From the 5/24/05 Toledo Blade:

 

 

New strip proposed near Levis Commons

Toledo officials seek Southwyck developer

By JON CHAVEZ

BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

 

LAS VEGAS - O-I's recent decision to move its headquarters to Perrysburg appears to be spurring new retail centers nearby and may alter plans for a second phase of Town Center at Levis Commons.  Meanwhile, city of Toledo officials are making a strong push to find a developer willing to take on Southwyck Shopping Center in Toledo.  Those issues surfaced yesterday during the first official day of the 2005 International Council of Shopping Centers spring convention.

 

Cedarwood Development Inc., of Akron, which developed a center anchored by Wal-Mart and situated across from the Medical University of Ohio in Toledo, began touting plans for a center, similar to the one across from MUO, to be called the Shoppes at Perrysburg.  The proposed project would be on State Rt. 25 south of Roachton Road.

 

Cedarwood said it could begin development next spring and be open by autumn, 2006.  It cited Perrysburg as one of the fastest growing areas in metropolitan Toledo and pointed to O-I's future move to a spot near Cedarwood's development site.

 

MORE: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050524/BUSINESS10/505240381/-1/BUSINESS

 

Green Energy Ohio Annual Meeting:

Celebrating GEO's 5th Anniversary under the Bowling Green Wind Turbines

Saturday, May 14, 2005

 

Hundreds of people celebrated the 5th Anniversary of Green Energy Ohio on Saturday, May 14, 2005 at the AMP-OH/Green Mountain Energy Company Wind Farm in Bowling Green, Ohio.  This historic site is a testament to GEO's accomplishment's over the past five years to further smart wind development along with advancing other renewable energy resources in the state.

 

Under a large tent near the four 1.8 MW wind turbines, GEO members, volunteers and friends enjoyed a full program featuring a press announcement on GEO's Ohio Tall Towers Wind Assessment Program, "virtual tour" of Northwest Ohio renewable energy sites, dedication ceremony for the new solar-powered educational kiosk at the Wind Farm, the GEO Recognition Awards, GEO discussion groups on solar, wind, biomass, energy efficiency, green buildings, networking time to mingle with like-minded folks and businesses in the exhibit area, and tours of the 30-story, utility-scale wind turbines generating 7.2 MW of clean, wind power.

 

Full article: http://www.greenenergyohio.org/page.cfm?pageID=626

From the 7/28/05 Toledo Blade:

 

HEADQUARTERS IN PERRYSBURG

Architect, builder for O-I project selected

 

A Maumee firm will build the new $20 million headquarters of Owens-Illinois Inc. in Perrysburg, and a Detroit architectural-engineering firm will design it.  O-I, which announced in May it would move its worldwide base from downtown Toledo to the suburbs, said yesterday it has chosen Lathrop Co. to build the 100,000 square foot structure and Albert Kahn Associates Inc. to design it.

 

Construction on the O-I building is to begin Monday.  The O-I announcement was made the day after the Toledo glass-container maker received site-plan approval and a tax-incentive agreement from Perrysburg's city council for the office in Levis Development Park.

 

The Fortune 500 firm plans to move its 340 employees now occupying One SeaGate downtown to Perrysburg by the end of September, 2006, when its lease expires at the 32-story riverfront landmark.  About 200 employees will be housed in the new structure in the business park that the firm has owned since the mid-1960s, and the rest of the relocated workers will move into space in three O-I buildings already there, O-I said yesterday.  The company plans to spend about $9 million to renovate the three buildings, which have a total of 400,000 square feet.

 

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050728/BUSINESS03/507280367/-1/BUSINESS

 

 

From the 7/28/05 Toledo Blade:

 

O-I headquarters plan OK'd Work to begin Monday at site in Perrysburg

 

Owens-Illinois Inc. will start building its $20 million world headquarters at the Levis Development Park in Perrysburg on Monday after receiving site plan approval and a tax incentive agreement last night from Perrysburg City Council.

 

Council approved the world headquarters site plan, which shows a three-story building in the northwest section of the development park property near the O-I's buildings there now.  The headquarters will be 75,000 to 100,000 square feet.

 

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050728/NEWS18/507270476

 

From the 7/30/05 Toledo Blade:

 

PHOTO: O-I's CEO, Steve McCracken, speaks prior to the ceremony. Behind, from left, are Alan Cobb, vice president of Albert Kahn Associates, architects; Tom Manahan, Lathrop Co. president; Wes Fahrbach of Gov. Bob Taft's office, and John Alexander, Perrysburg city administrator.  ( THE BLADE/DIANE HIRES )

 

New O-I headquarters gets start with groundbreaking

Ceremony marks move from Toledo to Wood Co.

