Loveland, Ohio – East Kemper Road near the 10098 block (Northeast of Victor Avenue) is currently closed to traffic because of rising waters from the Little Miami River.
Karl Brown Way and E. Broadway in Historic Downtown are currently open, however will certainly close because of the rapidly rising water.
The National Weather Service in Wilmington has issued a “Flood Warning” that is in effect from April 3, 1:47 PM EDT until April 4, 4:15 PM EDT.
Today
Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly after 5pm. Some of the storms could be severe. Cloudy, with a high near 71. South wind 13 to 18 mph, with gusts as high as 34 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
Tonight
Showers and thunderstorms before 1am, then a chance of showers. Some of the storms could be severe. Low around 38. Breezy, with a south wind 17 to 20 mph becoming west after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 32 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New rainfall amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible.
The Little Miami is expected to reach near “Moderate Flood Stage” at midnight and to reach “Flood Stage” at Kings Mills.
Hazardous Weather Outlook
Hazardous Weather Outlook
National Weather Service Wilmington OH
1031 AM EDT Tue Apr 3 2018
INZ073>075-080-KYZ089>100-OHZ077>082-088-041445-
Ripley-Dearborn-Ohio-Switzerland-Carroll-Gallatin-Boone-Kenton-
Campbell-Owen-Grant-Pendleton-Bracken-Robertson-Mason-Lewis-Hamilton-
Clermont-Brown-Highland-Adams-Pike-Scioto-
1031 AM EDT Tue Apr 3 2018
This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for Southeast Indiana, Northeast
Kentucky, Northern Kentucky, South Central Ohio and Southwest Ohio.
.DAY ONE...Today and Tonight.
Wind gusts to 35 MPH will be possible this afternoon and evening.
Thunderstorms will develop this afternoon and evening, and some
severe storms are expected. These storms will be capable of producing
damaging wind, large hail, tornadoes, and heavy rainfall. The most
likely timing for severe weather will be between 5PM and 2AM.
.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Wednesday through Monday.
Wind gusts of 30-35 MPH will be possible early Wednesday morning.
EDITORS NOTE:Because the proposal goes into no detail or discussion of possible negative impact to private property, homeowners (the residential Main Street neighborhood), schools, the natural environment, street trees, or aesthetics, this is an important read for those affected property owners along the proposed route.
City recommendation is for parking on west side of town and walking or bicycling into Historic District on new pathway and crossing river using existing bridge – Cost to be $1,623,000.
by David Miller
Loveland, Ohio – The City commissioned a study of how to alleviate parking congestion yet bring more customers into Historic Downtown by developing a new crossing over the Little Miami River. The report was released last Wednesday. The recommendation is to create “parking pods” in existing commercial and school parking lots or create new parking lots on existing City owned land in the Loveland Madeira Road business corridor and in the West Loveland Historic District. A new ten-foot shared pathways for pedestrians and bicycles along Loveland Madeira, West Loveland Avenue, and possibly Main Street would bring the customers into the Historic District via the existing roadway of the Col. Thomas Paxton Bridge.
Talk of a new bridge over the State and National Little Miami Scenic River or expanding the existing bridge over the river have been abandoned in favor of using a shared lane for pedestrians and bicycles on the existing roadway over the bridge.
The report says:
While a stand-alone bridge, a modification to the existing bridge to create a cantilever type path were both examined, the most feasible and cost-effective crossing entails the modification of the existing lanes of traffic of the bridge to accommodate an expansion of the existing sidewalk.
The cost estimate for the project is $1,623,215.
Project Goals
• Develop a safe, feasible crossing over the Little Miami River • Reduce downtown traffic congestion by encouraging riders to park and ride into downtown
The preferred option according to a recommendation to City Council by City Manager Dave Kennedy is to modify the Col. Thomas Paxton Bridge to accommodate a 10 ft. wide separated path with three vehicle lanes across the bridge. The “collector pathway” is expected to encourage Loveland Bike Trail users to “park and walk or ride” into the Historic Downtown District.
