Wellsville Progress 2010

Yesterday's edition of the Morning Journal had a special section(s) called "Progress 2010". It was actually four or five sections devoted to area businesses. It was loaded with all kinds of background information and the latest up-to-date news on what's going on with those businesses. They publish one of those about once a year.

One of reporter Jo Ann Bobby-Gilbert's pieces was titled "Wellsville continues to seek funding for projects". It is sort of a "State of the Union" report on Wellsville. Village Mayor Joe Surace's comments were quoted extensively throughout the article. It was an interesting article and very good for getting up to speed on this little river town in case you haven't been paying attention in the last couple of years.

We think Jo Bob got that headline because most of the progress that's been made possible the last couple of years have been through government grants. With the state of the economy there isn't much money available to do any major projects independently without grants. It's a strain on the Village's budget to just maintain and pay for what we have. The Village Council is very reluctant to go to the tax payers to ask for increases in tax levies. It's only done when there is a very definite need to. The one dollar increase on sewage rates was a compromise. However, it made it possible to go ahead with the conversion project at the Sewage Treatment Plant. Village officials were able to wrap up funding for that job with a loan that $1 sewage rate increase will pay off over the course of 20 years. The rest of it is being paid with two grants awarded to the Village.

There's three other major projects that are pending for either word on an applied for grants or release of the balance of the STAG money. All three projects are something that should have been done years ago if the money had been available. Those projects are the catch basins & paving of part of Commerce St., the sewage forced main renovation and the Highland Avenue storm sewers and street improvements. Except for the catch basins the other two are pending the release of the STAG money. That's something that has been pending for about three years now. Village officials justified everything they did with the original portion of the grant and even got Congressional help convincing the EPA there was no wrong doing in earlier projects using the STAG money. Still the EPA continues to dangle that carrot leaving only speculation on when they are going to release it. With the way the economy is today, especially with the National budget, we don't see that release coming anytime soon. That $600,000 STAG balance is only a drop in the EPA's national annual budget but it is still a significant amount at this point in time. You have to wonder when the EPA will put the STAG balance in their budget to get Wellsville their money.

Along with the current economy woes is the financing of the much delayed Baard Ohio Clean Fuels proposed plant. Like every other corporation in this nation they are finding it difficult to find funding. The tree huggers say it's not going to happen with Baard having money problems themselves. It's a project that has politicians drooling from the local level to the Nation's capitol with the prospects on new jobs. The sad thing is that we can't sit on our honches waiting for it to happen. It will be nice if it does but after two plus years of dreaming we can't depend on it. We have to move forward with other plans to get Wellsville back on track.

We have to move forward such as Henry Nemenz wants to do with his new Save-A-Lot store and mini-mall. Nemenz must feel that even in today's times his plans for Wellsville will be successful. He's ready to go ahead with them when he can get financing arranged. He is even looking at putting a bakery in town. Again it's the economy. The banks are reluctant to loan the money.

There are things to be done such as Wellsville's Revitalization Committee is doing with their goals. They know that there isn't a lot of money out there but with careful planning they firmly believe anything is possible. They are willing to do the work and have the patience to take the time to make things possible. Their encouragement is contagious and that consequently, is a plus now a days.

Mayor Surace must have had his mind on vacation plans when he told Jo Bob Wellsville doesn't have a web site. Even though it is not paid for out of Village coffers there is an excellent site that has been in existence since 2007, made possible by a Wellsville business. It is loaded with Wellsville information that is made possible through the generosity of Haugh Designs. Jeff & Susie Haugh realized that there was need for one and created a web site that is heads & shoulders over anything else on the internet that pertains to the Village government and businesses. Since 2007 they have paid the domain fees and maintained the www.wellsvilleohio.net site. Anybody that wants to check and see what our hometown has to offer only needs to click on that site. With all the links Haugh Design made available it's right at their finger tips. Even though it skipped the Mayor's mind Wellsville is very well represented on the World Wide Web.

Wellsville is a great place to live and do business in. You can't find friendlier folks anywhere else. With the transportation opportunities available, via rail, river and highways, it is ideally situated to be home to just about any type of manufacturing and related businesses. Instead of dwelling in the past we have to look forward and work with what we have. As others have realized there is loads of potential for any type of business big or small. If this goofy economy ever quits taking one step forward and two steps backward the future could be like finding that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

Thanks Jeff for allowing me to once again use your great picture.

ole nib

Wellsville Library "Makes A Splash"

Tuesday - July 27: Every summer the Wellsville Carnegie Public Library holds a summer reading program for area children. Each week librarians and story tellers from around the area read stories to the children that relate to the theme of the annual summer program.

This summer the theme was "Make A Splash" with stories about beaches, fishes, frogs, ponds and pirates. It's a fun, educational hour of entertainment that introduces the young participants to the benefits of reading. It stimulates their minds to think and imagine for themselves what is being read to them. It encourages them to mentally visualize how the scenery, the characters in the story and their adventures appear. Television doesn't do that.

The summer reading program started June 8 with one hour story times held each Tuesday morning up through this past Tuesday. As a reward for their faithful attendance and participation the children were given a special treat for this summer's program.

Beaver Falls resident, musician Bill Pate wrapped things up with an entertaining, interactive special musical program. He got the children involved to become part of the program with singing, dancing and even playing the bongo drums. From what we saw everyone really enjoyed the Pogo dance with hopping first on both feet and then one foot to the other. Pate demonstrated how different musical instruments could be used to imitate the sounds of different desert, jungle animals joining together in search of drinking water. It was a thoroughly entertaining hour that we enjoyed ourselves.

Children reading at least 10 books during the course of this summer's program were rewarded with gift certificates for either Taco Bell or McDonalds. There were over 40 children that enjoyed the musical program finale. Each child was given a bag of treats closing this summer's program.

Thanks should be extended to the various sponsors, the Friends of the Library and especially to the ladies at the Wellsville Library that made this program available to our area children. You ladies are special...

ole nib

WHS Touchdown Club

Sunday - July 25: The Wellsville High School Touchdown Club met this past Sunday evening. Club President Doug Elliott presided.

Head Coach Dave Skinner announced that two-a-days get started Monday, August 2, at 3 P.M. Weight lifting and conditioning have been going on since school let out. The Tigers will have their first scrimmage on Saturday, August 14, 10 A.M., at home against East Canton. The last scrimmage is Thursday, August 19 vs. Crestview. The Tigers first game is at Toronto Thursday, August 26. They open their home schedule vs. East Palestine, Friday, September 3.

Coaching staff this year is Dave Skinner, Head Coach & Defensive Coordinator, Art Miller, Offensive Coordinator and Assistant Coaches Roger Bickle, Allen Berget, Justin Gunther, Bug Thompson & Dave Thompson Jr.

About 20 players are going to be treated to a trip to the Canton Football Hall-of-Fame this week. It's a reward for their help in fund raising efforts. Kandy Elliott reported that the Tag Day fund raiser and the two day hot dog sale were very successful. The spaghetti dinner scheduled for August 13 has been postponed. That is the same day as Media Day.

Media Day is scheduled for Friday, August 13. There will be a Meet the Tigers night Tuesday, August 24, at the stadium. Everyone is invited to meet the 2010 Fighting Tigers. The bon fire pep rally is schedule for Thursday, September 23, from 4 to 7 P.M., the night before the "Backyard Brawl" versus Southern Local.

Doug Elliott announced there are still plenty of tee shirts available with the large Tiger paw as shown above. They are available in sizes from youth medium to adult 3X. Shirts are $12 each up to XL. Larger sizes are $15. Members of the TD Club will be on hand at the two scrimmages for you to pick up your shirt.

The magnetic Tiger paw emblems ($10), the Tiger paw stickers ($1.50) a few of the discount cards ($10) are also available. You can contact any member of the Club or call 330-362-0169 or 330-843-1435. Your support is very much appreciated.

Orders are being taken for this year's Tiger Football Program. The Patron's Page message is $3 per message. An one-eigth message only ad is $12.50. Quarter page ads with pictures & message is $25 with half page & full page ads also available. Anyone wishing to be included in this year's program should contact the Elliotts at either of the two numbers shown above. There will be a different cover for each home game. Deadline to get your order in is August 13.

Next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, August 24, immediately following Meet the Tigers Night. The meeting will be held in the weight room.

ole nib

Newest Wellsville Floodwall Mural

Pictured here is the newest addition to the Wellsville's floodwall murals. It's nearly completed with only the name of the sponsor to be added. It's a painting of the Gothic looking old school building that was demolished more than 50 years ago. The building that replaced it opened in 1955.

The building was at first called the Central School back when it was dedicated on September 10, 1880. Later on it was renamed to McDonald School in honor of long time Wellsville School Superintendent James L. McDonald. It was first named Central because, for the first time in nearly three decades, it housed all 12 grades in one location.

