Amherst News-Times, 2001-10-17

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Amherst News-Time
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Wednesday, October 17, 2001
Amherst, Ohio
asks for time
to address 'problems'
by ERIK YORKE
News-Times reporter
The public hearing held last
Monday night by the Ohio Turnpike to discuss Amherst residents'
concerns over the improvements to
the Middle Ridge Service Plaza began on a sour note. Turnpike executive director Gino Zomparelli
started the meeting, held at the Holiday Inn in Elyria, by informing all
news media as well as citizens that
no recordings, audio or video could
be taken of the meeting.
"If you want to record, then we
don't have to have this meeting,"
Zomparelli said.
State Senator Jeffry Armbruster
attempted to calm an indignant
crowd, insisting that the point of
the meeting is not whether or not it
is recorded, but that residents' concerns are addressed.
"The turnpike cannot walk away
from this issue and neither can I,"
Armbruster said.
The meeting itself came as a result of an Aug. 13 public hearing
held by the city of Amherst in Am
herst Town Hall. The Ohio Turnpike had sent two representatives to
that meeting, general counsel Thomas Amato and community liasion
Reggie Williams. They had announced that they could not answer
questions and were there simply to
take complaints. Amherst residents
obliged them.
Zomparelli, who * id most of the
talking at Monday's meeting, began
with a slideshow presentation outlining how the Ohio Turnpike
works. He touched on many subjects from funding to safety until finally touching on the new construction at the Middle Ridge Service
Plaza.
"It's definitely a gem for the
state of Ohio," Zomparelli said.
"(The new plazas) are cleaner,
they're safer."
After discussing all of the amenities that will be held by the service
plaza, such as a food court filled
with popular food vendors and a
community room designed specifically for the people of Amherst,
Zomparelli began to address the
specific complaints made by those
residents who live near the plaza.
One of the major complaints
shared by many of the turnpike
neighbors was the problem of
diesel trucks making a lot of noise
and filling the air with noxious
fumes. Zomparelli said that truck
parking has been moved farther
away from the eastern part of the
plaza, where residential areas are
the closest He added that due to
the design of the plaza, trucks can
no longer take up car parking
places, a major problem at the old
plaza.
This drew a complaint from resident Marlene Ward, whose property
abuts the western portion of the
plaza.
"Apparently we mean nothing to
you," Ward said, addressing her
comment to Zomparelli.
Zomparelli then called on Larry
Whoolum, a representative from the
Ohio Truckers Association to address the problem of "Jake Brakes"
in the plaza. Jake Brake is a brand
name engine retarder used by truckers who drive on a lot of mountain-
CONTINUED on page 11
Good blocking helped keep many of the games
within reach of the Amherst Comets varsity volleyball team this season as they clinched another
Southwestern Conference championship with a
13-1 SWC record for the season, their only loss
coming from Rocky River in the final game of the
regular season.
Spikers enjoy SWC title
but end winning streak
by DIANA HOUGLAND
N-T sports reporter
The Amherst vanity volleyball
team truly felt the thrill of victory
last week, but they also had a big
dose of the agony of defeat
When the team walked out of the
Rocky River gym last Thursday
night, they walked out feeling very
let down after losing two games to
the Lady Pirates, their first Southwestern Conference loss of the season. From the tears, and Crowns, it
was not obvious that these girls
were also the SWC champs.
After a season full of nail-biting
three game matches, the nickname
the "Cardiac Comets" was something that at least one spiker wanted
to shed.
"Every team has a bad game, tonight it was ours," senior Sam Sha
govac said. "But it's not the end of
the world. We keep letting teams get
up on us a lot and we have to stop.
It's time we need lo take control
from the beginning of the game, instead of waiting and being the Cardiac Comets, which we are known
for."
"We don't want to be that at all,"
she continued. "We are not going to
CONTINUED on page ?
High hopes
The Steele Comets cheerleaders are full of
hopes at the beginning of Friday night's clash of
the gridiron rulers. But it was not meant to be for
the Comets, who fell to the Shoremen, 14-3. See
Page 6 for the complete story.
CC's through-highway
law killed until revised
by ERIK YORKE
News-Times reporter
City council last week killed a
controversial ordinance that could
have resulted in the changing of
speed limits throughout the city.
