Honey, let me appoint you to the Planning Commission

Here it is! A crystal clear example of nepotism in the County. Not only does Mary Walker second the motion to appoint her hubby to Planning Commission, she also votes for him. Shame on you, Mary. What a disgrace. If this is an acceptable practice that is actually documented in the public record, imagine what goes on that we don't know about.

The following was copied from the Clermont Co. Commissioners meeting minutes of 12/14/04:

COMMISSIONERS= JOURNAL #295 CLERMONT COUNTY REGULAR SESSION 12/14/04
IN
RE: BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS...DESIGNATION OF
REPRESENTATIVES TO SERVE
ON THE CLERMONT COUNTY
PLANNING COMMISSION...APPROVED

Moved by
Mr. Croswell, seconded by Mrs. Walker, that the Board of County
Commissioners
approve the following recommendation:
Recommendation to
designate the following individuals to serve on the Clermont County
Planning
Commission pursuant to Section 713.22 of the Ohio Revised Code as outlined
below:

Appointee Effective Date Township
Doug Walker
5076
Palermo Drive
Cincinnati, Ohio 45244
DC #04-0603-007
03/25/03 to
03/25/06
(No change in term)
Union Township
Approve designation as the
Limited Home Rule
Government Township

Karl Schultz
5752
Elmcris Drive
Milford, Ohio 45150
DC #04-0603-008
06/08/04 to
03/25/06
(Filling the unexpired
term of Ken Tracy)
Miami
Township

Upon roll call on the foregoing motion, the vote was as
follows:
Mr. Croswell, Yes; Mrs. Walker, Yes; Mr. Proud, Absent.

Public Handouts in Miami Township

Here is an exceptional example of how generously developers are treated by Miami Township Trustees:

The Greycliff subdivision (currently under construction on State Route 131) requires the installation of a turn lane; the cost of which is no less than $300,000. This cost would normally be paid for by the developer. However, our trustees are so generous with our tax dollars that they (we) are paying half of that expense ($150,000) with no repayment required from the developer (a gift). The trustees are also financing the additional $150,000 through a bond issue and will let the developer pay back the amount to them over time. It should be noted that the township received much more favorable terms than the developer ever could. Do you think the Trustees would finance loans for residents? Absolutely not!

Widening of this section of St. Rt. 131 is not even mentioned in the County’s Thoroughfare Plan except as a “project or concepts that are part of a visionary plan.” What was the impetus for the township to fund this project?

Do you want to know how much time was spent on discussing this issue by the trustees at their meeting? Zero. In case you missed it it was listed something like "$300,000 issuance of debt." The trustees did not discuss it - just rubberstamped it. That's all folks!

This is just one example where the Trustees appear to be scratching the back of a developer. I just wonder in how many other situations this is occurring? If Miami Township was such a desirable place to live, it would not be handing out public subsidies for residential development or any other development for that matter. People would be beating the doors down to build and operate here without handouts.

Just as a side note, during the approval process the developer stated that the homes in this development were going to be priced at $400,000 to $600,000, however, the sign out front says ‘from $270,000.’ There goes the neighborhood!

Pop Quiz: Can you identify all three Miami Township Trustees?

A picture is worth a thousand words

Here is a perfect example of how the “machine” apparatus works in Clermont County. The following diagram is from the Clermont County Water Management and Sediment Control (WMSC) Regulations. It illustrates Storm Drain Inlet Protection -- how an inlet is supposed to be protected by bales of hay which filter out sediment so that it does not run off into the stormwater system. Note that (a) the bales of hay are touching as to create a barrier and (b) there are two stakes per bale.



STRAW BALE DROP INLET SEDIMENT FILTER
This method of inlet protection is applicable where the inlet drains a relatively flat area (slopes no greater than five (5) percent) where sheet or overland flows (not exceeding 0.5 cfs) are typical.

The photograph below is of the “sediment filter” on a site currently under construction in Miami Township, Clermont Co. Notice how the bales are not even touching and there is only one stake (which probably doesn’t even pierce the ground)! Nice work! UPDATE: As of Saturday, there are only two bales of hay left!

The County was notified and Chief Building Official, Ray Sebastian, has identified areas as not being in compliance with the County’s WMSC regulations. But rest assured the inspector will continue to monitor the situation and seek compliance! How about some hefty fines? Yeah, right!

Is it any surprise that the developer of this project sits on the County’s Stormwater Technical Advisory Committee?

I don't know about anyone else, but I would feel much more comfortable if the Chief Building Official (CBO) of my county had some kind of professional credentials, perhaps in engineering (P.E.) or architecture (A.I.A.). DNA (or marriage) that may link him to one of the three clowns that RUN the county is not considered, in my book, a credential.