FAIRPORT BEACON - The Village of Fairport Harbor, Ohio

THE
FAIRPORT BEACON
Summer 2016
220 Third Street, Fairport Harbor, Ohio 44077
Phone: (440) 352-3620 • Fax: (440) 352-8872
www.fairportharbor.org
Thank you to the Fairport Harbor
Heritage Foundation and their efforts
in securing the Tall Ships Challenge
SAILING to Fairport July 7-10.
by Mayor Timothy S. Manross
This summer is going to be one of the most
exciting summers the Village has ever had!
We are celebrating out 75th year of the
Mardi Gras! Thanks to the leadership and
volunteers that put on a great parade and
festival year after year. Walking home with
my family from the beach after fireworks is
one of my favorite times of the year! Second
only to the Grinch reading.
The FHHF has donated the hanging baskets
and planters in our downtown again this
year. Lake County Land and Title along with
JTO has donated the mulch for Memorial
Continued on page 2
Council
Anthony F. Bertone
Douglas T. Harrison
Jerry Hites
Verne M. Horton
Jeff McKinney, II
Frank J. Sarosy
Beautification Project
Stay Informed,
Remain Involved
We have an extraordinary opportunity to
host the Tall Ships this year in Lake County right here on Water Street! Nine ships
including the Pride of Baltimore, The Niagara
and the El Galion a Spanish Galion will be in
port July7th thru the 10th. This is a Marine
Event of National Significance (MENS) an
international gathering of ships. We are also
the first U.S. Port in the Tall Ships Challenge!
A great honor for our village to host such
an event! To put this into perspective cities
such as Cleveland is the host port. Due to the
RNC convention they were unable to host it
this year. This is a continued step towards
a vision to open not just Fairport Harbor to
a tourism based economy but Lake County
as well. Fairport Harbor is a destination that
folks will want to not only visit but also call
home! We have partnered with the Lake
County Visitors Bureau and many Corporate
Sponsors to bring this to our shores. Sincere
thanks to Osborne Sand and Stone for the
use of the dock space. The Fairport Harbor
Heritage Foundation (FHHF) is the event
organizer. Special thanks to Cecelia Duer of
Spirit of America, Pam Morse of Morse Van
Lines and Rick Osborne Jr. who have led
Tall Ships Fairport Harbor. There are many
behind the scenes bringing this to fruition.
Everyone’s hard work and dedication is truly
appreciated. Please check out the web site
Tallshipsfairportharbor.com for tickets and
volunteer opportunities.
Timothy S. Manross
Mayor
The Village is also grateful for their
assistance with beautification in the
business district by purchasing the
potted plants along High Street.
A big thank you to the Service
Department for re-striping the business
district, weeding and further beautifying the district.
CDBG A Success!
The Village received a $75,000 grant from
the Community Development Block Grant
program (CDBG). Thank you to Lake County Commissioners and the Lake County
Planning Dept. in making Fairport’s Sewer
separation program a success. This year
we were able to assist four residents with
separating their sewer lines to prevent
flooding. The Village is pleased with the
work of John Kelleher and Company.
A Few Things About
Yard Waste
Tony Scheiber’s Hauling picks up bagged
yard waste on the FIRST and THIRD
Mondays of the month, from April 1
through December 1. Use only paper yard
waste bags or reusable containers clearly
marked with the letters YW for Yard
Waste. Please do not overload the bags or
containers.
Sticks should be kept to 4 foot lengths and
tied in small bundles for ease in handling.
If you have any questions, please call Tony
Scheiber’s Hauling at 440-388-0276.
Grass Clippings/Leaves
Please be aware that grass in the streets end
up in the catch basins, which are our primary
defense against flooding. Blowing grass
clippings or putting other yard waste into the
street is also a violation of Village Ordinances
and can result in a citation and fine.
Fire Prevention
We would like to remind residents to
change their smoke detector batteries and
to replace the entire detector after ten
years. Call the fire station if you need batteries, detectors, or assistance with your
installation. It’s also a very good idea to
install a Carbon Monoxide detector. If you
have any questions, please call the Village
Fire Department.
Prepare to Set Sail!
Join us on the shores of Lake Erie for the
Tall Ships Festival 2016! The Fairport Harbor Heritage Foundation has partnered
with the Tall Ships Challenge to bring you
this prestigious event. Only a handful of
Great Lakes ports have the privilege of
hosting this event. This event promises to
the largest event in our region’s history,
including ship tours, day sails, educational
programming, food and beverage, entertainment, and fun for the whole family!
The Tall Ships races were first held in 1956
as a farewell to the Great Age of Sail. Five
of the world’s greatest square riggers raced
from Torbay, England, to Lisbon, Portugal.
Now known as the Tall Ships Challenge
series and organized by Tall Ships of
America, the races have turned into an
annual affair where hundreds of tall ships
from around the world meet for friendly
competition and adoration from thousands of fans. So don’t miss this chance to
step aboard, explore, and even set sail with
expertly trained crews excited to give you
nautical memories that will last a lifetime!
