Letters to Editor
No Authority Over Parks
Judge Tim Grendell. Since arriving in Geauga County you have maneuvered your way into Geaugan’s lives and, in my opinion, I doubt seriously that there is anything you won’t do or say or anyone you won’t malign in order to make yourself look good.
Why is it that Judge Grendell’s statement that ‘I don’t have time for parks’ is so hard to believe? It’s it because a series of emails that were made public show numerous instances in which he communicated directly with park district commissioners and personnel?
One of the biggest income resources in Geauga County and our largest tourism draws, and you overstep your limits of authority by miles. Your authority extends to “appoint members to the board.” That is it. There is nothing beyond that statement in the O.R.C. or the county that says you have any authority over the parks.
Nothing. Nada. Zip.
In my opinion, every word you have uttered, every directive you have given in regards to the parks beyond “appoint members to the board” was judicial overreach beyond your level of authority, but you already know that. In my opinion, you just don’t care.
You are a judge that Geauga County and its citizens are supposed to be able to trust. Our lives, our children and their futures, our property and possessions pass before you every day. Yet, when it suits you, your actions make us question that trust. According to you, we shouldn’t worry about it. Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain, right?
Then you go after Nancy McArthur for making what she thought was a private statement between her and another person. It wasn’t public and it certainly wasn’t made in your courtroom, yet you feel because it offends you that you can summon her to appear before you for contempt.
In doing so, you violate what any first year law student could tell you was her freedom of speech. But again, you just don’t care in my opinion. I’ve read your comment on how Nancy’s alleged statements undermine your authority. The reality, in my opinion, it is your own behavior in response to the emails that does that. Greater men in your position would just ignore the comments. Clearly you are too petty, in my opinion, to be able to.
Now I read online where you demand that an appellant court judge be removed from the pending matter because she has political ties to Nancy and because, according to you, she may want to run for Supreme Court. Never mind that removing her and making her look bad would further you and/or your wife’s personal considerations to run for Supreme Court in the future on that same political ticket, and that you share those same political ties.
And, let’s overlook that your wife is providing a key piece of hearsay evidence to recuse this other judge.
Instead, you claim that “to avoid even the appearance of bias, prejudice, or impropriety, and to ensure the parties, their counsel, and the public the unquestioned neutrality of an impartial judge” that Colleen O’Toole be removed. Wow, that takes ego and, in my opinion, a lot of it. Especially coming from the man who is so full of “Impartiality” that, in my opinion, he violates the First Amendment when his feelings get hurt.
Just because you were the only choice on the ballot this last November does not mean the people of Geauga County wanted you; they simply were not given any other option. The Supreme Court can remedy that and should do so immediately.
Robert Allen
Claridon Township
Thank You West G BOE
Congratulations to the West Geauga school board for hiring Dr. Richard Markwardt as the new superintendent.
If West Geauga wants to return back to the top 5 percent, where it once was, you need “A” players to be in the” A” league.
The school board is to be commended for going out and hiring a turnaround expert. West Geauga was ranked higher than Beachwood, in 2004, when Dr. Markwardt took over Beachwood. Dr. Markwardt turned Beachwood around and now Beachwood has a higher state ranking than West Geauga.
The state of Ohio lists West Geauga as a B district. WG was once a top 5 percent district. We need someone who “gets it” if we want to be an A+ district again. Someone who understands curriculum and the need for AP courses so the children can have a chance at better colleges.
For a decade West Geauga had half the AP courses of Chagrin, Kenston and Solon. There is no way to compete if you don’t have the classes that your competitive districts have. That was one of the reasons WG fell to #61 in the state.
Dr. Derringer “got it” and added four AP courses with Mr. Toth. That gave West G 70 percent of the advanced courses the Chagrins and Solons have.
Mr. Nutter “got it” and is adding two more courses for next year.
If you want West Geauga to be “Best” you have to provide the “Best” with the “Best.” Thank you WG school board and best of luck and success to Dr. Markwardt.
Michael Kilroy
Chester Township
Enough Humiliation
I feel I must comment on all that is happening in Geauga Park District.
This is or was the best park system around, so why all the changes? Does everything need to be political? Why are they moving so fast that they don’t even realize that a nature preserve is to be preserved? A ball field was put at Bass Lake? Did no one with any knowledge sit in when that decision was made?
And trapping without checking with ODNR, really? What caused all of these mistakes to take place?
