By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
Wood County saw a spike in sales tax revenue, steady growth in industry, and an investment in infrastructure in 2019 – all leading to a stellar year for the county.
County commissioners Doris Herringshaw, Craig LaHote and Ted Bowlus presented the highlights of 2019 in the State of the County address on Wednesday.
The year started out rocky for Wood County, when persistent rains in May and June resulted in many fields going unplanted. The county’s farms, which are annually near the top of corn, wheat, and soybean production in Ohio, saw dramatically lower harvests.
“This affected all aspects of agricultural production, including equipment needs, grain elevator services, and fertilizer sales, which combine to represent a very significant part of Wood County economy,” Herringshaw said.
Wood County has remained fiscally strong due to the continued conservative approach to budgeting to cover all of the county’s mandated services for citizens, Herringshaw said. The 2020 general fund appropriations totaled $45,501,138.81, which is $930,036.62 lower than the appropriations for 2019.
Sales tax receipts in 2019 again reached a record amount, totaling $22.9 million.
Herringshaw encouraged those in attendance to shop locally.
“The one penny of local sales tax goes a long way toward supporting the operation of county government,” she said.
A healthy budget allows the county to maintain its roads and bridges, LaHote said.
In 2018, the commissioners transferred $2.1 million to a new fund to assist Wood County Engineer John Musteric with building and repairing county bridges and roads. Additionally, the commissioners agreed to dedicate $200,000 of county sales tax revenue annually for five years to the new fund. Clerk of Courts Cindy Hofner also committed $100,000 by transferring revenue from the Auto Title Fund.
So in 2019, the engineer’s office completed the following projects using a portion of those funds:
- Resurfacing Grant and Insley roads, $385,032;
- Micro surface 12 miles of Sugar Ridge Road, $381,634;
- Micro surface 3.75 miles Stony Ridge Road, $129,830;
- Resurface Huffman Road from Jerry City to Mermill, $377,149;
- Bridge replacement on Long Judson Road, $298,187.
On the list for this year is resurfacing Liberty Hi from the CSX overpass to Hammansburg Road for $637,388.
The commissioners and county engineer also talked last year about the first phase of a study related to storm water and how to handle this issue long-term – possibly through the creation of a storm water management district.
“Wood County exists today because of good drainage that has kept the Great Black Swamp at bay. Increased development places pressure on our existing drainage systems in terms of water quantity and quality,” LaHote said.
The commissioners continue to visit industries and businesses throughout the county with Director of Wood County Economic Development Wade Gottschalk.
While remaining concerned about finding workers for their businesses, companies around the county are taking steps to retain and attract employees by increasing pay, LaHote said.
“Today, it appears that if an employer pays less than $12 per hour, with limited benefits, they have a much higher risk of their employees looking elsewhere,” LaHote said. “These companies are now offering $14 per hour and higher as a beginning wage, with benefits such as medical insurance and college tuition reimbursement.”
The county saw ground broken for new industry, such as:
- A new float-glass production facility owned by NSG North America in Troy Township. The site will employ 150 people and primarily serve the solar panel production needs of First Solar.
- First Solar is nearing completion of a $400 million production facility in Lake Township that will employ 500 people.
- Amazon broke ground in Rossford on a $175 million fulfillment center. When complete, the new facility will employ 1,000 people with an annual payroll of $27 million.
“These are extraordinary times for employment in Wood County,” LatHote said.
The Wood County Port Authority has participated in the financing of several large projects such as the OI World Headquarters in Perrysburg, the Ohio Logistic Warehouse in Bowling Green, the Walgreens Distribution Center’s expansion in Perrysburg Township, First Solar’s new manufacturing plant in Lake Township, the new NSG glass plant in Troy Township, and the new Amazon fulfillment center in Rossford.
