Author Archives: Editor

Call to Artists

Posted on June 2, 2009 | Leave a comment

The Xenia Mural Society, a component of Greene Giving, is issuing a Call to Artists for original and creative designs for a mural with the general theme of “Trails” to be placed on a building in Xenia. For this mural, “Trails” can be interpreted loosely to include anything historical or currently relative to the Xenia area from buffalo trails to Native American trails, Pioneer trails, early roadways, railroads, hiking, or bicycling or any combination of these.

The Xenia Mural Society will be facilitating the creation of a number of pieces of public mural art in Xenia. The Society is made up of interested citizens who have volunteered their time and expertise to provide direction and focus for the mural project; to help building owners locate funding for the mural art from the private and public sectors; and to promote expansion and preservation of other Xenia murals in the future.

The honorarium for the winning artist’s design for the “Trails” mural will be $500 and the design will become the property of the Xenia Mural Society. The final mural will be completed by a muralist working in conjunction with the winning artist and the Society. If the selected artist has the ability and desire to complete the actual mural he or she will be encouraged to submit a proposal for the entire project. Given current economic conditions, the Society is working to have a “brush ready” project prepared in order to facilitate creation of a mural or murals as soon as funding permits.

The deadline for submission of up to three detailed sketches per artist is July 1, 2009. Several possible sites may be viewed online at www.XeniaMurals.org. There are currently two buildings whose owners have agreed to discuss hosting a mural: Building 1, Montgomery Insurance and Investments is located at 114 S. Detroit St. and has a side wall space of approximately 75X25′ and building 2, Express Yourself Coffeehouse and Art Gallery is located at 78 E. Main St., and has a side wall space of approximately 75X14′. All or part of the wall surfaces may be incorporated into the rendering. An Application Form should be submitted with each set of sketches. A printable form is available at www.XeniaMurals.org.

Finalists will be selected by the Selection Committee of the Xenia Mural Society and will be asked to submit a full color rendering on canvas or other suitable material, no smaller than 24″ in width, which must be received by August 15, 2009. Final competing designs will be displayed for public comment at Xenia’s Rail & Arts Fest on August 22. The winning submission will be announced at Xenia’s Old Fashioned Days, September 19, 2009.

For more information visit www.XeniaMurals.org or email info@xeniamurals.org or phone the Xenia Area Chamber of Commerce (937) 372-3591.

Leave a comment

Posted in art, news, Xenia

Tagged , , ,

Beautify Your Property Win An Award

Posted on May 30, 2009 | Leave a comment

Now there are two win-win programs for beautifying your home. In a previous post, the Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission (MVRPC) said they will award the best implementer of their Air Quality Advisory action program. And, now, Xenia will pass out awards to property owners who enhance and beautify their properties the best.

A worthy comparison might be the Christmas Decoration Awards program in which residents are given public kudos for Christmas displays receiving the most votes.

During the month of June, July and August, you could win a pack of environmentally-friendly lawn beautification equipment and your picture in the Xenia hall of fame, or at least in the Xenia Daily Gazette.

You’ll have to ask the Recreation Department officials whether any capital improvement prizes will be included in the awards. That is, I mean money, fertilizer, trash bags, or other substantial award.

Seriously, the Board for Recreation, Arts & Cultural Activities (BRACA) established the Beautification Awards to encourage Xenia residents and other owners to develop and maintain their properties in an attractive manner, thereby improving their own neighborhood and ultimately the community as a whole. The Awards are a way to publicly recognize those individuals whose efforts qualify as personal property enhancement within the City.

What is required to qualify for a Beautification Award? Here are the things the Board will be looking for:

Structural Condition: Is the exterior of the site and any other buildings on the property in good repair?

Horticultural Aesthetics: Are there any flowers, shrubs, trees, garden, or other vegetation?

General Appearance: Neatness of the front and sides of the property. Are they litter-free? Are the surrounding areas such as an adjacent alley, abutting street curb and gutter also neat?

Lawn Condition: Is it mowed? Are weeds under control? Is it patchy with bare spots? Does it look like a golf course?

Edgings: Are the edges along driveways, sidewalks, and patios clean and trimmed? Are there weeds, grass, etc. in the sidewalk cracks and curbs? [This should be a sub-heading to the previous category]

Bonus: Extra points may be earned for work or displays that might be considered extra special, patriotic, or timely. Some examples are fountains, pools, gazebos, flagpoles, ponds, etc.

Unlike MVRPC’s Air Quality Awareness Awards program, the Beautification Awards program last five months not three. Awards will be given during the months of June, July, August, September, and October. You may nominate your own home, if you wish. Nominations may be turned in or mailed to the Recreation Department located at City Hall, 101 N. Detroit Street, Xenia, OH 45385. Nominations should be received by the 25th of the month preceding the award month.

