The Lima News, July 7
The Maumee Watershed Conservancy District wants to build a diversion channel along the Blanchard River to try to keep the flood-prone river from flooding. The owners didn’t accept the $146,234 offered for 19 acres. When they couldn’t come to an agreement, it went to court to see if the watershed could take the property with eminent domain.
We’re opposed to eminent domain. Your private property is yours to do what you please with, so long as your uses for it don’t violate the rights of your neighbors. And we’re really uncomfortable with a government entity eyeing your property, offering you less than you think it’s worth and then taking it and paying what it wanted if you decline the original offer.
It’s doubly difficult when you’re talking about the flood-prone Blanchard River.
Among other questions is whether the river is actually still flood-prone. Yes, 15 of the highest 25 crests in the history of the river occurred in the last 15 years, showing there was a problem. Yet none of those are in the past two years.
Online: http://bit.ly/2u9DR9S
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The Cincinnati Enquirer, July 7
About a week ago, this editorial board called for Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters to seek a third trial of former University of Cincinnati Police Officer Ray Tensing, who unarguably shot and killed motorist Sam DuBose during a traffic stop. We emphasized, however, that if the prosecutor did move forward it should be with lesser charges and a change of venue.
It has since come to light that bringing lesser charges of reckless or negligent homicide against Tensing is no longer an option. Deters said just this week that his office had 270 days after Tensing’s original indictment to bring forth previously uncharged crimes. That time, he said, passed long ago.
Given that lesser, and frankly more reasonable, charges are no longer on the table, we cannot in good conscience advocate going forward with another trial. We stand by our initial position that a “draw” is an unacceptable outcome and that the community and the DuBose and Tensing families deserve closure. We continue to believe that leaving this case unresolved could be more damaging and dangerous to our community in the end.
Online: http://cin.ci/2tFQmqQ
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The (Newark) Advocate, July 11
On Monday it will have been one month since the tragic events in Kirkersville.
As we move forward from those events to try to make a better system for our community we must go with eyes open that the fixes won’t be free.
Yes it was appropriate to be angry that Thomas Hartless was released from jail early despite a violent past.
But we also must have an understanding of how the system works, and how much it costs, to have an honest discussion on appropriate changes.
As Bethany Bruner pointed out in her story last week, municipal probation officers already are tasked with a lot. The nine officers are handling an average of more than 100 cases each. That is a lot of people to ensure are following the rules, especially when many of them have a history of breaking such rules.
The internal investigation spurred by the Hartless case will now demand more work from those officers. This includes completing additional assessments with domestic violence offenders, seeking victims for more information on the offender and providing victims with information on services available to them.
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All of those reforms make sense. We should be taking reasonable steps to protect victims from further hurt and to keep offenders from having the means to strike again.
Online: http://ohne.ws/2tZFDtO
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The Canton Repository, July 11
Lawmakers from both political parties advocate for increased infrastructure spending to revive the American economy and rebuild cities both big and small.
Though disagreement over how to pay for such improvements has blocked any serious legislation, one bill in the U.S. House of Representatives deserves passage. House Bill 1158 doesn’t address roads, bridges, sewer and water systems or airports. But it does expand a highly successful historic tax credit program that has been used to stabilize cities across the country, including Canton. Currently, the program awards a 20 percent income tax credit to developers who are restoring historic properties. HB 1158 would increase the credit to 30 percent for some projects and allow other credits to be transferred to smaller projects, as The Canton Repository’s Alison Matas reported Friday.
We’ve witnessed the transformative effect on downtown Canton from of such projects as the Historic Onesto Hotel and Event Center and Bliss Lofts. We anticipate that revitalization of the 26-acre Hercules Engine Co. property, another beneficiary of historic tax credits, will do the same to the southern edge of the city’s center.
Online: http://bit.ly/2tFFx82
