2010 State of the Village Address
Whitehouse, Ohio

2009 was a year for many accomplishments and many challenges for the Village of Whitehouse.

It was a difficult financial year, but our staff worked very hard to come in 20% under budget. The Administrative staff reviewed all contracts and costs were reduced in excess of $150,000. Actual fuel cost expenditures were only 60% of the budgeted amount.

Through the efforts of our Finance Director, the Village will realize a savings of 13.32% in our health insurance premiums, and a .57% cost savings on dental insurance. Workers Compensation premiums were also reduced and will save the Village between $50,000 and $70,000 in 2010. For the benefit of the employees and the Village, we will continue to expand our Wellness Program in 2010.

The Mayor, Council, and Administration are able to monitor revenue and expenditures with newly developed Financial Management guidelines and Finance Indicators.

Income tax revenues were up for 2009 by 3.77%

In 2009, Whitehouse entered into a Joint Economic Development District (JEDD) with Monclova Township. We will continue to pursue similar agreements with other entities. One tool that is being developed is a Mayor's Advisory Committee to work in conjunction with community and economic development groups.

Even in these difficult economic times, we are continuing to see growth. The Village welcomed Cedar Creek Church in the fall, and spring will bring the development of Blue Creek Senior Village.

In 2009, Council surveyed the residents of the Village as part of a visioning process. We will be meeting soon to discuss the compiled results and to plan a public presentation. The downtown area was mentioned in many of the surveys. We have been working on a concept for improvements to this area and will begin to implement some of the ideas in 2010.

One additional goal for 2010 is to improve and update the Village Disaster recovery plan.

The Police Department saw the retirement of long term employee, Lt. Tom Keel on January 9th. Mike Gudakunst was promoted to Sergeant effective January 19th. The department went to full staff on February 1st with the promotion of part time Officer Carmen Kantner to full time.

Continued training is an important part of a progressive police force. Office Brad Baker was trained and certified as a School Resource Officer. Officer Kurt Carpenter and Sgt. Gudakunst continued training in dealing with sexual predators. Because of this training subpoenas have been issued and some charges are pending.

Officer Amanda Crosby received additional training for dealing with abused children, and has actively worked cases with Children's Services in 2009. Officers Crosby and Ward Belair completed advanced accident investigation training. The costs were covered by a federal grant.

Sgt. Ronnie Shellhammer, along with several staff members, planned and held the first Safety City for approximately 50 pre-kindergarten children. Plans for Safety City 2010 have already begun. Sgt. Shellhammer was also recertified as a Dare Officer.

For 2010, the department plans to continue training, and will continue to research grants to assist the department.

The department is also working with administration to continue to work at cutting fuel and energy costs.

In 2009 the department received word that Lucas County will begin charging for dispatching in 2010. We are currently negotiating the costs of this.

The Department of Public Services has been very busy. One of the projects completed was the painting of the 250,000 gallon water tower in the park. This required the complete removal of the exterior paint and primer and included the application of a newly redesigned logo. The construction of the sanitary sewer along the south side of SR64 to Noward Rd. and south on Noward Rd. to Fallen Timbers Community Church was completed. Also completed was the construction of the second meter connection on Dutch Rd at the service area boundary, and an 8" water main west off of Industrial Pkwy for the G. L. Heller Co. to provide fire protection for new construction.

New flow metering equipment at the Regional Pumping Station on Finzel Rd was installed. This will allow the staff to keep accurate flow readings which are reported to Lucas County for billing. Also installed was a new 8" sewer pump with a propane backup engine to aid in high flow situations. This will aid in the elimination of any sanitary sewer overflows the village currently experiences in high flow situations.

The department completed the Issue II paving project for 2009, which included Finzel Rd. from Anthony Wayne High School to SR 64, and Heller Rd. from Wabash to Stiles Rd.

Other paving projects were completed with Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds. The streets resurfaced were Shepler from Providence St. to Weckerly Dr., and Toledo and Maumee Sts. from Providence St. to Swanton St.

They continued maintenance of roadways with the annual crack sealing program.

We improved our efficiency in leaf collection by purchasing an additional leaf collection machine and collection box fitted to our one ton truck. This type of collection box can also be used as a wood chip collection box for use when trimming trees or when cleaning up after storms.

A new plow was purchased to assist with snow removal. And we purchased a hydraulic valve exercising machine to assist in the maintenance of main line valves in the water distribution system. We continued our commitment to safety with the purchase of two new trench boxes for use during excavations and a gas analyzer which is used in the confined space entry program.

The department implemented a Sanitary Sewer Evaluation (SSE) program. This program is the first step in the initiating an Infiltration & Inflow (I&I) program.