To obtain a copy of the nomination form, go here or pick up a copy from the Receptionist at City Hall. If you have questions get answers by calling the Parks & Recreation Department at 376-7275.

Leave a comment

Posted in events, news, Xenia

Tagged ,

Win a Pack of Battery-Powered Yard Equipment

Posted on May 30, 2009 | Leave a comment

If you are willing to follow the Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission’s Air Quality Advisory actions, you would be eligible to win one of three environmental-friendly B&D battery-power yard maintenance equipment packs:

 
* Combination Shrubbery Trimmer & Grass Shears,
* Hedge Trimmer; and
* Weed-whacker

The three lawn maintenance packs will be given to the winners one at the end of June, another at the end of July, and the last one at the end of August. The retail of the three tools is about $200.

What better way to avoid fines for high weeds, and for overgrown hedges and shrubs that hide the existence of your house. And while avoiding those fines, you will be helping to lower greenhouse gases and high ozone levels at ground levels in Xenia and across the Miami Valley.

If you are interested, go to the Miami Valley Air webiste. To register to win those prizes, call the Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission at (937) 223-6323 and register now. You may also by-pass the contest and go straight to Environmental New Flash to sign up for the Air Quality Advisory e-mails, which you will receive once a day.

Leave a comment

Posted in events, Greene County, health

Township Photo Contest

Posted on May 29, 2009 | Leave a comment

Do you have a photo of a particular landmark in your township
you think is worthy of showing off?

The Ohio Township Association is putting together a township calendar to sell at its annual conferences and online. The top 12 photos will find a place in the calendar and receive a free copy of the finished product to display in their township.

The photos may be seasonal landscape shots, highlight a unique
aspect of your township or be of an important event your township hosts.

If you have a photo you would like to submit, you can present it to your local officials for consideration. Be sure an include a brief description of the photo. Your local official may then forward it to OSA at hall@ohiotownships.org.

Leave a comment

Posted in events, Greene County, history

Tagged , ,

Dayton Tea Party Bellbrook Event June 1

Posted on May 28, 2009 | Leave a comment

Monday, June 1, from 7 to 10 p.m. will be a Dayton Tea Party group meet up for anyone who would like to attend at Scor an American Eatery in Bellbrook, Ohio.

This is the second of many other small group meetings that will allow Dayton Tea Partiers to come together and discuss our concerns, how to bring about solutions to get our great country back as we work up to the July 3 Rally.

Scor is owned by a good, hardworking all American family that had a dream to start their own small business and are very excited that we picked their establishment to hold our get-togethers. Please, if you come to this meet up, let us bless this hard working family by coming with hungry bellies and thirsty mouths as the economy has hit their business pretty hard as it has for most small business owners.

Scor offers a great menu at reasonable prices and does sell alcoholic beverages but is known more for it’s good food and ‘Cheers’ like atmosphere than anything else. There will be spacious seating and great service provided for all! Of course there will be live music provided by Dan Rivers and a host of great local talent as he will be presenting my acoustic open mic show format.

Rob Scott, co-founder of the Dayton Tea Party, will be on hand at 8 p.m. to provide an update on the Dayton Tea Party Rally on July 3 AND will have more information on how you can get involved. Additionally, he will inform the group about his upcoming trip to Washington D.C. representing the Tea Party.

Leave a comment

Posted in Bellbrook, events, politics

Tagged

State Representative Jarrod B. Martin On Foreclosure Moratorium

Posted on May 21, 2009 | Leave a comment

State Representative Jarrod B. Martin (R- Beavercreek), today responded to the passage of House Bill 3 from the Ohio House of Representatives.

House Bill 3 passed along a vote of 54-43. The measure establishes a six-month foreclosure moratorium in Ohio and requires lenders to pay a $750 filing fee to the Department of Commerce, on top of existing court filing fees.

“Today was a frightening day for the citizens of the State of Ohio. The House Democrats took action through the passage of House Bill 3 to insert big brother government into private contracts and the intimate relationship of attorney-client privilege”, Martin said.

Republican concerns include the constitutionality of several provisions, including the establishment of an additional filing fee, which creates a barrier to the courts. The moratorium also remains a concern as Republicans have argued it sets a dangerous precedent for the expansion of such practices in the future, and will create a backlog in the courts once the mandate is lifted.