By GARY T. PAKULSKI

BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

 

Calling it a "win for northwest Ohio," Chief Executive Officer Steve McCracken led ground-breaking ceremonies yesterday in suburban Perrysburg for the new world headquarters of Owens-Illinois Inc.  Controversy over the Fortune 500 firm's decision to leave downtown Toledo after nearly 100 years was set aside as employees and local officials gathered under bright morning sunshine to celebrate the company's new beginning in Wood County.

 

Construction on the three-story glass building is to begin Monday, said officials of the $6.3 billion-a-year company, which manufactures bottles for beer, liquor, and health-care products.  The firm will spend $20 million to construct the office building at the southeast corner of O-I's existing campus in Levis Development Park.

 

The firm released its first artist rendering of the headquarters yesterday, showing wide use of glass and exterior, above-ground balconies.  The 100,000 square foot structure will be able to accommodate 200 of the 340 employees who next year will leave the firm's office tower at One Seagate on Toledo's downtown riverfront.

 

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050730/BUSINESS03/507300396/-1/BUSINESS

From the 9/8/05 Toledo Blade:

 

Document shows O-I to spend $4M on fixtures

 

Owens-Illinois Inc., which plans to move next year into a new headquarters in Perrysburg, said it expects to spend $4 million on furniture and fixtures in addition to $20 million for a new building and $9 million to renovate three buildings.

 

The added spending was contained in an application, obtained by The Blade, for state financial assistance.  The firm, which plans to move from downtown Toledo to Levis Development Park, has begun building a 75,000 to 100,000-square-foot headquarters next to its three research and development buildings of 400,000 square feet.

 

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050908/BUSINESS03/509080406/-1/BUSINESS

 

From the 9/15/05 Toledo Blade:

 

Perrysburg: Council considers longer tax deal for Levis Commons

By ELIZABETH A. SHACK

BLADE STAFF WRITER

 

In a future version of Levis Commons, employees from Owens-Illinois could gather with shoppers from Indiana beneath a five-story clock tower.  Larry Dillin, president of Dillin Development Corp. of Perrysburg told Perrysburg City Council last week that the open-air center draws people from as far away as Lima, Ann Arbor, Fort Wayne, and Sandusky.

 

He is "focused on this continuing to be a point of destination as time goes on," he said.

 

To that end, he has plans to build two pieces of public architecture: a five-story campanile, or clock tower, and an amphitheater for concerts or other activities next to the tower.  Mr. Dillin said that would become a gathering spot, like the fountain that is already at the retail center.  The clock tower and amphitheater would be near a proposed hotel and conference center being designed.

 

MORE: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050915/NEWS18/509140337/-1/NEWS

 

Developer appeals denial of a permit in Perrysburg

Toledo Blade, 3/10/06

 

A developer that wanted to build office and storage buildings on Five Point Road in Perrysburg is appealing City Council's decision to deny a conditional-use permit for the project.  The permit would have allowed LSC Landholdings LLC to build a self-service storage facility behind offices at 13010 Five Point.

 

Council denied the permit with a 5-0 vote, with two councilmen absent, at its Feb. 21 meeting.  The councilmen said they agreed with the city planning commission's decision that the storage business did not fit with the city's comprehensive plan for the area.

 

Max Rayle, an attorney for the developer, said the company is seeking a review of the decision in Wood County Common Pleas Court because the developer doesn't think council applied zoning laws properly.

 

Historical museum needs a home

Toledo Blade, 3/30/06

 

The Perrysburg Area Historical Museum has a huge collection of items small and large, but there's one thing it's missing: a home.

 

Officers of the museum, which formed about five years ago, need a place to store the objects scattered in attics, barns, and closets throughout the area.

 

President Judy Justus, who met recently with people who run other museums in Northwest Ohio, said many of them told her they got buildings their towns didn't want or were given houses as a tax write-off.

 

Top court rules that Perrysburg is allowed to annex homes

Toledo Blade, 3/30/06

 

The city of Perrysburg may force nonresidents to agree to annexation as a condition of receiving water service under a unanimous ruling of the Ohio Supreme Court yesterday.

 

City officials said they planned to proceed with the annexation of Willowbend subdivision and would talk with residents about installing sidewalks and street lights, which the residents say they do not want. 

 

"We're surely not looking for amenities that cities usually put in," said Pat Myers, who was raking leaves out of her creeping juniper with her husband, Bob, yesterday afternoon.  "It's meant to be a rural setting."

 

Perrysburg Township: Land for police, fire offices studied

Toledo Blade, 4/6/06

 

Perrysburg Township officials are considering buying land near their administration complex to expand the space they have for the township offices and the fire and police departments.

 

Township Administrator John Hrosko said township staff wants to meet with Rossford Exempted Village Schools officials to discuss buying a 150-foot strip of land south of the township's complex on Lime City Road. 