The second school in Wellsville to centrally locate all the grades in one building was known as the Union School. In 1850 state legislatures passed a law that Ohio residents would be taxed to provide a structured education for their children. That law was called the Union School Law. The citizens of Wellsville built Union School at today's 6th & Washington Sts. With Wellsville's booming population growth in those days it wasn't long before the number of students was too many to have all the grades housed in one building. The railroad first came to Wellsville in 1843 bringing with it a tremendous growth to businesses and passenger traffic.

When the Union School proved too small to handle all the student's, classrooms were added to the school district in at least three different buildings around town. There were some grades housed in the Leonard Building that was located where today's Pizza Hut stands. Two houses on 9th Street where the McDonald School now sits were also used for class rooms. That is the home of the LSW Industrial company today.

A Civil War veteran, James McDonald came to town in 1870. He was simply called "The Professor" before he resigned as Superintendent of Schools in 1909. It is written that one of the first goals given to him by the School Board was to figure out what could be done about the over crowded class rooms. He went about campaigning for a new, larger school building. In 1879 city voters passed a levy raising $40,000 to do just that at 9th & Center. That $40,000 building is the one shown in the newest mural. McDonald had served 39 years by the time he resigned in 1909 to take the job as Wellsville Post Master. He died in 1915 at the age of 74 and his body was laid to rest in Spring Hill Cemetery.

We believe this mural was sponsored by the WHS Class of '58. By the time we got to roaming the streets of Wellsville this building's demolition must have already been in the planning stages. At that age it was still being used for classrooms but from the outside it was dark, dingy and a little scary to look at.

Now you know the story of the newest mural. Gina is busy getting the next mural done. Do you remember the SOHIO gas station at 3rd & Lisbon Sts? It was a different building long before the station became B.P. It was a full service gas station that goes back to the days when you didn't have to get out of your car to get fuel.

ole nib

Wellsville Mention In 'Ohio Magazine'

It happened back in April but the floodwall murals & artist Gina Hampson got a mention in the publication called 'Ohio Magazine'. We just found out about it last week from members of the Revitalization Committee.

In an article entitled "Concrete Canvases" the mural pictured above and Hampson were part of this feature piece. In a story written by Trudy Bell about all the murals on the floodwalls along the Ohio River, little ole Wellsville got a big mention in a tourist attracting type magazine. The picture shown here is one we took this past Monday. This particular mural depicts Abraham Lincoln's stop on the train that was taking him to the nation's capital for his first inauguration for President. The train stopped in Wellsville and Lincoln addressed the large crowd that had gathered to witness the occasion. Seven other communities have similar murals of local history on floodwalls from the ville to Covington, KY. Covington is across the river from
Cincinnati.

Wellsville's Revitalization Committee was formed in 2005 to promote projects to get the Village on the map, so to speak. It was decided back then something was needed to attract visitors to town. The committee settled on the murals as their first project and the rest is history. Today there are only a few panels left of that section of floodwall that borders Little Yellow Creek.

Hanoverton resident Gina Hampson is the artist for all the paintings and she well earns her commissions. Weather permitting she can be seen up there working diligently almost daily during the summer months. It's work that only can be done in warm weather and it's work that is accomplishing the Revitalizaton Committee's goal. More & more we've been noticing visitors walking along the walls practically every day of the week taking in the artistic efforts of Mrs. Hampson. Even Gina is getting some much deserved recognition. Word is she has been commissioned to do a very large mural on a side of a building up the river.

Congratulations to the Revitalization Committee for getting the ville on the map with some positive & progressive thinking. The Committee's efforts are starting to pay dividends one small step at a time.

ole nib

Main St. Looking West

Here's something we wanted to do before getting back to the other stuff & calling it a night. A friend of ours stopped by the River Museum Sunday with a half dozen old post cards he's collected from here & there. He was kind enough to let us scan this one with a post mark on the back dated 1909. It's an angle we haven't seen before looking west along Main Street. It was taken from the corner of 3rd & Main and is the first picture shown here.

We tried to duplicate the same angle in the second picture to show what it looks like today. We didn't quite get it exactly alike but it's close.

That was a busy part of town back in the early 1900s. It was in eyesight of one of our two train stations.

What a difference a century makes...

ole nib

BWD Engineering Committee Progress Meeting

Wednesday - July 21: The Buckeye Water District's Engineering Committee held a Progress meeting last Wednesday morning on the new Salineville Waterline Part B. The meeting was held at the BWD Water Treatment Plant. Present at the meeting was Committee Chairman Chuck Bibbee, Committee Members Gene McGaffick and Tim O'Hara. Also attending was Board of Trustees President Mike Ryan, District Manager Al DeAngelis and Trustee Bob Wines. RCAP's Joyce Gray participated in the meeting via telephone.

Part B of the new Salineville water line consists of a little over 14,000 feet of new line from just west of the Southern Local School complex on into the Village of Salineville. Tucson Inc. of New Philadelphia is the contractor on the job. When completed Salineville's Water Treatment Plant will be decommissioned and their water customers will be supplied from the BWD's Water Treatment located on Route 45.

At last Wednesday's meeting District Manager DeAngelis reported the whole line has been pressured tested a second time and everything passed. All resident customer's requested hook-up services are completed. A couple of smaller Pressure Relief Valves had to be installed for customers along Oak Grove Rd. Pressure readings were a very high 297psi before the valves were installed.

The big Pressure Relief Valve has been installed in the vault. The tie-in was expected to be accomplished by last Thursday or Friday. Once accomplished pressure testing will be done on that part. All electrical work has been completed. Guard Rail work will be completed after the line is all tied in.

Once the tie-in is completed and the valve is turned to shut off the old Salineville Water Treatment Plant BWD will conduct bacteria tests. Salineville customers will be under a short, temporary boil order until satisfactory bacteria test results are confirmed.

All that remained to be installed is the telemetry monitoring the Salineville water tank. The telemetry equipment was expected to be in last week or this week at the latest. That water tank is actually located in Carroll County. As DeAngelis noted at an earlier meeting, once the tie-in is done BWD will literally be moving water from one county to the next, from the Ohio River to the next county over.

DeAngelis also reported that Tucson is doing a very nice job on restoration. ODOT is very satisfied with restoration work done along Route 39. DeAngelis said he's been told by an ODOT representative that they do not foresee any problems when it comes time for the final inspection on the restoration part.

The next Progress Meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, August 4, at the BWD Water Treatment Plant at 10 A.M. It is expected they will be able to begin the final, walk down inpection August 4 too. When it's all said and done it will be a little over 10 miles of new water line to supply Salineville with a quality source of water.

ole nib

Wellsville Historical Society

Tuesday - July 20: The Wellsville Historical Society held their regular monthly meeting last Tuesday at the River Museum. President Robert "Brassy" Beresford presided.

New updated brochures for the River Museum have been received and are now being distributed around the area. The attractive color brochures high lights 12 of the different points of interest for visitors to view plus brief information on the museum and services available through the Historical Society.

The raffle for Lucille Huston's hand made quilt and the two historical prints was a huge success. The quilt was won by Joyce & Mike Lynn. Second place winner was Ann McNear of Warren, OH, & Jack Finch of Youngstown.

Since the last meeting, the area around the McDonald school bell has been landscaped with flowers and mulch. Mulch was also put around the trees along the side of the house along with annuals planted. It's hope the flowers around the trees will make it through the winter & sprout new growth next year. The river bank in front of the museum has been cleared and now allows for a beautiful, unobstructed view of the scenery.

The Trustees reported they have voted to accept the donation of barrel making tools and the contribution to built a display for them. The tools belonged to the father of Delaware resident Ed Crawford. The Crawford family lived in the Port Homer area and often came to Wellsville for shopping & banking. Mr.Crawford believes the River Museum is a fitting home for the collection. A spot for the display is already picked out in the Wellsville Room.

The Trustees also announced that the stairs on both ends of the caboose will be reconditioned. Years ago they were pressured washed and sealed. It's time to have it done again to preserve them. Bids will be solicited to have the work done.

A letter was read from former Wellsville resident David McDonald Brookman in regards to the original clanger that use to ring the old McDonald School bell, now on display at the museum. Mr. Brookman was visiting recently and expressed hope the the clanger be reunited with the bell. It had been given to Wellsville School Superintendent Rich Bereschik sometime ago.

A thank-you note from the Leetonia - Salem Twp. Historical Society was read for their recent tour of the museum. The letter was very appreciative of the information they got on the many displays and very complimentary on the excellent presentation of Wellsville history.

A letter was read from members of the Wellsville Honor Roll Committee soliciting a donation and help with the names of those to be listed on the proposed memorial. The new Honor Roll is to be built along Route 45 listing the names of all Wellsville area residents that served in the military from WWII up to the present. Only pictures of the old one remain that was on Main St. The names listed on the picture go up through 1942 and parts of 1943.

The dedication to renaming the Victorian Parlor at the museum to the Mary Clark Room has been set for Sunday, August 8, at 2 P.M. Programs have been designed by member Bob Lloyd for the ceremony. The late Mrs. Clark and her husband Jack were long time members of the Historical Society. Mary was very active in the organization and was noted for her thorough research efforts.

