Dr. Charles Meade, a former president and director of the Hamilton County Fair Board, built this historic home in 1906. The property was used to raise trotting and pacing horses and included a racetrack. The Township purchased the property in 2003 and had a lease with the Cincinnati Horticultural Society to maintain the grounds until 2016.
Ross Family Log House Museum at Meade Park. The Symmes Township Historical Society has restored a historic 1830’s two-story log house at Meade Park through a grant from the Ohio Cultural Commission. It opened to the public in April 2012.
Symmes Township, Ohio – Symmes Township and the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County will be offering a Story Time open house for kids age 3-9 on Tuesday, August 18th at the Meade Historic Preserve (11887 Lebanon Road 45140) from 10 AM until noon.
In addition to story time, the library will offer kids a craft, game and snack in a outdoor setting. Social distancing guidelines will be adhered to.
For more information, please contact the Township office at (513)683-6644.
Please note that the Cleanup Day scheduled for Saturday, August 15th has been rescheduled.
Symmes Township, Ohio – A Cleanup Day/One Stop Drop has been scheduled for Saturday, September 26th from 9 AM until 3 PM at Home of the Brave Park, 11605 Lebanon Road.
This one day event will offer residents a convenient way to get rid of trash and other items that they may not need responsibly.
Please note in order to social distance and keep everyone safe, residents will be required to unload their own items.
Participants will include:
Goodwill
Bikes, dishes, glassware, toys, games, clothing, books, flat screen tvs and monitors. No furniture, large appliances or construction/building supplies are being accepted at Goodwill at this time. For questions, call 771-4800 Ext. 6273 or see link here.
Matthew 25 Ministries
Usable latex paint
Habitat for Humanity Cincinnati Restore
Furniture, cabinets, doors, lawn & garden, clean mattresses & box springs, electronics (stereos, DVD & CD players), appliances (large & small,) light fixtures and ceiling fans, hardware & tools, housewares, windows (thermal pane only) and digital televisions.
Symmes Township
Trash, tires, car batteries, scrap metal items, used motor oil and old appliances.
No hazardous household waste will be accepted at this event.
For more information, contact the Township office at 683-6644.
Symmes Township, Ohio – The Township will sponsor its 3rd annual Photo Contest from October 1-31. Photographers of all ages are invited to participate in the contest.
Entering is easy, free and can be done by sending high resolution images via email to lfelter@symmestownship.org.
The images should best depict Symmes Township’s beautiful environment, active people and vibrant community life. This includes but is not limited to parks, wildlife, streetscapes, landmarks, children or dogs at play or sports activities. Any photos taken of locations not within Symmes Township will be disqualified.
Prizes will be awarded to the winners as follows:
First place winner – $100 gift card of their choice
Second place winner – $50 gift card of their choice
Third place winner – $25 gift card of their choice
Honorable Mention (Youth) – $25 gift card of their choice
Loveland, Ohio – Have you happened to see a gigantic swan floating down the Little Miami River? Well, I am here to tell you that it wasn’t just your imagination! On Saturday afternoon Symmes Township Resident, Nick Dyson, shared with us some photos that showed himself and his family and friends floating down the Little Miami in a huge inflatable swan. Dyson shared his “swan story” with us so that those who frequent the State and National Wild and Scenic, the Little Miami River, and our famous Loveland Bike Trail would be sure to look out for the swan all the way from the Amazon!
“My friend Brian Rogers is the director of student ministries at Northstar Community Church, and he initially bought the swan on Amazon to use with his students and volunteer leaders in the retention pond that was going to be made with all of the construction going on at Northstar/The Care Center,” Dyson explained, “However, in the final renovation there ended up not being a retention pond at all, so he took the swan out for its inaugural float about a month ago on the Little Miami with all of his volunteer youth leaders. He then busted it out a second time to use this past Saturday the 25th with both of our families, including their exchange student from China. We put the swan in the river at the Monkey Bar in Foster and got out about 2-1/2 miles downstream at the Deerfield Township river access on Shore Drive. There are only a few spots on the river where the river access is wide enough to put the Swan in the water because it is so huge,” Dyson said.
