboro Food Cooperative and a 24-unit affordable housing complex.

The project was spearheaded by the Brattleboro Food Co-op, which needed to expand and was looking at an affordable abandoned big box grocery in a strip several miles outside of town, according to co-op president Alex Gyori in an interview. The co-op spoke with members, who stated a clear desire to remain the anchor of Brattleboro’s downtown, and then the larger community members, who expressed a desire to incorporate affordable housing on the upper part of the new building. So the co-op contacted the local Windham and Windsor Housing Trust, who did a feasibility study and agreed to finance their part of the building.

The four-story building with the coop on the ground floor, co-op offices on the second floors and housing on the third and fourth floors cost $11 million, including energy efficiency specifications that would decrease the energy use by 50 percent, compared to a traditional building of the same size. The two organizations formed a development agreement, splitting the development cost. Windham used state housing grants and tax credits to finance $4 million for its part. The co-op used a combination of savings, 4 percent interest loans from about 160 participating co-op members, a loan from the Cooperative Fund of New England, and a loan from a local bank to finance its $7 million share.

The project was completed in 2012 and has been “very well received by the community,” Gyori said. About 16 percent of the co-op’s food is sourced from local Vermont farms, including produce, dairy, meat, processed confections and beers, and the business continues to provide a selection of clean, organic food for about 6,700 active members (mostly from outside Brattleboro). And of the 24 housing units, five are federally subsidized, the bulk are moderately affordable and five are market rate, and all filled immediately, Gyori said. Though the co-op has had some challenges unrelated to the business, such as Hurricane Irene which flooded one of its sister outlets, the project is still on track to repay its member loans by the end of the year.

ATTRACTING NEW BUSINESS

Some communities have figured out ways to stand out from the crowd and make the case for businesses looking to relocate or expand to choose them.

The Port Authority in Warren County,

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The tax exemption saved FedEx about $350,000 on the $15 million ground terminal it built in Lebanon in 2012, according to port Director Martin Russell. Through a somewhat complicated arrangement, Setzer Development Corporation purchased the property in Lebanon’s commerce park and leased it and the new facility to the port, while FedEx reimburses the port over a period of 10 years until the building investment is paid off.

“It’s an inducement to a company that could have picked locations in multiple other states or anywhere else in southwest Ohio,” Russell said in an interview. “[The port] is one of the tools the city can use to attract capital investment and create employment growth.”

The port aided in a different way with its first project in 2007 to build a $100 million Premium Outlet Mall in Monroe along Interstate 75. The port calculated the estimated increase in property taxes and borrowed against that amount to pay for the $6 million infrastructure installation (at a reduced cost due to the tax abatement for the cost of materials) and then accepted repayment from the local property taxes conferred directly to the port.

“We try to be as creative as we can with the opportunities the port affords,” Russell said.

The Port Authority was established in 2007, and since then has managed half a dozen major sales tax transactions totalling upward of half a billion dollars in new capital investment in buildings alone, including a $100 million distribution center in Monroe’s business park, and the recent $100 million expansion of ADVICS automotive manufacturer, Lebanon’s largest private employer.

The Warren County Port Authority offers its services for a small fee, which it invests in other community projects, Russell said. With the FedEx project, for instance, the port collected $50,000 in exchange for the $400,000 savings to the developer. The fees are invested in the Warren County Chamber Alliance, composed of the county’s six chambers of commerce, and in efforts such as the Warren County Small Business Development Center to promote businesses with under 50 employees. That center was launched in 2013 with the support of several hundred thousand dollars and 30 public and private community partners and has resulted in the creation of about 150 small business jobs in Warren County, Russell said.

Though a tax exemption may not be the only factor in a business decision to expand or relocate, Russell wants as many businesses as possible to know that it’s an option in Warren County.

“We don’t know what the tipping point is for any given project, but we want to put our best foot forward,

saying, if you risk your capital here in Warren County, we have some things we can offer that are outside the box to hopefully benefit you,” he said.

The Warren Port has also contracted its services to neighboring counties, such as an agreement signed last summer with Preble County Port Authority to promote commerce and economic development within the region west of Dayton.

Greene County also has a port authority, which has focused almost exclusively on managing the Lewis Jackson Regional Airport in Xenia. Airport Manager Don Smith could not speak to the matter of whether that port’s board does or plans to deal with economic growth in the county.

