(Chillicothe)- The deadline is approaching for public input on a Chillicothe Planning Master Plan that will see a committee selected to oversee the process.
Mayor Luke Feeney says this is the first citywide comprehensive planning process since the last Master Plan was published in 1948.
“We want YOU to guide our future. We are seeking people who love our community and want to plan the future to be a part of the steering committee. No prerequisites other than caring about our community.”
The application deadline is January 9, 2022 and the committee will start meeting later this month.
Chillicothe Mayor Luke Feeney has announced that the City Administration Office will be closing for the Christmas & New Year’s holidays, beginning Christmas Eve- December 24th.
The offices will also be closed the entire week of December 27th due to the year-end holidays.
It will reopen on January 3rd.
Residents needing to contact the City during that week, should call the Chillicothe Service Department at (740) 773-2700 or email jeffrey.carman@chillicotheoh.gov
(Chillicothe) — The Purple Heart Committee in Chillicothe has announced that the Purple Heart Monument Dedication ceremony will be held November 11th at 1pm.
The ceremony will be at the Veterans Memorial Park on the corner of Park and Chestnut Streets where the monument will be located. The ceremony will be open to the public.
A short program that will include the Honor Guard and presentation of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Guest speakers include Chillicothe Mayor, Luke Feeney; Purple Heart Committee Chairperson, Melody Lapczynski; and Ben Daughters, a local Purple Heart recipient.
Gerry Palmer, President of the Ross County Veterans Council, will serve as Master of Ceremony during the event.
The City of Chillicothe has set their date for 2021 Beggars’ Night.
Mayor Luke Feeney told Chillicothe City Council during their recent meeting that the event will take place from 6pm-7:30pm on Thursday, October 28th with a rain-date of 2pm-3:30pm on Saturday, October 30th.
Ross County Sheriff George Lavender informed Litter Media’s Mike Smith that in recent years, townships and villages have gone with this same date to stay uniform with Chillicothe. Others say this limits confusion as to when Trick or Treat is held in the area it maintains safety for youngsters with area law enforcement concentrating patrols on the same night.
The parcel of land where the former Tiffin Elementary School building was located in Chillicothe, Ohio. Dan Ramey/Litter Media
*STORY UPDATED 3PM 7/28/21*
Chillicothe Mayor Luke Feeney has asked city council for $300,000 to buy the land once occupied by Tiffin Elementary School, off South Bridge Street.
Goodwill Industries of South Central Ohio had purchased the land earlier this year, but has since decided to locate a proposed warehouse and distribution center elsewhere.
Goodwill CEO Marvin Jones stated in a release sent to Litter Media; “After reviewing our plans for the Tiffin property, it became more apparent that the Gateway Industrial Park on Ohio 104 would be better suited for our warehouse and any future expansion. We are working with the Community Improvement Corporation to acquire land there and hope to begin construction before the end of the year. While we are disappointed we couldn’t make the Tiffin property work, we are sure that the city will find ways to improve that neighborhood.”
In a request for the matter to be assigned to council committee, Mayor Feeney stated the following in a letter to Council President Bruce Arnold; “The property in question presents a unique opportunity for the City to play a serious role in the future development of the neighborhood and our community.”
“It is not often that parcels of land of this size become available in the City, and I believe there will be significant benefit in the City controlling that property, especially in the context of the context of our upcoming master plan process”, Feeney said.
Litter Media reached out to Mayor Feeney for a comment concerning the possible interest by the City of Chillicothe, to which he responded:
“Through the process of getting the Tiffin property rezoned Goodwill was a very proactive community partner in terms of their communication and willingness to listen to their neighbors’ opinions on the future use of the former school site. It quickly became very clear that rezoning the entire site to be industrial was not a good fit for the location, so Goodwill reworked its request to something that was palatable and a decent fit for the neighborhood. When Goodwill ultimately decided that another location was a better fit for their new facility, I thought it was a good opportunity to have an impact on a neighborhood from a city planning perspective that doesn’t come along very often. I engaged in conversation with Marvin Jones, Goodwill’s CEO and he expressed his and his board’s interest in a positive community outcome for that property. There is an ongoing community study on our housing situation, and that has made the opportunity for housing development in that area the thing that sticks out most in my mind for an end use, but I haven’t ruled anything out. I also think that the master plan process that we are starting will help inform the future use of this land.“
The actual purchase price of the land would be $290,000 with the other $10,000 going to closing, inspection and other purchase related fees.
(Chillicothe) – Mayor Luke Feeney and the City of Chillicothe Engineering Department announce that milling and paving work will start on Thursday (7/29/21) in various locations within the city.
Weather permitting, milling and paving will start on Thursday.
Residents are advised to watch for NO PARKING signs, as NO PARKING will be strictly enforced. Motorists are advised to use caution and watch for construction vehicles and workers.
Chillicothe Mayor Luke Feeney will present the 2021 State Of The City Address, Wednesday, June 9th at 11:30am. The address will on the City of Chillicothe’s Facebook Live.
More than one dozen “community partners” will be presenters in the address, dealing with where the community has been and where it is heading as we come closer to being out of the COVID-19 pandemic, which started in late 2019.
Mayor Luke Feeney ordered the Carlisle Hill Star to be re-lit Friday evening as a sign of hope during the COVID-19 virus outbreak. Photo by Dan Ramey/Litter Media
The Mayor of Ohio’s First Capital, Luke Feeney, takes time to talk about how the City is handling operations during the Stay-At-Home Order issued by the State Sunday, March 22nd, 2020.
He also shares the story behind the re-lighting of the Star on Carlisle Hill as a sign of hope to all who see it during this time of the COVID-19 virus outbreak. (See video below)
NOTE: This interview was recorded at the Red Cross Chapter House during a daily blood drive. The hammering in the background was for maintenance on a metal door jam.
