Message from the Mayor, August 2022

Hello Residents,

It has been a very busy summer for the Village with expansion projects by several retail and industrial businesses as well as infrastructure improvements with repaving projects and storm sewer repairs.

We appreciate your tolerance for the inconveniences and for exercising patience while continuing to support our local businesses and Village in general. We are in communication on a few additional potential major expansions in our Village, which, if they become reality, will be tremendous value-added amenities to our Village. In my years of being Mayor, I’ve never felt more challenged with many important issues facing our Village and our country.

Trying to structure our operations to ensure we continue to provide quality service now and in the future has become a fulltime endeavor. I am thankful for the support of our current employees including administration, as well as elected officials that all work together to ensure we achieve the best possible results.

These challenges include succession planning as we need to ensure the expertise we have today is available tomorrow, water supply expansion that has become very complex and expensive, working on ways to improve the quantity of available employees to support our valued business partners and financially forecasting in an economy that in my 50 years of adulthood I’ve never experienced. It will take all our synergies to ensure our path forward is logical and sustainable. All our businesses and residents have and will always be our top priority.   I personally enjoy the current quality of life our Village provides.

I recently met with Cardinal School’s new superintendent, Jack Cunningham. He asked me what I wanted from him. I’ve said many times the quality of a community depends on the quality of the local school system. So, my wishes are basic: I want to see our State Ranking improve. I don’t think the analogy of not being any worse than a neighboring school is comforting. We need to have a reputation that makes people want to locate here for the educational opportunities. I also relayed; in my opinion our youth are not being given basic life skills. They don’t know how to work efficiently or have any comprehension of effective money management. These are two skills you need regardless of what career path you decide to pursue. A good work ethic is a benefit in any occupation, and I blame the schools and parents for not providing the habits and tools our youth need to be contributing members of society. We all need to do a better job of fulfilling our obligation to our youth to equip them for adulthood. When I met with Jack, he was just becoming familiar with the position, and I wished him the best and the full support of the Village in every area that will add positive value.

I want to continue to see our Village improve and it won’t be a reality without serious effort by all involved. God continue to bless our Village.

Exercise your right to vote, be informed be involved, shop Middlefield Village and visit  www.middlefieldohio.com