Wal-Mart Super Center zoning clears trustees

Toledo Blade, 4/18/06

 

After a brief, quiet hearing, Perrysburg Township trustees last night approved a zoning amendment to allow construction of a 217,572-square-foot Wal-Mart Super Center on Simmons Road near Fremont Pike.

 

Trustee Gary Britten moved to approve “with the stipulation that Simmons Road gets widened enough to handle the traffic.” Craig Lahote joined him in the 2-0 vote. Trustee Bob Mack was absent.

 

Traffic control was the focus of discussion during the 25-minute hearing, including an assertion by John Smith, a Thompson Road resident, that a traffic signal should be included at the store’s entrance to a proposed public road that will arc southwest from Simmons north of Fremont Pike, which is U.S. 20/23.  At the main road, only right turns will be allowed to or from the new road.

 

Nick Miller, a representative of engineering consultant Atwell-Hicks of Ann Arbor, said only a stop sign from the parking lot is warranted.  The store’s construction is to begin in November; the opening is planned for September, 2007.

 

From the 4/10/06 Toledo Blade:

 

PHOTO: A construction worker with the Lanthrop Co. assembles framing at Owens-Illinois' new corporate headquarters at Levis Development Park in Perrysburg.  ( THE BLADE/HERRAL LONG )

 

PHOTO: A mechanical floor rises atop the headquarters building in an aerial view from the north side. the blade/herral long A crane hoists workers above an entrance on the south side of the new headquarters in Perrysburg.  ( THE BLADE/DAVE ZAPOTOSKY )

 

O-I begins headquarters shuffle

Offices renovated as new building goes up

 

As construction continues on the new Perrysburg headquarters for Owens-Illinois Inc., the Toledo firm is moving some of its worker among its three buildings in the suburban office park as those structures are renovated.  The global headquarters is on target, and downtown O-I workers are to begin moving in June, with the bulk relocating in August, a spokesman said.

 

Work on O-I's new $20 million headquarters "is going very well, right on schedule," said Tom Manahan, president and chief executive of Lathrop Co., Maumee, the general contractor.  "We're well on track to complete our work by the end of July."  The three-story, 100,000-square-foot building was designed by Albert Kahn Associates Inc., of Detroit.

 

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060410/BUSINESS03/604120403/-1/RSS04

 

GARDEN CENTER EXPANDS INTO PERRYSBURG TOWNSHIP

Toledo Blade, 4/9/06

 

Lifted far above the ground, Larry Hughes works on roof framing at the second location of Black Diamond Garden Center, off Dixie Highway near Eckel Junction Road in Perrysburg Township.  The center will have five greenhouses and is to be open by the end of May.  The Black Diamond on Tremainsville Road in Toledo will remain open.

Wood County planners look at subdivision, zoning

Toledo Blade, 4/28/06

 

The final plat of a Perrysburg Township subdivision and a proposed amendment to Troy Township’s zoning rules will come before the Wood County Planning Commission when it meets at 5 p.m. today in the County Office Building in the courthouse complex.

 

West Valley Development has submitted the final plat of Eckel Trace subdivision, a 10.5-acre parcel with 31 lots for single-family homes on the south side of Eckel Junction Road about a half-mile east of Scheider Road.

 

Troy Township trustees are considering a change in zoning regulations that would allow an accessory building on a property before the house is constructed, but the owner would be required to give the zoning inspector detailed information about how the accessory building was to be used.

Program aims to give downtown a new look

Toledo Blade, 4/27/06

 

Perrysburg's new Downtown Improvement Program is designed to encourage property owners in the central business district to improve their buildings. 

 

Council approved creating the program, which will award grants to help businesses make facade improvements.  Only businesses on Louisiana Avenue between Front Street and Third Street are eligible, but the program could be expanded in the future, said Rick Thielen, the city's administrator of planning, zoning, and economic development.

 

The grants, which are available on a first-come, first-served basis, would reimburse half the expenses for eligible projects, up to a $25,000 limit per property.

 

From the 5/4/06 Toledo Blade:

 

O-I shareholders assemble downtown for perhaps last time

By GARY T. PAKULSKI

BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

 

By this time next year, Toledo's Owens-Illinois Inc. will have moved to the suburbs from the city it has called home for most of its 103-year existence.  The significance wasn't lost on stock owner Charles Husum.  "I'm sorry to see it happen," the 93-year-old retired O-I executive said as he left what could be the firm's last annual shareholders meeting in downtown Toledo.  But he said he doesn't object to the company's plan to leave the city's signature office tower, One SeaGate.

 

Chief Executive Steve McCracken, who made the decision to move 363 downtown employees to O-I's Perrysburg campus, acknowledged that the bottle maker's soon-to-be completed $20 million headquarters there won't include an auditorium capable of accommodating the shareholders meeting.  But he said he hasn't yet decided where next year's meeting will be held.

