The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Kiwanis Club hosts State of Wellington breakfast
The Kiwanis Club of Wellington hosted the seventh annual State of Wellington breakfast March 28 at the Wellington Eagles, 631 S. Main St., where village and school officials gave updates on current events and area projects.
The event featured four speakers: Wellington Village Schools Superintendent Edward Weber: Mark Donnelly, treasurer for Wellington Schools; Wellington Mayor Hans Schneider; and Village Manager Jonathan Greever.
Weber gave updates on the district’s board approved strategic plan, which involves six steps containing goal objectives focusing on improving the schools from many angles.
He will retire at the end of the
school year after eight years in Wellington and 36 years in education.
“It has been a pleasure to give an annual update on our schools,” Weber said. “When I came to the town eight years ago, the school system was struggling with academic performance and we started on the turnaround plans and improving our schools.
“Each year, we have seen some steady, positive growth.”
Donnelly provided a financial update including the school district’s budget numbers from the past four years, the projection for this year and discussed the breakdown of the revenue and where it’s being spent.
With the help of different grants, the district can take on new facility projects this year, including new public address systems, wall repairs in the high school gym, additional cameras, an automated gate for the bus lot and parking lot lights at the high school and middle school parking lots.
Greever updated on different projects around Wellington as well as those that were completed in 2023, including the wastewater treatment plant, construction of a new police station, the downtown tree replacement program and a storage facility at the Wellington Community Park.
The village has not changed electric rates in 13 years, which will adjust with the upcoming advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) project that uses a smart reader to detect electric and water usage and will send the information to the data points located around Wellington, he said.
“This will eliminate the need for manual meter reading,” Greever said. “It helps us answer questions for residents about their usage, it helps us respond to outages faster because we know immediately what’s going on.
“We’re replacing old water meters, which are inaccurate and one of the reasons that we need to do it.”
Schneider’s report included the “Beautify Wellington Initiative,” as well as updates to Town Hall; a presentation of the Employee of the Year Marla Lent; and the dedication of the wastewater treatment plant honoring Gregory Frenk, the late superintendent of the water and water treatment departments.
Construction of the Union School Park, the site of the old Union School later named McCormick Middle School, is one of the biggest projects in the village and soon will be underway due to the efforts of the Wellington Kiwanis in raising money for the first phase, which includes a playground and hydration station, he said.
“The Kiwanis has been instrumental in raising and donating funds for the playground,” Schneider said.
According to Kiwanis Club president Carol Burke, the organization saw a need for the community to come together for the State of Wellington, and be in the know, all while supporting the Kiwanis Club, which is a club for youngsters.
The organization’s main mission and focus is supporting children through different projects and fundraisers to serve as supportive adults in their lives, Burke said.
“We so rarely get together as a community, and this is an opportunity to come and see everybody and find out what’s happening,” she said. “We are always looking for members who are looking to improve the quality of life for the children in the Wellington community.”
“It’s meaningful for us (Kiwanis).”
Aside from the speakers, different entities from the village received keys to the city by the mayor for the differences they make year-round.
Pizza House, Daniel Gossman: Allstate Insurance, Colonial Barber Shop and the Wellington Kiwanis received the keys.
Burke also awarded the Kiwanian Champion of Children Award to Weber.
“He’s been very active as a Kiwanian supporting our efforts to support the children of Wellington,” she said.