Caledonia Argus II

07/08/2025

There was a regular session of Caledonia's Village Council last night at Village Hall.

The meeting commenced with Mayor Ken Tennar re-stating his recent dictate regarding the very restrictive public comment policy. After which time--prior to discussion of any official business--he granted the public a brief opportunity to speak.

Dan Rengert, a resident of N High Street, spoke about a severe flooding issue that impacts his property and other property owners near the intersection of Harrison Street. According to Mr. Rengert, the problem is due to improper street grading and not the result of a clogged storm sewer. Mr. Rengert stated that his property regularly floods with 3 to 4" of water whenever it rains.

Although the mayor and council did not immediately respond to Mr. Rengert, later on in the meeting, they did state that they would send someone out to inspect the issue, presumably Dave Hempstead.

The next member of the public to speak was Nicholas Bacquedano, who recommended that the village scan the village ordinances to a PDF form that may be downloaded by members of the public. Ideally, the village would upload its ordinances to a public website--like almost every other municipality in the area currently does.

Village officials eventually responded to Mr. Bacquedano's concerns by saying that it is currently seeking to develop a website within which the ordinances will be posted. This project has been pending for many months, however, and little to no progress has been made. Instead of hiring a reputable web design company, the village has relied on the otherwise volunteer efforts of Councilman Codi Kitts and Zoning Inspector Shane Napper to design and build the website.

Sharon Johnson of the Friends of Caledonia then addressed council, in order to notify it of the details of its upcoming Festival on the Square, which will occur on the 8th and 9th of August 2025. All the necessary permits and insurance have been obtained for the $22,000 event. Mrs. Johnson informed the council that her organization will begin setting up on Thursday, the 7th of August and will erect barricades in the downtown area.

She also wanted to clarify that the beer garden will serve until 11:45 pm and the event will close down as 12:00 am. Music will cease at 11:30 pm.

Special duty sheriff's deputies will be on site to provide security during the festival. Public notice of street closures and other relevant matters will be posted at the Post Office and at Village Hall prior to the event.

Councilwoman Maureen Welch expressed concern that the festival hours would conflict with a village curfew ordinance. However, Deputy Dutton of the Marion County Sheriff's Department quickly responded that 12:00 am is the countywide curfew, so it should not be a problem. Nonetheless, with Ms. Welch's concerns still persisting, Council voted on a resolution to permit the festival to operate until 12:00 am both nights.

The next item on the agenda involved the Bowstring Bar & Grill's outdoor space on the lot to the south of the bar, which was formerly occupied by the Camouflage Cafe. Mayor Tennar claimed to have spoken with state liquor control officials and Clint Canterbury of First Consolidated Fire Department, who informed him that unless and until the bar obtains an expansion to its liquor license and installs a 3' tall barricade fence around the perimeter of the lot, no alcohol may be consumed on the lot.

Toward the end of the meeting, an additional complaint came up regarding the bar’s weekly bike night. Bar stools were allegedly placed on the west side of Water Street in front of the bar, apparently to reserve the parking spots for motorcycle patrons. Council clarified that the street may not be blocked or barricaded without special permission granted by council.

Next up on the agenda was supposed to be an update on the installation of mulching at Anselment Park; however, Councilwoman Maureen Welch was placed in charge of that project and she did not take action on it during the prior month and was unable to provide an update.

Council then discussed the need for additional traffic signs in the village as well as replacement of several old signs. The plan is to contract with the Marion County Engineer's office to purchase the signs. Additionally, in order to comply with state law, most "No Parking Here to the Corner" signs will need to moved from their current locations, since they are not currently set back the required 25 feet.

No action was taken on the American Legion Worcester Post #401’s request to purchase the War Memorial lot from the village. According to an opinion by the village’s solicitor, Dave Stamolis, who was once again absent from the meeting, the village would need to offer it for sale to the public at large. The listing would need to be published in the newspaper for a period of five weeks and then bids accepted, with the winning bid being the highest and best.