Brassy announced there were over 80 visitors that signed the register during the All-Class Reunion. The museum was opened two extra days along with the regular Sunday hours during Reunion week. Decorations featured Wellsville school memorabilia in honor of the reunion.

Historical donations received this month included a railroad hoop catcher that was used to pass messages to passing trains before the days of radio and cell phones. Without stopping, someone on the train would stick their arm through the hoop, take the message off and throw the stick back. A stapler with the Penn Central RR name on it was given by Salem resident, Juvenile Magistrate Scott Washam. After seeing the caboose & the Railroad Room he decided these items should be placed there. Washam's father worked on the railroads.

Received from the Bill & Ellen Bush family were three books from the Methodist-Episcopal Church listing names, dates of births, death and marriages of members that were used to research genealogy. The books span time periods from 1897 to 1917, 1851 to 1871 and 1870 to 1884 with entries. There were two glass picture negatives that show photos of the first Methodist Church located at 5th & Main and of the new building shortly after it was rebuilt. The first building was a wooden structure that was replaced with the brick structure that is there today. The late Mr. Bush was a long time Wellsville attorney and his wife Ellen now resides in Sebring.

Three antique maps of Wellsville was donated by the son of Paul Talbot. Mr. Talbot was associated with the old McClain Brick at one time. The maps were found on e-bay and display Wellsville of old with many of the streets bearing different names. For example 18th St. was called Nicholson in the beginning. That is the same family that Nicholson Stadium is named for. The maps show that the railroad car turn table many believe was located over the sink hole at 18th & Main was actually located between 18th & 20th Sts. The maps show that the location was what later became the Terry Thompson Pool Room.

A collection of miniature pottery items were given by the Carosello family. Brassy said Minnie Carosello's father worked in a 20th St. pottery called the U.S. Pottery. The pieces were collectible items known as the Cameo Pottery Collecton. The pottery was in operation from 1946 to 1951 when Don Harvey moved it to Zanesville. Russ Carosello donated an old table scale and a 4 quart Griswald "Fruitor", pictured above. The fruitor was used to press fruit to extract juice. At one time it was widely used to make homemade wine.

Does anyone know where Shanghai, Ohio was located? Back in olden times the community of Port Homer was commonly called Shanghai before it became Port Homer.

Due to a conflict in schedules the program had to be postponed to a later date. The next meeting will be Tuesday, September 21, at 7:30 at the River Museum.

ole nib

On The Calendar

Here we go into the last week of July. Summer's going to be gone before you know it. Hope everyone got through the heat & humidity we experienced this past week. Our electric bills are going to rival the national debt with the fans & A.C. running almost constantly. This week promises to be a little more normal temperature wise for the ville.

Monday - July 26:

• WHS Alumni Activities Committee - 7 P.M. at Alumni Center - 3rd St.

Tuesday - July 27:

• "Make A Splash" Summer Reading Program Finale - 10 - 11 A.M. - Wellsville Public Library - Main St.


• WHS Golf Team Meeting - Noon at Cedar Hills Golf Club - Glenmore - see below


• BWD Service Committee - 4:30 P.M. - Administration Offices - Clark Ave.

Wednesday - July 28:

• Wellsvile Middle School Boys Basketball - 10 A.M. - Noon - Middle School Gym - Center St.


• Friends of the Old Fire Station - 9th St. Station - 6 P.M.

Thursday - July 29:

• Wellsville Middle School Boys Basketball - 10 A.M. - Noon - Middle School Gym - Center St.

Friday - July 30:

• Wellsville Middle School Boys Basketball - 10 A.M. - Noon - Middle School Gym - Center St.

Saturday - July 31:

• Nothing on our calendar yet...

Sunday - August 1:

• Worship at a church of your choice


• Columbiana County Fair Opens - Garden Tractor Pull - 1 P.M. - Lisbon


• Wellsville River Museum Open for touring - 1 P.M. to 4:30 - 1003 Riverside

Tuesday's Summer Reading Program will be the finale for this summer. Bill Pate will be on hand for a musical program as a bonus for all those attending.

All WHS Golf Team "wannabes" for this season's team are asked to meet out at Cedar Hills Golf Club at noon on Tuesday.

Coach Brewer will be holding a free basketball camp of all boys entering the 7th & 8th Grades at the Middle School Gym Wednesday, Thursday & Friday. Any questions call 330-385-5379.

The annual Columbiana County Fair gets underway Sunday. There is only one event scheduled for Sunday. The rest of the week has a busy schedule of events. The fair runs through Friday.

Have a good week...

ole nib

Wellsville Council Special Meeting

Tuesday - July 20: Wellsville Village Council held a Special meeting this past Tuesday afternoon at Village Hall. The purposes of the meeting was to award a contract for the aerobic digester conversion construction project and the work being done on the bear trap in McQueen's Run. Present at the meeting was Council Pro-Tem Rosie Goss, Council Members Susan Haugh, John McMahon, Joe Soldano, Randy Allmon and Tony Cataldo. Also attending was Fiscal Officer Dale Davis, Village Administrator Jim Saracco, Zoning Administrator Rick Williams, WFD Chief Bill Smith and WPD Acting Chief Lt.Ed Wilson.

Project Engineer Bill Boyle of GG&J announced that three bids were received by the Village for converting the digesters at Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) from anaerobic to aerobic ones. Mike Pusateri Excavating submitted the low bid at $451,862. The other two bids were submitted by W. Downing of Poland, OH, and Cattrell of Toronto, OH. Cattrell had the high bid of $498,800. The engineer's estimate for the job was $485,000. Boyle remarked all three firms were reputable and all had done work at the STP in the past.

Boyle also explained that in a 1980 expansion project at the STP there was an emergency generator installed that included a 550 gallon underground fuel tank which would not comply with State Fire Marshall Codes today. It was brought out in a recent plant evaluation done yearly by STP operator United Water. It would be very expensive to bring that tank up to code to satisfy EPA requirements that are part of the conversion project. Boyle suggested that the tank be replaced with an above ground 250/275 gallon tank that could be put in the garage at the plant. He estimated that the price would be in the range of $25,000/$30,000 and could be added as a Change Order to the construction contract. An actual estimate for buying and installing a new tank would have to be gotten from Pusateri.

The project will be paid for with an ARC OMEGA grant and 50/50 loan/grant from Ohio Public Works Issue 1 money. The loan will be at 0% interest with a 20 year pay back. With a motion by Cataldo and a second from Allmon, Council voted to award the contract to Pusateri. With another motion by Cataldo and second by Allmon, Council approved the Change Order to replace the fuel tank. Boyle advised Pusateri wants to mobilize by August 1 to get started on the conversion project.

Next on the agenda was the bear traps located on McQueen's Run. Bear traps are slotted fence type structures across the creek that allow the water to flow through but traps larger debris from getting past that could clog up the storm sewer system. There are two of them on that creek. McQueen's Run goes underground at the Route 7 on-ramp off Route 39 (Aten Ave.) and flows into the Village storm sewer system. Following two or three rain falls in early June those traps were found to be clogged up. The rain that fell in the late afternoon/early evening of June 2 dumped over three inches of rain in a short time flooding many areas in the Village. The damage from the wind and rain and flooding at the ball park forced the closing of the Fireman's Homecoming opening that evening. The traps needed cleaned out.

At a Finance Committee meeting last week the Fiscal Officer advised the committee that, in his estimate, from what he's been told, the cost of cleaning the traps is going to be much more that what was anticipated. He'd been told that the contractor had heavy equipment and cement trucks in use. He further stated he had no purchase order, estimate, nothing on what's being done. The Village Administrator was to asked to find out what is going on with the traps, get an estimate on cost and report back.

In a letter dated July 19, LSW Industrial Services stated the estimated cost is $39,200. In addition to cleaning out the bear trap they were in the process of building a whole new one. This included installing a new access road, access points and landings for future cleaning. Once completed they would restore landscaping. The access road is believed to be an old alley that is no longer used but was never abandoned. The old alley goes from Henry Avenue down to the creek. It use to cross the creek and come out on Route 39 before that side was made a trailer park.

At the Special Council Meeting, to make a long story short, no one present knew that the additional work was going on. No one knew of the cost. The Fiscal Officer stated the Mayor had come to him to ask if the money was there to pay for it. He asked "how much?" believing the Mayor was talking about cleaning only. The Mayor never got back to him. Council Member Sue Haugh stated that "five years ago Jarvis cleaned it out for $3,100". Everyone thought it was going to be around $5,000 to clean them out this time. Everybody was aware they were going to be cleaned out.

No one knew who declared it an emergency and authorized the work be done. Saracco said he didn't and he's never seen a purchase order. All the Council members denied any knowledge of it. Chief Smith advised that after inspecting the storm damage in June he recommended they be cleaned. He said he does not have the authority to declare it an emergency. It is not a part of the flood system and didn't present any fire hazard. Smith did say he thought it should be done as soon as possible in case of another heavy rain. With the present condition of the traps, if it should rain more, the debris could possibly get around the traps into the storm sewer system. Soldano remarked there is some bad communication prompting Saracco to say there's been no communication.