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GOVERNMENT Village Government Village of�ces, 767-3402; Bryan Community Center, 100 Dayton Street W E B : www.yso.com C O N TA C T:

An engaged, active citizenry and a responsive government are a tradition in Yellow Springs.

The Village of Yellow Springs is a political subdivision of the State of Ohio, governed by a home-rule charter adopted in 1950. The Village operates under the Council-Manager form of government, operating several departments including police, streets maintenance, parks, water treatment and distribution, sewer and storm water collection, water reclamation, refuse/recycling, and electrical service.

Fire and EMS service are provided by Miami Township. The Village of�ces are located in the Bryan Center, at 100 Dayton Street.

The Village Council is a nonpar tisan, �ve member governing elected body. The Council serves as the policy-making body of the Village, with the Village Manager assisting Council with policy decisions through insightful analysis on policy alternatives, implementing policy decision and carrying out other duties as described in the Charter. Three of the �ve Council members are elected every two years, in the November general election in odd-numbered years. The two candidates receiving the most votes are elected to four-year terms, and the candidate with the third-highest total receives a two-year term. Village Council is presided over by the Council President, who is a Council member elected by Council members with each newly elected Council. The Village Council meets on the �rst and third Monday of each month at 7 p.m., in the Bryan Center. Council provides time at each meeting for public input, on both matters being discussed before Council and on matters not on the agenda, but of interest to the community. Meetings are televised live via cable TV on channel 5.

The Village Planning Commission meets on the second Monday of each month at 7 p.m., in the Bryan Center. The Planning Commission is presided over by an elected president and consists of �ve members who are appointed

by Village Council, including one Council representative. The Commission provides time at each meeting for public input, on both matters being discussed before the commission and on matters not on the agenda, but of interest to the community. These meetings are also televised on channel 5.

Council also has established citizen advisor y committees and commissions, who advise Council on policy matters on related topical areas. Membership is appointed by Council, but meetings remain open to the public for input and comment. These are the Library Commission, the Human Relations Commission, the Energy Commission, Board of Zoning Appeals, Board of Tax Appeals. The Village works with other local groups on speci�c projects. Village partners have included the Chamber of Commerce, Community Resources, Home, Inc., Tecumseh Land Trust, Bicycle Enhancement and Safe Routes to School Committee, the Senior Center, Yellow Springs Arts Council, the Tree Committee, and several others. The Village also operates a mediation program for helping resolve disputes and foster peace in the community.

The Bryan Center is a multi-use facility that provides space for Village government of�ces, Mayor’s Court, conference and meeting rooms, a youth center and a number of recreational and educational areas. The

center is accessible to all citizens per the use policy. Facilities for tennis and basketball, as well as a pottery shop, toddler playground and the skate park are located at the rear of the Bryan Center property. Recreational activities in the village include numerous parks and the Bryan Center. Gaunt Park, located on West South College Street, is the Village’s largest park and is home to the public swimming pool. The Village’s swim team, the Seadogs, competes regionally. The two softball diamonds at Gaunt Park are used by men’s and women’s leagues and the Perry League, the local T-ball program. The Yellow Springs Youth Baseball Program also plays at Gaunt Park every summer. Ellis Park on the north end of town is a passive recreation park and patrons enjoy strolling through the Lloyd Kennedy Arboretum and/or using the �shing pond. Ohio’s longest bike trail, the Little Miami Bike Trail, is adjacent to the Bryan Center parking lot. Residents and visitor use the trail for bicycling, walking, running, skating, horseback riding and other nonmotorized recreation. The Village manages its section of trail in conjunction with the Greene County Parks & Trails department.

Mediation Program John Gudgel, 937-605-8754, mediation@yso.com

C O N TA C T: EMAIL:

The Village Mediation Program of Yellow Springs provides peaceful and productive methods of addressing con�ict in the Yellow Springs and Miami Township community.

Skilled volunteer mediators provide free mediation sessions to assist community members with their disputes. Free facilitation and consultation services are available for nonpro�t, community service and education organizations. VMP offers a variety of workshops and training opportunities for local residents and organizations. New mediators are needed and welcomed.

Council Boards, Commissions and Task Forces The following is a list of volunteer Village Council boards, commissions, task forces and other organizations that allow villagers to serve the community in speci�c areas.

