The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
PICTURE PERFECT
Script Lorain sign nearing completion
It won’t be long until there will be a new place to snap those family photos and selfies in Lorain.
Crews will install a new 3Dsteel Lorain sign on the northeast corner of Erie and Broadway avenues, across from City Hall.
Lake Erie will serve as the backdrop.
Kuhn Fabricating, 1637 E. 28th St., which is making the sign, provided a sneak peek of the structure on Sept. 29.
The sign, which is under construction, stands seven feet at its highest point and will stretch out 17½ feet in length.
It is modeled after the Cleveland signs that have sprung up there and have been magnets for people looking to take that perfect shot and show their pride in the city.
“We absolutely hope it’s going to be like the Cleveland signs,” said Andrea Neal, a local realtor and 1980 Lorain High School graduate.
Neal was the energy behind the project, but the original idea for the sign belonged to Brian Barlebaugh who owned and operated Visual Expression on Broadway for 34 years before closing about four years ago.
The sign will be mounted on a concrete stand, which will have steps leading up to it.
Jon Veard Jr., of Veard Construction, is donating the work and materials for the pad.
“I’m a Lorainite, and I firmly believe in Lorain,” Neal said when asked what motivated her
When news broke that the sign was in development and donations were being sought to pay for it, an anonymous donor stepped up and stroked a check for the full price, Neal said.
to get involved in the project.
She said she was totally on board when Bartlebaugh came to her with the idea.
Cleveland first unveiled its signs in 2016 as part of a “tourism push” according to the clevelandtraveler.com.
The signs were so popular, the city installed three more, according to the website.
The Lorain sign cost came in at $25,000.
When news broke that the sign was in development and donations were being sought to pay for it, an anonymous donor stepped up and stroked a check for the full price, Neal said.
“We thought it was going to take a year to raise the money,” Bartlebaugh said.
Before the sign is unveiled, it will be custom welded, ground down, primed and powder coated to make it weather resistant, he said.
Lorain County voters will decide whether to continue supporting the county tuberculosis testing program.
The five-year renewal levy on the Nov. 2 general election ballot comes with a reduction reflecting the improved financial position of Lorain County and lower than anticipated costs to run the program since voters last went to the ballot to have their say on the issue, officials said.
If approved, the 0.6-mill levy will raise an estimated $419,165 annually at a cost of $1.61 per $100,000 in residential property valuation, according to the Lorain County Auditor’s Office.
The previous millage rate was 0.65 mills and cost taxpayers $1.75 per $100,000 in valuation.
The state of Ohio requires TB services to be provided, and Lorain County works very closely with Mercy Health, providing treatment and testing for tuberculosis.
According to the Ohio Department of Health, 130 cases of TB were reported in Ohio in 2020 and 7,163 across the United States.
Two positive cases were reported in Lorain County during 2020.
In providing a reduction, former Lorain County
Administrator Tom Williams said in April, that with rising property values, and $1.4 million in reserves to run the program, the county wanted to give taxpayers a break where appropriate.
The previous millage amount raised approximately $500,000 annually with the program costing about $370,000 a year to administer.