Sue Haugh asked where do we go from here? How are we going to pay for this. Do we have the money to pay for this? McMahon stated the only one who can answer the questions is not present. He remarked they need to talk to the Mayor. It was decided to see how far along LSW is and to get a more definite cost figure before doing anything further. The meeting was adjourned at 2:46 P.M.

Following the meeting we went to see what was going on. The first picture above is what the trap looked like after the June rain. The second is the same trap as it looked Tuesday. The third is the new trap being built and the fourth is the access road. A resident that has lived next to this for over 30 years told us about the old alley saying he has never heard of it being abandoned. Although no longer used and being over grown it is still believed to be a Village alley.

Returning to Village Hall Saracco advised that LSW should have the work completed by Friday. He was advised the cost shouldn't be any more than the $39,200 shown in the July 19 letter.

In her article on the meeting in Wednesday's newspapers, Jo Ann Bobby-Gilbert reported she got a call from the Mayor later Tuesday. Surace said he was at fault for the failure to communicate with Council. He said he decided to go ahead with the project for the safety of the Village and with the Fire Chief telling him the condition of the traps could endanger Village residents and the sewage system.

Surace said he declared it an emergency and contacted LSW since they were in town and could get to it quickly. He added that the water didn't go down for three weeks which delayed starting. Seeing no sense having to spend $5,000 every year to have them cleaned he decided "to move forward with replacing the old traps".

Gilbert wrapped up her article reporting "Surace said he expects money for the project to be taken from the sewage fund which he said carries a healthy balance of between $300,00 and $400,000". He must be referring to the Sewage Update Fund which had a balance of $368,848 as of June 30.

Can Sewage Update money be used for storm sewers?

ole nib

WHS Alumni Activities Committee Benefit

Monday - July 19: The WHS Activities Committee met this past Monday evening at the Alumni Center to make plans for a dinner to benefit fellow member Steve Creaturo. Steve has hit one of those bumps in the road that life sometimes throw at you. He is on the road to recovery but now has a stack of medical bills his friends on the Alumni Activities Committee want to help with.

Pictured here performing at a WHS Alumni Lip Sync All Stars show last November, Creaturo has always been very generous donating to community fund raisers and events. At other times he was very busy pitching in to help plus donating. Next to his family and his lovely wife Cathy, the love of his life is the Lip Sync shows. It is something he enjoys immensely.

The dinner is scheduled for Saturday, August 21, at the Alumni Center on 3rd Street in Wellsville from 4 to 7 P.M. The menu will all be homemade and you'll be able to feast on baked chicken breast, potatoes, vegetables, a salad, desserts, coffee or tea. Tickets are only $10 a piece and that's cheap at twice the price.

There will be a Chinese Auction and a 50/50. Tickets are available in advance or at the door. Members of the committee would appreciate your advanced ticket purchase to help give them a better idea on the number to prepare for. Tickets are being donated by the W.C. Bunting Co. Carry-outs will be available.

For more information you can contact Carmela Boyce at 330-532-1932. Anyone wishing to donate a basket or any item for the auction can contact Helen Hughes at 330-853-3842.

ole nib

Wellsville Council Special Meeting

Thursday - July 15: The Wellsville Village Council held a Special Meeting this past Thursday at Village Hall. The purpose of the meeting was to adopt the proposed budget for 2011. Present at the meeting was Council Members Susan Haugh, John McMahon, Joe Soldano & Tony Cataldo. Also present was Village Administrator Jim Saracco, Fiscal Officer Dale Davis and Zoning Administrator Rick Williams. Council Members Allmon & Goss were excused.

With the Mayor on vacation and Council Pro-Tem Rosie Goss absent a motion was passed appointing Councilwoman Haugh as Acting Pro-Tem for this meeting.

As noted in our post about the Finance Committee meeting held earlier in the day the proposed budget for 2011 is basically the same as 2010, according to Fiscal Officer Dale Davis. There are no anticipated drastic changes expected and that includes having to keep a careful eye on spending.

The new year is projected to start with a beginning balance of $721,084 total for all funds. Projected receipts for 2011 is $2.7 million with $2.6 million in projected disbursements. The projected total of all funds for the ending balance is $834,917.

With a motion by Tony Cataldo, a second by John McMahon, the budget for 2011 was approved, as presented by the Fiscal Officer, with an unanimous vote.

The meeting was adjourned at 2:06 P.M. The next regular scheduled meeting is Tuesday, August 3 at 6 P.M. at Village Hall.

ole nib

Wellsville Council Finance Committee

Thursday - July 15: The Finance Committee met this past Thursday at Village Hall. Present at the meeting was Committee Chairman Tony Cataldo and Members Joe Soldano & John McMahon. Also present was Fiscal Officer Dale Davis, Village Administrator Jim Saracco, WPD Officer Marsha Eisenhart and Councilwoman Sue Haugh. Many subjects were gone over during the meeting. We'll report them in order of discussion during the meeting.

Cataldo started off with the Animal Control Officer's (ACO) request for more reimbursement for her time and mileage. At the last regular Council meeting she requested that Council look at revising the ordinance to include getting paid for court appearances the same as police officers do. Cataldo stated he realizes Wellsville citizens want a "dog warden" but the figures don't add up. Year-to-date income from that department totals $265 in impound fees and fines heard in Magistrate Court. Davis advised there are three or four cases that have been heard with the fines still outstanding. The job pays $3,600/year in salary plus $600/year for mileage and that does not include any supplies purchased. Cataldo remarked that is $4,200 that could have been applied to the Fire Department and it will require looking into next year.

Next on the Cataldo's list is income from providing Russell Heights residents sewage service. He noted that for the month of May the 90 residents in Russell Heights used 313,000 gallons. The Villlage received a check for $1,424.15 for service provided those residents in May. Using an average of a $40 monthly bill that would equate to around what 36 Wellsville residents pay per month. Russell Heights is outside the Village limits and the cost of sewage service is contracted by County officials. Cataldo stated he didn't feel it was fair that those residents are paying much less than Village residents. He hopes Sewage Committee Chairman Allmon will have the Sewage Committee take a serious look at what can be done when he returns from vacation.

Another item the Sewage Committee needs to look at is a letter received from the EPA asking that an underground fuel tank for the back-up generator at the Sewage Treatment Plant be replaced with one above ground. The 550 gallon underground tank was installed in 1980 and is getting more costly to use. It could possibly be added to the digester project as a Change Order once costs are determined.

The grant for new play ground equipment for the 18th St. play ground was discussed. Copies of the grant was just given to Village officials by the grant writer. Davis will make copies and provide Council members with them. Cataldo said he only knows it is a 25% matching fund grant and questioned whether the $18,000 grant is reimbursable once it is used. Property Chairwoman Haugh stated a meeting is to be scheduled in the near future on bids received for the equipment. The grant is nearly two years old and has to be used soon or it will be forfeited.

Cataldo advised that it should be known this month if the Village will be awarded the grant that was applied for the catch basins and paving part of Commerce St.

Cataldo next reported on the Village Funds Status as of the end of June. As of June 30 the General Fund has a balance of $15,954. The Fire Levy Fund had a balance of $4.04 and the Cemetery Fund had $1,128. Total in all funds is $676,401. The bulk of that money is in funds that can not be touched for other uses. For example the Sewage Up-date Fund has $363,849 that can only be used for sewage improvement projects by law. For June total receipts were $179,125 and expenditures were $154,543. Out of the expenditures $67,000 was spent out of the General Fund mostly for Police & other employees salaries & benefits. The firemen are paid out of a separate fund.

Overall Cataldo concluded funds are going to be tight for the balance of the year and spending will have to be closely watched. Of chief concern is having money available for road salt in case there is an early winter. This year's street funds were shot especially with the cost of snow removal following the blizzard. It was noted there is $8,613 available in the Broadway Park that was paid back to the Village for the grant received for the park improvements. Davis advised the money can be used for anything if Council ever decides to transfer it to another fund. The Village had to pay the full $10,000 for the grant up front back then.

Dale Davis said he presently has three areas of concern. One is funds for the Fire Dept. With Council's permission he can switch over to another line item to pay the firemen. This is normally done but the auditors prefer there is documentation authorizing it. The second concern is the Cemetery Fund. While the care taker was on medical leave the Village have been using two people to take care of the cemetery depleting the fund. Davis was asking for guidance on what to do. Cataldo remarked that is the Village Administrator's decision whether to make a move or what. Soldano questioned if the summer employees could be moved up there to take care of the grass cutting and that was answered in the affirmative. Davis said there is concern with cemetery salaries and a stack of purchase orders for supplies & equipment. Other than selling or opening graves there will be no money coming in until at least next month.