Alternatively, the village could donate the lot to the Marion County Land Bank, who could then donate it to the Legion. However, there is no guarantee that the Land Bank would donate it and there’s no condition that could be placed on the transfer by the village that would require it to be subsequently transferred to the Legion.
As a result, no further action was taken by council on the matter. There was some discussion, however, on the possibility of leasing it to the Legion. Unfortunately, since Solicitor Stamolis was not present at the meeting, no legal advice on the matter was immediately available.

Next, the annual budget for the village was presented by members of the Finance Committee. Although Ohio Law requires that all committee meetings be open to the public and that the public be notified of their occurrence beforehand, no such notice appears to have been provided by the village and, as such, no members of the public were able to attend the committee meeting to ask questions about what items would be included or omitted from the budget. Despite this lack of oversight, council unanimously approved the budget as submitted by the Finance Committee, which is chaired by Councilwoman Maureen Welch.

Following up on the items listed in the budget after noticing that it didn't contain funds for mosquito spraying, Councilwoman Kathie Phillian asked whether that was something that could be added. Councilwoman Welch replied that no funds were allocated in the budget, since the village did not have any spraying service providers, as the individual formerly hired by the village has since passed away. Council committed to seeking another provider and instructed Village Clerk-Treasurer Pam Bryant to contact the village of Mount Gilead to inquire as to its spraying service provider.

Councilwoman Phillian then provided an update on the list of grant funded project proposals that was submitted to Access Engineering in June. She provided helpful supplementary documentation to Access Engineering, so that it would have more detail from the village and could better understand what projects the village would like to see prioritized. The deadline for Access to submit its initial application to the state on behalf of the village is August 1st.

Councilwoman Phillian also brought up the matter of the mayor's unilateral decision to hire a Marion County Sheriff's deputy for all council meetings--despite the fact that council never voted to do so or to appropriate the funds outside of the regular annual service contract. Although Deputy Dutton stated that he was receiving Special Duty for last month's meeting, when asked about this meeting, he stated that he was there pursuant to the village's contract. This begs the question as to whether his presence at the meeting will be in lieu of a deputy's presence in the village on another night. If so, the implication is that Mayor Tennar made the unjustified and unilateral decision to exchange the village's protection for an entire night of patrolling the streets and deterring crime for two hours of unnecessary and sedentary protection from peaceful members of the public at the council meeting.

The evening closed after a few brief updates from council committees and representatives. Councilman Gary Hundley, who serves on the Fire Board, stated that River Valley's construction projects will be completed in August and that the deal for the Frontier property at the intersection of State Route 98 and State Route 309 has closed.

Councilwoman Phillian, who serves as the village's community events representative, stated that the Caledonia Memorial Methodist Church will be hosting a craft fair in October. Councilwoman Welch added that the church will also be hosting a pancake breakfast on Saturday, August 9th from 9 am to noon.

There was no update from the village's representative with Marion County Regional Planning, Councilwoman Maureen Welch. She did not attend Regional Planning's most recent meeting, so she could not provide an update on what's happening at the county level from a development standpoint or any potential impact locally.

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07/07/2025

A regular meeting of the Caledonia Village Council is scheduled for tomorrow, the 7th of July, at 7 pm at Village Hall.

According to the agenda, old business will include:

1) an update on the Bowstring Bar & Grill's outdoor space;

2) mulching of Van Anselment Park;

3) street signs throughout the village, to include speed limit signs and no parking signs; and

4) the proposed transfer by the Village of Caledonia of Parcel #050050007400, which contains the Caledonia War Memorial, to the Caledonia American Legion Worcester Post #401.

New business will include:

1) Discussion of the Caledonia Festival on the Square, which is sponsored by the Friends of Caledonia 501c3 non-profit organization and will be held on the 8th and 9th of August 2025;

2) Approval of the 2026 budget for the village of Caledonia, despite no publicly held meetings beforehand; and

3) Discussion of Marion County Engineer signs.

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07/06/2025

Aqua Ohio has issued a notice to customers in the Caledonia and Martel area that due to a water main break, which has been repaired, there is a boil advisory until further notice within the areas shaded in orange on the map.

06/27/2025

The village of Caledonia will hold its annual garage sale extravaganza this weekend, from Friday the 27th to Saturday the 28th.

The Argus has created the attached map of garage sales that will be held in town; however, there may be more that haven't provided notice, so be sure to drive around to make sure that you don't miss one.

