Let's begin again

Hello nosey do-gooder bloggers. You are beginning your education. Real estate and Ohio Department of Development deals should be left to the professionals. Bill Habig knows the corridors of Ohio Department of Development as well as any professional I know. Despite bloggers and GP trying to stir the pot, the process is working quite well. No meaningful action or dialogue will ever take place in any public meeting. The role of public meetings is to pass resolutions on issues that have already been decided after hours of private phone calls and meetings.

All development deals take place in an environment that instills candor and confidence in the process and the people. Data based decision making (as opposed to inherit bias introduced by having unrelated parties in the conversation) always take place in PRIVATE settings.

Write your blogs. Have meetings on park benches. Listen intently and dialogue into the wee hours. After you have finished, the professionals will return to complete the deal as if you never existed.

I still have seen nothing on the Sentinel web site about the meeting.

However, the Granville Press does have a story at http://granvillepress.com/node/215

Christopher, just because a person or two seems to be disingenuous, do not let that reduce your energy or enthusiasm for helping the community to work through this. The truth will out.

Please don't let the negative energy and occasional idiocy of others discourage you, Christopher. You're an inspiration to some (most)of us.

So what happened? I expected nothing from the Trustees and it appears they delivered. Facts appreciated, Christopher.

we'd appreciate your report, even if it's tomorrow. We appreciate your fact-finding and hard work, even if -- especially if! -- it deflates some our skepticism about the Trustees' actions.

...all this hub-bub was over nothing. The Village and the Trustees are in concert with this grant request. Mayor Hartfield and Village Manager Holycross knew that there was a proposal for SWL sewers in the JRS grant request. This was done the way it was done because it had to be, for reasons none of you will understand (just like the trustees said coincidentally). And most importantly, the Granville Press has too much time on their hands and (like most media, traditional or digital) needs a controversy to satisfy their existence. Thanks for nothing GP.

I met with the tooth fairy Monday under a sugar maple tree near Pearl street. I was thrilled that she was willing to meet after a hard night delivering rewards following the snatching of teeth from underneath pillows. I was intrigued to learn of her travel plans and nightly rituals. My primary concern centered around the total funds deposited beneath pillows per household. As many readers of this blog might recall, there has been considerable misunderstanding regarding the fair and reasonable costs of dollars versus dimes based upon the addresses, political leanings or other perceived favors extended to the tooth fairy over the years.

I was impressed to learn that the tooth fairy has held public meetings at St Luke's Episcopal Church, Denison University Field House and The Granvile Inn. Now that I understand that during this essential information gathering period, the tooth fairy needed to suspend her productive activities for six months, I can now explain to the children why there was no money left underneath the pillow, since the tooth fairy had more important public input work to complete.

From hereforth, I am pleased to report that the tooth fairy uses shape and tooth size criteria to determine the amount left under the pillow. While she did show me a very detailed size and shape chart for my personal review, she is unwilling to post it on a blog at this time. I regret that this will no doubt be the source of continuing debate throughout the community to discuss if she truly has the best interests of greater Granville at heart. (Perhaps she is sneaking the children from Pataskala extra -- who knows?!)

I will keep everyone posted on this developing saga as more meetings are scheduled.

Christopher,
The operative word here is "prefer." There's no doubt that the Village "can" do it, "wants" to do it, "has spent" large sums to prepare to do it and is "supposed" to do it based on the community's Comprehensive Plan, the 208 plan and four decades of policy.

"Prefer" is merely an expression of hope that the Village will meet the developer's terms, for that is who the Trustees represent. If the Village won't meet the terms, then SWL will. If the Trustees put Granville residents first, they would prefer that the developer meet the community's terms -- as set forth in the Comprehensive Plan, 208 plan, etc. -- or the developer should proceed without sewer.