The next item concerning Davis was the job of cleaning the "bear trap" on McQueens Run. There have been no purchase orders, no contracts or not even an estimate of the cost involved. The trap in question got filled with debris from the torrential rain fall on the evening of June 2 when over 3" of rain fell. It was determined to be inaccessible by Village employees with what equipment they have on hand. The Mayor ordered it cleaned out, apparently declared it an emergency and contacted LSW to do the job. Davis said he has been advised that heavy equipment is being rented to clean it out and that some cement work has been done. With Village funds being so low Davis said he is estimating the bill to clean out the trap is going to be around $40,000 when all is said & done. Raising the eyebrows of all the Council members present Saracco was requested to get a better estimate from LSW for everything they are doing on McQueens Run.

Last on Davis' list was invoices covering the work performed by LSW for jet rodding and scoping the trouble spots in the Village sewer lines. The cost of all jet rodding totaled $29,063 that came in under the amount authorized by Council. The total for the camera work was $31,538 which is $538 over what Council authorized. He was holding one invoice for Council's decision on how to proceed. The total amount for that last invoice was $4,568. The members of the Committee recommended to pay all but $538 of the last invoice and that portion will be brought up at the next Council meeting.

Cataldo also brought up his displeasure of having to pay a police officer six hours a day for five days a week to dispatch police calls. Saracco advised it was the Mayor's decision to do that. By doing that it frees up the Fire Dept. personnel to do paperwork and tend to other duties which requires the Chief to leave the station. The Chief contends he still can't leave the station unmanned with no one to cover. It could cause delays in calling out fight fighters if a call would come in. Cataldo & Davis both stated they believe it is costing double for that extra 30 hours a week. It was decided to talk to the vacationing Mayor before taking any additional action. Before this move was made all police calls were dispatched by the fireman on duty.

The final item on the agenda was going over the proposed budget for 2011. Davis stated the budget is basically the same as 2010. There are some questions with the General Fund that will require continued scrutiny on spending in the new year. Davis suggested collections on past due income tax accounts could be stepped up to help alleviate General Fund problems. The Committee will recommend the 2011 Budget be adopted as prepared by the Fiscal Officer.

The Committee wrapped up their meeting with the State Auditors reviewing the recent checking of Village books. We were not allowed to sit in on the review. It will be published on the State Auditor's web site in a few weeks.

ole nib

Wellsville Crime Watch Committee

Thursday - July 15: Wellsville's Crime Watch Committee met last Thursday evening for their regular monthly meeting at Village Hall. Presiding was Committee President "the" Janet Taggart.

Pictured here is President Taggart presenting a $100 donation to Wellsville's newest full time police officer, Tony Mancuso, to be used for the Village's Juvinile Fire Starter Program. That program was started in town about a year ago to counsel juveniles suspected of being fire starters. It teaches them the dangers and the consequences of what may happen when they play with fire. The program is headed by WPD's Juvenile Officer Marsha Eisenhart.

The program for this month's meeting was presented by CC Sheriff's Dept. Lt. Brian McLaughlin. He explained the mission of the SRT and demonstrated some of the "tools of the trade" used when the team is called out. McLaughlin serves as Commander of Columbiana County's Special Response Team (SRT). It is sometimes known as the SWAT team. McLaughlin is pictured above with a battering ram that he said is commonly called "the key to the city".

The CC SRT got started in 1990. Originally the team consisted of eight Sheriff Office deputies. Today the team has 16 members from six different CC departments. The team is made up with one officer from Wellsville, five Sheriff deputies, 3 St. Clair Twp. officers, 2 Columbiana officers, four New Waterford officers and one medic from North Star Ambulance Co. The SRT members train at least once a month,sometimes twice and if schedules can be coordinated it can be three or four times. Even the medic went to school to receive combat type tactical training before he was accepted on the team. The purpose of the training is to become familiar with fellow team members that allows them to be a well oiled machine when called upon. Once they swing into action there is no time to second guess what is going on. With their training they get familiar with each other and know exactly what each member will be doing when they enter into a situation.

McLaughlin said, except for the medic, each team member is a general patrol officer in their own departments. The purpose of the SRT is to supplement county police agencies when they feel a situation is too volatile to handle. Most of those situations usually start out as domestic disputes that turn into a hostage situation or one where the perputrator is threatening to harm others. Their last call out was up north when an armed individual got into an argument with his neighbor and was threatening to kill him while barricaded in his home. Fortunately that one was defused by the negotiator before the SRT had to go into action.

When called out the SRT does not come in and immediately take over. McLaughlin said once they arrive, they access the situation with information given to them by the officers first on the scene. If allowed a negotiator tries to talk the offender into surrendering. It's only after that the SRT goes into action to neutralize a hostile situation. With flash bangs, stun guns & tasers McLaughlin said they can clear a room or building within seconds without loss of life once they go through the door. McLaughlin said although called out at the same time the negotiator is not part of the team. McLaughlin related that their negotiator is very good at what he does and most of the time the SRT only get to sight see once they get there.

Following the program election of officers for the Committee was held for another year. Janet Taggart was re-elected Committee President, Sherrill Jackson will be Vice President and Linda Surace was returned as Treasurer.

Next meeting is Thursday, August 19 at 6 P.M. at Wellsville Village Hall. The program for next month will be presented by Wellsville's Animal Control Officer Leslie Dean. As always the meeting is open to the public and everyone is encouraged to attent.

ole nib

On The Calendar

Kinda of a slow week for events with vacations going on and getting near the end of the month.

Monday - July 19:

• WHS Alumni Activities - 7 P.M. at Alumni Center - 3rd St.

Tuesday - July 20:

• "Make A Splash" Summer Reading Program - 10 to 11 A.M. at Wellsville Library


• **Wellsville Special Council Meeting - 2 P.M. at Village Hall**


• Wellsville Historical Society - 7:30 at River Museum - 1003 Riverside

Wednesday - July 21:

• Medical Assistance Program - 9 A.M. to noon - First Christian Church - Main St.


• BWD Engineering Committee Progress Meeting on Salineville Project - 10 A.M. at Water Treatment Plant - Rt. 45

Thursday - July 22:

• Nothing on our calendar yet...

Friday - July 23:

• Same as Thursday - nothing yet...

Saturday - July 24:

• Ghost Hunters "Meet the Legends of Columbiana County" - 4 P.M. at Thompson Park

Sunday - July 25:

• Worship at a church of your choice


• River Museum Touring - 1 P.M. to 4:30 - Special program at 2 P.M. - 1003 Riverside


• Wellsville Touchdown Club - 7 P.M. at Wellsville Fire Station - 1201 Main

We didn't list it above but the camp meetings at Hollow Rock got started last Friday and continue all through this week. They finish up this year's meetings next Sunday.

This is the next to the last for Tuesday's summer reading program at the library.

Tuesday evening's Historical Society meeting will feature CC EMA Director Darren Dodson speaking on the Nixle early warning, notification system. The public is invited to learn about this amazing and modern system that is available free to all.

The Wellsville Historical Society's Special Summer Programs continues next Sunday at the River Museum. The topic for this one is the history & story of Stevenson Mfg. At 174 years of age it's the oldest steel foundry anywhere in the valley. It begins at 2 o'clock and is open to the public. All are invited and while you're there feel free to tour the museum.

Enjoy your summer & have a nice week...

ole nib

BWD Board of Trustees Regular Meeting

Thursday - July 15: The Buckeye Water District Board of Trustees held their July monthly meeting at Wellsville's Village Hall yesterday morning. Present at the meeting was BOT President Mike Ryan, V.P. Bob Wines, Trustees Dave Lloyd, Rick Williams, Jack Call, Cal Carney, Gene McGaffick and Tim O'Hara. Also present was District Manager Al DeAngelis, District Legal Advisor Fred Emmerling and Fiscal Administrator Sara Crouch.


Following the approval of minutes of previous meetings the Board retired into Executive Session for 17 minutes for an up-date on the District's appeal to the State Supreme Court on the 7th District Court of Appeals ruling against them in East Liverpool vs. BWD. That case dates back to 2005 when East Liverpool filed a breach of contract law suit against the District in CC Common Pleas Court. In 2007 the Court ruled in favor of East Liverpool and awarded them $9.7 million. That ruling was appealed with the 7th District Court of Appeals which agreed with Judge Pike's decision but reduced the award to $4.8 million, just late last month. On July 1 the BOT held a Special Board meeting and voted to file an appeal with the State Supreme Court on the 7th District's decision.


Following yesterday's meeting Attorney Emmerling stated that BWD has to file a petition to the Supreme Court by July 21, 2010, asking them to accept the case. Emmerling is estimating that it will take three to four months for the Court to decide whether to hear the case, determine if it should be sent to another Court of Appeals or even refuse to consider it. If the Supreme Court decides to hear the case petitions, briefs, etc. will have to be filed. Any decision is more than likely a year out.

A newly formed Records Retention Committee was appointed by BOT President Ryan. Chairman of the new committee will be Rick Williams and the members serving with Williams will be Jack Call & Dave Lloyd. The purpose of the new committee is to determine which archived records can be destroyed and which must be retained according to Ohio Revised Code and the Ohio Historical Society. According to Office Manager Sara Crouch records from when the water district was formed is currently on hand. Old records that are approved for getting rid of will be shredded and recycled.