Bowlus talked about the creation of a Community Reinvestment Area for a portion of Henry Township near the CSX Intermodal Facility. Last month, the commissioners approved a CRA agreement with Northpoint Development, which is planning to construct a series of five buildings, ranging in size from 500,000 to nearly 1 million square feet. The purpose is to attract companies who will lease the space and take advantage of the neighboring intermodal facility for moving their products.
The first phase of the project is expected to create over 1,500 jobs, with phase two expected to create nearly 500 more.
Bowlus also gave an update on the Wood County Landfill, where a final capping project is underway. The capping process is regulated by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and will involve on-site testing and inspection of the materials.
The Wood County Landfill has also applied for an expansion permit with the Ohio EPA. The existing landfill cell has approximately five and a half years of remaining usable space based on current waste rates. The expansion will provide approximately 100 years of available landfill space.
The commissioners listed other items of interest:
Voting machines
The county’s aging electronic voting equipment has been replaced. Wood County received $1.3 million from the State of Ohio, and covered the remainder of the overall $2.1 million purchase price.
New buildings
During 2019, the commissioners continued talks with the county engineer about moving the Highway Garage, currently located on Poe Road in Bowling Green. Additional research is underway to determine the best location.
Additionally, we continued discussion and planning with Sheriff Mark Wasylyshyn on renovation of the booking and medical areas of the Wood County Justice Center. Th3 $18 million project will also include additional secure housing for females.
Recycling options
The Wood County Solid Waste Management District opened 10 permanent residential 24/7 mixed recycling drop-off locations throughout Wood County for people who do not have access to curbside recycling. Two more locations were later added in Portage and Wayne.
The total increase in recycling from 2017 to 2019 was 629 tons, which was an increase of 763%.
“As evidenced by these numbers, people in Wood County want to recycle,” LaHote said.
Veterans memorial
A group of local veterans has designed a new Veterans Memorial plaza on the courthouse grounds that will recognize all county residents who died in the Civil War, WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Gulf War, and Afghanistan, plus Gold Star Families. The project will create an area that is accessible to people with disabilities, and conducive to memorial services.
The total projected cost of this project is $400,000, and donations are welcomed.
Transportation
The NET Plus (non-emergency transportation program) provided 15,050 one-way trips in 2019 to medical, dental, behavioral health, and substance abuse related appointments.
Addiction Response Collaborative
The ARC program has had 49 individuals referred of which 29 entered treatment/jail, with 21 of these still ongoing at year’s end. The commissioners thanked Prosecutor Paul Dobson for his team’s efforts in assisting those trying to overcome addiction.
Also speaking at the State of the County address were Wood County Recorder Julie Baumgardner, Wood County Common Pleas Judge Matt Reger, and Wood County Sheriff Mark Wasylyshyn.
Baumgardner’s office keeps track of records back to the county’s founding in 1820. Last year, a total of 16,903 documents were filed with the office – bringing in about $1 million in recording fees, she said.
Baumgardner talked about an upcoming program she is working on with local senior centers. The “Good Deeds” program will advise senior citizens on steps to take to avoid their property ending up in probate court.
Reger told of the first case heard in a local circuit court, in 1820, involving a man biting off another man’s lip during a fight. The defendant was found guilty and fined $10.
The judge talked about the impact the Wood County Common Pleas Courts have during significant moments in people’s lives.
“Justice is carried out on a daily basis,” he said.
Reger also talked about the challenges of dealing with so many cases involving opiates. He told of a defendant who came before him on a Friday for a probation violation. The man had tested positive for drugs, but had a job and was in a rehabilitation program.
So the judge released him.
“On Sunday he overdosed. The following Friday he was dead,” Reger said. Those types of cases weigh heavily on judges, he said.
Wasylyshyn spoke on the partnership between his office and the county engineer’s office on a vehicle weight enforcement program to protect the county’s roads and bridges.
Vehicles overweight by up to 60,000 pounds have been found on local roads, he said.
The sheriff spoke of the strong teamwork among local officials – not seen in many other counties.
“In Wood County, we work very, very well together,” Wasylyshyn said.