Here's a brief description of what will be offered at each sale:

410 S Water St: lots of baby/nursing items, TVs, men’s clothes, woman’s clothes, baby/toddler clothes, men’s and women’s shoes, books and more;

122 S Water St: lots of glass/dishes/household items, patio sets, games/puzzles and some clothes;

516 S Elm St: tons of clothes for teens to women, some younger clothing as well. A few household items. All clothes will be $1/item;

125 W Marion St: brand new womens and kids clothes! Home decor, brand new bedding and rugs, swim items and kids toys;

225 N Main St: Estate sale

305 N Main St: clothes for 1$ a bag, small vintage trinkets and decor, and lots of miscellaneous tools and other items too! Vintage furniture, Y2K clothing, and vintage Barbie;

527 N Elm St: Team Heart & Sole.

Hours may vary, but as the old adage goes: the early bird gets the worm! Most sales will likely begin at 8 am or 9 am, so plan accordingly.

There will also be sales in the surrounding countryside, so be sure to check those out as well.

06/20/2025

The village of Caledonia has contracted with Mid-State Blacktop, Inc out of Shelby, OH to re-surface approximately 1300 linear feet on S High Street, from the south side of the intersection with South Street to a lot and a half south of the intersection with Dana Street.

It will also be re-surfacing a small section of S Water Street, roughly 775 linear feet, just to the south of the intersection with Cemetary Rd to the south side of the intersection with Dana Street.

The project areas are highlighted in yellow on the accompanying map of the village.

Mid-State will be milling down 1.5" of the current surface, applying an SS-1 tack coat, and re-surfacing the area with 1.5" of 448-1 asphalt.

The total square footage of the project is approximately 53,380 sq ft.

For the work, the village will be paying Mid-State an estimated total of $71,800.00.

Estimates were also obtained from Park Enterprise Construction, Inc. out of Marion and Iberia Earthworm Construction, LLC out of Iberia.

Competitive bidding by sealed bid was not mandated and therefore not considered by the village, as the contract was below the Ohio Revised Code Section 9.17's threshold of $77,250.00. Projects above that amount are required by law to be posted for sealed bid.

Village officials initially scheduled construction to commence next week; however, once the public was notified via the social media post of Councilwoman Kathie Phillian, it was relayed to the officials that the construction project, which would have closed down those sections of the village, would have conflicted with the village's annual yard sale event scheduled for that weekend. As a result, the officials decided to re-schedule the project's commencement date, which at this point is to-be-determined.

06/15/2025

The Argus took a trip to the village of Prospect today to inspect several Low-to-Moderate Income (LMI) grant-funded projects that were recently completed in the village.

Several years ago, Prospect found itself in the same position as the village of Caledonia in that, due to how the state government calculated the median household income of its residents, it was considered "high income" and, therefore, ineligible to receive LMI grant funds.

With the assistance of Access Engineering and competent members of the local government, Prospect underwent an income resurvey project and was determined by the state of Ohio to be eligible to receive LMI grant funds.

Last year alone, the village received in excess of $1.2 million in these funds, which it utilized to improve streets, curbs, sidewalks, and to build a new park--which contains not only new playground equipment, but also additional recreational opportunities such as a basketball court and a tennis court.

The village of Caledonia was recently approved by the state of Ohio to be eligible to apply for LMI grants. Assuming its leadership follows Prospect's example, it should be able to secure similar infrastructure and recreational improvements for village residents at no cost to Caledonia taxpayers.

06/13/2025

First a Bobcat (Lynx rufus) is spotted just to the east of Caledonia over the weekend, and now a Black Bear (Ursus americanus) is sighted in Harmony Township in Morrow County--about 15 miles, as the Crow flies or bear walks, southeast of the village of Caledonia.

According to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR), both of these occurrences are rather rare events in this part of the state.

Native to the Buckeye state, both species were extirpated (eliminated from a geographic area, but not extinct) from the state by the 1850s.

ODNR data indicates that Black Bears began returning to extreme eastern Ohio in the 1930s and have gradually been expanding their territory since then. However, those early sightings were never confirmed by state wildlife officials.