Martin said, “I’m not a lawyer and I’m not a judge, but I’m pretty sure that Article II Section 28 of the Ohio Constitution says ‘the General Assembly shall have no power to pass retroactive laws, or laws impairing the obligations of contracts…'”

On several occasions during the more than three hour debate the House Republicans offered alternative legislation that would address the intention of helping those facing foreclosure, however, with the exception of one amendment requiring contact information for the Department of Job and Family Services be provided on foreclosure notices to borrowers, their offers to work in a bi-partisan manner along with the remainder of their amendments were tabled by House Democrats.

Martin stated, “I found it very offensive when my Democrat colleagues stated that they would prefer to work any further changes to the bill through the Senate rather than working with House Republicans in a bi-partisan manner.”

Most House Republicans believe the market response to the legislation will lead to increased cost and risk to borrowers and lenders; causing higher fees, higher down payments, and a rise in interest rates.

“I believe this bill will inevitably pass the burden onto other Ohioans and will result in further market declines”, Martin said.

The bill will now head to the Senate. It is likely that the Senate will not immediately address the bill with any further deliberation as they continue to work through Ohio’s budget shortfalls.

Representative Jarrod Martin serves the 70 House District in western Greene County including the cities of Fairborn, Beavercreek, and Xenia.

Leave a comment

Posted in Beavercreek, economy, Fairborn, House of Representatives, news, politics, Xenia

Change you can actually believe in…

Posted on May 19, 2009 | Leave a comment

I overheard a preacher talking about how the Roman Emperor Caligula used the slogan “change you can believe in.” He used it during his campaign to convince people of the Empire and their elite patrons in Rome to elect him as the new Caesar. The grand sales pitch was a promise to return imperial rule to the glory days of Caesar Augustus, and it worked.*

As we witnessed not many month ago, it also worked for the smooth talking junior senator from Illinois. And, many fundamentalists still believe Obama will yet make good on his sale pitch.

Did I say fundamentalists? Sorry, I meant to say secular fundamentalists.

Anyway, for those left behind in the dust of reality the “change you can believe in” is a slogan whose reality is fading away like a lot of other hot air.

In Xenia, however, genuine positive change is actually occurring. The following are some examples:

In February of this year, Roger’s Jewelry which operated for over twenty years at 76 Xenia Towne Square closed shop due to the economy. The former manager of Roger’s Jewelry has re-opened another jewelry store called Beyer Jewelers.

Downtown Cafe has re-opened at 104 North Detroit Street in the former space occupied by “What’s Brewing Café.”

Walgreen Pharmacy is open for business. It will initially employ 15-20 employees.

W & W Dry Cleaners is now operating at 75 West Main Street.

B.S. Systems Inc. is now operating at 141 Little Vine Street. This is a start up business that assembles and package machinery parts. (I’m not sure what the B.S. represents.)

Not only are new businesses opening or reopening, but other businesses are expanding their facilities to increase the enjoyment of patrons. For example,

Dairy Kings Delite located at 698 Cincinnati Avenue has expanded their outdoor patio sitting for their customers. Old-fashion ice cream cones and sundaes … yummm … my sweet tooth has fits just thinking about it.

Kennedy’s Korners, Inc. on West Second Street has added an outside patio sitting area for the customers of Cheng’s Restaurant and Carry-out.

In case you were capable of missing the sign at the corner of Main and Orange, the news is that Tim Horton Restaurant has added another feature to their restaurant and it now includes Coldstone Creamery. Coldstone Creamery services unique ice cream creations, smoothies, cakes and shakes. The unique feature of the ice cream is its final preparation on a frozen granite stone.

All of this real change may not convince the emperor to put his clothes back on, but it will sure counter his obscene economic tactics a little.

* I suspect what Caligula really meant by “change they all could believe in” was that everyone   would eventually believe in his deity. They would not only believe, but they would be unified   by worshiping him. I wonder how Obama is doing? He was being hailed as the messiah.

Sources: Grace Baptist Radio Broadcast, May 17, 2009 and
                  Development Corner Newsletter, April 2009

Leave a comment

Posted in business, economy, history, news, Xenia

Tagged

An official led prison break in Ohio

Posted on May 14, 2009 | Leave a comment

Just as they favor giving convicted criminals stereos, digital cable TV, and free clothes and meals, liberals now support unmerited freedom of the duly incarcerated.

According to the Lancaster Eagle Gazette, leading the charge to release Ohio’s prisoners is Gov. Strickland. Throwing prisons out of their cells and into Ohio communities was supposed to take place
May 4. I guess Gov. Strickland chose Sunday to give his conservative and religious critics something to pray about.

That is how I read the Eagle Gazette’s special report.

