MOUNT GILEAD — A handful of residents of Buckeye Lane came to Village Council Monday night seeking answers on street repairs.
Earl Getter and four others who live on the village street said it had not been paved in more than 20 years.
“Chip and seal is not enough,” Getter said. “It needs to be paved.”
Getter said he spoke with Dan Rogers, village administrator, prior to coming to the meeting.
Getter insisted Buckeye Lane has been paved just once in 27 years, the length of time he has resided there.
“Other lanes (in that area) have been paved four times since we have lived at this location,” Getter said.
Rogers explained the process and the type of patching the village has been doing.
“We’d like nothing better than to do all the streets. We just don’t have $250,000,” Rogers said.
He added that Lee Street was paved in 2001 and “gets 10 times the traffic” that Buckeye Lane receives. He named several other streets that need work done.
Mayor Mike Porter said a road levy may be in the works in the near future.
“We’re not definite yet. But we need funds to help pay for this. In recent years, we’ve lost core industries and some (state) funding has disappeared,” he said.
On a related note, Rogers said 21 catch basins on Main Street need repaired before ODOT begins its road paving project this spring. Total cost is estimated at a minimum of $40,000.
In other business:
• Police Chief Brian Zerman recapped a stressful period involving threats at the Mount Gilead middle and high schools.
“We spent a lot of time there. As a result three juveniles face various criminal charges,” he said.
Zerman said “two of the kids thought they were being funny” regarding making threats. “There was a lot of confusion, but no one was hurt. We had students coming up to us saying, ‘Thank you.’”
Mount Gilead teachers also bought pizza for the department and the Morrow County Sheriff’s Office to show their appreciation.
Zerman also was grateful to a local business and residents for helping raise money for the police department.
“Pizzaburg raised $1,200 as a result of their fund-raising event. That was awesome; just unbelievable.”