Today, most of the state's Black Bears can be found in eastern and southern Ohio, with most sightings in the extreme northeastern counties of Ashtabula, Geauga, and Trumbull.

Solitary male bears will roam, typically in late Spring, in search of new territory and potential mates. It is during this time that they're sighted in areas in which they're not typically found.

Morrow and Marion counties have not had a confirmed bear sighting since at least 1993, according to the ODNR data.

Bobcats have a similar story as their Black Bear counterparts. The first confirmed sighting that was acknowledged by the state occurred in Guernsey County in 1971. Since then, there have been over 3500 sightings, primarily in the eastern and southern parts of Ohio.

The first confirmed sighting of a Bobcat in Marion County occurred in 2019; Morrow and Crawford counties saw their first in 2014; while Delaware's was in 2012 and Union's in 2019.

As of 2020, there had been no confirmed sightings in Wyandot or Hardin counties.

If trends continue, these two native species will continue to expand their ranges across the state and contribute to increased biodiversity and ecological health of the environment.

06/11/2025

“A popular Government, without popular information, or the means of acquiring it, is but a Prologue to a Farce or a Tragedy; or, perhaps both. Knowledge will forever govern ignorance: And a people who mean to be their own Governors, must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives.” -- James Madison, 1822

Unlike in President Madison's day, we live in the so-called Information Age, where the world is quite literally at our fingertips with virtually zero effort or cost.

We can travel to the far corners of the world in an instant through the power of the internet. We can acquire knowledge with little effort and cost that previously took a lifetime of toil and expense to acquire.

And yet, there's still dark regions of the world, even right in our backyards, where information is withheld from the public, despite the ease with which it could be publicly disseminated at little to no effort or cost.

If you asked Artificial Intelligence (AI) to define what it means for a person to be "transparent," it would tell you that "transparency refers to the ability to be open and honest, with no hidden agendas or secrets. It means being readily perceived and understood, both in terms of one's thoughts and feelings, as well as one's actions and intentions. A transparent person is authentic and genuine, readily sharing relevant information without hesitation."

The same computer-derived definition may be used when talking about transparency in government as well.

So how transparent are our local governments in this area?

Here's a chart that compares some key items amongst incorporated municipalities of 500 or more residents within a 15-mile radius of the village of Caledonia.

To truly empower our people, as the preservation of our Republic requires, we should endeavor to increase transparency in government and to freely share public information as a community at every opportunity.

06/10/2025

The Argus was contacted by Corrine Yager regarding a male Shepherd mix that recently arrived at her home located in the 2900 block of Caledonia Northern Rd, about 1/3 of a mile south of Linn Hipsher Rd, in Section 36 of Scott Township.

If you or someone you know is aware of this well-behaved fellow's owners, please contact Mrs. Yager.

Thank you

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06/07/2025

It was a beautiful day in Caledonia's historic Square as retailers and patrons gathered to enjoy another iteration of the Caledonia Farmers Market.

Held each Saturday between 10 am and 1 pm from June to September, the market offers many locally sourced goods for sale, including fresh produce, baked goods, plants/flowers, and craft items.

06/05/2025

Another important topic of discussion that occurred at the June 2nd meeting of Caledonia Village Council was the unveiling of Council's priorities for grant funded projects in 2026 and beyond.

During the May 12th Special Meeting of Council, Craig Mescher of Access Engineering, the firm that will be assisting the Village in the process of applying for grant funding, instructed Mayor Ken Tennar and members of Council to provide him with a "laundry list" of prioritized project proposals, so that his firm could put together a plan on behalf of the village.

Mr. Mescher noted that the deadline to submit the list to him was June 30th.

An extensive list was recommended, since there are different grant programs for different purposes. Limiting the list to a handful of items was not recommended by Mr. Mescher, since any omitted item may in fact be eligible for funding, while not all top priorities may be able to secure grant funding.

All members of Council were instructed to prepare his or her own list and those suggestions would be presented at the regular meeting on June 2nd.

During this month's meeting, Councilwoman Maureen Welch was the first to discuss her recommendations. Ms. Welch stated that she wanted to grade the alleyways and purchase a new truck for the village, as well as repave the village's streets and repair or replace its storm sewer.