 

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060504/BUSINESS03/605040412/-1/RSS04

 

Community center expansion gets OK

Toledo Blade, 5/9/06

 

The Perrysburg Heights Community Center will get a new gymnasium and teen center now that the Perrysburg Township zoning commission has approved a site plan for the addition.

 

The commission voted 4-0 last night to approve the plan, which includes a new 11,500-square-foot building and more parking at the Jefferson Street site.

 

The expansion will allow more than 200 children a day to participate in programs at the facility instead of the current 40.

 

New rules weighed on big-box stores

Toledo Blade, 5/10/06

 

Stores such as Meijer, Best Buy, and Costco will come under tighter scrutiny from city officials if proposed planning restrictions pass muster with Perrysburg officials.

 

City planners, concerned with the designs of big box stores and with the economic problems that come into play if they are abandoned, are considering tougher regulations for retail buildings larger than 60,000 square feet.  They would apply to general merchandisers, grocery stores, specialty stores, outlet stores, and warehouse club stores.

 

Design regulations would help the large stores blend in with the community and keep them from overwhelming their neighbors, planners said.

 

Perrysburg Township plan panel urges 'no' vote on bid for rezoning

Toledo Blade, 5/11/06

 

Perrysburg Township trustees won't have much advice to rely on when they consider a rezoning request for a proposed subdivision on the northwest corner of Thompson and Neiderhouse roads.

 

The Wood County Planning Commission recommended turning down the zoning change, saying the proposal is too dense.  The township zoning board voted 2-2.  The tie is considered a recommendation not to approve the change.  The township trustees have scheduled a public hearing on the zoning request for 8:15 p.m. Monday, during their regular meeting.

Wal-Mart asks Perrysburg for delay on water decision

Toledo Blade, 5/3/06

 

The city of Perrysburg is prepared to provide water and sewer service to the Wal-Mart Super Center proposed for Perrysburg Township, but representatives from the store last night asked council to delay its decision.  Council voted unanimously to table the matter until its next meeting May 16.

 

Because the 217,000-square-foot store, planned for 35 acres along U.S. 20 off of Simmons Road, is larger than 60,000 square feet, the developer must apply for a special-approval use, which requires a public hearing before council.  Wal-Mart officials said they only recently learned of the special-approval requirement and needed more time to study what it would entail.

Zoning vote in Perrysburg Township set

Toledo Blade, 5/16/06

 

Perrysburg Township trustees scheduled a vote on a zoning change for 41 acres northwest of Thompson and Neiderhouse roads for June 5.  They continued a public hearing that lasted more than three hours last night.

 

Residents told representatives of Miller Diversified the 88-lot subdivision does not fit in the area surrounded by five-acre lots.

 

Perrysburg may delay zoning rule in township

Toledo Blade, 5/17/06

 

Perrysburg City Council, with input from the Perrysburg Township trustees, is considering delaying the enforcement of part of the city's new zoning code that applies to developments in the township, like the Wal-Mart planned along U.S. 20.

 

The city's new municipal utility overlay requires developers seeking water and sewer service from the city to go through a special approval process, including a hearing before council, in addition to a site plan review.

 

Wal-Mart officials have said they wanted to withdraw their request for utilities because they did not know what requirements they would face.

 

From the 5/25/06 Toledo Blade:

 

Levis may get 2 special-tax areas

They'd draw better tenants, officials say

By ELIZABETH A. SHACK

BLADE STAFF WRITER

 

The city of Perrysburg is considering establishing special assessment areas for two new parts of Levis Commons to help pay for improvements to the streetscape.  The districts covering the Town Square and Preston Place sections of the retail development would be the first in the city if approved by council at its June 6 meeting.  The districts would speed up work on public improvements such as parking, landscaping, and walkways.

 

That should increase the value of the projects and create faster payments on the existing tax increment financing agreement, representatives from the developer, Dillin Corp., have told council's economic development committee.  Projects paid for within the special assessment districts were not included in the tax incentive agreement.

 

MORE: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060525/NEIGHBORS03/605250333

 

Perrysburg Heights community facility moves forward

Toledo Blade, 5/18/06

 

A ground breaking ceremony later this month for an addition at the Perrysburg Heights Community Center, which is building a new gymnasium and teen center, will mark the achievement of a goal set 15 years ago.

 

"We're really proud and excited," said Anita Serda, president of the Perrysburg Heights Community Association, which runs the center.  She said the association planned to eventually add a gym when it built the current center.  "We're just excited it has been such a success," she said.