Description
The Loveland Collector Trail will be a new, shared use, grade-separated facility connecting the Loveland Madeira Business Corridor to the Historic Downtown District. The intent of this facility is to provide visible, shared parking opportunities at strategic locations westof the river, along Loveland Madeira Rd, where Little Miami Scenic Trail users – or general visitors to Downtown Loveland – can park their vehicle and follow an easily-navigable shared-use trail along Loveland Madeira Rd, across the Little Miami Scenic River and into the Historic Downtown District to the Little Miami Scenic Trail trailhead.
Preferred Alignment
The eastern terminus of the proposed Loveland Connector Trail will begin at the proposed Deer Ridge II development (1401 Loveland Madeira Rd). The shared-use path will continue along Loveland Madeira Rd to W Loveland Rd, where users will turn right onto W Loveland Ave and cross the Little Miami Scenic River on the existing W Loveland Ave bridge into downtown Loveland.
Alternative Alignments
Similar to the preferred alignment, the shared-use path will continue along Loveland Madeira Rd to the south of Main Street where the City owns a vacant development parcel (referred to as the Chestnut St. Development) between Loveland Maderia Rd and the river. Users can turn right onto one of the three access points into the Chestnut St. development. From there they can either head north through the future development or the existing residential streets to access a river crossing.
“Next step is to seek funding for construction.” – City Manager Dave Kennedy
Kennedy is confident he will find 80% of the $1,623,000 cost from the Federal Government. The city was able to secure grant funding ($19,900) from the Hamilton County Planning and Development Department to conduct the feasibility study. At the council meeting, he said, “Next step is to seek funding for construction. We are still digesting it… looking for the funding.” He said councilman Ted Phelps is reaching out to the Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana Regional Council of Governments (OKI) for funding.
Also during the Council discussion, Phelps who is spearheading the project, inherited from former councilman Brent Zuck, said about the Loveland Connector Trail, “This serves two larger, important goals and it’s a big step towards getting those goals realized. Number one is to reduce traffic in downtown Loveland. Second thing it does… I think it’s an economic shot in the arm for the Loveland Madeira corridor which I think will have positive repercussions.”
Phelps said that people who are using the bike trail are using too many of the downtown parking spots and using them for too long a period of time. “This is going to give them another place to get on the trail, better parking, easier on and off.”
“In delivering it (the study) to Bob Koehler at last week at the regular OKI meeting, he was very positive in terms of its reception,” said Phelps. Koehler is Deputy Executive Director/Transportation Manager at OKI.
Phelps said, “We will be moving forward on this and I think it will be another great feather in the cap of Loveland when it’s realized.”
“We still need people to weigh in on it,” Phelps said. “We will be moving forward on this and I think it will be another great feather in the cap of Loveland when it’s realized.” He suggested the plan be put on the City’s website.
The study does not contain any data on potential number of users, nor potential customers to Loveland Madeira Road businesses. The study also does not address any repercussions on the residential neighborhood of Main Street or the Business/Residential neighborhood on West Loveland Avenue.
There has been no recommendation to forward the plan to the Planing and Zoning Commission, Tree and Environment Committee, Beautification Committee or Safety Service & Street Improvement Committee for review. No public hearings are scheduled.
On December 15, 2016, a Loveland City Hall newsletter was sent to residents announcing, “Downtown Development on the Horizon.”
The announcement continued, “Thus in 2017, the plan is for the current City Hall to be demolished. The planned replacement (elevation renderings shown above) is a four story building.“
The story sounded a little fishy to Loveland Magazine as we keep a pretty close eye on City Hall and we had never heard of the proposal, let alone how it could be a done deal. Also to be sure we did not miss something we researched past meeting minutes and found no council vote… no discussion… nothing. Someone at City Hall had written a story that wasn’t true, yet that didn’t stop the Loveland Herald from running with the story. Why wouldn’t they, they would not know better as they had stopped attending Loveland Council meetings years ago. Never-the-less, the Herald was able to gather enough quotes to write about the imminent demolition of Loveland’s City Hall.
Loveland Magazine never reported the story because we knew it was not true.
The newsletter and the Herald story fit the textbook definition of “fake news”, except it wasn’t going to end up being “fake” if City Hall could get away with the backroom scheming it took to hatch the plan. Many residents had different ideas.