Not all groups meet regularly or are always active, and some are called into action on an as-needed basis. Check the Yellow Springs News for monthly updates to meetings, times and availability of positions.

Planning Commission Meets second Mondays, 7 p.m., Council Chambers Board of Zoning Appeals Scheduled as needed by Planning Asst.

Board of Tax Appeals Scheduled as needed by Administration Member Community Access Panel Meets third Wednesday, 7 p.m., Council Chambers Economic Development Revolving Loan Fund Committee Meets as required by Village Treasurer Economic Sustainability Commission Meets fourth Tuesday, 6 p.m., Art Room, Bryan Center Energy Board Meets second and fourth Tuesday, 6 p.m., Council Chambers Environmental Commission Meets second and fourth Thursday, 7 p.m., Rooms A and B, Bryan Center

Human Relations Commission Meets �rst Thursday, 7 p.m., Art Room Librar y Commission Meets in January, June and as needed.

There is no set day or time.

Miami Township Trustees Meet �rst and third Mondays, 7 p.m., Township of�ces at Miami Township Fire-Rescue Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission Meets �rst Thurday, 9:30 a.m., 11040 W. Third St., Dayton Regional Planning and Coordinating Commission for Greene County Meets fourth Tuesday, 7:30 p.m., County Building, Dayton/Xenia Rd., Xenia Yellow Springs School Board Meets second Thursday, 7 p.m., Mills Lawn Graham Conference Room.

Other groups include: Chamber of Commerce Karen Wintrow, director Wellhead Protection Plan Management Committee Design Advisor y Committee Tecumseh Land Trust Krista Magaw, executive director Community Council Community Resources

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Miami Township Miami Township of�ces, trustees@miamitownship.net, 767-2460 W E B : www.miamitownship.net C O N TA C T:

Miami Township, which includes Yellow Springs and Clifton, is governed by a three member Board of Trustees — currently Mark Crockett, Chris Mucher and John Eastman — and a Township Fiscal Of�cer, Margaret Silliman, The Township is zoned, and the trustees oversee and appoint the �ve members of the Zoning Commission and the Board of Zoning Appeals. The Township zoning code and map are available online.

The trustees also see to the maintenance of 14.35 miles of Township roads, all of which are hard surfaced, and the operation of three cemeteries: the Township cemetery in Clifton, the Glen Forest Cemetery and the private Grinnell Cemetery. The Township also owns the historic Grinnell Mill, which is open to the public the following hours: Saturday and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. For information regarding the Grinnell Mill Bed and Breakfast, please call 767-0131.

The Board of Trustees meets the �rst and third Mondays of each month at 7 p.m., at the Township of�ces, located at 225 Corry Street in Yellow Springs. Township residents are invited to attend the meetings, which traditionally have an “open agenda” format. Meeting minutes may be viewed by visiting the Web.

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VILLAGE EVENTS

EVENTS

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2014 –15

CHAMBER MUSIC IN YELLOW SPRINGS

Sun., Oct. 5, 7:30 p.m. (First Presbyterian Church) FALL STREET FAIR

Sat., Oct. 11, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. (downtown) ART STROLL

Fri., Oct. 17, 6–10 p.m. (downtown) YELLOW SPRINGS ARTIST STUDIO TOUR

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Sat. and Sun., Oct. 18–19, 11 a.m.–6 p.m.

NOV

CHAMBER MUSIC IN YELLOW SPRINGS

Sun., Nov. 2, 7:30 p.m. (First Presbyterian Church)

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ART AND SOUL: AN ART FAIR

Sat., Nov. 15, 10 a.m.–4 p.m., (Mills Lawn) YELLOW FRIDAY

Fri., Nov. 28 (downtown) REINDEER SHUFFLE

Fri., Nov. 28, 6–9 p.m. (downtown) SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY

Sat., Nov. 29 (downtown) LEGENDARY LIGHTS OF CLIFTON

Nov. 28–Jan. 1 (Clifton, OH)

T W I N C O A C H A PA RT M E N T S

DEC

310 / 320 Union Street Yellow Springs, Ohio 45387 767-9180 or 767-7439 Central Air • Fully Carpeted Two-Bedroom Apartments Two blocks from Downtown