 

From the 5/26/06 Toledo Blade:

 

SITE PLAN: Levis Commons growth

 

PERRYSBURG

Levis Commons financing OK'd

Port authority to issue up to $177.5M for hotel, shops, homes

By CHRISTOPHER D. KIRKPATRICK

BLADE STAFF WRITER

 

Developers of Levis Commons, the contemporary retail and residential complex in Perrysburg, got approval yesterday to access up to $177.5 million in bond money for a 175-room hotel and two more planned retail and residential centers - Town Square and Preston Place - at the 400-acre site.

 

The Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority board approved the bond packages yesterday for the next phases at the Levis Commons campus along the west side of State Rt. 25 between I-475 and Roachton Road.

 

The Town Center at Levis Commons has been open for more than a year and offers a variety of upscale retail shops, restaurants, and a movie theater complex.  Owens-Illinois Inc. announced last year it will move its corporate headquarters out of One SeaGate in downtown Toledo - its home for all but seven of its 102 years - and into its Levis Development Park off the northwest side of the Levis Commons development by Sept. 30.

 

MORE: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060526/NEWS18/605260341/-1/RSS

 

Reaction mixed on landscaping of industrial area

Toledo Blade, 5/25/06

 

If a Northwood developer follows through on the site-plan revisions and changes recently approved by the city's planning commission, several Rossford residents said they'd be OK with it, while others aren't sure it's the right move.

 

The revisions call for an eight-foot fence to be built atop a six-foot buffering mound to shield a handful of residents living on Jennison Drive in Rossford's Arbor Hills from a heavy industrial area in Northwood that abuts their backyards.  "By putting up the mound and a fence, I believe that will help along with planting some trees along both sides of that fence," said Ahmad Saleh, 916 Jennison.

 

There are three buildings in the industrial area off Fairfield Drive, and developer Hugh Moore of Moore Acquisition and Development Inc. has told city officials he would like to build two more on the remaining eight acres.

 

Northwood considers land gift for baseball field

Toledo Blade, 5/25/06

 

When Northwood resident Casey Sybert heard that a Miracle League baseball field may be built in the city, she said she actually teared up a bit.  Her six-year-old son, Austin, loves to swim and wants to play baseball.  But dirt and stone fields aren't conducive to rounding the bases for someone like Austin, who has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair.

 

A Miracle League baseball field, on the other hand, is custom-designed with a cushioned, rubberized turf, wheelchair-accessible dugouts, and a completely flat surface to eliminate any barriers to wheelchair-bound or visually impaired players.  "He wants to play ball," Ms. Sybert said of her son, who attends Lark Elementary School.

 

Wal-Mart to receive Perrysburg utilities

Toledo Blade, 6/5/06

 

The Wal-Mart Supercenter planned for Perrysburg Township will get water and sewer service from the city of Perrysburg, city council decided in a vote last night.

 

Council voted 5-2 to put a moratorium on part of its new zoning code that would have required the developer to go through a special approval process, including a hearing before council, to get the utilities.  The city's planning commission will still have to approve the store's site plan.

Bowling Green's 3rd business park has its 1st tenant

Toledo Blade, 6/6/06

 

The new Innovative Technology Park, the third business park created by the Bowling Green Community Development Foundation, has landed its first tenant.  Hindley Electronics Inc., which manufactures electronic parts for aerial lift equipment, was to break ground this morning on a 20,000-square-foot plant at the technology park on Napoleon Road east of Dunbridge Road.

 

Sue Clark, director of the foundation, is hoping the ceremony is the first of several to come yet this year at the site.  "The reason we develop parks is not to make money, but to bring jobs to the community," she said.  "It has to work financially for us. It can't be real expensive land. First, because we don't have those kinds of resources and, second, because we want reasonably priced land to offer tenants so they will come here and bring jobs. It's part of our mission to create a sound economic base within the community."

 

Wal-Mart?  Oy.

Perrysburg board mulls scaled-back junior high

Toledo Blade, 5/08/06

 

With little time left for debate, some members of the Perrysburg Board of Education yesterday questioned the latest version of the district's proposed facilities plan, which would reduce the size of the expansion at the junior high school and save $3 million.

 

The proposal calls for a one-story, 10-classroom addition to the junior high, about half the size of the two-story addition proposed earlier. The new proposal's total estimated cost is $25 million with the smaller addition.

 

The rationale for the reduction comes from three sets of enrollment projections that show little or no growth through 2011.  But some board members worried that the smaller addition wouldn't be enough.

 

Diocese buys subdivision lot in Perrysburg

Toledo Blade, 5/10/06

 

The Toledo Catholic Diocese has bought a building lot in a Perrysburg subdivision where it plans to build a home for the pastor of the new Blessed John XXIII parish.  Records in the Wood County Auditor's Office show Bishop Leonard Blair bought a lot in the Falls at the River's Edge subdivision on Fort Meigs Road north of Five Point Road for $34,000.