With a near-record 50,919 inmates behind bars this month, as of May 4 Gov. Ted Strickland said he has no choice but to start releasing people because the state just can’t afford otherwise. His proposal is more than scare-tactic rhetoric. Ohio State lawmakers are considering sweeping prison reform in which prisoners will be sent to live in halfway houses in communities.”

A halfway house has no barred doors and windows. Consequently, the bad guys could leave and do more crime in our communities.

Why, then, our lawmakers bent on endangering Ohio communities. There are two reasons: (1) Prisons are overcrowded, and (2) the state says it can’t afford to our communities or provide for the welfare of so many criminals.

As an example, the Eagle Gazette claims that their own prison, the Lancaster’s Southeastern Correctional Institution, “houses 1,628 inmates when it is meant for 1,385.”

“Strickland predicts his proposed changes could reduce the prison population by 6,736 indefinitely and save state taxpayers nearly $28 million a year.”

The Eagle Gazette, however, refutes his claim. The report states that cost are about the same. But even if it did save the state $28 million, it would only reduce total costs by about 1.5 percent of it total prison budget.

What the Eagle Gazette didn’t mention was the underlying problem of state lawmakers criminalizing non-crimes. Not all crimes were crimes in the past and some laws that regulated moral corruption and crime have been repealed. There are crimes in which community rehabilitation would have been more effective and may have not only reduced future crime but also reduced the total costs.

The attitude of some goes something like this: It’s better to keep deadbeats and criminals off the street. Helping them find their place among the prison population makes the economy look better. High employment and growing GDP statistics attracts investors. Besides, it’s probably cheaper to imprison deadbeats than keep them on the more respectable welfare programs.

Source: Lancaster Eagle Gazette, May 9, 2009.

Leave a comment

Posted in economy, Governor, news, Ohio, politics

Tagged , , ,

Greene County Court Moves Mitchel Lawsuit to Allen County Judge

Posted on May 12, 2009 | Leave a comment

According to Aileen Crawford, Greene County Common Pleas Court Assignment Commissioner, Judge J. Timothy Campbell moved Plaintiff John Mitchel’s public records lawsuit against County Prosecutor Steven Haller and four County Commissioners to former Third District Court of Appeals judge, Sumner E. Walters of Lima. In March Mitchel filed suit against Mr. Haller, current Greene County Commissioners Richard Perales and Marilyn Reid and former Commissioners Ralph Harper and Reed Madden to compel them to produce public records related to the $1.9 million BRAC Initiative Agreement awarded without competition to the Dayton Development Coalition in September, 2003. Ms. Crawford stated that jurisdiction moved to Judge Walters because of a possible conflict of interest between Judge Campbell and Greene County Prosecutor, Steven Haller.

In response to the announcement, Mitchel responded, “I’m pleased that Judge Campbell recused himself from the case and transferred jurisdiction to Judge Walters. Although it will delay final resolution of a citizen’s serious allegations that elected officials are withholding public records in violation of Ohio statutes, it’s an important step forward to shine a bright light on Greene County government. These records are just as important to the defendants as they are to the citizens. Our elected officials are entitled to their day in court, and of course Greene County taxpayers have a right to know where their tax dollars are being spent.”

Leave a comment

Posted in Greene County, news, politics

American Policy Roundtable Announces 40 Days of Prayer for Congress

Posted on May 7, 2009 | Leave a comment

The American Policy Roundtable today called upon all Americans to lift the United States Congress in prayer for the next 40 days. The call went out via the national radio broadcast, The Public Square®, produced by the Roundtable and aired on over 140 radio stations and translators coast-to-coast.

“Criticism of Congress is high in every city and town, but the responsibilities before this Congress are even higher” stated David Zanotti, President/CEO of the Roundtable. “In the healthcare debate alone, Congress is now facing decisions that will impact every American. These are decisions that have life and death consequences for every household.”

The Roundtable has produced a daily Congressional prayer list to help people pray through the entire U.S. Congress, both House and Senate, in the forty days between May 7th and June 15th, 2009. The list is found on the Roundtable’s homepage at www.APRoundtable.org. Over one-million visitors log onto this site per year.

Individuals, churches, schools and organizations are all being invited by Internet email blasts to participate in the 40 Days of Prayer for Congress.

Ohio Senators Sherrod Brown and George Voinovich are on the calendar for May 31 (25th day). Ohioans will be united in prayer
for their Representatives on June 6 and 7. Rep. Steve Austria day
is June 6. Dayton’s Rep. Mike Turner and House leaders John
Boehner and Dennis Kucinich are among others who will be remembered in Ohioans’ prayers.

For more information about 40 Days of Prayer for Congress, go here.

Leave a comment

Posted in events, news, Ohio

Tagged ,