Some of the other accomplishments include construction of a Recycling Drop Point to be collected by Lucas County, painting the roof on the park storage building, renewing the electronic level control unit at the Lone Oak Lift Station, and renewing the bleachers at the lighted ball diamond.

The Department of Public Services has set some priorities for 2010. One of them is the implementation of an Issue II project which includes the resurfacing of Field Ave. from Cable Ave. to Weckerly Rd. Another priority is working with residents of the Village to reconstruct their streets and roads.

Other goals for 2010 are the painting of the 250,000 gallon water tower on Finzel Rd., continuing with the Sanitary Sewer Evaluation and look for sources of Infiltration and Inflow, and begin the implementation of the Park improvements as they relate to the Downtown Enhancement/Improvement Plan.

The department will also begin implementation of a Geographical Information System (GIS) to catalog all village assets. They will digitally back up all Village prints. There is currently no back up for these. In the event of a natural disaster or fire, there is potential for all of these files to be lost.

Other projects include development of Sandra Park and establishing a location for the addition of a 250,000 gallon water tower. We are also investigating ways to expand other recreational opportunities in the Blue Creek Conservation Area. In 2009, in conjunction with the Metro Parks, we were able to open the large quarry for public fishing.

The Whitehouse Fire Department has had an eventful year for many reasons. Some of these include training done for the community and our employees, monies received from ambulance billing, personnel changes and grants received.

In April they joined with Yark car dealership to promote child safety. At Halloween, the fire department also participated in the 'Trick or Treat' activities in the downtown area. During these events the fire department, of course, promoted fire safety.

This year Lial School was added to the schools where we present the Great Escape Plan which encourages children to create a plan for escape from their home in case of a fire. Throughout the year the department completed several tours for kids from the school, Cub Scouts and Girl Scouts

The department continues to work with our businesses by inspections and fire prevention plans. They also review new and/or revised plans for businesses for fire safety reasons. We also partner with Waterville Township to inspect our covered portion of their district for businesses needing fire inspection services.

The majority of the hydrants and hoses have been tested for this year.

In 2009, we certified approximately 250 people in CPR. Three of our employees attended a Firehouse Training session in the spring. This program enables us to keep track of training for employees and inventory testing. Due to our training officer moving to Alaska to assume a Chief's position, Rex Butler has taken over that position and is now in charge of EMS and Fire Training. Marty Fuller maintains the Whitehouse Fire Department's accreditation through the State. Life Squad 9 personnel were trained on how to administer the H1N1 vaccine.

Dustin Richardson was hired in 2009 as a full time Firefighter/Paramedic. The fire department also added four new volunteers early in the year. There will likely be Life Squad personnel retiring with the upcoming year.

Our chief, Daryl McNutt, was re-appointed to the State EMS Board.

Ambulance billing has been doing well and it has brought in over $26,000 in additional funds for the Village. We received $20,700 through the SAFER grant in 2009.

The Fire Department also received a firefighter training grant in the amount of $398.85 for Firefighter II training of one of our paramedics.

In June, Whitehouse hosted the Northwest Ohio Volunteer Firemen's Association Convention. The event was held in conjunction with Cherry Fest in order to bring more people to both of the events. Although this was a huge undertaking for our small village, it appeared to be a huge success from the aspect of introducing new people to our small town and businesses.

Fire runs and service call were up from 377 to 426, which is a 13% increase. The Life Squad runs were also up from 657 to 717 in 2009. This is a 9% increase.

For 2010 the Whitehouse Fire Department has several goals.

Training our employees is high on our list of priorities so that we may utilize their knowledge to further train others. Currently an EMT class is in the works for the upcoming year for our new volunteers. This will enable the department to respond to calls in a quicker manner with additionally trained staff. We also plan to continue our fire prevention and CPR training with the public.

The Fire Department is currently in the process of negotiating a contract for dispatching.

Along with fire safety, we look forward to achieving better communications between the building and fire departments to review all building plans in a timely manner in order to prevent potential fire disasters by ensuring fire safety standards are met.

The department intends to apply for grants from the Department of Homeland Security such as the Assistance to Firefighter Grant and Fire Prevention and Safety Services Grants, as well as continuing to look for other grants. These grants would assist with receiving further training materials and better equipment for our firefighters.

The Village has a very active safety team. In 2009, we received a $600 grant from the Bureau of Workers Comp for our Drug-free Workplace program. The village also received a check for $1745.86 from the BWC because of our Safety Program.

As we look forward to 2010, I would like to thank the Council, Administrator, Department Heads and all the employees for their continued dedication to the residents and businesses of the Village. The team effort is what has made the accomplishments of 2009 and the goals for 2010 possible.

Thank you.

Angela J. Kuhn Mayor