preservationrestoration

Funny stuff. Thanks for the link.

Pope, you were in my hood and didn't blow me up? ;) geez... I TRIED to make it downtown Saturday night with some friends. We all met up at Fairlane Towne Center in Dearborn to take the shuttle around 7. It was already snowing, and we waited in line for over an hour and never did get on a bus. Probably would have had antoher 45 minute wait. The girls were getting cold and whiney, so we decided to just forget it. My friend wanted to drive downtown, but I talked him out of it saying all the roads were closed and there probably wouldn't be much parking and what parking there was would be $30. Needless to say I found out the next day that there was plenty of parking for those willing to take the infamous People Mover. We stayed in Dearborn for dinner and drinks at a small italian restaurant in downtown West Dearborn called Ciao, where we saw future hall of famer, former Minnesota Viking and Middletown Middie great Chris Carter. It appears he was there with a couple of other Midde greats. Got his autograph, so it wasn't a complete loss. I was absoulately amazed at the interest surburanites had in downtown Detroit. It was refreshing. Detroit Brewing Company=Detroit Beer Company near the opera house? Good times; great beer.

Now this is my kind of Jesus . . . .

This backs up to Renaissance, so yes.

Rough

Nope, its not that kind of gallery. I asked him the same question the last time I was in the shop. More specifically, if he had any vintage Cincinnati travel posters. He gets a few now and then.

Even though this has a Franklin zip code, it's technically Middletown ;)

Middletown is split into two zip codes 45044 Most Expensive: 104 The Alameda Built 1917 4,718 sqft asking $610,000 Least Expensive 823 16th Street built 1919 672 sqft asking $19,000 45042 Most Expensive 624 DaVinci Drive built 1982 4,660 sqft asking $439,900 Least Expensive 1809 Casper built 1900 606 sqft asking $21,500

I'd say this is pretty generous. . . . Ford offers $100,000 buyouts Some factory workers could get payouts in exchange for giving up all benefits except pensions. Bryce G. Hoffman / The Detroit News Ford Motor Co. is preparing an array of severance packages -- including a $100,000 one-time payout -- for workers whose plants are slated to close as part of the automaker's massive new restructuring plan, according to company officials. Workers from Wixom to St. Louis to Atlanta have been anxiously awaiting details of the incentive packages since Ford announced last month it will close 14 plants and cut 30,000 hourly jobs over the next six years... You can reach Bryce Hoffman at (313) 222-2443 or [email protected]. http://www.detnews.com

And????? LOL . . . .

Nice pics. I love this area as well. This is my friend's vintage poster gallery. Did you go in there?

I had a hard time picking just one for Middletown, so here are a couple of buildings that I wish were still standing. Every single one of these were gone by the time I was born. South School - built in 1871 and included Middletown's first high school. Located on South Main Street. Used by the city's school system until 1951. Fenwick Catholic High School operated out of the building from 1952 until 1963. Sadly, it caught fire in 1965. On fire After the fire...what a shame. George M Verity Residence, South Main Street. The Veritys did not build this house constructed in 1890s. It was designed by a Cincinnati favorite, Samuel Hannaford (several structures in Middletown were). Mr. and Mrs. Verity died within months of each other. The family tore down the house. Paramount Theater Constructed in 1931 with seating for 2,000, this was a favorite of locals. My grandfather worked there while in high school and both he, my mom and dad all recalled the grandeur of this building, which was torn down in the 1960s. Evangelical Lutheran and First Presbyterian Churches I love old churches. Middletown had (and still has) several beautiful churches that were torn down because congregations either moved to new locations or to modernize the building. The first picture is of The First Presbyterian Church on Main Street (another Hannaford building). Built in 1891. The congregation moved to eastern Middletown on Central Ave. in the 1950s (another beautiful structure). This church was torn down to make way for a Sears. Built in 1882 and located at the corner of Broad and Second. The church still exists on this site, but the sanctury has been rebuilt with a more modern structure. There is another section of the building that dates back to the early 1900s. Sebald Brewing Company There is some discussion whether or not this building actually existed as shown in the picture below or if this was a drawing of how the company envisioned an expansion. I have not seen a good picture of this structure besides this one. Regardless, it is a beautiful building.