SANTA PANCAKE BREAKFAST

Sat., Dec. 6, 9–11:30 a.m. (United Methodist Church) HOLIDAY FEST

Sat., Dec. 13, 10 a.m.–6 p.m. (downtown) YS ARTS COUNCIL JUMBLE SALE

Dec. 6–31 (111 Corry St.) JAN

MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. PEACE WALK

Mon., Jan. 12, 10:30 a.m. (downtown) FEB

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SCHOOL FOREST FESTIVAL

Sat. and Sun., Dec. 6–7, 9 a.m.–3 p.m., (Bryan Park Road)

CHAMBER MUSIC IN YELLOW SPRINGS

Sun., Feb. 15, 7:30 p.m. (First Presbyterian Church) MAR

CHAMBER MUSIC IN YELLOW SPRINGS

Sun., Mar. 22, 7:30 p.m. (First Presbyterian Church) JUNE

SPRING STREET FAIR

Sat., June 13, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. (downtown) ART STROLL

Fri., June 19, 6–10 p.m. (downtown) ANTIOCH COLLEGE REUNION

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June 18–21 JULY

YS KIDS PLAYHOUSE

(Dates & location TBA)

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ANTIOCH WRITERS’ WORKSHOP

July 11–17 (Antioch University Midwest) AUG

BOOK FAIR

Sat., Aug. 1, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. (Mills Lawn School) CLIFTON GORGE ART AND MUSIC FESTIVAL

Fri. and Sat., Aug. 28–29 (Clifton, OH) ART ON THE LAWN

Sat., Aug. 8, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. (Mills Lawn School)

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Y S K I D S P L A Y H O U S E (Dates & location TBA) AACW BLUES FEST

Aug. 2015 (Antioch Amphitheatre)

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SEPT

CYCLOPS FEST

Sept. 2015 (Bryan Ctr. lawn) SEASONAL

CORNER CONE FARMERS MARKET

Saturdays, 7 a.m.–noon (Corner Cone parking lot)

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YELLOW SPRINGS FARMERS MARKET

Saturdays, 7 a.m.–noon (Kings Yard parking lot) YELLOW SPRINGS WINTER MARKET

Saturdays, United Methodist Church basement  For a comprehensive list of community activities, read the Yellow Springs News each Thursday or visit ysnews.com.

VILLAGE MAP

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YELLOW SPRINGS

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MAP COURTESY OF HARRY MILLMAN

YELLOW SPRINGS MAP & EVENTS

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GE

An CO tio LL ch E

Calling all Visionaries A healthy society requires institutions to be catalysts for change and laboratories for democracy, a role Antioch College has played throughout its history. From civil rights to sustainability, the arts and literature to bio-med, Antioch students develop deep liberal arts content knowledge and then apply what they’ve learned– testing theories and gaining indendence through co-op.

A small college with big ideas, Antioch is located in the bucolic hamlet of Yellow Springs—a small town with a big culture. Antioch’s deliberate focus on rigorous academics in a small and intentional learning community is directly influenced by the College’s strong relationship with the Village of Yellow Springs. The Village is home to Antioch’s Glen Helen Nature Preserve, as well as WYSO, our on-campus public radio station that serves the Miami Valley.

Antioch graduates have included Nobel Prize winners, Fulbright Scholars and many MacArthur “Genius Award” Fellows. Antiochians are willing to step outside of the mainstream to be “open-field runners in an open-field world,” and their successes are often built on an unusual combination of practical knowledge and willingness to take thoughtful action—they are both thinkers and doers.

With that in mind, Antioch continues as the only rigorous liberal arts college in the nation to require four full-time domestic or international co-ops in business, the arts, nonprofit, or government over four years of study. Through co-op, graduates develop a healthy resume, a fascinating story of adventure and the ability to apply classroom knowledge in a real-world context.

Antioch College prepares young adults for leadership in a better world than we have known. We seek students with the capacity to use the opportunity of an Antioch education to forge meaningful activist and creative lives. This opportunity is not for every student; however, those who are admitted for fall 2015 entry are offered the Horace Mann Fellowship, a half-tuition scholarship for four years of study at Antioch.

To arrange a tour or learn more, visit antiochcollege.org/admission.

Be a catalyst for change OFFICE OF ADMISSION AND FINANCIAL AID ONE MORGAN PLACE | YELLOW SPRINGS, OHIO VISIT WWW.ANTIOCHCOLLEGE.ORG/ADMISSION | CALL 937-319-6082