For the Treasurer's Report, Gene McGaffick reported that the Finance Committee met July 13 at the Water Treatment Plant. For the month of June the District sold 29.5 million gallons of water. Wellsville customers used 6.5 million gallons of that amount. Receipts for June was $299,961 and expenses were $585, 706. Of that amount $401,000 was paid in loan payments in June. Compared to June 2009 collections are down $25,000 for the same period this year. It was reported that shut-offs increased in June. On the good news side the cost of producing 1,000 gallons of water is down 20 cents this year according to McGaffick.

Prior to that Finance Committee meeting a review of the recently completed State Audit was held. Results of that audit will be on the State Auditor's web site in two or three weeks but it was hinted there will be no findings for recovery in the annual audit.

For Committee Reports, Bob Wines advised there was a County Liaison Meeting held July 6 to go over future projects. Newspaper accounts reported there are no funds available for any additional projects at this time. Expanding district water lines into the Guilford Lake area is just an idea currently, because of that lack of funding according to the newspapers.

Wines also reported there was a Litigation Committee meeting held July 8 in Lisbon to update the County Commissioners on the East Liverpool law suit. The contract for BWD to buy water from ELO was brokered by the County Commissioners at the time but the water district agreed to hold the County harmless in the law suit before terminating the contract.

District Manager Al DeAngelis advised the Board that there have been six leaks found in Wellsville in the recently completed leak detection test since the last monthly meeting, in the District Manager's Report. Five of those leaks are considered minor and will be repaired first. The sixth is a fairly good sized one that will be taken care of last.

DeAngelis also reported that the Ohio EPA is requiring a Detail Plan Data Sheet documenting the physical separation of 10 feet minimum of water lines from the old Salineville Water Treatment Plant and the Village water system. Once Salineville goes on-line with the new water source the District is required to remove, out of the ground, at least 10 feet of the old water line that tied the treatment plant into the Village water lines. Razing the old plant is no longer required as previously thought. The Detail Plan will cost a fee of $150 for the EPA to review.

For the Project Report, DeAngelis advised that the townships and ODOT have signed off for the restoration work completed by the Dave Sugar Excavating Co. for Phase A of the new Salineville Water Line. With the sign off ODOT will return a $60,000 bond held for Phase A. It was recommended that the final payment to Sugar be released.

DeAngelis also reported that except for the vault awaiting the delivery of the big pressure relief valve Phase B is completed. All pressure testing and bacteria testing is completed except for the lines associated with the big valve. New service for six customers being installed by BWD personnel along a portion of Phase B required the installation of a smaller pressure relief valve. The big valve has been delivered and will be installed next week with the telemetry. Once the testing is completed Salineville should be hooked up with a new water source by the end of July.

Finally DeAngelis noted a settlement has been reached with Mr. & Mrs. Bernard Jakubowski in their dispute regarding the restoration done on a township right-of-way along their property line. Once the new line was installed they contended the area was not restored as they had it. At last month's meeting the Jakubowskis approached the Board asking they be reimbursed for landscaping they had done on the right away. Stating they maintain the right-of-way for appearance sake they had landscaped it to avoid having to mow on the slanted strip of land. Juniper plants the couple had planted were not replaced. Tucson Inc. officials stated they were very careful and did try to save the Juniper plants but was unable to do so. Not being private property it was not required to do more than seed the right-of-way to the township's satisfaction. Out of $1,000 the Jakubowskis asked for they were awarded $700 of that amount.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:29 A.M. Next Wednesday, July 21, there will be an Engineer Committee Progress Meeting with Tucson, Inc. on Phase B of the Salineville project. That is scheduled for 10 A.M. at the Water Treatment Plant. The next scheduled Board meeting is Thursday, August 19, at 9 A.M. at Wellsville Village Hall.

ole nib

Two More Bite The Dust

Tuesday - July 13: Two more dilapidated houses in Wellsville are gone. Finishing up the first round of Wellsville's share of the Neighborhood Stabilization Program was the last of two houses left to be brought down. As of early Tuesday afternoon the sixth house was a mere pile of rubble located at 924 Wood St.

This house and the one formerly located at 2017 Nevada St. were demolished by X-treme Demolition of East Liverpool. They were awarded the contract that was administered through the County.

The bids in the first round came in lower than what was expected by County officials. This made it possible for County Commissioners to do a second round of bidding with the funds left over.

According to newspaper accounts on June 25, Mike Pusateri Excavating was the only bidder to take down 20 more dilapidated structures around the county. Three of those 20 are located in Wellsville at 801 Wood St., 1401 Main St. & 1735 Main St. Once the contracts are awarded demolition is expected to begin within a month. Besides Wellsville, houses are located in E. Palestine, Lisbon, Leetonia, St. Clair Twp. & Liverpool Twp.

Shown above are before and after pictures of the last two demolished in Wellsville. The first two pictures is 924 Wood and the second is the structure on Nevada.

According to Fire Chief Bill Smith who is Wellsville's housing inspector there are several more condemned structures located in the village that have to go through the process of advertising to locate the owners and then possibly go through Court proceedings. The whole procedure is quite costly and it will be necessary for Village Council to find funding before going any further. The first nine to actually be demolished was funded through the Federal stimulus monies at no cost to the Village or owners.

ole nib

Wellsville Board of Education

Monday - July 12: The BOE held their July meeting this past Monday evening in the Superintendent's Office on Center St. Present at the meeting was Board V.P. Tom Brophey, Board Members Mrs. Karen Dash and Mike Cook. Also attending the meeting was Superintendent Rich Bereschik, Treasurer Mrs. Colleen Wickham, OAPSE Representative Ed Swogger and WTA Representative Mrs.Betty Phillips.


For the Treasurer's Report Wickham reported that the month of June began with $1.96 million in the General Fund. June receipts were $516,621 and expenditures was $354,373, leaving a balance of $2.1 million. An over the year, concluding correction for capital outlays & text books was done in the General Set-Asides leaving a balance of $553,789 in that fund. Interest earned for the month was $4,542.85. Wickham concluded interest rates are about the same - still low.


For Legislative Update, V.P. Brophey reported that our legislators are on summer break. He stated that although there is no longer a 30 minute per day requirement for physical education in Senate Bill 210 there does remain a requirement that the school districts establish body mass index training. School districts can apply for an annual waiver on this requirement.

For Buildings & Grounds Ed Swogger reported that the summer work is going as planned. Reunion week was kind of slow for the "old high school". The building and staff were ready for any tours and none were requested. Bereschik added he was told the custodians were great ambassadors for the the district getting everything ready for the reunion.

Bereschik offered condolences to the Koontz family on the sudden death of Chris Koontz. She was the Education Management Information Systems coordinator. She supplied pupil information to the state for funding.

The Board approved an additional five days of extended service for principals at all three schools. The extra days will only be on an as needed basis as deemed necessary by the Superintendent. Bereschik explained with the new Daw Middle School principal he would like to have a planning meeting and there will be lots of interviews coming up. Also approved was the participation in FY 2011 Elementary & Secondary Education Act - B that includes all federally funded programs and is done yearly. Participation in the OASBO Worker's Compensation Risk Management Program for the next school year was given the ok. Handbooks for the high school, middle school and elementary school were all approved. School Counselor Bob Rudder was given an addition five days of extended time for the next school year.

Miss Abby Williams was hired as a high school intervention specialist teacher for challenged students. Diana Swickard was approved for the Flag Line/Color Guard Instructor for the new school year.

The Board retired into an Executive Session for personnel with no action being taken upon returning.

In closing comments Mrs. Dash complimented the district's maintenance staff for the outstanding job done the do, especially for the reunion. Dash noted they have been very accommodating.

Next meeting is scheduled for the third Monday in August at 6:30 P.M. in the Superintendent's Office located at 929 Center St. That date is August 16, 2010.

Enjoy the rest of your summer. The first day of school, for the new year is Tuesday, August 31.

ole nib

Wellsville Historical Society Starts Summer Series.

Sunday - July 11: The Wellsville Historical Society began their summer series of programs on significant historical Wellsville subjects this past Sunday at the River Museum. Sunday's program was presented by Mr. Roland Bryer giving the history of Acmecraft Ware Pottery that was located at 3rd & Lisbon Sts. Bryer is the son of Geraldine & the late Richard Bryer who were some of the owners of the old pottery.

Acmecraft Ware got its start with a couple of roadside stands, probably in the late 1930s or very early 1940s. Bryer's aunt & uncle, Roland & Mary Leonard, decided to go into business on their own selling pottery ware they would buy wholesale from area potteries. They opened stands along Route 30 - one near Hogue's Restaurant and one out near the YMCA Camp. That was in the days before interstate four-lane highways when Route 30 was the major east-west highway across the country. In 1941 the Leonards along with Albert VanDyne opened a store front retail store and distributorship in Wellsville to sell their products. They installed some small kilns in the rear of the building and started decorating the pottery items they sold.