The ordinance, which would have
designated many city streets not to
be through highways, has been the
subject of heated discussion by
council, and has elicited many resident complaints.
The ordinance, originally proposed by police chief Lonnie Dillon,
would designate North and South
Lake streets, North and South Main
streets, Cleveland Avenue, Elyria
Avenue, Park Avenue, Milan Avenue, Middle Ridge Road and the
portion of Cooper Foster Park Road
west of North Main Street not to be
through highways.
If approved, the ordinance would
give Ae cjl£s safety service director the authority to change speed
limits on any of those streets.
The ordinance came out of a need
to change the designation on North
Lake and North Main streets. The
limits on those streets were
changed, but cannot be enforced until such an ordinance is passed.
Those limits were changed as a result of resident concern following
the death of 10-year-old Carson
Harnby-Rittenour on North Lake
Street He was hit by a vehicle and
killed while riding his bicycle. The
other streets mentioned in the ordinance came as further recommendations from Dillon.
At   the   Oct.   8   meeting.
councilman-at-large David Williams
suggested amending the ordinance
to delete all streets but North Lake
and North Main. Couacilman-atr
Utfgs David KukuUut, jaowever,
suggested lolling the ordinance so
that it may be rewritten and brought
back to council. That motion was
carried 5-2 with Williams and Ward
Three councilman Steve P'Simer
dissenting.
According to a number of council
members and safety service director
Sherrill McLoda, some residents
have complained to them that the
speed limits should not be lowered.
Kukucka mentioned that constituents have told him that the 25 mph
speed limit now on North Lake and
North Main is too slow. Ward Four
councilwoman Jennifer Wasilk suggested traffic studies to find the correct speed limit for those streets.
Mayor shares wedding bell
blues, and joys, in his job
by ERIK YORKE
News-Times reporter
Performing marriage ceremonies comes with the job.
But mayor John Higgins
said he has had to cut down
on the number of marriages
he'll perform because they
can often interfere with other
city business.
"I used to get about 40 a
year," Higgins said. "People
from all over the county were
coming because they found
out I didn't charge. It got to
be a nuisance."
Higgins, who now performs
only 12 to 15 weddings a
year, said that calls would
come in at all hours of the
day, many at the very last
minute. Appointments would
come in sporadically, giving
notice bom three months, to
one day in advance of the
ceremony. He said that all
Lorain County mayors have
cut back on the number of
wedding ceremonies they arc
willing to perform.
"If it was just Amherst residents it wouldn't be bad,"
Higgins said. He also said
CONTINUED on page 3
Bigger isn't better when it comes to city signs
by ERIK YORKE
News Times reporter
When election time rolls
around, local yards begin to
fill with signs, as voters show
their support for candidates
and issues.
This year, however, one
issue with strong support in
the county is getting little or
no signage fMfgp in Amherst yards.
Issue one this year is a
$1.5 million operating levy
for Lorain County Community
College (LCCC). Signs made
lo advertise the issue ate too
large for the city of Amherst
according lo an ordinance
stating that no election sign
may be larger than three
square feet
Amhem resident* represent
the third largest community
enrollment at LCCC, behind
Elyria and Lorain, according
to Marcia BaJlioger, director
of marketing at LCCC. She
said that 3,186 Amherst residents have been enrolled in
associate degree programs at
LCCC in the past five yean.
Bellinger Mid that LCCC is
aware of the Amherst sign
ordinance and that the college
had planned to introduced
smaller cardboard signs later
in the campaign.
"We certainly wait lo be
in compliance county-wide,"
Ballinger said. "We do have
cardboard signs that are much
smaller than the plastic ones."
Ballinger said the college
switched to plastic signs because of their ability to withstand 1*1***——* weather. She
added the metal rickets used
lo hold the plastic signs slide
into the ground more easily
dun ike cardboard signs
which must be attached to a
wooden stake and pounded
into the ground.
According to city safety
service director Sherrill
McLoda, the ordinance is a
reasonable one.
The signs should be big
wairafttfi g) ggg the message
across, but small enough not
to cause a liability problem,"
Mcl^da said. She adifrd that
too assay large signs posted
near a street could block visibility for drivers. That extra
four inches, if it is four inches, makes a big difference
when you're looking at a
smell yard sign."
McLoda said Ihe currant
LCCC sign is the only sign
she knows of that doesn't
iiair twoi
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