The other things residents became aware of was the sudden announcement to impose very high fees and severe restrictions for community groups holding public events. Many residents had different ideas.
Add to that, the announcement that Donna Bednar would not be re-appointed to the Loveland Beautification Committee, and the subsequent resignation of all but one member.
Add to all of this upheaval was when behind City Hall’s closed doors a decision was made to “Trademark” the name Christmas in Loveland and the surprise announcement that City Hall had usurped the event that belonged to the Little Miami River Chamber Alliance.
It’s where the hashtag, “#lovelandtransparency” comes from.
This is where the stories below start and will give readers a final chance to catch up on our City Hall reporting (including the successful re-call effort of the sitting mayor) before they go to vote next Tuesday. These are resident views, candidate views, and some of the legal challenges both residents and council members faced this past year.
These stories below appear in the order they were published – oldest to newest.
Berlin, 1931; the Nazis were rising to power and we find ourselves at the seedy Kit Kat Klub. Welcome to the Loveland Stage Company’s (LSC) production of Cabaret.
Cabaret is a musical based on a book written by Christopher Isherwood, with music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb. The 1966 Broadway production became a hit, inspiring numerous subsequent productions in London and New York, as well as the 1972 film by the same name.
LSC’s production staff includes Pat Furterer (Director), K Buckler (Producer), John Nixon (Music Director) and Marjory Clegg (Choreographer).
Cabaret is the story of American writer, Cliff Bradshaw (Payton Hahn) as he begins working in Germany by teaching English to Ernst Ludwig (John Sloan). While visiting the decadent and seedy Kit Kat Klub we are introduced to the Emcee (Charlie Rader) and the beautiful English cabaret star Sally Bowles (Bonnie Emmer). As the Emcee guides us through the story, we see the development of a relationship between German boarding house owner Fraulein Schneider (Pia Rader) and Jewish fruit vendor Herr Schultz (Dave Marcus).
Loveland Stage Company will proudly present Cabaret the first 3 weekends in November.
Pam Gross is a candidate for Loveland City Council and provided this Candidate Statement to Loveland Magazine.
Loveland Magazine invites all candidates for public office in the 45140 zip code or within the Loveland City School District boundary to send a similar Candidate Statement for publication. Send to lovelandmagazine@cinci.rr.com
Pam Gross is running for Loveland City Council
Four years ago I made the decision to run for city council because I believed Loveland needed new leadership, vision and direction. I promised several things:
Smart and focused economic development programs
Implement sound fiscal policies without asking taxpayers to pay increased income taxes
Innovative and creative ideas on infrastructure while maintaining quality city services
This message resonated with the voters and I was elected to serve as their council representative. I am proud to say that I have delivered on the promises four years ago and I am now seeking re-election to continue on this path of progress and looking forward to the future and new successes that will continue to grow our city and keep it vibrant and financially stable for future generations.
This is a decent enough elevator campaign speech but it doesn’t tell the real story of the progress in Loveland nor does it capture the excitement and vitality of our city.
During my first campaign, my niece, Nyla, was graduating from High School. We’ve always been very close and she spends a lot time at our home. Like most of us, we like to play, shop and eat in our community. We would ride or walk on the bike trail, and then we hop in the car and head over to Madeira to shop at the little boutiques and grab a bite to eat in Montgomery. Why, because Loveland didn’t have much to offer outside of an extremely expensive dirt pile in the middle of downtown.
My accounting office is located downtown and I would drive by that dirt pile every day and finally I decided, I’m going to run for council. I’m tired of the same people running the show – our city needed new leadership, direction and vision. Our town had so much potential. So I ran for council and I won. There is no greater honor than serving as an elected representative for the community I care so deeply about.
Fast forward to today – my niece is now a senior at the University of Dayton. When she comes to visit her favorite aunt, the first thing she says is “let’s go downtown, I love that boutique – Busy Bee – they have all kinds of cool stuff.” She also tells me not to forget to bring my credit card and after spending my money she says “I’m hungry – let’s eat at Bella’s I like their outdoor patio – and after let’s get an ice cream at Graeters.” That big pile of dirt is now Loveland Station, it is a thriving and fully occupied residential/retail space.
