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November 2008 |
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By MATT NICHOLS
Staff Writer
A former Wapakoneta law enforcement officer’s future is now in the hands of seven state Supreme Court justices.
Former Wapakoneta Police Chief Dave Harrison’s 6-year-old sex crime case reached the pinnacle in Ohio’s court system Wednesday, as justices heard arguments from Harrison’s attorney Dean Boland and state prosecutor Scott Longo.
Each party had 15 minutes to present their case to the justices. After both attorneys argued their cases, a single word in Harrison’s sentencing entry and a grilling delivered to Longo by justice Maureen O’Connor left Boland optimistic about his client’s future.
In June, 2003, Harrison plead guilty to a six-count bill of information after child pornography was found on his computer. After entering his plea, the man who served as police chief from 1988 to 2002 was sentenced to one year in jail.
Seven months after he completed his sentence, it was discovered by county prosecutors that Harrison should have been sentenced with an additional five years of mandatory post release control, or probation.
During a court hearing, Harrison was given the option to either be re-sentenced or withdraw his plea. Harrison chose the latter, taking things back to square one.
With the plea withdrawn, the state of Ohio slapped Harrison with a 23-count indictment which he was ultimately found guilty of and sentenced to six years in prison.
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No bids for new salt to fill Auglaize County bin |
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Tuesday, 02 September 2008 |
By KAREN CAMPBELL
Staff Writer
A lack of bids for road salt this year has Auglaize County government officials hoping for a mild winter.
The Auglaize County Commissioners opened bids from seven companies last week. Not one of them decided to give a quote for the 3,200 tons of salt the county anticipates needing.
“We thought we’d probably get a lot of no bids because usage was way up last year,” the county’s Chief Deputy Engineer Gary Kuck said. “But we hoped we’d get one or two bids.”
He said because so much salt was used last year throughout Ohio and even this region of the United States, people need more now to fill their salt barns and sheds. Salt supplies were low as it was and now its getting worse with the additional requests.
“There’s no salt they could even deliver,” Kuck said. “We’re not the only ones with the problem.”
North American, Cargill, Detroit Salt, Morton Salt, American Rock Salt, International Salt, Central Salt and Eastern Salt all declined to bid for the county this year.
North American Salt has been the county’s supplier for the last two years. Last year the company offered a bid of $45.47 a ton.
“It’s a knee-jerk reaction,” Kuck said. “People are increasing what they want and therefore less is available. It will probably all shake down with a mild winter or two.”
The county’s salt shed, which was filled at the end of the season because of concerns that a situation like this may arise, is full with 900 tons of pure salt and 3,000 tons of salt mix. A couple miles of paving also were removed from plans because of expectations of high salt costs.
Auglaize County Engineer Doug Reinhart said that could be the only supply the county gets for the season.
“We expected it to be bad, but not this bad,” Kuck said.
Kuck said the total of that supply could be enough to see the county through an average winter, but wouldn’t have been enough to handle last season’s needs, particularly considering that the county provides for several townships and municipalities as well.
Using a 10-year average from the winters of 1997-98 thru 2006-07, 1,927 tons of salt is used at an average cost of $71,935 a year.
In 2007-08, 4,385 tons of salt were used at a cost of $206,171.
“We’re going to have to be extra conservative,” Reinhart said. “We can’t make the road white with salt or we‘ll run out quickly. We may have to do just curves and intersections.”
He said the amount of salt the county and municipalities use has increased throughout the years as motorists demand more salt be put on roads.
Ten years ago the county built a salt shed which has helped. Before, with minimal storage — just 250 tons — the county was at the mercy of salt suppliers even more.
“Anyone who didn’t fill up their salt sheds last year is in sad shape,” Reinhart said of this year’s supply.
Reinhart said in recent years they have added two more routes, for a total of 15 snowplows, that are on county roads to help clear them during inclement weather. That will help if less salt is available.
“We will be plowing,” Reinhart said. “We’ll keep the same number of trucks out despite high fuel prices.
“Our only hope is that the good Lord gives us a mild winter,” he said.
The state bid its salt contracts for state routes in all 88 counties last week as well. Forty-three of the counties were not awarded contracts. Even in counties were ODOT was awarded salt bids, the state is supplied first, meaning some of those other areas could be left waiting on salt to arrive when they need it.
A representative of ODOT in Columbus said they were going to try to rebid the remaining counties, located mostly in the southern half of the state.
Cargill was awarded the contract for most of the northern portion of the state.
There is a lack of salt available because of continuous periods of snowfall throughout last winter, but in particular because of an 18- to 20-inch snowfall in March, when most road crews and engineering departments were working to build a surplus. The need then put companies behind in filling orders, according to the ODOT employee.
Most existing salt contracts extend through the end of September, leaving many departments asking to use what’s left in their contracts from the previous year to fill their bins now at a lower price.
The problem spreads across this region of the country, as Indiana and Illinois have struggled to get bids filled throughout their states. Michigan is not in as bad of shape with Detroit Salt located within the state boundaries.
The city of Wapakoneta contracts with the Auglaize County Engineer’s Office for salt and grit — a mixture of salt and ground limestone.
The city of St. Marys, which also bid its salt last week, did receive a bid from Cargill. They asked for a guaranteed 800 tons, significantly less than the 3,200 for which the county was asking.
Prices are up $14.29 a ton, to $61.49, compared to last year’s rate of $47.30, St. Marys Street Superintendent Denny Craft said.
He said with 450 tons remaining on their contract from last season, they planned to have 400 tons delivered to help stock up before the contract expires at the end of the month.
While the city doesn’t have enough room to keep the salt in its bin, it will save at least $6,000 by ordering it now on the previous year’s contract.
He said he isn’t sure where the city will store the salt as it hasn’t run into this kind of problem before but at that price they couldn’t resist.
“I know other villages and the county may be looking for additional salt,” Craft said.
Last year, St. Marys used 350 tons of salt, in what Craft called an average snowfall year.
New devices on city and trucks continue to keep salt use at a good level by monitoring how much is dispersed and where so it’s not wasted. County trucks are equipped with the same devices.
“I’ve been doing this, supervising streets for 16 years, and I’ve never seen anything like this,” Craft said. “I’m not looking forward to it already. We’ve got to hope for warm weather.
“At least we’re guaranteed 800 tons and maybe we can help other villages,” he said. |
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 04 September 2008 )
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