Administrative Updates - Fall 2008

Administrator’s Project Updates

Sidewalks 2008 – This Fall, as we finish up repairs to sidewalks, the Streets Committee and Council will be studying public streets that do not have a sidewalk on at least one side. There are a few streets that did not have sidewalks installed when their homes were built. It is the developer’s responsibility to install sidewalks when building a home. But sometimes obstacles prevent sidewalks from being built, such as the geography along the side of the street or a lack of right-of-way to build a sidewalk. Some streets do not have sidewalks include Oak from Chester to the railroad (1/2 of the street is in Woodlawn), Osprey, Albion Ave, Grove, Coral, Springfield Pike, part of Kingfisher and Lippleman.

Streets 2008 – Concerning streets, we have applied for two(2) State Capital Improvement Program (SCIP) grants. The first one is to restore Sharon Avenue between Morse and the railroad tracks. If awarded, this project would include curbs, storm drainage and paving. As a second application, we have included all of Chester Road. SCIP grants require very high traffic volume and only 4 streets have the necessary volume (SR4, Congress, Sharon and Chester). Recently we learned that the Sharon Avenue project rated 305 points on Hamilton Counties rating system. Last year, anything over 300 points received funding. We will let you know if we will receive funding for this necessary project - it looks promising.

Water Plant Project – Our bids to replace the high service pumps and related plumbing at the water treatment plant came in under what we expected. The savings will be used to address other needs in the plant and hopefully when we are finished we will be under budget. As always, should our costs go down, the rates are adjusted accordingly.

Public Buildings – The facade of the Town Hall received exterior lighting to brighten up the sidewalk at night and to illuminate the historic 1876 building. Cannon lights now bring out the height of the building at night. Glendale’s Serveall Electric was the contractor.

Joint Fire District Study – You may have read that Managers and Administrators from many neighboring communities jointly applied for a grant to pay for a study to explore collaboration of firefighting services and equipment. The grant was denied. However, the managers, including Glendale, will continue to meet and look at areas where municipalities can work together to provide excellent fire protection services at the lowest cost.
Economic Development Update – As the Mayor noted in his report, the Erickson Project is no longer a Glendale option. But other new business news is happening. The Iron Horse http://www.ironhorseinn.com/ (Robin Thomas) is now open and running at full strength; offering lunch, dinner and special occasions. This has greatly increased traffic into the square and the word out there is that the food and service is excellent. To off-set the closing of the Glendale Pub, Mr. Chris Penn and David Brooks have purchased the building and business from Paul Preston and they will re-open as the Cock and Bull English Pub http://www.theenglishpub.com/. They are famous in Covington (Main Strasse Village) for their many (about 30) draft beers, fish and chips and full menu pub food and they have received many Cincinnati restaurant awards. It gets better. On November 3rd the Planning Commission approved plans for a new Dewey’s Pizza http://deweyspizza.com/ to be located next to the former dentist office at 10 E. Sharon Avenue. The owner is Andrew Dewitt and he owns and operates a dozen of these well know pizza restaurants. They too have received many Cincinnati awards for best pizza and best salads. The plans are currently being reviewed by Village Council as they consider legislation to allow an expanded parking lot on Congress at Lake (vacant lot). We are most fortunate to have these premium businesses’ reopen or locate in historic Glendale. While many communities have a theme (such as Reading’s bridal district), we are quickly establishing a theme beyond historic preservation… our current restaurants, along with the three new restaurants, have made Glendale a stellar Cincinnati dining destination. To the restaurant owners that are investing in Glendale we thank you. To the Glendale residents and patrons that will visit us, bon appetite.

Summer Sewage Fee Program Report
As you recall, Ordinance 2008-26 was adopted unanimously by the Glendale Council after several months of review by the Utility Committee and Administrative staff. This action was taken as a response to the feedback from residents concerned about last year’s high summer bills during the severe drought of 2007 when they made great efforts to water lawns and trees. Your July, August, & September usage, billed in October, received the benefit of this reductions. The saving ranged from just a few dollars to $1,000; all depending on the amount of water used for sprinkling. On average, if you watered outside, you saved between $125 -$200 (reduction of sewage fee). In total, we discounted $26,000 in sewage fees. However, more water was consumed than normal and this partially recaptured some of the losses. Council will consider renewing this program for the summer of next year. Let us know what you think of it… as always, your opinion is valued.

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