On any night of the week downtown Loveland is full of life – kids enjoying ice cream, adults socializing on the outdoor patios and couples walking hand in hand enjoying the people watching. We have new small businesses as well – Narrow Path Brewery, Fresh Press and Bike Trail Junction. Travel down Loveland Madeira Rd and what was once a vacant car lot is now a vibrant business center with a Starbucks, SportClips and Chipotle. Four years ago our Commerce Park, the “economic engine” of our city, was losing tenants at an alarming rate, today it is almost 100% occupied, home of the corporate headquarters for McCluskey Chevrolet and Mike’s Car Wash.
New businesses are not only a boom to our economy but it builds our local tax base which supports our excellent Police, Fire, EMS, Public works and Parks ( for people and dogs.) They are the quality city services our residents expect. I’m seeking re-election to continue this path of progress.
Halie Rebeccaschild is the Secretary of the Loveland Community Heartbeat PAC
First, In his argument that certain sitting City Council members are “anti-business,” Kulik stated, “Legally required public hearings were voted down by this Council to stop positive business growth.” It appears that Mr. Kulik has over simplified the matter, as Council has stopped a public hearing from proceeding only in one case this year, that of the city hall project. The city never moved to a public hearing because residents expressed outrage at multiple City Council meetings in May and June of this year over the planned demolition of Loveland City Hall. In fact, On May 9th, City Council deadlocked on the nature of public engagement. After Community Improvement Corporation (CIC) President Jay Stewart recommended involving residents and holding a work session with Ken Geis, Vice Mayor Angie Settell immediately motioned for a public hearing (1). Such a move would have then fulfilled the legal requirement for a single hearing prior to transferring the city hall property to the autonomous CIC, ensuring demolition of our city hall building in July, as planned.
Mayor Mark Fitzgerald, Vice Mayor Angie Settell, and Pam Gross voted no on these public engagement forums.
Residents had expressed great concern about the city hall project moving too quickly, which may be seen in both April and May City Council meeting minutes. Rob Weisgerber, Kathy Bailey, and Ted Phelps responded to residents by opposing the vote to immediately move to fulfill the single public hearing requirement. Then, Council Member Rob Weisgerber motioned for no less than three resident engagement sessions, which would have brought residents into the planning process on either a 2-story, 2.5 story, or 4-story building. Mayor Mark Fitzgerald, Vice Mayor Angie Settell, and Pam Gross voted no on these public engagement forums, while Council Members Rob Weisgerber, Kathy Bailey, and Ted Phelps voted yes. The deadlocked votes reflect a difference in how much emphasis was placed on resident engagement.
Not a single resident has come to address Council to demand that the city hall demolition move forward, so who does Mr. Kulik represent?
Mr. Kulik spoke of the public hearing requirement completely out of context of the planned demolition of City Hall, and in such a way that suggested a law was somehow broken in slowing down the city hall project for residents to give necessary sanction. Indeed, if the public hearing had occurred as pushed by Mark Fitzgerald, Angie Settell, and Pam Gross, the transfer of our city hall to the CIC would have been final. Once in possession of the CIC, residents would have had no further input. This process would have prevented residents from thoroughly engaging in the planning for our new, city hall building in Old Loveland. Instead of anti-business, as Mr. Kulik suggests, Rob Weisgerber, Ted Phelps, and Kathy Bailey’s vote for multiple hearings reflect their duty as public servants to residents of Loveland. Residents have been relieved that the planned demolition and any repurposing of city hall will wait until after elections when residents will have their say with their votes. Not a single resident has come to address Council to demand that the city hall demolition move forward, so who does Mr. Kulik represent?
Next, Mr. Ryan Kulik went on to claim that City Council acted wrongly by cancelling Mr. Stansel’s contract. Kulik said, “What is it Mr. Stansel did wrong? I can see where council should have had the discussion on his services, but we never had that discussion. Rob Stansel was hired by the City Manager, not council. Stop lying. This is what the city manager does. The council should have had a chance to vote on his contract when the spending limit was exceeded. We never had this discussion.”
