04/05/17 – 5:07 P.M.
A representative from McLane spoke at the Kiwanis meeting Wednesday about the company coming to Findlay. Julie Norris said that the transition has been going well.
She added that McLane is still looking for people to come work for them.
People enrolled in McLane academy will be paid to learn how to drive for the company. All of their education and registration will be paid as well.
Norris said that McLane is eager to come to Findlay and continue to build their client base.
04/05/17 – 4:32 P.M.
The Hancock County assistant prosecutor involved in a hit-skip crash resigned from his position. County Prosecutor Phil Riegle said that he talked to 39-year-old Alex Treece earlier this week.
Riegle said that he hopes to fill the open spot soon.
Treece hit a car and drove off on March 1 of this year. He was sentenced last week to 90 days in jail, an $800 fine, and had his license suspended for one year. He will only have to serve two days of jail time if he attends a driver intervention program and a victims impact panel.
He had served as an assistant prosecutor for ten years.
4/5/17 – 9:11 A.M.
North Baltimore is looking at the best way to run emergency services. The Courier reports village council members looked at three options during their Tuesday meeting. The first option is retaining a part-time EMS chief and adding a new staff member. The second option employs North Baltimore Police Chief Allan Baer to handle some of the EMS chief duties at a salary of $12,000. A third option calls for the village to advertise for a full-time EMS chief.
Council didn’t make a decision Tuesday. They’ll wait until Henry Township Residents vote on a levy to pay the village for emergency services.
MORE: The Courier
4/5/17 – 9:03 A.M.
Carey’s annual spring cleanup is coming up at the end of the month. The one-day event is set for April 27 this year. Carey’s village council says residents should set items by the curb by 7:30 a.m. that day. There’s a three bag resident per house.
There are a few things you can’t set out, including auto parts, furniture, and liquid paint.
4/5/17 – 8:53 A.M.
A teenager will face a jury on May 22 for his alleged role in a fatal Fostoria stabbing. 18-year-old Arlando Crowe faces an obstruction of justice charge in the death of 18-year-old D’Andre Gehring on January 25 of this year.
Investigators say 17-year-old Christian Brown stabbed Gehring in the parking lot of the Fostoria Townhouses at 1202 Beier Drive. Police arrested Brown and Crowe the day of the stabbing.
Authorities haven’t set a court date for Brown. He’s currently locked up in the Seneca County Juvenile Detention Center in Tiffin.
4/5/17 – 7:35 A.M.
A two-car crash injured a Findlay woman Tuesday evening. The Findlay Police Department reports the crash happened around 5:10 p.m. in the 200 block of North Main Street.
50-year-old Anna Ball of Findlay was driving north when she hit the back of a car driven by 29-year-old Lauren Morris of Carey. Morris had stopped for a traffic light. Hanco EMS took Ball to Blanchard Valley Hospital for treatment of her injuries.
Police cited Ball for failure to stop in an assured clear distance.
4/5/17 – 7:22 A.M.
A suggestion to change Fostoria’s charter raised tempers at Tuesday’s Fostoria City Council meeting. The Review-Times reports councilman Mathew Davoli suggested eliminating a provision that prohibits council from making major changes to safety services without voter approval. Davoli says the measure doesn’t allow the city to deliver the services in a cost-effective way.
Councilman Brian Shaver said residents overwhelmingly voted in 2011 to protect safety services in the charter. He added he thinks Davoli wants to abolish the city’s safety forces. Davoli in turn called Shaver a liar and said he wants to hire extra pay-per-call firefighters. He also said he wants to look into privatizing the city’s EMS services.
MORE: Review-Times
4/5/17 – 6:57 A.M.
Residents in southern Hancock County learned more about a potential joint fire district Tuesday. The Courier reports much of the meeting focused on taxation and control of the district. A representative of the Ohio Fire Chiefs’ Association told the group that some residents in the area that encompasses three villages and three townships, “are not paying equal or their fair share.” Stan Crosley is with the association, and adds “some people are subsidizing others’ fire protection that they receive.”
If approved, residents of Jenera, Mount Cory, Rawson and Eagle, Union, and Van Buren townships would pay the same tax rate for fire protection. Before residents vote on a levy each village or township has to pass a resolution to join.
Crosley says a joint fire district means long term savings. He added fire districts help reduce duplication of services.
If everyone joins, the estimate for the first year budget is a little more than $140,000.
MORE: The Courier
4/5/17 – 5:24 A.M.
A fire in Putnam County took the life of a Kalida man Tuesday afternoon. Firefighters responded to a home at 17123 Road M around 1:15 p.m. Emergency responders pulled 75-year-old Robert Verhoff (VARE-hoff) from the home. Putnam County Coroner Dr. Anne Horstman pronounced Verhoff dead a short time later.
Verhoff was the only person who lived in the house.
The fire caused heavy damage. The State Fire Marshall’s Office and the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office are investigating the cause of the blaze.
4/5/17 – 5:08 A.M.
Improving the Blanchard River channel through Findlay could provide big cost benefits to the area. The Courier reports Stantec Consulting released its final report on flood mitigation late Monday. The document shows a benefit-to-cost ratio of at least 4-to-1 for improvements to the river in Findlay. The benefit-to-cost ratio drops to 1.5-to-1 if it includes the dry storage basins south of Findlay. That means Stantec expects a return of at least $1.50 for every dollar spent on the project.
The benefit findings dug deeper than the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ analysis. It included items like roadway damages from a flood, the cost of rerouting traffic, resident relocation, and “re-occupation” costs. The evaluation also counted utility damages, debris removal, and gains from the use of land no longer affected by flooding.
The benefit-to-cost ratio also factored in a survey of local businesses and farmers about their losses during flooding.
Stantec expects to give another public update on the issue this month.
MORE: The Courier