Saturday, October 13th, 2012

Boathouse dedicated on lake

By William Kincaid
Photo by William Kincaid/The Daily Standard

Montezuma Fire Department Chief Ron Schulze speaks on Friday night during a dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony of the department's new boathouse on Windy Point.

MONTEZUMA - In just 2.5 minutes, the Montezuma Fire Department's rescue boat, Muskrat 1, can be lowered from the new boathouse on Windy Point into Grand Lake, enabling firefighters to cut their response time by 15 minutes.
Fire chief Ron Schulze, Ohio Department of Natural Resources Director Jim Zehringer and other officials spoke on Friday evening during a dedication of the department's new 30-by-36 foot boathouse.
Montezuma firefighters secured a 25-year-lease with ODNR to use a parcel of state land near the entrance of Windy Point for the boathouse at no cost, Schulze said.
"It's so important the job that you guys do," Zehringer said. "We're (ODNR) just happy to be a smart part of that having the land here ... it's great that we have the partnership."
The lake now has three boathouses - one on the east end, one on the west end and one on the southwest corner, Brian Miller, manager of Grand Lake St. Marys State Park, said.
"It was just a no-brainer to me," Miller said about the construction of a new boathouse. "It was a real good fit. This is another project that shows the community's dedication to Grand Lake St. Marys."
Previously, firefighters had to move the boat out of the firehouse along state Route 219, drive it to a dock and ramp it into the lake before they could descend on the scene of an accident.
Now they'll be able to reach emergencies on the lake much quicker.
"It's a quicker response," Miller said. "We all know about the golden hour."
The boathouse cost $55,000 and was financed through the department's 1.5-mill operating levy and donations.
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Less kids, smaller budgets.
An average 11 percent plunge in area school enrollment over 15 years has resulted in fewer state dollars, reductions in staff and less opportunities for students, officials say.
CELINA - Shoppers were evacuated from Walmart Supercenter for about an hour Friday afternoon after a suspicious package was found in the parking lot.
Rockford
ROCKFORD - Local police continue to investigate a break-in that occurred early Friday morning in the 500 block of South Franklin Street.
Police Chief Paul May said a son of the property owner alerted authorities shortly before 6 a.m.
Daily Standard View
Grand Lake has had little activity the past four summers thanks to the toxic blue-green algae choking it. Pontoons and jet skis that once dominated its shores have been replaced by alum-carrying barges and sludge-sucking dredges.
COLDWATER - The Coldwater Cavaliers did what they needed to do in order to wrap up at least a share of the Midwest Athletic Conference title on Friday night with a 27-0 whitewash of the Marion Local Flyers.
ST. HENRY - A solid combination of offense and defense helped St. Henry snap a two-game losing streak with a 34-8 victory over Parkway on Friday night in Midwest Athletic Conference action at the Wally Post Athletic Complex.
KENTON - A trio of offensive miscues in the red zone during the first half came back to haunt Celina's football team as Kenton edged the Bulldogs 46-42 on Friday night in Western Buckeye League action from Robinson Field.
Western Buckeye League Roundup
Compiled by Gary R. Rasberry
Ottawa-Glandorf put up 21 points in each of the first two quarters en route to a 62-0 blowout win over St. Marys on Friday night in Western Buckeye League action at Baughman Stadium.
Compiled by Gary R. Rasberry
Versailles scored with 2:20 left in the game to pull within two points, but the Tigers missed the two-point conversion and St. John's held on for a 20-18 Midwest Athletic Conference win on Friday in Stadium Park in Delphos.
Division II State Girls Golf Tournament
Compiled by Gary R. Rasberry
Coldwater's junior Kelsey Koesters started the Division II girls state golf tournament in solid fashion on Friday, staying close to the top 10 after the first day of action at the Ohio State University Gray Course in Columbus.