Yet again, Mr. Kulik is mistaken.
Yet again, Mr. Kulik is mistaken. City Council did have a discussion about cancelling Rob Stansel’s contract just prior to their vote that terminated it on May 9th. Mr. Kulik asks, “What was illegal about the contract? Was it because the spending limit was exceeded? Okay, I understand that.” If Mr. Kulik understands that City Council voted after a discussion to cancel the contract because it violated the City Manager’s spending authority, then what’s his agenda? Why would he want Council to violate our city charter?
Then, Mr. Kulik goes on to say, “[Stansel] secured over $600,000 for, I believe, the Chestnut property.” Not exactly. The “letter of intent” brought by Mr. Stansel to the city died upon expiration on May 5th, 2017, four days prior to City Council voting to terminate Stansel’s contract on May 9th (2,3). Perhaps Mr. Kulik should speak with City Manager Dave Kennedy about why the offer wasn’t pursued. Because at this point, it appears that Mr. Kulik is speaking beyond his knowledge and expertise.
it appears that Mr. Kulik is speaking beyond his knowledge and expertise.
Last, Kulik goes on to say, “[Rob Stansel] was working on the Christman property that we’ve heard a lot about.” Yet, again, Mr. Kulik references a development project that brought Loveland residents out in droves against it. Residents from the Brandywine and Butterworth Glen neighborhoods overflowed Loveland City Hall at the public hearing on June 13th when City Council was expected to vote on an ordinance to transfer city land to the Community Improvement Corporation that would have then been sold to Drees Co. and ultimately culminated in a Drees Homes development of 10 acres nearby. Apparently, the residents of those neighborhoods believed the city years ago when it claimed to have bought the Christman property to be a park, and they weren’t too excited about the pending development deal. That’s why the city did not transfer the land to the Community Improvement Corporation, and the private deal between the developer and the commercial real estate firm dissolved.
Upon scrutiny, Ryan Kulik’s arguments fail due to his oversimplification and outright error. In any regard, I appreciate him bringing up three very important topics to Loveland residents, and hope everyone registers to vote by October 10th and comes out to vote this November 7th.
Halie Rebeccaschild is the Secretary of the Loveland Community Heartbeat PAC.
The assertion was false and heedlessly made without full knowledge of the facts.
I want to take this opportunity to set the record straight. The assertion made by a local business owner and council member that illegal payments were made to a contractor the City used throughout 2013 is false and was heedlessly made without full knowledge of the facts.
During the 8/22/17 Loveland City Council meeting, Mr. Tim Canada, of Bond Furniture, addressed city council about transparency in Loveland politics. (See video below) Mr. Canada asked questions about payments made to a contractor the City used throughout 2013. During this same address, he asked for a subpoena of the former city manager and Pam Gross asserted the referenced payments were illegal. In a subsequent email from Tim Canada, he also asserted the payments to the Colwell Group were illegal.
While Mr. Canada wanted an immediate response in the moment, given the inflammatory nature of the inquiry and Ms. Gross’s statement, I chose to hold my response so that I could research the matter in question and consult with the appropriate people to ensure my response was accurate. Knowing full well that I was risking more inflammatory accusations by not answering questions at that moment. I have no interest in participating in the kind of inflammatory and reckless rhetoric heard at the 8/22 council meeting.
There was absolutely nothing illegal regarding the contracts with the Colwell Group, nor were any city procedures or spending authority violated.
After proper review, including discussion with Loveland’s city solicitor and Mr. Colwell, I indeed have answers to Mr. Canada’s questions. I will start with this fundamental fact: There was absolutely nothing illegal regarding the contracts with the Colwell Group, nor were any city procedures or spending authority violated.
The Colwell Group is a professional organization providing help and solutions to political subdivisions in Ohio. The City of Loveland hired the Colwell group for three separate engagements covering lobbying to get state funding for performance measures, working with ODNR and the railroad on quiet zone needs, and working to secure a grant from ODNR for parking. All three agreements were properly reviewed by legal and the finance director, and all three efforts were at or under the legal spending authority of the city manager, per the city’s rules. Under the final contract, the Colwell Group secured between $300,000 and $350,000 in a grant from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) for the downtown parking area that is now the Linda Cox lot. That represented a 20X return for the taxpayers of Loveland.