Dyson provided us with some incredible photos of the “swan-filled” afternoon so that we could share the story and photos with the Loveland community! We want to thank you Nick for sharing your story and some really fun photos with us! Check out Dyson’s photos below!
We believe we always have some important news to share with you about our community.
And sometimes like today – this very fun and Lovelandesque photo that really depicts our resort town – the Staycation Resort of Southwest Ohio.
If you believe as we do that having a locally owned and independent newspaper is valuable to your life and the life and vitality of Loveland, will you consider clicking on the link below to send along a modest contribution?
We recognize not everyone can do so at this time, however, we are like so many other small local businesses with reduced revenue and bills to pay that we cannot ignore.
Those that can afford a modest contribution will enable us to continue publishing news for everyone.
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Best regards, best wishes, and thank you so very much,
Cassie, Donna, Mihaela, Claire, David, and the Frog.
Symmes Township, Ohio – Captain Tory Smith the District Three Commander assigned to Symmes Township told Loveland Magazine this morning, “I did have a conversation with our CIS personnel late in the day yesterday and they have indicated that there appears to be nothing suspicious at this time. There are/were no signs of foul play and there was no evidence to suggest that the person was struck by a vehicle. It is believed that the individual suffered from some sort of medical emergency.”
The Hamilton County Sherriff’s office investigated a body discovered in the landscaping at the CVS Pharmacy at East Kemper and Loveland Maderia Road around daylight yesterday morning.
The Hamilton County Criminal Investigative Section responded and the body was taken from the scene by the Hamilton County Coroner.
Loveland Magazine will not be releasing the name of the deceased.
Cassie Mattia is the Associate Editor of Loveland Magazine and lives in Historic Downtown.
by Cassie Mattia
Loveland, Ohio – Loveland videographer Bob Kessler wanted to get a unique perspective of this year’s 4th of July fireworks by getting up close and personal with the launch zone! Kessler was able to not only show the launch of the fireworks but the explosions as well in one wide-angle shot. Loveland Magazine and Kessler teamed up this year for the 4th so that he could receive credentials to be on the actual launch site. By doing this, Kessler was able to witness the firework preparations and be there when the fuses were lit.
Loveland’s and Symmes Township’s annual Independence Day celebrations were canceled this year, however, the City and Township were able to hold two simultaneous, “park and watch” firework shows on Saturday, July 4th.
Kessler positioned himself at Loveland’s launch site inside Philips Park which was closed to the public for the day. Symmes Park, which was also closed to the public for the day, acted as the launchpad for the Township.
Kessler explained that previously he shot video from various street views in Downtown Loveland and on the bridge of the Little Miami River. Typically, Loveland launches its annual show from inside Kiwanis Park on Wall Street but, this year, because of COVID 19 the City was concerned about having thousands of people crowd into Historic Downtown, which is known as the best viewing spot for the fireworks. City Hall ended up deciding to move the launch to a higher location in order to take advantage of the area’s church and school parking lots. Spectators were either encouraged to watch the shows, drive-in movie style and practice social distancing, or residents who lived near the parks were asked to stay at home to enjoy the show. Those that decided to watch the fireworks from their cars went to Loveland High School, Home of the Brave Park, church parking lots, and surrounding subdivisions while of course remaining socially distant.
Kessler told us that the launch locations were chosen to accommodate the use of larger shells, which go higher into the air and allow spectators to watch from a much wider area.
Here is Kessler’s favorite still shot from his vantage point at the launch pad inside Phillips Park. “This is my favorite picture from the batch I shot last night. I was about 250′ from the launch site, behind the exhibitors running the show. Nikon D850, 14mm, ISO 400, f/10, 8 seconds,” said Bob Kessler.
Kessler said he was excited about the addition of a second launch site at Symmes Park this year.