In 1946 the Leonards & VanDyne joined forces with Julia & John Mountford, Sam Corbisello and Eva Bryer. Together they bought the old Burgess Porcelain building and Acmecraft Ware was born. Somewhere along the line brothers Richard and John Bryer and their wives, Geraldine & Ruth, became part of the ownership. The first thing the building's buyers did was to refurbish the old bottle kiln converting it from coal fired to gas. That is the kiln still in place today. Later they added an addition to the building and installed a 115 foot long tunnel kiln that allowed for more even heating of the ware. That greatly reduced the margin of loss often experienced with the bottle kiln.

Acmecraft continued buying their unfinished ware from area potteries, decorated it and resold the finished pieces to distributors. They would give the distributors exclusive rights on a particular piece or line that only they could acquire. The distributors in turn sold the decorated pieces to shops, many of them located in bus and train stations. The old Pearl China that recently closed is a good example of the type of stores the distributors would sell to.

Many of the items Acmecraft produced were novelty pieces used for decorating homes. They are noted for their Weeping Gold and similar platinum ware which came about by accident when some wax was spilled on a piece. It got glazed and the tear shaped decoration was an immediate hit. Trying to duplicate it they discovered using a natural sponge to apply the tear shapes was the ticket. With the many generous donations over the years the River Museum has an excellent collection of many Acmecraft pieces on display. We tried to show many of them in the collage above. We also showed the back stamp that was used on the Weeping Gold pieces. If it don't say "Hand Decorated - Weeping Bright Gold - 22 K. Gold U.S.A." it's not Acmecraft Ware. There were many imitations.

At it's peak Acmecraft employed 135 people plus those that were salaried. On average there were 80 employees working. Around 1968 word came of the new highway taking the building and many employees realizing they were going to lose their jobs started leaving for jobs elsewhere. The building was sold to the state and demolished sometime in 1969 or 1970.

All that remains is the kiln. The state was petitioned to preserve it for history's sake. There are only three of them left in the area. Hall China still has one up in East End. One can be seen along Second St. in East Liverpool and Wellsville has the third. It sits on ODOT property and is maintained by the Wellsville Historical Society. When exiting Route 7 at the 3rd St. ramp you're driving right through the middle of what use to be Acmecraft Ware.

ole nib

Pusateri Low Bidder on Wellsville Sewage Treatment Plant Project

Wednesday - July 14: As reported in the post below bids for installation and construction of new digesters at Wellsville's Sewage Treatment closed today. The dead line for bids to be submitted was 11 A.M. this morning at Village Hall.

Three companies submitted bids with Mike Pusateri Excavating of East Liverpool submitting the low bid at $451,862. Second lowest bid submitted was from W.E. Downie Co. of Poland, Ohio, at $478,000, followed by Cattrell Companies of Toronto, Ohio, at $498,800. According to the GGJ web site, engineers for the project, nine companies received bid packages.

Next step in the process will be reviewing the low bid to make sure all the t's are crossed and all the i's are dotted as compared to the project specifications according to Bill Boyle, V.P. of GGJ. Once the bid is approved it will have to be submitted to the Ohio EPA for a Permit to Install. When that is issued Pusateri will be able to start construction. Boyle estimates that once "on-site" construction actually begins it will be 150 days from start to finish.

The project to install the two new aerobic digesters and all the other items included is being funded by grants from OMEGA and the Ohio Public Works Commission plus a long term, low interest loan from OPWC.

ole nib

Wellsville Sewage Treatment Plant Construction Pre-Bid

A pre-bid meeting was held a week ago Wednesday, July 7, at Wellsville Village Hall. The purpose of the meeting was to explain the specifics of converting the sewage treatment process from anaerobic digesters to aerobic at Wellsville's Sewage Treatment Plant (STP). GG&J Engineers V.P. Bill Boyle conducted the meeting. Wellsville Village Administrator Jim Saracco was the only one present representing the Village. Representatives from plant operators United Water was also present.

The project to upgrade the STP has been in the works for sometime now. Funding the project got finalized earlier this year and engineering was finally approved by the Ohio EPA allowing the construction phase to be put out for bid. GGJ Inc. of Eastlake, Ohio, is engineering and overseeing the project. Funding for the project is coming from grants awarded to the Village by OMEGA and the Ohio Public Works (OPW) Administration plus a long term, low interest loan from OPW. Included in the project is the installation of telemetry at the 20th St. pump station which will allow the plant operators to monitor activity at the station.

There were six prospective bidders at the Pre-bid meeting. According the the GGJ web site nine different companies have acquired bid packages. Companies represented at the meeting were RLM Electric, W.E. Downie, Pusateri Excavating, Cattrell, James White Construction and Synagro.

Boyle advised the bidders that the operation of the STP will be on-going during the construction. There are currently two anaerobic digesters at the plant. One will be empty to allow the construction to begin while the other will be used to keep the plant going. Once the first aerobic digester is on-line sludge from the remaining anaerobic digester can be transferred to the new one for processing. It was stressed that the operation of the plant can not be interrupted. Boyle also advised a schedule of construction activities will be required for the day-to-day operations of the plant.

Boyle also advised the potential bidders that an addendum will be issued to change the transformers at the plant from 25 KVA to 50 KVA ones. The demand for the increased amount of electricity is necessary to operate the aerobic digesters.

Once the project is completed the stench from the STP plant should be eliminated. Bids will close Wednesday, July 14, with a bid opening scheduled at 11 A.M. at Wellsville Village Hall.

ole nib

Wellsville Council Meeting

Wellville Village Council met in their only regular scheduled meeting for the month Tuesday evening, July 6, at Village Hall. Present at the meeting was Mayor Joe Surace, Council Members Susan Haugh, John McMahon, Joe Soldano, Randy Allmon & Tony Cataldo. Also attending was Fiscal Officer Dale Davis, Village Legal Advisor Andy Beech, Animal Control Officer Leslie Dean, Village Administrator Jim Saracco & WFD Chief Bill Smith. Councilwoman Rosie Goss was excused.

There were no comments in the Public Speaking portion of the agenda.

For Administrative Reports, Village Administrator Jim Saracco reported that LSW Sanitation has completed telescoping & jet rodding 27 areas in the sewage system that were listed as trouble spots. Out of the 27 spots checked all 27 were found to be in need of repair. All the information provided on what was found will have to be reviewed with the Sewage Committee to decide on a plan of correction.

Saracco also expressed thanks on behalf of the Village to LSW for donating the water truck and having two of their employees pressure wash sidewalks during the clean-up on Saturday, June 26. Additionally he expressed thanks to Pusateri Excavating for donating the two portable lights for use during the All-Class Reunion.

Wrapping up his report Saracco announced that the Sewage Dept. has collected $117,614 year-to-date in bill receipts. Saracco and the Mayor both commended Nancy Murray for the great job she does.

Animal Control Officer Dean submitted activity reports for May & June. For the two months a total of 40 calls were handled with only one of them being a Pit bull issue. Year-to-date collections for impound fees is $90. Dean also requested that Council consider revising Ordinance 08-27 to include compensation for court appearances, the same as police officers receive. In the past year and a half she has had to appear in Village Magistrate Court three times and once in Lisbon for animal issues. The deadline for using the $1,000 ASPCA Grant is October 28 for drainage at the pound building. She is presently working with a plumber to determine what can be done with that amount. It was originally hoped to get running water and drainage installed with that grant.

During the Mayor's Report Surace commended Jeff & Councilwoman Susie Haugh for organizing and carrying out the clean-up on June 26 stating they did a great job. Haugh responded that the thanks should be given to the 40 to 50 people that came together and put in a lot of hard work. She further stated that she was impressed and very thankful to them and every one's willingness to help when asked. (See our post dated 7-9-10 on the clean-up)

Surace also commended everyone on all the All-Class Reunion Committees and the members of the WPD for the fine job done during the reunion.

For the Finance Committee, Cataldo said that as soon as the books for June are reconciled he will be calling for a Finance Committee meeting.

John McMahon for Streets, Lights & Parking reported that all the lights in Broadway Park are now working. McMahon also noted that the Village administration and both the regular Street Dept. employees and the part-time summer workers all deserve a good pat on the back. They are doing an excellent job with grass cutting and painting the curbs, etc.

For Personnel, Joe Soldano stated the Summer helpers will be working until August 20 and said they are doing a good job helping in all departments. Over 20 workers were furnished by the CC Jobs & Family Services Dept. to the Village this summer.

For Property, Equipment & Cemetery, Haugh reported that the old play ground equipment behind the McDonald School has been moved to the Jim Kenney Center. A Committee meeting will be called soon to decide what to do with that and go over the designs for the new equipment being considered for 18th St. The play ground equipment at the Jim Kenney Center was donated to the Village by LSW after they bought the old school building. It needs to be assembled. The Village has a grant for the new 18th St. equipment.