Mr. Canada often references his extensive research, yet the facts of these contracts were readily accessible, had this information been his primary interest or objective.
Mr. Canada often references his extensive research, yet the facts of these contracts were readily accessible, had this information been his primary interest or objective. Whether at a meeting or in emails, calling for subpoenas and lobbing terms like “illegal” and “tarnished reputation” make for great drama in the moment, but when invoked without proof or cause, they are irresponsible and reckless. Mr. Canada is creating the very negativity he has lamented repeatedly from the podium.
With more than 20 years proudly serving the City of Loveland as a representative of city council, I cannot claim to have never made a mistake or a decision I regretted in hindsight. But I have always made decisions with the best interest of the city and its residents in mind, and to the best of my ability with the information available at the time. I intend to carry this same approach forward, with greater council collaboration, communication and resident involvement. Loveland residents deserve nothing less.
Rob Weisgerber is a Loveland Council member and running for re-election this November.
Here is video from LOVELAND MAGAZINE TV showing what was said by Tim Canada and Pam Gross during the August 22 City Council meeting:
We promise the best customer service, and beyond a doubt, the best selection of merchandise in the area Pizazz Studio is a whimsical gift shop in downtown Loveland.
In years past, I haven’t been thrilled with some things Mr. Weisgerber has done. But that’s the extent of my agreement with Mr. Kulik. In total, my experience of Mr. Weisgerber’s tenure on council has been positive. I wasn’t so happy about his part in the mess that eventually became the hulk at the corners of Loveland, Second, and Broadway, but it’s done and the city seems to be more or less the better for it. Certainly more business is being transacted. The basis for Mr. Kulik’s position that Mr. Weisgerber is anti-business is not clear to me.
During the years when Mr. Fitzgerald’s group managed things, we saw back-room dealing, attempts to subvert the rule of law, and forceful silencing of the public.
A few years ago, former mayor Mark Fitzgerald and his party arrived. Enough has been said about Mr. Fitzgerald, and the man has resigned. The three who ruled with him remain, deadlocking council. I hope November elections will end this farce and we can move on. During the years when Mr. Fitzgerald’s group managed things, we saw back-room dealing, attempts to subvert the rule of law, and forceful silencing of the public. During Mr. Fitzgerald’s tenure, Mr. Weisgerber stood against these activities. To my knowledge he was civil about this and followed the rules.
Mr. Weisgerber has been on council a long time. Frankly, with the complicated mess we have right now, some continuity is probably a good thing. I hope the past few years have given Mr. Weisgerber a clear picture of what not to do on council; I trust him to take that lesson.
Mr. Kulik’s vilification of Mr. Weisgerber does nothing useful. His mockery of the group that forced Mr. Fitzgerald out is groundless. The group’s ability to muster signatures representing a large portion of Loveland’s voters–twice–demonstrates their alignment with community sentiment.
My money is on Mr. Weisgerber and those who, I hope, will bring balance back to council.
We’ve had a rough few years here in Loveland. And now we’ve had that fire that challenges the established community businesses that have anchored the downtown for years. The last thing we need is an attempt to resuscitate things better left dead. My money is on Mr. Weisgerber and those who, I hope, will bring balance back to council. They have their flaws and baggage, no doubt, but we cannot do worse than what’s gone on here recently.
I hope also that people will watch council closely, at least for a while, and hold the new council to account. It’s council’s job to do what we want; they would do well to open up to public input and execute on the best of what they hear. Study of development in other small towns would also be a good idea. Downtown charm is in the balance. If we don’t want blocks of spanking new brick with a scant nod to quaintness, all built for the profit of out-of-towners, we need to figure out how to develop sensitively or stop downtown development.
Let’s have no more ugliness. It’s time to look at what needs to be done and get on with it.
Loveland, Ohio – Eva Hunley, a resident of Historic Downtown, said at the July 11 Council meeting that when she moved to Loveland it was a historical town and now everything historical was gone. She asked why the train horns had to stop blowing and said the clock had quit ticking, and the chimes have stopped playing music.