She said that she "wasn't sure" about any sidewalk repairs and that she did not think that renovating Caledonia's historic Village Hall--to include its Opera House on the second floor--was a priority.

Councilwoman Kim Berry echoed her predecessor's suggestion about the streets and storm sewers.

Next up was Councilwoman Kathie Phillian, who clearly adhered to the directive of Mr. Mescher and came prepared with an extensive list of suggestions, based on personal conversations that she had with village residents, which included: 1) replacement of the village’s many dilapidated and unsafe sidewalks; 2) repair or replacement of the village’s water lines, which are old and do not generate a satisfactory level of water pressure; 3) repair or replacement of the village’s storm sewer system; 4) replacement of the old generator at the village’s sewer lift station; 5) new or additional playground equipment at Anselment Park, in addition to the potential addition of a tennis and/or pickleball court(s); 6) renovation of the historic Village Hall to include restoring the second floor Opera House for use as a community room and event space; 6) a new truck for use by the Village’s maintenance crew; and 7) repaving streets and restoration/installation of curbs.

Councilman Gary Hunley followed up with a few similar suggestions, on top of a few new ones: 1) sidewalk repair or replacement; 2) drainage system repair or replacement; 3) a new truck for the Village’s maintenance crew; 4) the construction of a recreational public pool; 5) the construction of roof-covered structures at bus stops in the Village; and 6) the establishment of a walking path or nature trail in the Village.

Councilman Codi Kitts did not prepare a list of suggestions, although he did express support for several of the suggestions proffered by his peers.

Councilman Steve Levering recommended, like the others, that the Village prioritize storm sewers; street & curb upgrades; additional investment in Anselment Park, to include additional playground equipment and security systems.

After the suggestions were made by the members of Council, Mayor Ken Tennar instructed them to submit their lists to Village Clerk/Treasurer Pam Bryant, who would prepare a finalized list to be submitted to Access Engineering on behalf of the Village.

The following day, Clerk Bryant prepared the finalized list, which contained only five items: “1) sidewalks and curbs; 2) storm, sewer drains; 3) street repairs; 4) new truck for the village; and 5) playground expansion at the park.”

Clerk Bryant did include in her letter that "I have a list of all of the suggestions from each council member if you need more."

Limiting the list to five broadly defined items is contrary to the directive of Access Engineering, which requested a “laundry list.” Again, Mr. Mescher requested an extensive and specific list—precisely because there’s a wide spectrum of grant funding available to Caledonia now that its recent income resurvey has been approved by the state of Ohio and it should try to avoid leaving money on the table.

With the list due to be submitted to Access Engineering on June 30th and no publicly held Special Meeting of Council scheduled for the month of June, the input of the citizens of Caledonia will not be considered further for this particular part of the process. Likewise, there is no opportunity for additional consideration by Village Council before the deadline. As such, the limited list is it.

06/05/2025

Bowstring Bar & Grill's Bike Night was disrupted by Marion County law enforcement tonight after a large gathering of bikers, many of whom were carrying open containers of alcohol, spilled out into the lot formerly occupied by the Camouflage Cafe, which is now owned by the proprietor of the bar, C & D Douds LLC.

Sources indicate that a complaint was submitted by a private citizen and not the result of action by local officials.

Concern for such an incident was expressed by a member of the public at the regular meeting of Village Council held on May 5th, due to the presence of a fire pit and seating on the lot.

Caledonia's Mayor Ken Tennar, who is the chief enforcement officer, apparently did nothing to address this matter beforehand, to prevent any incident from developing that may result in regulatory action by the Ohio Liquor Control Commission against one of the village's few remaining, valued businesses. Nothing was discussed at the regular session of Council held on June 2nd.

Ohio Revised Code Section 4301.62 prohibits open containers of beer and other intoxicating liquor and is the governing provision.

At the May meeting, there was discussion about the necessity of installing a fence around the perimeter of the lot in question, as proposed by Councilwoman Kathie Phillian, and of the possible requirement of a designated drinking area within that contained space. Unfortunately, there isn't any indication of public record that Mayor Tennar followed up on this.