“The second launch site promised to make for a unique experience. That’s why I settled on Phillips Park as the best location for me to photograph both stills and video images.”
Dave Miller, Loveland Magazine’s Editor-in-Chief, covered the wide shots from the top of the stands at LHS’s stadium where he was able to view both Loveland’s and Symmes’ fireworks. He used two cameras, one acted as a live feed so LOVELAND MAGAZINE TV could have a live broadcast of the shows.
Kessler and Miller were in constant communication in the days leading up to the show as times and locations rapidly changed with not much notice to the public. Luckily Loveland Magazine had a firework “inside man,” which allowed us to communicate quick and accurate firework updates to the public.
A few minutes before launch time Kessler sent a message to Miller saying, “I passed the cop-test. The patrol came through and the Rozzi guy said, ‘He’s with us!”
Some of the camera equipment Bob Kessler used at the launch site of the Loveland Fireworks show.
Loveland was the first to set off their rockets, then Symmes followed shortly after. Each firework show lasted about fifteen minutes. After the two shows finished both launch pads put on a simultaneous Grand Finale.
“I first contacted the Loveland Symmes Fire Department about getting permission to be close, as they previously ran the show and knew me and my work with Loveland Magazine,” Kessler explained, “I then approached Rozzi’s Famous Fireworks and got the permission of the exhibitor running the show to shoot within the normally closed firing zone.”
Kessler positioned himself in a ditch behind the show operator. Using a wide-angle lens and shooting 4K, he was able to capture a high definition video that allowed him to digitally “zoom-in” on the image without compromising quality. “I concurrently shot digital images with my still camera, the equivalent to an 8K image,” Kessler said.
Kessler experimented with various settings on his camera as the show progressed, mostly shooting still frames at various time exposures of 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 seconds. “All this fussing had to be done quickly, as I knew the show would only last 15-20 minutes. I managed to get about 75 images and several videos,” Kessler said, “Out of that, I ended up with 11 shots that I liked enough to post on Facebook.”
Kessler learned from the Rozzi folks that the firework shells are able to go up to 100′ in the air for each inch of shell diameter. For example, a 4′ shell would go 400′ feet into the air while a 6′ shell would go about 600 feet into the air.
“I always look forward to working with Bob Kessler on video projects because I learn so much,” David Miller said, “My only regret is there wasn’t enough of him to go around that night so he couldn’t be in the stadium with me to adjust my camera. If he could have been there then all I would have had to do was hit the record button. My video would have been so much better!”
Some of the video equipment David Miller used to shoot video and live-stream the fireworks show from the high vantage point of the stands at Tiger Stadium
Miller also said that when Kessler offered to shoot the show he knew that he would expend countless hours readying his equipment and making adjustments. “Doing something like shooting fireworks is seat-of-pants. There are so many variables such as the rapidly setting sun. Will it be completely dark, well it will be if it’s a cloudy day. If the sun is out and going over the horizon which way will it be heading in relation to where the camera is? Fifteen minutes can make a huge difference in the ambient light that time of day,” Miller explained, “Bob sees all these variables in the days before and has the brainpower to take most of the guesswork out of the equation.”
Miller said he really enjoyed watching the evening unfold from the highest elevation in town. “When I got to the stadium there were already about 20 teens playing frisbee football and before the show, someone new showed up with a cooler of water balloons to cool them off with.”
At showtime, many of the teens and some adults joined Miller at the top of LHS’s bleachers to enjoy the vantage point of seeing both shows. “The pre-show of all the neighborhood fireworks displays going off from the high vantage point I had was pretty cool as well,” Miller added.
Did you miss the 4th of July firework shows this year? Well, we have you covered! Click below to relive Bob Kessler’s 4th of July Fireworks video production!
Kessler also produced a short clip of Loveland’s Finale which Loveland Magazine ended up using as an experiment of a “Video Cover Photo”.
Loveland Magazine sends out a special thanks to Rozzi’s Famous Fireworks for giving us access to the launch site and showing us such wonderful hospitality!