“Everything historical is going away and is gone and I’d like to know why it’s going away,” said Hunley.
She mostly got patronizing laughs, except City Manager, Dave Kennedy who replied that the train horns stopped because the City created a quiet zone as part of the development agreement with Loveland Station Apartments in downtown and that the chimes were malfunctioning and he is working on the repair.
“We are the few willing to make a serious sacrifice to address corruption head on.”
– Halie Rebeccaschild
Loveland, Ohio– In the former Loveland mayor’s resignation speech at Tuesday’s council meeting, he made some blistering comments towards his political opponents. There was no open forum on the agenda for the meeting Mark Fitzgerald called to discuss his political future.
The Loveland Community Heartbeat Political Action Committee was particularly targeted in the speech so their spokesperson, Halie Rebeccaschild was asked if she would like to respond on the pages of Loveland Magazine.
You can view Fitzgeralds speech at the bottom of this page.
Halie Rebeccaschild
“Look Out for a Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing,” said Mark Fitzgerald. This statement from him came at the end of a long, accusatory speech at the end of his unfortunate political career here in Loveland, Ohio. Residents signed a petition for Mark Fitzgerald’s recall election twice this year, the last time driving by the hundreds to sign at a remote location; yet, Mark Fitzgerald still does not get the big picture. And on 8/14, residents were treated to his pathetic attempt to discredit those brave enough to dare question his history of fraud allegations. He belittles both us and our demands of honesty and integrity from him and our elected City Council. And he would have residents believe that holding our elected public servants to a high standard of accountability makes us, the informed and politically engaged residents, the problem. But let’s take a look at a couple of his points to see if they hold merit.
First, Mark Fitzgerald accused the Loveland recall committee of having a singular origin of a small group of people. False. Loveland Community Heartbeat was only one organization of two behind the recall. Neighbors for Loveland, also supported the recall campaign (https://www.facebook.com/groups/NeighborsforLoveland/), and together, with other unafilliated residents around the city, we comprised more than thirty resident circulators who span the political spectrum. More, the recall committee takes no singular position on “growth” other than fiscal conservation, and we do not yearn for nostalgia, unless dreaming of a time when politicians served the people who elected them. Instead, the recall committee focused on the unethical behavior of Mark Fitzgerald, and in doing so, we collected over eighteen hundred signatures on the final petition.
Second, In addition to misinforming residents about the members of the recall committee, in his lengthy diatribe, Mark Fitzgerald acted coy about any reasons for recall. Of the complaint stated on the recall petition, he mocked, “What does this mean?” Of course, the reasons for recall, were posted since April on the website, www.lovelandheartbeat.org/recall, with links to primary sources revealing the nature of the fraud allegations brought forth by two whistleblowers during his employment as city administrator in North College Hill, and more recently, the disastrous Ohio state audit of North College Hill during his tenure (http://lovelandheartbeat.org/train_wreck/). The fact that Mark Fitzgerald failed to inform residents about the two fraud allegations during his 2015 campaign for City Council is at the basis for recall. This singular lie-of-omission is enough; yet, Loveland residents may also point to abuse of power, exemplified in the following third point.
Third, Mark Fitzgerald accuses the resident-stakeholder organization driving the recall, Loveland Community Heartbeat, of having no platform. False. Loveland Community Heartbeat advocates for resident engagement. We have promoted a resident-led master plan (http://lovelandheartbeat.org/about/masterplan/) and have addressed City Council in the past year to promote the positive benefits of residents at the table to determine the future direction of our city. Yet, our addresses to City Council repeatedly fell on the deaf ears of Mark Fitzgerald, Angie Settell, Pam Gross, and Steve Zamagias. We can see this in action when looking to the votes around the 4-story city hall project. Although, Rob Weisgerber advocated for residents’ concerns by motioning for interactive conversations with residents prior to any public hearing, his motion was shot down by the majority four. As a public hearing was the final step needed by law before the project and land would be turned over to the Community Improvement Corporation where it would be out of residents’ hands, Weisgerber’s motion could have led to resident engagement around the city hall project. Instead, the majority blocked such engaged discussions and have gone silent ever since (https://youtu.be/Z8215klQaAg).