Ships Participating:
1. Appledore IV
2. Appledore V
3. S/V Denis Sullivan
4. Draken Harald Harfagre
5. El Galeon Andalucia
6. Mis of Avalon
7. Pride of Baltimore II
8. U.S. Brig Niagara
9. When and If
Mardis Gras
The 75th Fairport Mardi Gras Festival is
here! This year’s celebration begins June
30 at 7pm with the annual parade led by
Fairport Harding High School band and
concludes July 4th with a spectacular fireworks display on our beautiful beach!
The celebration run by volunteers who
either currently live in or grew up in
Fairport Harbor and the money raised
from this festival is reinvested into our
community! The Fairport Mardi Gras provides fun and entertainment for people of
all ages, some of this year’s events include
a 5k race and a 2 mile walk on Saturday
(Please see the full list of events on the
back of the newsletter)!
Fairport Mardi Gras began as a street dance
in 1941 to the celebrate the paving of Chestnut Street. In 1943, it became an incorporated non-profit organization to serve the
community of Fairport Harbor. Since 1987,
the Mardi Gras festival has donated over
$962,130 to organizations such as our fire and
departments and youth athletics.
Appledore IV
Food Donations
The Fairport Water Truck will be in the Mardi Gras parade collecting non perishable food
items for the ecumenical food pantry. Please
come to the parade and help the needy in our
community. Athletes from Harding HS will
be collecting these donations throughout the
parade route. Help us celebrate 75 years!
S/V Denis Sullivan
Pride of Baltimore II
Mayor’s Report
Continued from page 1
Park and VH. Thanks to those organizations
for helping to beautify our village.
Lastly but not any less important the community garden is alive and fully operational.
Bernadette and Ben Armbruster have almost
single handily brought this from dream to
reality. Bernadette has beaten every bush
in Lake County and the results are impressive. The shed was donated; the fencing was
re-purposed from Lubrizol. Lowes donated or
sold at cost the building materials. This is not
to diminish any of the many volunteers that
assisted. There were many and the work was
hard! I have helped on many projects over
the years, this is a special group and it has
been an honor to work with you all! If you
want a plot call the number on the sign!
Special shout out to Mike Erkkila.
See you around town,
Tim
U.S. Brig Niagara
Administrator’s Report
by Rebecca Corrigan
I would like to welcome summer to
the Village of Fairport. We have many
exciting events occurring in the Village
throughout the summer and specifically
in the month of July. Please review the list
of events in herein. We are excited that
the village has many projects underway
to make it a better place to work, play and
live-Some of these include:
• East End drainage projects;
• CDBG sewer separation project;
• Water Plant Improvement Projects;
• OPWC Road improvements projects
including Water St, Independence,
Orchard and various other streets throughout the Village;
• Grant to redesign Skate Park and
Orchard Street playground;
• Bridge opening on Richmond St-SR 535
• Storm Water Improvement projects
Application for hillside storm water issues to State of Ohio
Have a safe and happy summer!
Fiscal Report
by Jane Anthony, Fiscal Officer
At the beginning of 2015, we started with
a General Fund Balance of $925,261. At the
end of 2015, the General Fund Balance was
$625,250. In simplistic terms, that means our
expenses (appropriations) exceeded our revenues by approximately $273,000. In 2015, the
two biggest sources of revenue were Municipal Income Taxes and Real Property Taxes.
These two sources account for 63% of all the
revenue the Village receives. The two largest
areas of expenses in 2015 were the Police and
Fire Departments which account for 58% of
all expenses paid by the Village.
At the end of 2016, we are projecting a
General Fund Balance of approximately
$420,000. Again, this means that expenses
will exceed revenues. As in 2015, the two
largest revenue sources for the Village are
Municipal Income Taxes and Real Property
Taxes (accounting for 64% of all revenues).
Likewise, the two largest 2016 expense items
for the Village are the Police and Fire Departments (accounting for 60% for all expenses).
We are continuing to trim the budget and
look for creative methods to maximize revenues and minimize expenses. However, the
road is not easy with our aging infrastructure
of the Village. We are open to suggestions
and would encourage each resident to become familiar with the Village’s finances.
Fire Department Jet Ski
by Chief Jeff Hogya
In May of this year our Fire Department
received a donation of a 2003 Jet Ski from
the Spirit of America group. This Jet Ski will
allow our Water Rescue Team to deploy personnel on the lake for rescues in a much faster time period and during almost any water
condition. Previously we had to wait for the
Coast Guard to go out and try and retrieve
our patient and the delay at times was very
long which in turn can cost us valuable time
should somebody be seriously injured.
Along with this donation they also donated
a trailer, 5 training buoys with anchors and a
rescue sled for placing the patient on to bring
into the dock area. They also provided to us
free of charge an 8-hour training course, We
are working on getting this unit in service for
the summer months.