We, the people, vote, but our vote was reversed recently by cutting millage the majority of Geauga residents voted for. Beware when the government takes away your rights.
Our parks are peaceful, beautiful places to visit. I tried to get involved by going to meetings, but now they take place during the working hours of residents.
Truthfully, after the president opened a meeting by shaking her finger at the audience, and telling everyone that if she heard any growns from anyone they would be escorted out by a ranger and that she wouldn’t say it twice. Ha, I felt like I was in grade school again.
Might I remind her, most people in the room had more education than her. So, I had enough humiliation at that point and left.
Dianne Bosse
Huntsburg Township
Park Survey Misleading
The “great” Geauga Park District survey is now open for residents to fill out. This survey will influence how our Geauga Park District will be used for the next 5-10 years.
While it is great that the park commissioners want to hear from the residents of Geauga County, there are some serious concerns with the survey and how it is being conducted.
The survey is being announced by postcards sent to every resident in the county. So, if they can send these survey postcards, glossy PR material during the past election and Voices of Nature to every resident in Geauga County, why in the world could they not send a paper survey to every Geauga County household?
In past board meetings and emails, both Matt McCue, GPD interim director of planning and operations, and the park commissioners stated that there would be paper copies at libraries and offices for those who did not have or want to use computers to fill out the survey. Now that the survey is open for residents, it is announced that the only way to get a paper copy to fill out is to call the park offices and they will mail one to you. You have to be proactive to just get the survey, plus it is still mailed to you like it should have been in the first place.
The online survey is through Survey Monkey and while a nice piece of software it isn’t exactly the safest way to handle such an important survey. There are no safeguards on who is filling in the survey and how many times the survey can be filled out by residents.
Some of the questions are absolutely misleading. First, there is no definition of “recreation” anywhere in the survey. One person’s recreation (sitting by a pond and watching the birds) could be totally different from another person’s recreation (shooting guns or using an ATV). So general questions about recreation isn’t really giving any specific information and can be used in any way the GPD wants to use it.
Question #8 states, “Other than not having enough time, why don’t you visit parks in Geauga County or visit them more often?” None of the answers one can check off states that one is using the parks enough to one’s satisfaction. So does the GPD believe that every single resident in the county either does not visit the parks or doesn’t visit enough times?
Question #9 asks, “If you pursue recreation in other areas other than the parks, what kinds of recreational activities do you participate in?” Again, what is recreation? And, if one states one plays in a senior softball league (at a municipal park), does that mean the GPD will assume you want a ball field in every GPD park?
Note that the question only asks for recreation activities and not if you feel there are enough places already to do this recreation. This question is loaded for adding more ball fields, gun ranges and ATVs in Geauga park lands.
Questions #12 & #13 ask if the park district should do more to encourage families, children and seniors to use the parks. At a glance, one would just say yes as we always want more people to visit our parks. But, if you think further, these questions don’t specify how to encourage more use. And the way the park is headed, “yes” answers will be used to add more ball fields, playgrounds, gun ranges, etc. instead of encouraging more use with nature and conservation in mind.
The last question (#26) asks if you would be willing to participate in a focus group about the GPD future and, if so, you are asked to leave your name, email and/or phone number on the survey. This destroys the anonymous aspects of the survey and it would also allow “cherry picking” of focus group participants as the contact information is actually part of the survey answers. There is no way this is either a blind survey or a blind focus group.
Katherine Malmquist
South Russell Village
Stop Marcellus Wells Now
The Ohio Supreme Court, in a decision that will live in infamy, has decided by a 4-3 vote that municipalities in Ohio have no zoning control whatsoever as to where the new giant Marcellus gas wells can be drilled.
One day, our tree lined streets will be desecrated by these huge installations, which will end our quiet, serene lifestyles forever.
Please understand, these Marcellus wells are nothing like the little wells that now dot the landscape. These huge new wells have a footprint of perhaps five acres and involve the movement of hundreds of trucks each day. Having one on your street will be like living next to an oil refinery.
I have no problem with gas wells. Like many people, I use gas for heat. But there’s a place for everything and the place for these huge new wells is industrial or sparsely populated rural areas.
I also drive a steel car, but would not wish to live next door to a steel mill.
The days of “home rule,” by which municipalities can zone to create the kind of neighborhoods we cherish, are gone. The gas and oil lobby now officially owns our state government and writes the rules for all of us. Those aren’t my words, those are the words of a dissenting Supreme Court justice.