Mark Fitzgerald doesn’t want to talk about the 4-story city hall project, and he certainly doesn’t want you to know that the mayor he voted into office on 8/14, Angie Settell, defended a 4-story city hall building as “among the most original and creative business decisions the city has made” (Cincinnati Enquirer, 12/16, http://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/local/loveland/2016/12/20/loveland-get-new-city-hall/95706160/)
And if Rob Weisgerber, Ted Phelps, and Kathy Bailey hadn’t blocked the vote for the public hearing required by law before setting that project in motion, residents would today be looking at a demolished plot at 120 W. Loveland Avenue with two years of construction smack in the middle of Old Loveland. Did Mark Fitzgerald, Angie Settell, Pam Gross, and Steve Zamagias do their job as public servants to speak with residents across all neighborhoods before pushing to a final vote? It appears not, as the project was politically unpopular and failed miserably under resident scrutiny. Loveland Community Heartbeat was there to slow this project down until residents can be at the planning table.
Finally, Mark Fitzgerald threw around some interesting conspiracy theories to discredit our resident movement. He made veiled threats to reveal all the dirt on our identities, our past employment, our financial histories, you name it. Yet, nothing about the identities of Loveland Community Heartbeat stakeholders is private. By law, our contributions and identities are made available for anyone willing to take a drive to the Hamilton County Board of Elections, so why all the veiled threats? Does Mark Fitzgerald feel powerful by insinuating that residents who don’t appreciate his service are horrible people with histories and lives more scandalous than Mark Fitzgerald’s himself? The truth is, Loveland residents don’t care about the intricacies of stakeholders’ lives. Loveland residents just want an honest and ethical local government. Mark Fitzgerald just doesn’t get it.
But to momentarily entertain this unprofessional personal attack, I’ll say, Loveland Community Heartbeat comprises the voices of residents who are brave enough to take a stand against Mark Fitzgerald and this corrupt majority regime who claws with all their might to keep a stranglehold around our necks. And we are the few willing to make a serious sacrifice to address corruption head on, risking such personal attacks as seen here by Mark Fitzgerald. We are not a small group of residents, and we will grow even larger as we talk with our neighbors about the scandalous abuse of authority on display at the 8/14 Special City Council meeting. Residents should be outraged by Mark Fitzgerald’s political manipulation to place his chosen majority in power with a vote from him before he resigned from City Council. We would have residents ask, was that vote even legal?
This coordinated and pre-planned theatrical display by Mark Fitzgerald, Angie Settell, Pam Gross, and Steve Zamagias, (not unlike the staged majority walk out https://youtu.be/rZkh0LpYxt4) with their families present to witness, makes crystal clear their repeated and brazen violation of Sunshine Laws. Loveland just moved to settle a Sunshine Law suit; yet, it’s clear the majority City Council Members, including our new mayor, Angie Settell, care nothing about the law or the tax payer dollars spent to fight their corruptions of power.
Mark Fitzgerald, in his effort to cling to power, wants residents to look everywhere but at him to see the wolf in sheep’s clothing. He wants us to fight among ourselves and to blame each other for the problems that he repeatedly creates for Loveland. He wants to claim the high road, with a resignation letter that doesn’t recognize the legal outcome of our successful recall petition but claims he’s resigning out of respect for non-existent term limits. Loveland, we are much better without Mark Fitzgerald, and we can, and will, do much better than those who propped him up. We will continue our good work by voting out this majority power on November 7th, 2017.
RP Diamond is the exclusive retailer of LOVELAND HIGH SCHOOL SPIRIT WEAR Welcome to RP Diamond Printing & Embroidery located at 370 Loveland Madeira Road.
Berlin, 1931; the Nazis were rising to power and we find ourselves at the seedy Kit Kat Klub. Welcome to the Loveland Stage Company’s (LSC) production of Cabaret. 
![[Video] Eva Hunley: “Everything historical is going away.”](https://lovelandmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/maxresdefault-10.jpg)
