Latest news with #Conneaut
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Conneaut hosting spring clean-up
CONNEAUT — The city is hosting a spring clean-up at the former Astatic property, at 341 Harbor St. The event began Thursday and continues today and Saturday, from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. It is open to Conneaut residents. Conneaut Wastewater Superintendent Brian Bidwell said people participating in the clean-up have to show proof of city residency. 'Essentially, if you bring it here, we unload everything for everybody,' he said. 'If they want to help, they can, but we just have them pull up, we unload it.' Bidwell said the clean-up is focused on taking in larger items, but will not take hazardous waste, like refrigerators, air conditioners and other items that contain freon. 'Other than that, we take mattresses, TVs ... couches and furniture, and things like that,' he said. 'We're just putting [it] in the dumpster and smashing it down.' The clean-up also takes scrap metal and is sending it to a scrap yard, and people can come to the clean-up as many times as they want, Bidwell said. 'I don't anticipate that we'll be turning anyone away,' he said. Alongside taking in junk, the clean-up is collecting tires. Bidwell said the city's target is collecting 800 tires. 'Technically, we're only taking four tires per person, so, if you've got two people in the car, we'll take eight tires,' he said. The Conneaut Health Department funded the tire removal with $5,600 in grant funds from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, Conneaut Health Commissioner Nichele Blood said. Blood said unused tires can be a place for mosquitos to reproduce. '[The clean up is] a great event that the city is able to put on for the citizens of Conneaut,' she said. The health department is giving out mosquito repellent at the clean up. 'If you're bringing tires, we're also giving you some mosquito repellent, just as a [thank you for] helping us keep the community mosquito-free,' Bidwell said. This is the second year the city has hosted the clean-up. 'I'm thrilled we're able to provide this opportunity to the city once again, because it's amazing what we accumulate over time and just need to organize and de-clutter,' Conneaut City Manager Nick Sanford said. Bidwell said there are not many changes to this year's event. 'The first day last year, we started out a little differently,' he said. 'We had people coming in, unloading things onto the pad, and then we were scooping it up. It was taking too long, so we changed what we were doing last year on day two.' Bidwell said he hopes the event gets bigger each year. 'A lot of people are cleaning up in the spring, and getting rid of just stuff in general,' he said. 'It's really been well-received in the community, and I think it's going to get better every year, and at hopefully at some point down the road, it'll be something even more.'
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Memorial Day draws attention to veteran sacrifice
Varied ways to lift up the memory of veterans who provided the ultimate sacrifice occurred in different places in different ways Monday as area communities found ways to commemorate Memorial Day. The ceremonies varied as much as the communities that sponsored them. Many continued traditions started decades ago and are repeated each year as a reminder of the abiding care for veterans. The village of Rock Creek showed up in force and marched south on Route 45 from High Street to Union Cemetery complete with the Jefferson Area High School Marching Band providing music. Ceremonies took place throughout the county, including Evergreen Cemetery in Geneva, Conneaut's War Memorial and Ashtabula's War Memorial as well as many small townships in between.
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Memorial Day celebrations set around the county
Remembering the lives of those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country is the focal point of Memorial Day, and events will occur throughout Ashtabula County in many different forms Monday. In Ashtabula, there will not be a parade this year, but an 11 a.m. ceremony is scheduled at the Ashtabula War Memorial on Main Avenue. Volunteers were seen recently preparing the area for Monday's ceremonies. In Conneaut, a parade is scheduled to step off from the Conneaut American Legion on Broad Street at 10:45 a.m., and arrive at city hall for brief ceremony before heading to City Cemetery for a ceremony that will include Nic Church as master of ceremonies and Ashtabula County Veterans Service Commission Executive Director Ben Schwartfigure speaking. The ceremony is entitled 'Remembering our 63,' which emphasizes the Conneaut residents that did not return from their military service. Sixty-three crosses, with roses and flags, are scheduled to be placed at the site. The Conneaut High School Band is scheduled to participate, and Rev. Tim Kraus is to conduct the reading of the names. A bell will be tolled for each person. A parade is also scheduled for 9:30 a.m. in Geneva, with a ceremony to follow at Evergreen Cemetery. The Rock Creek Veterans of Foreign Wars Post #4953 invites all former and active service men and women to a parade and ceremony, said John Dyrcz representing the post in a press release. The parade is scheduled to start at 8 a.m., with the Jefferson Area High School Band participating. 'The parade will include stops at the Fire Department Memorial,' Dyrcz said. He said a Naval remembrance will occur at the Rock Creek Bridge before continuing on to Union Cemetery for a ceremony. Ashtabula County Commissioner Casey Kozlowski is scheduled to be the guest speaker. The JAHS Band is also scheduled to assist at ceremonies at Rays Corners, Lenox and Dorset townships, and Jefferson. A new leadership team, that includes village administrators, the Rotary Club and the Jefferson Area Chamber of Commerce, are coordinating the parade in the village this year. The ceremony is scheduled to start at 11 a.m. at the Ashtabula County Courthouse, which will include a speech by State Senator Sandra O'Brien. The parade is scheduled to run from East Jefferson Street to North Market Street, and conclude at the cemetery, Elliott Rice said in a press release. The final portion of the ceremony is planned for the Helicopter Memorial. The Kelloggsville Heritage Committee is hosting the 66th Annual Memorial Day Parade and Service starting at 10 a.m. at the Kelloggsville Methodist Church. Parade participants, including the Edgewood High School Band, are scheduled to march from the church to Monroe Kelloggsville Cemetery. Jason Keeler is scheduled to be the guest speaker. A ceremony is also planned for 9 a.m. at Saybrook Cemetery with the Lakeside High School Marching Band scheduled to participate. There are also many other events scheduled through the county.