 

Sally Oberski, director of communications for the diocese, said the diocese plans to build a condominium for the pastor of Blessed John XXIII, the Rev. Herbert Weber, who now rents a home. She said a parish rectory must be within parish boundaries, and the diocese could not find an affordable home within those boundaries.

 

Blessed John XXIII, created last year to serve northern Wood County, has not found a site for a church, Ms. Oberski said, but holds Saturday evening Mass at Christ Lutheran Church on Carter Road and Sunday Mass at Perrysburg High School.

 

Rossford's library to fete fixup

Toledo Blade, 6/8/06

 

Ann Strahoska said she was pleased to see that the newly renovated Rossford Public Library finally has the space it's needed for years.

 

Though she saw two expansions while she was a librarian there for 30 years, she said the library was always "too small for the stuff we had."  "I'm glad to see this has improved so much," she said.  "It's a lovely library."

 

The library will host a rededication ceremony to celebrate the reopening of all library areas at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday at the library, 720 Dixie Hwy.

Prep work nearly done for Perrysburg facilities

Toledo Blade, 5/11/06

 

The Perrysburg Athletic Boosters are finishing $250,000 worth of preparation work, including drainage and site leveling, for future sports facilities at the high school. They have been discussing projects with district officials, who plan to build a track and practice field next summer.

 

That project, estimated to cost about $1.25 million, would be funded by a permanent improvement levy that raises about $1.3 million a year.

 

The district also is considering building an auxiliary gym at the high school. The estimated cost of $1.37 million would be covered with a bond issue proposed for the November ballot.

Athletic-facilities plan on move

Toledo Blade, 6/8/06

 

A nonprofit group formed to improve the athletic facilities in the Northwood Local School District has been forging ahead with the Northwood Community Athletic Project - some steps of which are ahead of schedule and under budget.

 

The group of about 14 residents came together late last year to build on the momentum created by an earlier committee called "Field of Dreams."  They proposed a three-phase upgrade to the high school's track, football, baseball, softball, and soccer fields.

 

The "Field of Dreams" committee has not disbanded, but it is smaller because some parents' children graduated before they could take advantage of the projects.  The new group was needed so parents of younger students could continue the work, Northwood Athletic Director Ken James said.

 

From the 6/17/06 Toledo Blade:

 

O-I to start downtown exodus in July

$20M Perrysburg facility still being built

 

The exodus from downtown by Owens-Illinois Inc. begins July 7, with initial employee groups being moved into existing O-I buildings in Levis Development Park in Perrysburg.  The company yesterday disclosed the timetable for its 360 downtown workers to be relocated from the current One SeaGate headquarters to Perrysburg, a move the Fortune 500 firm announced about a year ago.

 

The moves will take place each weekend over a period of about eight weeks, and by the end of August, top executives will be ready to move into a new $20 million headquarters facility in Perrysburg, spokesman Carol Gee said.  In the first group to move, 19 workers in the glass-container firm's purchasing operation will be relocated in one of three buildings in the Levis complex that were recently refurbished.

 

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060617/BUSINESS03/606170362/-1/BUSINESS

 

From the 6/18/06 Toledo Blade:

 

PHOTO: Rossford Arena Amphitheater site on nearly 1,200 acres east of I-75 and south of the Ohio Turnpike. Rossford had annexed the land from Perrysburg Township.   ( THE BLADE )

 

MAP: On the block

 

ARENA, AMPHITHEATER PROPERTY IS GOING, GOING . . .

Wood County to auction remnants of failed Rossford project

Arena, amphitheater property is going, going ...

By ERIKA RAY and CHRISTOPHER D. KIRKPATRICK

BLADE STAFF WRITERS

 

It's been called by many names, all conjuring golden images of money and development.  But dreams of a $48 million entertainment complex in an area of Rossford dubbed the "Golden Triangle" were a flop, and over seven years they slowly disintegrated into a financial nightmare of debt and lawsuits.

 

Only a weathered shell for an outdoor amphitheater and concrete walls for the basement of an arena are left.  The gold mine that officials gambled would draw development will be on the Wood County sheriff's auction block on Thursday.

 

It began seven years ago when Rossford established the nonprofit Rossford Arena Amphitheater Authority, known locally as the "R-Triple-A," to finance, construct, own, operate, and maintain the entertainment complex on nearly 1,200 acres east of I-75 and south of the Ohio Turnpike.  Rossford had annexed the land from Perrysburg Township.

