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May 3 - 10, 2006
Domestic violence reports are on the rise in UA
By LYNDSEY TETER
Although the numbers are small, incidents of domestic violence in Upper Arlington were up 85 percent in 2005 while sex crime offenses doubled.
After six months on the job, Police Chief Brian Quinn issued his annual report to council members Monday night. Copies of the report can be found at local libraries, Quinn said.
There were 28 cases of domestic violence reported in Upper Arlington in 2005, Quinn said, compared to 15 in 2004. The increase is difficult to explain, he said.
"There's more and more of a push in the media from women's groups who encourage reporting of domestic violence," Quinn said prior to the meeting.
"Maybe people aren't putting up with it."
Prevention is difficult because the crime is reactionary, and many don't want to report the incidents or cooperate with police.
"It's a tough spot. Many don't want any action to occur," he said.
The 28 reports in 2005 were evenly distributed throughout the four districts in the city and included men and women, adults and juveniles.
During the first three months of 2006, Quinn said, 11 domestic violence incidents had been reported -- on track for 44 for the year. But state changes will further skew the numbers.
A domestic violence charge is usually accompanied by an assault charge, said Karen Yinger of the UAPD Records Division. In court, one of those charges is usually dropped.
"The numbers for '06 will probably come in a little low," Quinn said.
Six sex-related crimes were reported in the city in 2005, compared to three in 2004. These numbers do not include 4 rape cases reported in 2005.
"These crimes are occurring against younger residents," Quinn said, because some cases were referrals from the Franklin County Children Services.
Despite these increases, recent resident surveys suggest that 94 percent of respondents feel safe in Upper Arlington.
The 2006 city survey was completed by 118 residents, 88 percent of whom said UA police officers are doing a competent job in the city.
The service rated most important was neighborhood police patrol, which 91 percent of residents said they feel is important in suppressing crime. Other areas of concern include enforcing narcotics laws, arresting drunken drivers, investigating child abuse cases and catching on-line predators.
The department is working with other communities and will begin implementing programs to combat on-line predators in the city this summer.
"Right now, we're chatting (with potential predators) and gaining confidence in ourselves and in our program. We'll be making hands-on presentations in schools and throughout the community," showing residents how susceptible children are to on-line predators, Quinn said.
With undercover officers posing as teenagers, the department plans to target predators outside Upper Arlington who are willing to make the drive into the community.
"We need to be proactive. We need (predators) to come to us before they get to a child in the community," Quinn said.
Achievements for the department in 2005, listed in the annual report, include:
Arrest of a man which led to the recovery of more than $50,600 in stolen goods from local burglaries and on-line fraud activity.
Apprehension and conviction of a suspect who struck an officer with his vehicle and then fled the scene on foot.
With assistance from the local Drug Enforcement Administration, police arrested several key players in a large-scale cocaine ring, with resulted in the seizure of 13 vehicles, $1 million in cash and 50 kilos of cocaine.
With assistance from other local jurisdictions, UAPD tracked suspects in a series of burglaries throughout Franklin and Delaware counties and played a part apprehension of two suspects who are currently facing charges.
March 22 - 29, 2006
Moving into UA
This artists rendering shows what one side of the proposed Walgreens will look like.
By LYNDSEY TETER
The Upper Arlington Board of Zoning and Planning unanimously approved final design plans for a two-story mixed-use development on the west side of Tremont Road, across the street from Kingsdale shopping center.
The plans follow Master Plan recommendations closer than any recent developments in the area, city staff said.
Approval permits construction of a Walgreens on the lower level of the development with a drive-through facility. The second floor will consist of office space by tenants yet to be determined.
"Staff is really excited. This is first one we can finally hang our hats on," said Chad Gibson, the city's senior planner.
The 25,000-square-foot building will span 138 feet between Langham Road north toward Milden Road. It will replace four single-family homes on the 1.35-acre site.
Gibson said the city has not received any significant complaints about the proposal from neighbors, though he added: "Part of the reason may be that notifications get to property owners but not necessarily tenants. We do everything we can, but that information may have not filtered down to renters."
Ownership of the four parcels is being coordinated by David Rhodehamel, an agent who has them under contract and submitted the application with Meadowood Development.
The project is unique for Walgreens, said Meadowood spokesman Robbie Colombo. The company made special concessions to be in Upper Arlington, he said. The company does not normally operate in two-story stores.
"We've been looking in UA since Walgreens entered the market," he said, referring to the Central Ohio region."We finally found a home."
Large glass storefront windows will display holiday or seasonal items and-or historic UA-specific photos, Colombo said. The board banned traditional advertising in display windows.
Currently, the closest Walgreens sits 2 miles away outside the city on the north side of Henderson Road, but Colombo said it wasn't a concern.
"That's a totally different trade area," he said.
The Tremont Road version will look a little different, board members said.
The company made some adjustments to its signage by giving it a residential appeal, Colombo said.
Florescent logos will be replaced with externally lit signs.
"The design is unique to (Walgreens) and unique to UA," Colombo said.
Still, signs were the largest concern for board members at the final hearing.
The development team had already been through two BZAP work sessions and several technical review meetings with the city staff.
"They've pretty much dealt with everything we've thrown at them," Gibson said.
Six conditions were agreed upon Monday night, most of which included language requiring additional approval from city staff or the fire department for landscape approval.
Additionally, wattage was limited Monday night and one secondary sign was removed from the building's facade.
The stores operational hours were set from 8 a.m. until 10 p.m., and the board requested illumination of signs be limited to one hour before opening and one hour after closing. As per the city's code, deliveries will be allowed only between the hours of 7:30 a.m and 7:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
One resident spoke out against the projects, saying the additional lighting in the area would not thrill residential neighbors.