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Keep the Peace panel focuses on community issues
CONNEAUT — The Conneaut Area Ministerial Association and the Jefferson Community Church of God in Christ hosted a Keep the Peace panel at First Congregational United Church of Christ Friday. The panel included Ashtabula County Sheriff William Niemi, Conneaut Municipal Court Judge Nicholas Iarocci and county Mental Health and Recovery Services Board Executive Director Kaitie Park Hart. The panel was facilitated by Reverend Isaac Chappell, and discussed community outreach and dealing with people suffering from addiction or mental health issues, and how their institutions relate to it. 'Prevention starts in the family and in the community,' Park Hart said. 'There is only so much we can do with prevention in our schools that's actually going to impact our kids.' Park Hart said the MHRS has a mobile crisis team that works with law enforcement. 'Whenever there is a crisis situation, law enforcement can call our mobile crisis provider, which is Signature Health,' she said. 'Unfortunately, it's not 24/7. We're working on that. Workforce is a huge issue in Ashtabula County. For all of the services that we have available, we need more people to provide those services.' Niemi talked about county leaders' interest in getting funding to expand the jail. 'That jail was built in 1977,' Niemi said. 'The people that we deal with now are on a whole different level. Mental health is one of the biggest issues we're dealing with today.' Park Hart said the MHRS board works to provide services at the county jail. 'There are a couple therapists in the jail,' she said. 'We have a case manager. Like the sheriff said, space is absolutely an issue.' Niemi said the jail lacks space for counselors. 'Our jail is falling apart,' he said. 'It doesn't meet our needs, basically, and it's very possibly costing the county over three and a half million dollars.' Iarocci talked about the Conneaut Renewal Court he started in the city. It is one of three Substance Abuse and Mental Illness courts in Ohio, and focuses on helping people suffering from those issues, who are sent to the municipal court. 'There were two people in [the Conneaut] jail, our little jail, who had serious mental health issues and substance abuse issues,' he said. 'One young lady was sleeping on the streets and was 23 years old.' Iarocci said he wanted the 23-year-old woman sent to Renewal Court, regardless of what happened with her case. 'When she was sentenced ... I basically said we have a bed for you for the next hour, and you're immediately going to residential treatment,' he said. The woman had never had residential treatment before, he said. 'She just started crying,' he said. 'This was a girl, who three days before, refused to be assessed.' Reverend Eddie Parker, a community engagement liaison, was also part of the panel. Parker said churches can get involved with community outreach and helping youth suffering from substance abuse issues. 'We're not proselytizing and trying to engage them in faith,' he said. 'We're trying to be a friend and meet the emotional needs. The church happens just to be a safe, neutral meeting place.'
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Conneaut approves preliminary 2025-26 budget
LINESVILLE — Conneaut School Board members have voted 7-1 to approve a $43.9 million preliminary 2025-26 budget that includes no tax increase. Wednesday's special meeting, which was advertised in the April 21 edition of The Meadville Tribune, was held immediately after the board's regular monthly work session and was necessary, board President Dot Luckock said, because state law requires that the preliminary budget be finalized at least 30 days before approval of the final budget. The board typically approves the preliminary budget at its regular May voting meeting, but this year that meeting takes place on May 14, just 28 days before the June 11 voting meeting when the final budget is expected to be approved. 'If we used next week's voting meeting, we're not going to be able to comply with the 30 days,' Luckock said, 'so therefore we added a special voting meeting this evening so that we can get that adopted.' Board member John Burnham cast the only vote against the preliminary budget. Vice President GW Hall did not attend the meeting. After the meeting, Burnham described his opposition as a symbolic move, one he has similarly made multiple times in the past, meant to express dissatisfaction on the part of taxpayers with regard to district borrowing to fund school building improvements prior to consolidation of the high schools more than a decade ago. 'I vote against the budget every year,' he said. 'It doesn't change anything, but the fact that we have put the taxpayers in debt for so many decades before those bonds are paid. For me, it's a — I'm just doing a protest vote.' The preliminary budget comes with a deficit of $243,511. 'We are very close to balanced,' Business Manager Christine Krankota told the board. 'We still have a little bit of work to do.' If this budget is approved, additional state funding would bring the current deficit down to just under $160,000, she added. The preliminary budget keeps the district's property tax millage rate at 53.55 mills. Similarly, the earned income rate and Act 511 real estate transfer tax would both stay at 0.5 percent, and per capita taxes of $10 for all residents 18 and older would remain the same as well. Total projected expenditures for next year are down nearly $145,000 from the current budget, while projected revenues are up slightly, from $43.3 million to $43.6 million. Expenses that are increasing significantly include salaries, with 2 percent increases for teachers, 2.8 percent for support personnel and raises ranging from 2 to 3 percent for administrators and other staff members. The preliminary budget also included an increase of 5.5 percent for health care expenses. Debt service payments, cyber charter tuition and the district's share of the Crawford tech budget are also expected to go up. The district's fund balance is projected to be $10.4 million at the end of June. While the board won't be voting on the preliminary budget when it meets Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. in the Alice Schafer Annex gym, Krankota said she plans to present a slideshow update on the most recent changes to her projections for 2025-26.
