By Anna Gaertner- Contributing writer Urbana Daily Citizen

MECHANICSBURG – Champaign Economic Development Director Marcia Bailey was present during the meeting to discuss a building improvement project with the village council.
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“The Main Street building there on the corner which used to have a laundromat and a video store was owned by the village,” Bailey said.

She explained that after the village had been trying to sell the property for a long time, Mayor Ben Layne put in a bid for the property, hoping to renovate it.
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“He had gotten started on some renovations, but then decided to sell the property and his brother was interested in it. His brother (Austin Layne) and his wife are now renovating the property,” Bailey explained. “There is an apartment upstairs, and one in the front of the building as well. And then, there will be storefronts on the bottom floor.

“My question for the council is, do you want me to get another signed development agreement with Austin?” Bailey said.

“Because of the nature of the way this transaction happened, I think it would be advantageous for Ben if Austin is willing to sign that,” Attorney Joe Jimenez replied.

Council members unanimously agreed to have Austin Layne sign a new development agreement.

“Having that eyesore cleaned up will be great!” Councilman Jason Adelsberger said after seeing photos of the renovation project.

Other business
Village Administrator April Huggins-Davis informed the council members about an estimate for repair from storm water issues on East Race Street and Clark Avenue for a total of $10,675 to likely come out of the street fund money.

The council members approved the funds.

“I don’t know if you have driven down West Sandusky, but we have some major issues. On West Main as well. Do we want to get bids to come in and fix these potholes?” added the mayor. Layne listed different methods that could be used to improve the streets.
“We can use flash fill, concrete, asphalt. I think this needs to be as soon as possible. We can use the state fund for this, but it is our responsibility. We also have four water main break patches too.”

The council members agreed to set up a Street Committee meeting to further discuss these issues.

“I’ve had a couple calls about the Community Cleanup,” Huggins-Davis said. “Last year, it was canceled because nobody knew what was going on, but I think we can do that safely. They usually haul the dumpsters in on Friday and we get four of them. We need volunteers down there to help unload people’s trucks.

We use the backhoe to smash everything down, so we need someone who can operate that.”

The village council decided on Saturday, April 24 for the Community Cleanup.

Layne concluded the meeting by thanking Councilman Chip Wibright.

“I want to thank Chip and the street guys and anybody who chipped in with the snowfall this year. It was a lot more than usual. They did a good job and kept up with it as much as possible,” Layne said.

Village council unanimously decided the most efficient way to sell a forklift the village wants to liquidate was to list it on GovDeals.

Overview from Feb. 15 meeting
The permanent budget for 2021 was presented to the Mechanicsburg Village Council in an email prior to the Feb. 15 meeting. After discussion, the council members passed the motion to approve the budget unanimously.

The mayor requested to sell equipment that was unnecessary for the village, in order to clean out the barn which will provide a storage space for the storage trailer to be kept. The equipment included a salt spreader, two push mowers, a leaf vacuum and a John Deere mower. The items will be listed on GovDeals. Council also approved the disposal of village-owned scrap metals collected throughout the years.
Reach Anna Gaertner at UDCeditor@aimmediamidwest.com.Reach

Community leaders have known for some time that Champaign County needs more available housing options to attract new businesses – and their workforce – and to support growth of existing business.
 
Recommendations to help Champaign County provide the full range of current and future housing needs will be unveiled at a public meeting, 8:30 to 11 a.m., February 14, in the Champaign County Community Center Auditorium.
 
The recommendations are part of the Comprehensive Housing Market Analysis for Champaign County, developed by the Greater Ohio Policy Center (GOPC) and commissioned by the Champaign Economic Partnership (CEP).
 
CEP Director Marcia Bailey said that the housing market analysis will be shared first with local county, city, village and township officials before the public meeting.
 
“The February 14 public meeting is open to all citizens and will provide information of special interest to business leaders, developers, real estate professionals, builders, property owners, financial institutions and others interested in helping Champaign County thrive,” Bailey said.
 
She added that an evening session will be scheduled for late February or early March and additional public meetings will be announced to provide residents multiple opportunities to learn more about the study findings.
 
The GOPC is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization focused on helping improve Ohio communities through smart growth strategies and research. The GOPC regularly provides expert analyses to public, private and nonprofit leaders at the local, state and national level.
 
Bailey said that the study is designed to serve local leaders as a guide for making decisions that support a broad range of housing options for all segments of the population. And to attract new residents, including young families drawn by jobs and people looking for a quieter lifestyle within commuting distance of their jobs in metropolitan areas.
 
The study covers the county as a whole, as well as the four primary population centers, Urbana, Mechanicsburg, St. Paris and North Lewisburg.
 
The GOPC conducted the study with the guidance of steering and advisory committees composed of local government officials and representatives of financial institutions, developers, builders, property owners, real estate agents and business owners.
 
Examples of recommendations made in the study include:

• Create a standing consortium of local representatives like those on the study advisory committee to continually focus on housing initiatives.
• Prioritize historic downtowns and main street, as “vibrant downtowns become economic and civic centers whose success often attracts new housing investments and increased commercial traffic throughout a municipality.”
• Use economic development tools, such as community reinvestment areas, to promote housing development.
• Protect existing housing stock from decline and return abandoned and neglected properties to productive use.
• Use creative financing and funding strategies to help support development.
• Maintain affordability of housing.