 

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060618/NEWS18/606180309/-1/RSS09

 

From the 6/23/06 Toledo Blade:

 

 

PHOTO: Attorney Alan Scheufler, left, joins Roger Newman of the Ohio Carpenters Pension Fund in purchasing one of the Rossford parcels at the Wood County sheriff's sale.  ( THE BLADE/JEREMY WADSWORTH )

 

PHOTO: Development of the sites in Rossford stopped in late 1999. Foreclosures and lawsuits had tied up the property since then.  ( THE BLADE/ANDY MORRISON )

 

WOOD COUNTY SHERIFF'S SALE

Sites of amphitheater, arena are sold for $6.1M

3 investors buy Rossford land at 'Crossroads'

By JENNIFER FEEHAN

BLADE STAFF WRITER

 

BOWLING GREEN - The site of a defunct $48 million hockey arena and amphitheater project in Rossford may yet be developed after three investors purchased the property for more than $6.1 million at a sheriff's sale yesterday.  "It's a good area and I think it's going to end up playing a very important part in development in northwest Ohio," said Tom Schreiber of Perrysburg.  He was bidding for a group of area investors that purchased 54.57 acres at Crossroads Parkway and Arena Road for $2.64 million.

 

The Ohio Carpenters' Pension Fund, which is owed $2.4 million by the Rossford Arena Amphitheater Authority, purchased the 87.7 acres at Arena and Lime City roads that contain the partially built amphitheater for $3,083,000.

 

Alan Scheufler, a Cleveland attorney representing the pension fund, said the group will be working with developers in the coming months "to try to get the best value out of that property." He said that might mean finishing the amphitheater as an outdoor concert venue - or not.  "It certainly could be an amphitheater. The improvements are already there, and the access is tremendous," he said.  "That is certainly a viable alternative, but it would not be the only one under consideration."

 

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060623/NEWS18/606230391/-1/NEWS

 

I couldnt find anywhere else to post this, so here goes:

 

O-I offers preview of new offices

By JON CHAVEZ

BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

 

When Owens-Illinois Inc. built its Summit Street headquarters 25 years ago, the glass-packaging firm wanted a signature skyscraper that could anchor the river’s edge end of a wide boulevard and ignite the rebirth of an aging downtown.  “It was anything but humble. But O-I was a different company back then,” said Frank Butler, the man in charge of developing the company’s $20 million future headquarters on its Levis Development Park campus in Perrysburg.

 

The new building — which is under construction but which the firm showed off for the first time yesterday — is a three-story horizontal structure of 100,000 square feet.  It will house about 250 employees and is to be opened Aug. 18.  “It was designed to be sleek, contemporary, and humble,” said John Hrovat, lead architect for Albert Kahn Associates, Inc., of Detroit.

 

The firm hired by O-I, a Fortune 500 company, designed the building, which is 330 feet long, 110 feet wide, and 60 feet high.  In contrast, the 32-story One SeaGate, O-I’s current international home base, has 874,000 square feet and cost $100 million to build.  It housed 2,200 company employees at one point.

 

FULL ARTICLE: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060630/BUSINESS03/60630029/-1/RSS04

 

Board opts to expand parking for Bowling Green library

Toledo Blade, 6/29/06

 

After a year of controversy, the Wood County District Public Library decided yesterday to turn land at the corner of North Church and West Court streets into a surface parking lot.

 

Before voting to buy the lot and hire a design firm, though, trustees decided they needed more time to think over the gift of the red brick house next door to the proposed lot.  The family of Robert and Patricia Maurer recently offered to buy the brick house from the library for $150,000, then give it back to the library to use “for library purposes and for other uses which will benefit the entire community.”

 

Just last summer, library trustees bought the home and three adjacent parcels for $250,000 but excavated the parcel along the south side of the house for part of the proposed parking lot.  “It’s a very generous gift, but with the expenses we have, I don’t feel we can accept it right now,” Trustee Anna Griffith said.

 

State approval sought on Perrysburg levy bid

Toledo Blade, 6/27/06

 

The Perrysburg Board of Education last night took the first step in putting a bond levy for renovations of up to $30 million on the November ballot.  The board unanimously approved a resolution asking the state tax commissioner to consent to the district's plan to issue the bonds.  The resolution does not commit the district to a specific amount, and the board must approve two more resolutions to put the levy on the ballot.

 

The board, which has considered many options for its facilities plans during the last year, is still debating whether to build a two-story junior high addition or to build one story and finish the second story later.  The addition would house sixth graders.

 

The project, which includes work at the elementary schools and high school, would cost $28 million or $29 million depending on whether the second floor is finished.  The owner of a $200,000 house would pay about $134 or $140 a year.

 

Builder loses in Perrysburg Township rezoning

Toledo Blade, 6/20/06

 

Perrysburg Township trustees rezoned an agricultural area for residential use last night, earning applause from neighbors and disapproval from developers who wanted a denser subdivision. 

