New Philadelphia officials hear airport hangar proposal

Members of the New Philadelphia Airport Commission gave a presentation to council on a proposal to build a new all-metal 12-bay hangar at Harry Clever Field.

Council will need to give approval for an application for a $641,000 State Infrastructure Bank loan to help fund the project, which would also include a taxi way around the new hangar.

The entire project would cost around $1.5 million, but commission members noted the hangar would create new revenue streams in the form of increased fuel and maintenance sales along with hangar rental fees.

Federal and state funding would cover the cost of design for the project and construction of the taxi way, but the loan would be needed to fund construction of the hangar.

Hangar rental fees would be used to pay back the loan.

Commission member Bob Bedard pointed out that many of the hangars at Harry Clever Field were built in the 1940s and 1950s and are too small to accommodate modern aircraft.

Member Don Kennedy said he hoped council would approve the SIB loan to help make the airport the best it can be. “We hope you see this as an economic benefit and can help us do that by approving a SIB loan for us to complete this project, pretty much funded by the federal government.”

Currently, there are 18 people on the waiting list for hangar space, he said.

Council took no action on the request.

Health Commissioner Nichole Bache addressed council on a proposal to merge the New Philadelphia Health Department with the Tuscarawas County Health Department as a cost-saving measure.

She pointed out the county charges much more for the services it provides residents than does the city health department. For instance, the city charges $448 for inspection of individual public pools, while the county charges $604. She said that is a 34.8% increase.

The fee for a low-risk mobile food truck is $55.50 in New Philadelphia. The county charges $145. That is a 216.9% increase, she said.

Bache described these higher fees as a “backdoor tax” on residents and businesses.

Council gave first reading to an ordinance to increase the fee for a permit for a three-day garage sale from $1 to $5. Mayor Joel Day said the fee has not been increased since 1989. Neighboring cities are charging $5 for a garage sale permit, he added.

Council also gave first reading to an ordinance that would prohibit passing on the right on Tuscarawas Avenue in front of West Elementary during school days. Safety Director Kevin Milligan said this ordinance would address a potential safety issue at the school.

The mayor reported that the Ohio Mid-Eastern Governments Association has begun its move from Cambridge to the Tolloty Technology Incubator building on Tech Park Drive. The relocation should be completed within a month.

Day also reported on the success of two recent events in the city.

Prior to the spring Trout Derby at Tuscora Park, 1,500 trout were put into the pond at the park. An estimated 600 trout were fished out during the derby May 2. He noted that the trout are still biting and encouraged residents to head to the park and “throw in a line.”

An estimated 1,500 people attended the downtown Art on the Alley May 3, the mayor said. Some people came from as far away as Cleveland and western Pennsylvania for the event.

He also commended Chris Born, a New Philadelphia City Schools retiree, for restoring the entrance pillars at East Avenue Cemetery on Delaware Drive SE. Born’s father, Guy, built the pillars in 1930. “Chris takes great pride in his masonry talent, and it shows,” Day said. “Memorial Day weekend would be a great time for a visit.”