2/20/19 – 8:42 A.M.
North Baltimore residents might be able to pay their water bills online through the village in the future. Council heard a proposal for the idea Tuesday. If approved, residents could use the village’s website to pay their monthly water and sewer bills.
The system would likely charge a 2.9 percent credit card processing fee.
Council didn’t take action on the issue.
MORE: North Baltimore looks to install security cameras at the village park.
2/20/19 – 8:36 A.M.
Carey is moving forward with maintenance projects for two water storage tanks. Village council voted in favor of a contract with the Utility Service Company during their Tuesday meeting. The company will inspect and maintain the 250,000-gallon water tower on Ogg Street and the 175,000-gallon standpipe in Waterworks Park over the next 10 years.
Carey will pay $1.4 million over 10 years for the work.
MORE: Carey Council talks about school resource officer position.
2/20/19 – 5:31 A.M.
Fostoria City Council took aim at the Sunny Farms Landfill during its Tuesday meeting. Council voted in favor of a resolution opposing the landfill’s operating license in Seneca County. While Fostoria doesn’t have any say in landfill regulations, elected officials and community leaders believe they need to keep the pressure up.
Fostoria’s efforts got a boost from State Representatives Riordan McClain and Bill Reineke Jr. They wrote a letter to the Ohio EPA Tuesday. The letter claims the agency isn’t taking issues with the landfill as seriously as it should be.
Mayor Eric Keckler says that in the meantime he is looking to buy hydrogen sulfide monitors to place around the city. He says they need to keep gathering independent data about the landfill odor.
MORE: Leaders further discuss how to deal with landfill issues.
2/20/19 – 5:18 A.M.
Recently unsealed secret indictments show five Findlay residents are facing drug charges. The Hancock County grand jury indicted 30-year-old William Hay on two counts of aggravated trafficking in drugs.
56-year-old Robert Click is facing two counts of trafficking heroin. 42-year-old Thomas Burkhalter faces a count of trafficking in a counterfeit controlled substance.
28-year-old Dennis Hale is charged with trafficking cocaine, and 26-year-old Tereal Jones also faces a trafficking in cocaine charge.
2/20/19 – 4:32 A.M.
A Bowling Green police sergeant is off the job after facing internal discipline. Police officials say Sergeant Jason Stanley resigned yesterday. Stanley was facing penalties for violating the city’s anti-harassment policy last year.
02/20/19 – 1:41 A.M.
Findlay City Council voted in favor of proposed new council rules and regulations during their Tuesday meeting. Councilman Grant Russel said that there aren’t many changes to public participation. He explained that they won’t allow advertising though…
Russel said that the rules won’t prevent people from addressing council or asking council to support ballot issues. He added that the rules will be posted online for people to see.
Council members Holly Frische and Jim Niemeyer voted against the rules
2/20/19 – 1:32 A.M.
Findlay City Council approved two contracts establishing how police and fire personnel get paid. Safety Director Paul Schmelzer explained that the city wanted to avoid problems caused by giving raises during economic hardships, which was done in the past.
Schmelzer said that raises will be given when the city is doing well, much like how businesses operate.
Schmelzer added that he thinks this is the best contract signed in the city’s history. He added that he looks forward to implementing this style for other city positions.
02/19/19 – 6:44 P.M.
The Findlay Police Department has a new lieutenant in the Special Services Division. Michael Swope was promoted to the position yesterday after being sworn in by interim Mayor Ron Monday.
Swope has been a sergeant since December 2011. He was hired in 1995 as a full-time officer in the patrol division. He has also been a K-9 handler, a member of the Crisis Management Team, and a vice narcotics detective in the METRICH Unit.
The Special Services Division oversees the dispatch center, records, training, and the officers in the property, crime prevention, and the court officer positions.
02/19/19 – 6:38 P.M.
The Courier’s Progress Edition comes out Friday and Life Editor Brenna Griteman covered downtown Findlay. She said she’s written two articles for the Progress Edition covering businesses.
She said that the article will talk about the businesses and all that they have to offer. The second article covers the 4 bakeries on Sandusky street and the relationship that they have.
Griteman said that the article will cover how the businesses complement each other to draw in customers.
You can pick up a copy of the Progress Edition Friday.
2/19/19 – 8:11 A.M.
Cooper Tire & Rubber saw a decline in operating profit in 2018. The Findlay-based tire maker posted its year-end and fourth quarter results Tuesday morning. The filing shows Cooper had an operating profit of $165 million for 2018. That’s down more than 46 percent compared to 2017.
Net Sales were relatively flat for the year. Cooper says the company tallied $2.8 trillion in net sales last year. That’s a decline of 1.6 percent compared to the previous year.
The results include a $34 million goodwill impairment charge. The charge comes as a result of Cooper announcing a joint venture agreement with Sailun Vietnam to build a new truck and bus radial tire production plant in Vietnam. The facility will reduce production requirements for a joint venture in China, which led to the impairment charge.
In a statement, CEO Brad Hughes said, “As projected, in the fourth quarter we drove unit volume growth in the U.S., which was offset by volume declines in our other regions, reflecting economic and political factors.” Hughes also said raw material prices improved, but were still higher than they were in 2017.