If the Village didn't follow the Comprehensive Plan, that would be another story. But it's the Trustees breaking the rules and offering fake comfort that they "prefer" the Village. I "prefer" peace in Iraq, an end to cancer and $1 a gallon gas with no pollution. I find "prefer" to be little more than cynical posturing by elected officials who got caught trying to impose a policy the community opposes.

Remember that the Trustees got a letter from SWL promising to supply sewer on May 2 -- before they even asked the Village for a letter. Remember that in September 2007, Trustee Habig met secretly with SWL to ask if it would bring sewer to River Road and Main Street -- at a retail developer's request. (The Granville Press broke that story too and as far as I know, the Trustees have never commented on it -- as if reality does not exist.) Habig said explicitly in an email to Trustee Sargent that he preferred SWL so Trustees could control sewer.

So forgive me for putting little weight on the Trustees claim to "prefer" Granville sewers. The Trustees' actions speak louder than their words. 1) They secretly try to get SWL in 2007. 2) Trustee Habig secretly says in an email that's their preference. 3) They ask SWL for sewers first on the Owens Corning grant, then ask the Village later (an afterthought or political cover?) 4) They make no announcement of what they're doing it and initially deny it. 5) Trustee Habig then blames the Village for making the Trustees' "prefer" SWL in the official grant application because the Village was supposedly tardy in writing its letter of support -- a claim that appears to be false. 6) Trustees refuse to withdraw the $1 million request for state money to bring SWL to town, even though they supposedly want the Village to provide sewers.

In every step of this story, the Village has been straightforward, professional and played for a dupe. The Trustees have been secretive, disingenuous and downright inaccurate in their claims. The Trustees have adjusted their rhetoric only when caught with their hands in the cookies jar and have refused to withdraw the request for SWL funding despite their new soft and fuzzy rhetoric. Golly, why wouldn't I trust those people?

My friends and I have been holding off sending a letter opposing the Owens grant hoping this could be worked out (thanks to Christopher). Heck, maybe the Village did go months without responding, we thought. We should have known it's foolish to believe anything Habig says. And Wes and Fred ...it seems they have little more to say than we're good guys, trust us -- as if this is a high school popularity contest -- we prefer the Blue Aces but we may have to give the playbook to the other side.

So out goes our letter of opposition -- the four Horsemen we call outselves. Maybe four old-timers can get the Trustees what they claim to "prefer" (Granville sewers) since the Trustees don't know how to match actions with rhetoric.

Christopher,

Very nice invitation, but I only drink regular coke.

Seriously, I have a prior commitment. But thanks for working to get discussions focused on real issues and solutions.

ot

buknut: I'm kidding, but you couldn't know that. :-)

Changing the map is a rotten idea and should be opposed.

Stop calling people names....'do-gooders" and "of his ilk"...have some respect for others opinions.Do you ever talk to REAL people in PERSON? You sound like someone who lives in his mom's basement.

buknut says.."The only people who have any business putting this project together are those with MONEY in the deal and our elected officials."

I do have money in the deal. I pay property taxes.
• Each new dwelling that is built and contains school children will increase my taxes or reduce the available money per student. Both of these bad.
• Each potentially property tax paying business that is desirable for the community which chooses to build somewhere else because of miscommunication regarding the village’s willingness to provide sewer service is bad.

Both of these things directly impact my personal financial well being. These things also affect every other tax payer in the school district. Why shouldn’t I and rest of the taxpayers be involved?

On a broader level, secrecy in matters such as this usually leads to mischief.

Yes, if there was only light industrial, R&D, offices, with no residential or other commercial (i.e., let's just stick with the ones that give off good tax revenue and avoid retail and the like that don't pay as well).

I am not certain what you mean with respect to a 50/50 shared cost for the line extension. Do you mean shared 50/50 between the township and the village? Or 50/50 between the village and the developer? Why wouldn't we just cover the entire cost (probably less than $300,000 plus whatever is necessary to reimburse Kendal) by shifting over part of the money in the grant application that it was going to cost to extend the Southwest Licking lines?