The 4-0 vote from the BZAP came alongside a letter of approval from developer Bob Long, whose company Long & Wilcox is constructing a five-story condominium complex just north of the project along Tremont Road.
"It's refreshing to see a national organization so willing to work with us like you did," said Bob Tullett, acting as BZAP chairman on behalf of T.J. Riley's absence.
The project does not need City Council approval, Gibson said, unless an appeal is filed with the city before a 21-day appeals period ends.
This decision comes on the heels of Regency, Kingsdale owners, announcing it would like to bring national retailer Target to the struggling shopping center. The city has yet to consider official plans for that proposal.
Mild winter has not yielded city huge savings on gas, salt
Thursday, March 2, 2006
By CHRIS BOURNEA
ThisWeek Writer
The relatively mild winter has meant that the city of Upper Arlington has not spent as much on natural gas and salt as expected, but has not resulted in huge savings, according to finance director Cathe Armstrong.
Despite the second warmest January on record in central Ohio, the city's heating bill was still 63 percent higher compared to January 2005, Armstrong said. Representatives of the statewide consortium Upper Arlington participates in to purchase natural gas had predicted increases as much as 78 to 90 percent this heating season.
A bright spot is that city-owned vehicles have used less gasoline because they haven't had to patrol the streets laying down salt as often this winter, Armstrong said.
"Our actual fuel consumption should be a little less for vehicles since we haven't been out as much," Armstrong said.
The city had initially set aside $115,000 to buy salt this winter, but added about $32,000 to the budget last fall to account for higher gas prices to fuel vehicles. As of mid-February, the city had used about 700 tons of salt and has only had to replenish supplies once, said James Wood, streets and traffic superintendent.
"We typically budget for 3,000 tons ( of salt for the winter), so, yeah, we're a little bit under" normal usage, he said.
Armstrong said the city hasn't saved as much on salt as might be expected because although there have not been record snowfalls -- so far, at least -- there have been several days when the streets had to be salted.
"We have spent to date a little over $43,000 for salt," she said. "We haven't had as harsh a winter, but we have had times where we've had to salt the street. It's the plowing of the heavy snows that is down."
Armstrong added that the unpredictable weather has kept the Streets Division busy nonetheless.
"If we were to get freezing rain, we would have to go out and salt," she said.
Woods said the Streets Division is prepared in the event that a bad snow or ice storm hits before winter's end.
"We might get dumped on before the end of the season," he said.
Parks, 315 corridor top priorities
City to solicit residents' wants and needs for park facilities, programming
Thursday, January 5, 2006
By CHRIS BOURNEA
ThisWeek Staff Writer
During the State of the City address, scheduled for Jan. 23 from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at the Upper Arlington Municipal Services Center, 3600 Tremont Road, City Manager Virginia Barney will offer a look forward to the city's new year and a review of the year just past.
The State of the City event will include the annual community awards program, recognizing residents and organizations who made significant contributions to the community in the past year. Awards will be presented in the categories of Business of the Year, Community Safety, Community Enrichment, Superior Senior and Youth.
The evening will also include a community fair, featuring exhibits by various organizations and city departments, providing an opportunity for residents to meet with community leaders and city administrators.
Among the top developments in 2006, Barney said, will be the start of the Parks and Recreation Department's comprehensive strategic plan. That effort will include citizen input on what residents see as current and future needs for the city's recreational facilities and programming.
Part of the strategic plan will be deciding what residents want for the new Sunny 95 Park, which the city acquired at the end of 2005. The 9.7-acre parcel of land is west of Kenny Road, between Langston Drive and Windham Road and adjacent to the existing 5-acre Langston Park.
Developing Sunny 95 Park "will be a piece of the discussion" when the strategic plan process begins later this year, Barney said.
Determining whether the community is in need of a dog park will also be included in the strategic plan, said Joe Valentino, assistant city manager.
"There is a lot of desire to have it," he said. "The hard question is where would we put it without taking away athletic fields or taking away what people are already used to."
Also in 2006, the city will begin planning the construction of a new fire department. Fire Chief Mitch Ross said once plans are in place, construction is expected to begin sometime in 2007.
Participating in the development of the state Route 315 research-and-technology corridor will also be another important development in the coming year, Barney said.
In July, Columbus City Council approved a $138,000 study to explore how the region can market an 8-mile stretch along 315, which includes Upper Arlington, as a center of scientific and technology research and development. Battelle, the Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce and Ohio State University are supporting the initiative.
Discussions about the 315 corridor "will be more important in the coming year," Barney said.
Throughout 2006, city officials will analyze the results of the recently completed older adults survey. The survey included a town hall meeting, a focus group and online and mailed-in responses from senior citizens and their caretakers on issues such as infrastructure, housing, transportation, recreation and other needs.
The Strategy Team, a Columbus-based firm that conducted the survey, is expected to deliver its final report on the survey results to Upper Arlington City Council some time this month or in early February, Valentino said.
Building on the momentum created by the older adults survey, city officials would like to continue an ongoing dialogue with citizens about the community's future, Valentino said.
"We've talked about inviting conversations (with residents) -- where do they see Upper Arlington five years from now, 10 years from now," Valentino said.
Barney said the city encourages citizen-led efforts such as the first Winter Festival, which was held in early December, community cleanups and other events organized by the Upper Arlington Civic Association, and fund-raising efforts by the Upper Arlington Community Foundation.
"It's those... things that really enhance our quality of life," Barney said.
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