We will have a reprieve for a few years. Land is cheaper in Carroll County, so the drillers will huddle there. But the profits made by these huge wells are so vast, a driller could buy any five acre-parcel in our community, with its homes, tear them down and drill away — and they will. It’s just a matter of time.
When it does happen, we will ask, “What could we have done to stop this?”
Doug Bletcher
Russell Township
Rest Stop on I-90
OBJECTIONS to “Heritage House” plans presented at Chardon City Council Meeting on Feb. 12, 2015:
1. Footprint the structure will occupy over 2,900 square feet of green space. The historic log cabin occupies about 930 square feet. In addition, four large concrete pads on the south side of the building will be constructed on the grass. This will result in a very large and permanent occupation of green space.
2. Meeting space the main reason given for this 10-year planning project was to increase usable meeting space on the park. The plan shows an increase of about 15 square feet of meeting space over that of the Log Cabin, at a budget of $600,000, not including developmental costs. (Note: There are many alternates around the square for larger meetings.)
3. Chardon Square is a public green/park as listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. There are seasonal events held on the square designed to be temporary in nature. The annual sugar house is temporary, as are the Maple Festival, Easter egg hunt, flea market, arts festival, Halloween, Christmas lighting and Santa’s arrival, etc.
None of these events permanently affect the square as this plan does.
4. Destruction of our historic log cabin, built by citizens and organizations in 1962, at their cost and donated to village as a meeting room. The log cabin celebrated Chardon’s sesquicentennial — 150 years after the dedication of the town plat and memorialized the first log cabin on the square which served as a temporary courthouse in 1812. The designation of meeting place fit into the original restrictions which continue to limit the purpose of any building in the public square.
5. The fact that the existing historic log cabin could be renovated at a fraction of the cost and slight additional coverage of green space.
6. The fact that the “evaporator room” in the plan will basically become a garage for an evaporator for over 10 months of the year — a very expensive garage.
7. The fact that the “concession room” in the plan is not needed. Large events have independent concessions which pay the event host for their temporary space. The Chardon Square Association summer popcorn sales depend upon the popcorn machine being outdoors to promote sales by the smell.
The public reaction has called the design similar to a rest stop on I-90!
Dennis Killeen
Chardon
Oros Lacks Statesmanship
In his February 12, 2015, letter to the “Geauga County Maple Leaf” editor, John Oros states, “In a time of speculation and fear mongering associated with ‘Take Back Our Parks,’ it’s nice to see positive people prevail who recognize a common-sense approach to park utilization.”
To characterize the “Take Back Our Parks” organization as a group of fear-mongers distorts the nature of the group and its purpose. “Take Back Our Parks” was established to provide a public forum focused on Geauga County residents’ concerns about changes occurring within the Geauga County park board and the perceived lack of accountability by those in charge.
It’s it necessary for Mr. Oros to use the success of Frozen Fest as a platform to caricature those who disagree with him? Mr. Oros states that the folks who attended the festival recognize a common-sense approach to park utilization.
It cannot be argued, however, that attendance at Frozen Fest implies a commonsensical approach to park use.
Furthermore, it is false to suggest that people concerned about conservation — one of the primary focuses of “Take Back Our Parks”– lack a reasonable approach to use of parks.
Just as no one associated with “Take Back Our Parks” has misrepresented the role Frozen Fest played in drawing visitors to The West Woods, so no one associated with the current park district should misrepresent the role “Take Back Our Parks” has had in drawing attention to valid public concerns involving the Geauga County park board.
I would like to see Mr. Oros, as the interim director of the Geauga Park District, strike a more statesmanlike stance.
The success of Frozen Fest should not, in any way, be used to denigrate people who are involved with “Take Back Our Parks” nor should it negate the concerns expressed by people involved with this organization.
Elizabeth Cline
Chardon
Heritage House?
After viewing a rendering of the replacement building for the log cabin on Chardon Square, I am not understanding how this strange looking structure could be called a “Heritage House,” and I wonder why such an ugly design was ever approved.
It looks like something more suitable as a welcome center along Ohio’s turnpike. Chardon’s history was completely dismissed as was any compatibility with the present day surroundings.
I am not looking forward to seeing that modern looking large sore thumb sticking out from where the sacred trees and grass once were. Such a shame it is that a new log cabin could not have been built where the existing one stands today.
Larry A. Greenlee
Chardon