Yeah, and good luck finding one at that price. I went to the North American International Auto Show last weekend. The only new non-truck Chevy product was the Camero concept. Actually, GM didn't have much that was new. Ford and DCX seem to be in a better position. Ford has been putting a lot of new stuff out there; not all of it is great. Ford and GM's main problem is there is little distinction between cars/product lines. You basically have the Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan and Lincoln Zephyr which are all the same cars. At least with Mazda and Volvo, the cars don't look anyhting like the three other product lines.

It's not just a wage issue; it's an excess capacity issue. They have too much production capacity for the number of vehicles they can produce and actually sell.

WLHS (can't remember the signal) . . . those rich brats can sure play some good music.

Middletown: middle city between Cincinnati / Dayton and also the name of a city in New Jersey home of the city's founder. How original!

I usually describe Ohio as boring until you get to Dayton LOL... a lot of people here in Michigan have perceptions of Ohio from driving down 75. And can I tell you how many times I've had to explain to these Michiganders that Cincinnati is nowhere near Cleveland! Geez, you'd think we weren't neighboring states. I guess its because they learned their geography by using the palm of their hand. LOL

Scarey....but kinda cool at the same time. I hope this never becomes the scene in Middletown.

REM's Out of Time. It was one of the first CDs I purchased, and still one of my favorites. I recently got a hold of a greatest hits Guide By Voices which I'm really enjoying at the moment.

Damn, that's a lot of pics (and houses)! You are right, the neighborhood reminds me of that which surround Middletown Hospital (Alameda/Euclid Heights). Some of the smaller scale homes remind me of the neighborhood around Sunset Park. Do you know the history of any of the houses? Looks like a few might be "Sears" homes.

No link for article.

I work in Dearborn, and FWHQ is across the street. There was an erie feeling today throughout the city. They had a helicopter circling the entire area around the headquarters for practically the whole day.

Like my bumper sticker says, "I'd rather be in Ann Arbor." ;)

Well it is fabulous and fashionable! Oh he is a thug alright. I can't believe he was re-elected. The Channel 7 Mike Wilson reports on him were so enlightening. What do you think of the new coach? Nice shots of the Motor City, btw. I was just downtown this weekend for NAIAS and I drove down Woodward from WSU to Jefferson nad I was amazed at how nice Woodward is looking these days.

Here is legislation from the last council meeting. Butler County tried to block working with Mason, but eventually gave in. Hamilton was first asked to be the administrator, but backed out for some reason. Not sure why . . . Joint Economic Development District (JEDD) with Liberty Township and Mason PURPOSE To discuss the opportunity for the City of Middletown to enter into a JEDD with Liberty Township and Mason. BACKGROUND and FINDINGS We have been discussing with Liberty Township and Mason for several months the feasibility of entering into a Joint Economic Development District. The district will help create a financing mechanism to develop several hundred acres of land for economic development near the proposed Liberty Interchange near I-75 and the Hamilton connector. Once established, those businesses within the district would pay income tax (1.5%). The revenues would be divided between the three jurisdictions with the largest portion going to the township to fund the infrastructure improvements needed to service the district. Middletown, as the tax collecting authority of the district, would collect the taxes and disburse the funds to the jurisdictions. Liberty Township will receive 83% of the net revenue, Middletown 2% and Mason 15%. Middletown will also receive 5% of the gross income tax revenue as a service fee for collecting the tax. As stated above, the bulk of the revenue will be used for infrastructure improvements in the Township and in Mason. ALTERNATIVES Alternatives are to not enter into the agreement or to enter into the agreement. FINANCIAL IMPACT The City stands to gain new revenue as the district goes. While full build out could take several years, our share will only increase with this build out. OTHER CONSIDERATIONS The process to get this agreement to this point has been lengthy. There have been numerous discussions and negotiations with all parties in order to get an agreement all three could live with. This is a good example of several jurisdictions coming together and working for the good of the region. We should also consider placing any revenue received from this agreement into the Economic Development Fund to help further our own Economic Development needs. RECOMMENDATION City Staff recommends to approval of this agreement as written.