By Andrew Walsh
awalsh@wbcowqel.com
The New Washington Village Council is working to smooth over two rough spots, one literal, the other figurative, at the moment.
The first involves the ongoing noise problem being caused by a group of pet birds, and the other involves a street paving job that has been deemed unsatisfactory and caused some consternation.
“There is not an easy answer,” Mayor Ben Lash said of the bird problem. A member of the community is in ownership of a number of macaws that are proving to be quite boisterous in their volume, and even a little profane in their choice of language. The issue has been before council for some time, but a good solution remains elusive.
Lash stated that he was “leery” about implementing an ordinance, indicating that such a move might lead to unforeseen problems in the future. The problem is less of an issue as the weather turns colder, as the birds must spend more time inside. Lash and council hope to use this time of lower irritation to find a solution that will be satisfactory to everyone involved.
“It’s presented itself enough, we know it’s an issue,” Lash said. “We’re not going to let it go away.”
The other situation in need of redress is the paving job that was done on Jeffrey Drive. Council member Paul Forster, and Village Administrator Norm Lucius, have been working with Chuck Kimmerline for a quote on a corrective paving job. Kimmerline has been out to view the situation in person but as of yet no firm quote has been given. The general idea is to put a layer of pavement over the chip and seal job that had been done.
Council member Gert Durnwald, who is a resident of Jeffrey Dr, spoke for her neighbors when she offered the opinion that it was, “a scam job.” She cited the warnings issued by the Sheriff’s office about some of these companies doing similar jobs with inferior materials.
“You can’t tell me it’s a good job, I won’t believe it,” Durnwald said.
Lucius countered by saying that Kimmerline said they “did a darn nice job doing what they did.”
Clerk Julie Cronau added that she had spoken to an engineer from Delaware, Ohio, and he said they were on the right track.
Jeffrey Drive had been severely cracked, and if the Village had simply paved over those cracks, very little would have changed. The layer of chip and seal to cover the cracks, and then putting a smooth layer of pavement over that, is the correct way to handle this sort of repair.
“I don’t like the way it turned out. I don’t think anybody does, and we’re going to do what we can to make it right,” Lash said.
Union Cemetery is in the early stages of receiving the repairs it needs. Many of the stones are tipped and/or twisted, and council member Joe Blum has tracked down a man who is skilled in this sort of work. The total cost of the repair work is set to be $3,652, which is not in the budget for this year, but Council is planning to appropriate the funds for next year.
Next meeting Forster plans to have more information, but he has been continuing negotiations with Studer-Obringer for the renovations to the New Washington pool bathhouse and dressing area. If the project goes ahead, the work would begin next March and be completed in time for the pool to open at the end of May.
It was discovered that in the recent alley naming one alley was missed. The alley runs from Tiffin to Kunnert and will be named Kraft Way, in memory of Korean veteran George Kraft from New Washington.