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New levy lowers taxes
To the editor: We understand that it is a difficult time to ask the community to pass a levy. However, we also know the importance of a great education. A five-year, $450,000 emergency levy (2.99 mills) for Woodmore will be on the ballot Aug. 3.
The purpose of this levy is to continue to generate the funds necessary to provide our students with the excellent education they deserve.
Though this is technically a new levy (and the ballot language will state that it is an additional levy), it is truly replacing an existing levy – a general operating levy that is due to expire at the end of 2010.
If the new emergency levy passes in August, the current levy will be allowed to expire and no longer be collected. Because this levy is replacing an expiring levy, the impact will be a decrease of 0.9 mills. The owner of a home valued at $100,000 will see a decrease of almost $28 per year. Not only will the taxpayers pay less than the current levy, but the school district will actually bring in more money. This is due to Ohio laws and Woodmore being at the “20 mill floor.”
To supplement current expense revenues, districts use emergency levies to take advantage of an option under Ohio law that allows them additional money without leaving the 20-mill floor. Emergency levies are not counted toward the floor. Therefore, districts can pass these levies to generate additional revenue without losing the growth on their existing millage that occurs from being at the floor. A district that is above the 20-mill floor gets no growth from reappraisal or update on its outside mills. A district at the 20-mill floor gets full growth from reappraisal or update on its 20 mills of outside levies.
It is difficult to continue to ask the community for money, but schools are left with no other choice. For more information on the levy, please contact me at 419-849-2381.
Kevin Slates
Treasurer, Woodmore Local Schools
Doing their jobs
To the editor: So you say that the city of Northwood has an “aggressive speed enforcement policy?” I say that the city of Northwood has officers that are doing their jobs.
There are signs along the sides of the roads that state “speed limit.” The signs do not say “speed suggestion.” If you follow the rules of the road, driving through the city of Northwood should not be a problem.
As for the speed limit on the Curtice Road overpass being a speed trap at 25 miles per hour, I remember back when that took place. At one time, shortly after all that was built, there were no traffic lights at those intersections, only stop signs. If I remember correctly, there were a couple of fatal car accidents there. I remember Life Flight being at that intersection a few times as I lived about a mile from that intersection at the time.
You state that the city of Northwood “should review its speed enforcement policies.” Should there be an allowance for how far over the limit you can go and not get a ticket? Why should the city spend money on “flashing speed awareness signs?” Every car that travels every road is already equipped with one. It’s called a speedometer.
If drivers would be responsible and follow the speed limits as posted by law, there would be nothing to talk about. Here’s to all our law enforcement officers in the Eastern Maumee Bay region for doing their jobs. Thank you for doing what you do.
Julie A. Nowacki
Oregon
Best interest?
To the editor: The subject of school district consolidation should be presented to the Lake and Northwood school boards led by a grassroots taxpayer initiative because of the political, social and emotional aspects surrounding the issue.
The question that needs to be answered is, will the consolidation of Lake and Northwood Local Schools be in the best interest of Lake and Northwood taxpayers, taking into consideration the rebuilding of Lake School buildings, of today’s economic environment and declining housing values, of declining enrollments in both school districts and of reduced funding from the state?
The Lake schools board is in the process of rebuilding school property destroyed by the recent tornado. The board has a major decision regarding the location of the destroyed buildings.
Currently, the buildings are located close to Metcalf’s east/west airstrip. There has always been a major safety concern from both airport officials and the school community. Should the new buildings be located farther away from the airstrip? Would the track and baseball land located farther north of the airstrip be a safer place to rebuild the school?
With the declining enrollments in both school districts, are there surplus classrooms between the two school districts to avoid total replacement of destroyed classrooms at Lake, to avoid potential insurance shortages?
The taxpayers in Lake and Northwood school districts should petition their respective school boards to initiate a study outlining the financial advantages of supporting one school district? The two school districts are located within three miles of each other. Both districts should benefit from the “economies of scale” by eliminating duplicate services, administrative costs, overlapping bus routes and increased utilization of school buildings and grounds.
The question to be answered is, will the consolidation of the two school districts result in enough savings to offset the projected decline in state revenue and declining property values to avoid or significantly reduce future tax levy requests in both school districts? The question needs to be answered before either school board decides to put a levy before the voters.
While the community is sympathetic to the destruction of school property, it expects the board to provide the community with a “quality education at an affordable cost” to taxpayers. Any talk of a “sympathy” vote as an excuse of to raise property taxes without first looking at a merger of the two school districts would not be in the “taxpayers’ best interests.”
Larry Knudson
Millbury
Editor’s note: Mr. Knudson is a former member of the Lake Board of Education.
To the editor: While driving home from Oregon several years ago on Bradner Road at 10 a.m., I got a ticket from the friendly speed van for doing 50 in a 35 mph zone.
No traffic, few homes and a large soybean field. That is the last dime I have spent in Northwood since. For The Andersons, I go to Maumee – it’s a better store. For Sears, I work in Sandusky so I can shop there. Northwood Jewelers – my wife and I love your store, so sorry.
I have decided to make Northwood a safer community and stay out of town. By the way Amazon.com is a great place to shop.
Dan Hoffman
Pemberville
Embarrassing
To the editor: As a former public school administrator with considerable experience in contracts and ensuring litigation, I find the dismissal of Tom Kontak as Genoa girls’ head basketball coach by the superintendent and Genoa Board of Education can only be deemed as capricious and arbitrary.
In my administrative experience, situations like this often arise when either a leading administrator or board member has a relative on the team, which results in personal interference and maneuvering for additional playing time. This is especially disconcerting when you realize that, as delineated by The Press article, Mr. Kontak has failed to receive any evaluation over the past three years. If he had, it would have been positive and laudatory, given that he has been league coach of the year and recipient of several other awards.
Due process is not an option doled out by the Genoa board; it is a constitutionally-guaranteed right. It is a testament to Tom Kontak’s character that he neither has publicly protested nor demanded immediate reinstatement to his former head coaching position.
The Genoa board has only one option – pay Mr. Kontak for the 2010-11 coaching year and hope that this embarrassing episode fades quietly from public scrutiny.
Wes Berger
Oregon
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