Check out these previous firework shows that Bob Kessler produced for Loveland Magazine TV. In this first video from 2015, Bob showed close-ups as the fuses were lit by a crew of Loveland Firefighters in full protective gear. Deputy Fire Chief Don Books talks about the show and how safe it was for the crew.
Symmes Township, Ohio – The Township has entered into an agreement with Irvine Wood Recovery, 110 Glendale Milford Road, Miamiville 45147 to collect yard waste from June 1 through October 31.
The hours of operation will be Monday through Friday from 8 AM until 5 PM and Saturdays, weather permitting, 8 AM until Noon (call first (513) 831-0060).
Irvine Wood Recovery will be closed: Independence Day, and Labor Day.
The following guidelines apply:
-Yard waste in commercial vehicles or from commercial establishments cannot be accepted.
-No large trailers or trucks larger than pickups will be allowed.
-No pallets, boards, nails, fence, or wire accepted.
-No stumps, root balls, or cattails.
-Yard waste must be free of any debris/trash.
-No bricks, stones or soil accepted.
-No food materials.
-All children must stay inside vehicles.
Please note that this service is for Symmes Township residents only. Residents will be asked to show proof of residency, ie. driver’s license.
Loveland and Symmes Township, Ohio – The City of Loveland issued a press release on June 3rd announcing a collaboration on Independence Day celebrations with Symmes Township.
The release said that Loveland’s share of the fireworks would be set off at Boike Park at Loveland High School.
Loveland Magazine just learned that Loveland’s fireworks will instead be launched from a location inside Phillips Park.
After a reader noticed the discrepancy on a map we shared this morning from the City’s FaceBook page we asked about it.
Assistant to the City Manager, Misty Brents just told Loveland Magazine, “Rozzi decided Phillips would be the better location.”
“Look for These Signs” of our times
Corrected Story
Loveland’s and Symmes Township’s annual Independence Day celebrations have been canceled for this year. City Manager David Kennedy said in a press release on July 3 that the decision was made “out of health concerns for our residents and is consistent with public health concerns over holding large attendance events.”
The City and Township will hold two simultaneous, “park and watch” fireworks shows on Saturday, July 4.
Symmes Township Administrator, Kimberly Lapensee said in a press release, “Symmes Township is so excited to partner with the City of Loveland to celebrate the 4th of July while keeping our community safe.”
Fireworks will be set off at Phillips Park and Symmes Park on Lebanon Road on Saturday, July 4 at a time that has not yet been announced.
It is being recommended that residents who live near the parks are asked to stay at home to enjoy the show. Others are encouraged to watch from their cars “remaining socially distant” at parking locations to be announced.
Both the City and the Township say that no festivals are scheduled at this time.
Symmes Township, Ohio – “In the end, it was so worth the effort,” Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy (CHCA) Fine Arts Director, Mona Summers. “I would do it all again in a heartbeat to be able to share the gifts and talents of our students.”
When it was clear CHCA’s 22nd Annual ArtBeat arts festival would have to be canceled, it was so disappointing according to Summers. ArtBeat is a day-long celebration of the visual and performing arts that brings the entire CHCA community together – from the youngest preschoolers through Grade 12.
Anna Treadway won 1st place for her AP Portfolio
The committee had already been working on the event for many months. To learn that all the work would be for nothing was difficult, but not as difficult as knowing the students would not be able to share their beautiful artwork and performances with the community. It was then that a plan for Virtual ArtBeat began so that at least part of ArtBeat could be shared with the community.
This is an original song entitled “My House” by Lauren M. is based on the passage Matthew 7:24-27. “I wrote this song originally in January when I was facing the fears of college and moving on in the next phase of my life. I wanted to write a song that would remind me of my foundation and that I will be okay. It’s crazy how much I need to hear these lyrics right now though. During this corona virus and the passing of one of my closest friends, God is speaking to me through my own song lyrics. He wants me to continue to build my house on the Rock.”