 

Miller Diversified had presented a modified proposal for the 41 acres northwest of Thompson and Neiderhouse roads that would have had about 84 lots on a combination of R-1, R-2, and R-3 zoning.  The zoning change unanimously approved by the trustees calls for R-1 zoning around all four sides of the proposed subdivision and R-2 zoning in the interior.

 

R-1 zoning requires lots to be at least 20,000 square feet - nearly half an acre - and have at least 100 feet frontage.  Lots zoned R-3 have a minimum frontage of 75 feet and minimum lot size of 10,500 square feet.  R-2 zoning falls in between those requirements.

 

Residents complained that the developer's original proposal, with 88 single-family homes on mostly R-3 property, was too dense for an area with houses on five-acre lots.

 

Toledo Blade: Trustees choose to delay decision on rezoning plan (6/6/06)

 

Bowling Green armory brings single bid of $150,000

Toledo Blade, 7/7/06

 

About 20 people showed up yesterday morning to see what might become of the old Ohio National Guard armory, but just one bidder came forward to try to buy the downtown landmark.  The Hanneman family, which owns the Deck-Hanneman Funeral Home next door to the vacant armory, offered $150,000 for the East Wooster Street property.

 

State officials said they should know by the middle of next week whether the bid was acceptable to the Ohio adjutant general.  The property had been appraised at $280,000, then offered for sale at that price to the city and to Wood County, neither of whom was interested.  Mayor John Quinn, who attended the auction, said the lack of parking space and the enormous cost of renovation were among the reasons City Council did not want to purchase the building.

Perrysburg OKs site on U.S. 20 for Wal-Mart

Toledo Blade, 6/30/06

 

The Perrysburg Planning Commission approved the site plan for the Wal-Mart Supercenter planned for U.S. 20 in Perrysburg Township last night.  The commission’s 5-2 vote put several conditions on the site plan as submitted.

 

The 217,572-square-foot store is planned for 35 acres along U.S. 20 off Simmons Road.

 

Conditions included making the access from U.S. 20 onto a new public road right-in, right-out only.  Wal-Mart officials also agreed to reduce the number of parking spots to 965, the minimum allowed by the township, from 998.

 

Wood County agrees to build two hangars

Toledo Blade, 7/1/06

 

After strong winds destroyed one hangar and badly damaged a second, the Wood County Regional Airport Authority agreed yesterday to seek bids to build two hangars.  Airport Manager Mike Hodges told the board he is still waiting to find out whether the damaged hangar will be considered a total loss.

 

However, contractors who have looked at the building have said it would be less expensive to raze the damaged structure and build one rather than repair it, he said.

 

A thunderstorm and high winds that wreaked havoc throughout northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan June 21 literally picked up and moved the southernmost hangar and blew off doors and support posts on the middle hangar.

SPORTS COMPLEX FOR ROSSFORD

Toledo Blade, 7/2/06

 

Mark Gonzalez pilots a cement-smoothing machine on a floor of Gold Medal Indoor Sports, at 10020 South Compass Drive in Rossford.  The 75,000-square-foot complex, scheduled to open in October, will have facilities for sports including soccer, lacrosse, and flag football for youths and adults.

Northwood fire station sets Sunday open house

Toledo Blade, 7/6/06

 

Northwood firefighters are opening up their newest fire station to the public Sunday to meet members of the community.  They will host a family oriented open house from 1 to 5 p.m. at Fire Station No. 1, 2100 Tracy Rd., with free food and games for children, Fire Chief Tom Pack said.  He said firefighters hope to make the open house an annual event.

 

City officials celebrated the grand opening of the long-awaited fire station in February.  The two-story station replaces the smaller, 54-year-old station that is around the corner on Andrus Road.

 

$150,000 bid accepted for National Guard armory in B.G.

Toledo Blade, 7/14/06

 

The former Ohio National Guard armory on East Wooster Street will be sold to the local Hanneman family for $150,000, state officials confirmed yesterday.

 

Mark Wayda, director of government and public affairs, said the bid has been accepted by the Ohio Adjutant General.  The Hannemans, who own the Deck-Hanneman Funeral Home next door to the old armory, were the only bidders for the property at a public auction held last week.  Kraig Hanneman said at the time that they had no definite plans for the armory.

 

They had originally considered buying it to expand their business, Mr. Hannerman said, but instead decided to build a new funeral home on Bowling Green's west side.

Perrysburg renovations big hit with parkgoers

Toledo Blade, 7/13/06

 

With Perrysburg's summer recreation program in full swing, the renovations at Municipal Park and the new recreation building are very much appreciated. 

 

The renovations will be celebrated at a grand reopening at 5:30 p.m. Monday.  The 19-acre facility, built in 1952, is the city's oldest active recreational park.

 

"The park is beautiful," said Councilman Joe Lawless, chairman of council's recreation committee.