This was made possible by a relationship
developed with Cecilia Duer from the Spirit
of America and a lot of hard work by Lt.
Richard Rousch. Cecilia is also working with
us to place a loaner board for life safety vests
at the Port Authority to allow people to borrow safety vests for their water activities and
return them afterwards for others to use.
Lake Erie Cocktail
If you are looking for one great recipe for superb drinking water, look no further! All the
steps are very easy to follow! Most of us here
in Lake County get our drinking water right
from Lake Erie. We turn on the faucet, and
receive refreshing, clean, drinking water. But
that fresh glass of water can start out very
dirty. Did you know that all the rainwater
that flows into the street and storm sewers
goes untreated to our area rivers and Lake
Erie? Yes, that’s right! Follow this recipe
below to make sure that our Lake Erie
drinking water stays clean:
We also received a $50,000 grant that
Lt. Rousch wrote for the purchase of a new
air cascade system for filling our breathing
apparatus. This unit replaces a compressor
that was well over 30 years old that was
obtained from the Willoughby Fire
Department. This unit will be up to the latest
standards and technologies allowing us to fill
higher pressure bottles and providing longer
work and rescue times for our personnel.
Summer Grilling Tips
The summer months are upon us and that
means more frequent grilling. Please remember to avoid disposing of hot ashes into
your normal trash receptacles. These ashes
should be allowed to completely cool prior to
disposal. Additionally all grills whether they
are gas fired or charcoal should not be placed
on porches or near any structure.
We would like to remind everybody there
are State issued open burning regulations
and these are available at the Fire Department should you like a copy.
Have a happy and safe summer!
Directions:
1. Always clean up after your pets. That pet
waste contains bacteria and parasites.
2. Never dump yard waste on the banks of a
stream, or in a storm sewer.
3. Fix any leaks of oil or antifreeze from your
car to keep stormwater pollutants out of
Lake Erie. If you change the oil in your car at
home, take the used oil to an area auto parts
store or the Household Hazardous Waste Collection Days at the Lake County Fairgrounds.
4. Throw most trash in the garbage. Take
large, items directly to the Lake County
Landfill for proper disposal. For more information, call the Lake County Stormwater
Management Dept. at (440) 350-5900.
Village Directory
Fairport Harbor Village Hall
220 Third Street
Fairport Harbor, Ohio 44077
(440) 352-3620
Village Administrator
Rebecca Corrigan
Fiscal Officer
Jane Anthony
Mayor
Timothy S. Manross
Cell: (440) 413-0440
Village Council
Anthon Bertone, President, (440) 358-0862
Verne Horton, (440) 417-8178
Douglas Harrison, (440) 357-9094
Jerry Hites, (440) 479-3494
Jeffrey McKinney II, (440) 392-6194
Frank Sarosy, (440) 223-7172
Village Council Meetings are held at 6:30pm
on the first and third Tuesday of the month
at the Fairport Harbor Senior / Community
Center, 1380 East Street. Summer months
July -September, first Tuesday only.
Fairport Harbor Village Hall
220 Third Street
Fairport Harbor, Ohio 44077
(440) 352-3620
Office Hours: 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Fairportharbor.org
Fairport Community Gardens
As you may have noticed, the Community Garden
(location just north of the Senior Center) is in full
swing for the 2016 growing season with only a
few plots remaining! This project is brought to the
Village by the Fairport Harbor Heritage Foundation, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.
The Community Garden is an organic, grassroots
volunteer project funded fully by the gracious
financial, raw material and volunteer labor
donations from local residents, area businesses,
and other community organizations.
This garden project is spearheaded by residents
Bernadette & Ben Armbruster with additional
fundraising & donation coordination provided
by Trisha Schock and many hours of backbreaking work provided by our dedicated gardeners!
Current business donors are: Lowes, Home Depot,
PCIC, Lubrizol, Hill Hardware, Lake County Landscape Supplies, Scheibers Hauling, Hooks, Handy
Rents, Fairport Harbor VFW, and donations from
our gofundme donation page.
Upcoming Events
June 30th- Mardi Gras 5-Day Celebration Begins.
Parade (7pm)
July 1- Senior Day (1-5pm)
July 2- Kids Day (1-5pm)-Rides thru 6pm
July 2-Alumni Dance Fairport Senior Center (7pm)
July 2-5k Race and 2 Mile Walk (8:30am)
July 3- Veteran’s Day (1-4pm)-Entertainment Tent
July 4- Fireworks on the Beach at Dusk
July 7- Tall Ships Parade of Sail (4pm)
July 8- Tall Ships Tours, Day Sails and more (12-5pm)
July 9- Tall Ships Tours, Day Sails and more (10am-5pm)
July 9- Tall Ships VIP Event (6-9pm)
July 10- Tall Ships Tours, Day Sails and more (10am-5pm)
2016 Summer Concert Series on the Hill every Sunday!
Beginning June 19 - August 21, 2016 (4-6pm)
near the lighthouse museum