After working for months on all that goes into ArtBeat, which typically draws over 2,200 people, the committee had to pivot quickly in order to plan and implement a Virtual ArtBeat to draw hundreds in, well, virtually.
Summers, immediately reached out to the visual art teachers to share with them her vision of Virtual ArtBeat and they were excited and ready to do the work it would take to make this possible. Of course, the reality of the work required was much more difficult than they imagined, but they were still excited to have the opportunity to share their students’ artwork with the community.
Anna Treadway won 1st place for her AP Portfolio
Summers then reached out to the ArtBeat auditioned performers to ask them if they would like to be a part of Virtual ArtBeat, which required them to send in videos of their performances.
Layout and Design
1st Place: Catherine Frazer
2nd Place: Joey Shafer
3rd Place: Samuel Davis
Honorable Mention: Hailey Wichard
Painting
1st Place: Jacqueline Clayton
2nd Place: Marissa Mao
3rd Place: Hailey Williams
4th Place: Jake Younkin
5th Place: Aidan Hook
Honorable Mention: Jonah Bolander
Instructor’s Choice
Chloe Huang
Many of the ensemble auditions were not able to participate in light of sheltering in place at home per Governor’s orders. However, there were some duets who got very creative in order to share their videos. A few videos from auditions that parents took from the sidelines were able to be shared, as well as videos from dance competitions where dancers competed with the same pieces they performed at auditions. Summers then pulled together a schedule for the Virtual ArtBeat event and the behind-the-scenes work to put it all online commenced.
by Alexis Otto
As in the typical live and in-person ArtBeat, there are so many notable Virtual ArtBeat highlights. 1,435 pieces of artwork and 68 performance videos were included. In addition, the committee held a Juried Art Competition as part of the virtual event.
Sarah Pan’s 1st Place Drawing
Virtual ArtBeat lasted fifteen days, beginning Friday, May 1, and ending Friday, May 15. Each day at 5:30 PM, new artwork and performances were released to virtual audiences.
Curious to see what you missed? Virtual ArtBeat is still available online.
This photo by Jacqueline Clayton was a 1st Prize winner
Summers said, “The support and feedback from the community was phenomenal.” Many people commented that the webpages hosting content were visually appealing and well laid out so that it was easy to follow and find things. “But mostly, it was the wonderful feedback received from students, parents, and faculty who said they were thrilled Virtual ArtBeat was being shared since ArtBeat had to be canceled.”
Students and parents alike were very thankful to be able to participate in Virtual ArtBeat and that it was accessible to the entire community.
Symmes Township, Ohio – JCPenney says, “We’re excited to announce that we’ve turned on the lights at 150 more stores in 27 states, continuing with our phased approach to reopening stores nationwide.”
However, the corporation announced yesterday afternoon that the light’s at the JCPenney store in Governor’s Plaza on Union Cemetry Road in Symmes Township will be turned on to have a closing sale and then off permanently.
JCPenney has chosen to pursue a financial restructuring and reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code and close 154 stores around the country. Here is that list.
JCPenney identified the first phase of 154 store closures. Following entry of an order at the June 11, 2020, hearing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, in Corpus Christi, Texas, store closing sales will begin at 154 locations.
Store closing sales for the first round of store closures are expected to take 10-16 weeks to complete.
The images should best depict Symmes Township’s beautiful environment, active people and vibrant community life. This includes but is not limited to parks, wildlife, streetscapes, landmarks, children or dogs at play or sports activities. Any photos taken of locations not within Symmes Township will be disqualified.
![[VIDEO] Bob Kessler gets intimate with 6″ shells on the 4th of July!](https://lovelandmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/feature-kessler-fireworks.jpg)
When it was clear CHCA’s 22nd Annual ArtBeat arts festival would have to be canceled, it was so disappointing according to Summers. ArtBeat is a day-long celebration of the visual and performing arts that brings the entire CHCA community together – from the youngest preschoolers through Grade 12.
![[Breaking] JCPenney store in Governor’s Plaza will close permanently](https://lovelandmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/jcpenny.jpg)