For Water, Sewage & Refuse, Allmon stated that Tony Cataldo will be calling a Committee meeting next week sometime. Allmon stated he will be out of town. Surace announced there will be a Pre-Bid meeting Wednesday, July 7, for the digester work at the Sewage Treatment Plant.

In the Legislation portion of the agenda Council passed Ordinance 10-04 on first reading to terminate the current union contract with the five members of Wellsville AFSCME Local 1869. With a motion by Cataldo and a second by Soldano the vote was 4 to 1 in favor. Allmon cast the only negative vote. The ordinance will be voted on at each of the next two Council meetings before going into effect. By a passing vote of 5 to 0 Council also passed on first reading an ordinance to establish the wages and other conditions of employment for the Fiscal Clerk position. The Fiscal Clerk is a current union position covered under the bargaining agreement. The wages will be the same as the present pay scale.

Suspending rules Council unanimously passed three resolutions. The first approves an alternative method of distributing Local Government Funds in 2011 that is done yearly. The second resolution was to place a 1-mill General Fund renewal levy on the November ballot. The last resolution was to place a 7-mill Fire Dept. levy on the ballot as a replacement.

For New Business Soldano congratulated former Mayor Nunzio Lombardozzi for being inducted into the Lou Holz Upper Ohio Valley Hall-of-Fame on July 1. Lombardozzi said he appreciates the recognition but the thanks should go to all the Wellsville people that helped along the way and made it possible to get that honor. He also said it shows that even in a small town great things can be accomplished with the help of a lot of people.

McMahon noted the Village owned property at 9th & Commerce is being readied to be put up for sale. It has to go through Committee and be approved by Council before a sign can be put up. Saracco stated the lot has to have a costly survey done first which will have to be authorized by Council first.

Lastly Council voted 4 to 0 not to oppose the transfer of a D5 liquor license from Platinum Enterprises LC to Platinum Enterprises LLC located at 358 Main St., the old Potters Bank & Trust building. This was tabled at a meeting last month to give Village officials an opportunity to investigate the business. Haugh noted that the new owner has even gone so far as to request that WPD officers do periodic walk throughs during business hours in an effort to discourage any potential problems. Being a liquor license holder himself Cataldo abstained from voting.

The meeting was adjourned at 6:30 P.M. Next meeting is schedule for Tuesday, August 3 at 6 o'clock at Village Hall.

ole nib

On The Calendar

Before continuing on with Reunion stuff we're going to catch up on some items we've been neglecting. Some of it is close to being ancient history already.

Monday - July 12:

Wellsville Board of Education - 6:30 P.M. - Superintendent's Office - Center St.

Wellsville Revitalization Committee - 6:30 P.M. at Carmichael Residence - Riverside

Tuesday - July 13:

BWD Finance Committee - 10 A.M. at Water Treatment Plant - Route 45

Make A Splash Summer Reading Program - Wellsville Carnegie Library - 10 to 11 A.M

Wednesday - July 14:

Nothing yet...

Thursday - July 15:

BWD Board of Trustees - 9 A.M. - Wellsville Village Hall - Main St.

Wellsville Crime Watch Committee - 6 P.M. - Village Hall - Main St.

Hollow Rock Camp Meetings start. See below:

Friday - July 16:

Nothing that we know of...

Saturday - July 17:

Coal Hollow Amphitheater/Camp Ground - Three band concert - See below:

Sunday - July 18:

Worship at a church of your choice

River Museum Open House - 1 to 4:30 P.M. - 1003 Riverside - Free & open to public

After the rush of getting ready and then having the 5 Year All-Class Reunion things seem a little like a let down but that's just our being in a daze! It was a whirlwind...

At Thursday's Crime Watch Committee meeting the program will be presented by CC S.O. Sgt. Brian McLaughlin speaking on the CC Special Response Team. Some call it the SWAT team. It's free, open to the public and we encourage you to join us. It will be a very interesting program.

Also on Thursday the annual inter-denominational holiness camp meetings begin at Hollow Rock. It's 10 days of Christian togetherness at this historic site. We always called it Hollow Rock Road but they call it Jefferson County Route 51 on their web site. This year's the 191st meeting according to their ad. For more information, schedules and directions visit their web site at http://www.hollowrock.org/.

We are trying to get more information on this but we have been told there with be a three band concert out at Kazee's Coal Hollow Amphiteater this coming Saturday. Headlining a full afternoon and evening of entertainment is Rorey Wesney. Sharing the stage will be Wellsville's Route 45 Band and the 8% Band. We heard Wesney sing out there last year and look forward to seeing him again. He's extremely talented. He can be heard frequently on Froggy Radio and is getting ready to release a new single entitled "Take My Hand". For $10 a head it's cheap at twice the price, especially with Route 45's Tim & Karen Kelly and their fellow band mates. They never disappoint their audiences. We hope to have more info later. Believe things get underway at 4 o'clock.

Have a good week...

ole nib

Lou Holtz Upper Ohio Valley Hall-of-Fame

While the WHS Athletic HOF induction ceremony was going on another Wellsville son was being honored at the same time down the river in Weirton, WV. It was a well deserved honor that he reluctantly accepted. He tried to refuse it but Frank Dawson wouldn't listen. He was then thinking of just not going. One of his sons & his wife threatened that they would accept the honor in his place whether he went or not. It took a lot of convincing by family and friends but he finally agreed to accept the honor, for their sake.

On Thursday, July 1, Wellsville's Nunzio Lombardozzi was inducted into the Lou Holtz Upper Ohio Valley Hall-of-Fame as a member of the Class of 2010. The ceremony was held at the Serbian American Cultural Center in Weirton. Lombardozzi was presented by nephew Ron Infanti. The Hall-of-Fame is located in East Liverpool, OH, in the former Bank One building, on 5th St. It was established in 1998 to recognize outstanding individuals from the region and preserving the cultural heritage of its communities. The first class of honorees were inducted into the hall on July 5, 1998.

The list of titles and accomplishments Lombardozzi has had over the years is longer than my arm and leg put together. However, over all that time, everything he accomplished was done from his love of community, friends and family. He did it all unselfishly and preferred that any accolades garnered be bestowed on others. He wasn't doing it for himself.

Nunzio Lombardozzi was born during the Depression Years in 1934, in his family home on Clover Street. He is the youngest of seven children born to Antonio & Mary DeFalco Lombardozzi. He is a member of the Immaculate Conception Catholic School Class of 1948 and graduated from Wellsville High School in 1952. Following high school he served in the U.S. Army which included a tour in Korea. After his discharge from the Army he went to work at the former Crucilble Steel in Midland, PA. When it closed down in 1982 he had 31 years service in the mill. Instead of retiring he then went to work at Homer Laughlin China in Newell, WV. He has been the head of security over there for the past 24 years. He still says he's not ready for retirement. Nunzio has two sons - Mike and Anthony.

Lombardozzi is a life long member of the Immaculate Conception Church and has served as an usher for over 52 years. He's a Past Grand Knight of Wellsville's Knights of Columbus Carroll Council 507 and is still active in that organization. He is also an active member of Wellsville's Sons of Italy and is a Past V.P. of the SOI. He was instrumental when the Wellsville J.C.s got started, held nearly every office in that organization and was J.C. President in 1964. He's also served on the K of C Youth Campaign, Catholic Charities Commission,, the Boy Scout Commission, the Hammond Park Commission, the Columbiana County Housing Authority and was Director of Youth Baseball. He served as the WHS score keeper/time keeper for 39 years. He's served 42 years on the American Heart Association Fund Drive and was Chairman of that for 18 years. He's a Past Trustee for the Dollars for Scholars and served two years on the Lou Holtz Upper Ohio Valley Hall of Fame Committee. He was the founder & Chairman for six years of Wellsville's Fix-up/Clean-up Committee.

In addition to his active, voluntary community involvement Lombardozzi served seven terms as a Wellsville Councilman which included Council President. He also served two terms as Wellsville Mayor earning the nickname of "Marrying Sam". He conducted 330 marriage ceremonies while serving as Mayor.

In 1968 he received the J.C.'s Distinguished Service Award, was named a Citizen of the Week and was nationally recognized as winner of the Outstanding Community Leader of America. In 1983 he was selected by the Morning Journal as one of the recipients of the CC Men & Women Awards. Also in '83 he was named one of five Wellsville Chamber-of-Commerce Man of the Year Awards and was also honored with a Wellsville Friend of the School Award. He was named a Wellsville Legend in the Class of 2008 during the Riverside Reunion that year. Last year he was again honored by the Wellsville Area Chamber-of-Commerce for his community service on the Fix-up/Clean-up Committee.

We got this picture of Mr. Lombardozzi this past February and are honored it was used in the program for this year's ceremony. We feel the selection committee would be hard pressed to find some one more deserving than Nunzio as an "outstanding citizen of the region". The write-up in the program said Nuzio is some times called Mr. Wellsville. We call him friend. He is The Man.

Congratulations Sam...

ole nib