Message from Mayor Kapszukiewicz
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I participated Friday morning in a ribbon cutting ceremony in North Toledo for TPAM, a subsidiary of Topia, a Japanese company that provides prototyping for the automotive industry. I congratulated and welcomed the company to our city.
It is a leading prototyping company - and one of the few specialist firms that can handle all parts of the product-making process. They join a growing number of cutting edge companies operating in and around Toledo. Its $4 million investment and creation of 30 new jobs – with the potential to hire a significant number of additional people in the next five years – was welcomed news to our city.
The company could have located anywhere in America but they selected our city. This is the firm's first manufacturing facility in the country.
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Toledo is home to the most welcoming people and the best workforce in the world. Toledo’s low cost and favorable business climate were key factors for TPAM.
I want to thank our economic development partners – the RGP, JobsOhio, and Reichle Klein Group, who worked to attract TPAM to Northwest Ohio for nearly a year.
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Toledo's North Cross Industrial Park is quickly becoming a hot spot of international investment. Directly across from TPAM is German-owned Egelhof Controls Corp., and right next door is Magna Modular Systems Inc., a division of Magna International, the largest automobile parts manufacturer in North America and one of Canada's largest companies.
On Saturday morning I will speak briefly before the Drive the Lead Out Golf Outing at Heatherdowns Country Club. This is the fourth annual event held to raise awareness on the dangers of childhood lead poisoning within our community. All proceeds from this event are used to purchase cleaning kits for those families who have a lead-poisoned child.
Lead poisoning can affect the entire body and cause irreparable damage. The city has been seeking applicants for a lead based paint hazard control grant program. The details can be found
here
and we will have more advertising on this grant soon.
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The Toledo Parks division finished resurfacing six basketball courts so far this year: Sleepy Hollow, Savage Park, Smith Park, Winterfeld Park, Friendship Park, and Jamie Farr Park.
The city is catching up on years of neglect at some parks and improving facilities.
"Something as small as painting a court brings so much life and beauty to not just a park but the neighborhood that it’s in," said
Impact Toledo, Inc.
The city's new Recreation Task Force has been meeting and is focused on programs and facilities including for profit, non profit, school, and city of Toledo.
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Crews will be installing the Point Place Flood Gates Saturday in advance of weather that is expected Sunday. Toledo is expected to see up to 2 or more inches of rain with winds from the east, northeast gusting up to 28 miles per hour. We will be continuously monitoring the conditions throughout the weekend.
What Toledo does during heavy or prolonged wet weather events:
- The Division of Sewer & Drainage Services deploys portable pumps in areas prone to flooding to be ready to go as needed.
- Crews get positioned within their designated zones in the City to monitor how water is flowing through the collection system and to be ready to respond to customer requests.
- Crews and heavy equipment are available to clean identified blockages and increase flows where needed.
What Residents can do prior to wet weather events:
- Those with histories of basement flooding should remove valuables or irreplaceable items, like photo albums from the basement and raise appliances and other items off the floor.
- Check to see that your sump pump activates as the float is lifted.
- Provide preventative maintenance to your private sanitary sewer line by cleaning every 10 years or so to severely reduce the incidence of basement flooding during heavy wet weather. (This must be done by a licensed sewer contractor.)
- If you have a sump pump, check to see that it is operational.
- Check to see that any backwater valves are clear—these need routine maintenance to stay operational.
- Consider installing a backflow prevention device and clean on an annual basis.
- Routinely check storm water drains along your street and keep them free from debris so that rain water may easily flow into the collection system.
- If the storm sewer is blocked and you cannot clear the drain yourself, contact a neighbor to help, or report the clogged drain to Engage Toledo at 419-936-2020 or through the website or App available online at www.toledo.oh.gov.
What residents
can do during heavy or prolonged wet weather events:
- Please check the storm water drains on your street and keep them free from debris. If the storm sewer is blocked and you cannot clear the drain yourself, contact a neighbor to help, or report the clogged drain to Engage Toledo at 419-936-2020 or through the website or App.
- Check to see that any backwater valves are clear.
- If you experience water in the basement, flooded streets, or other issue of concern, call Engage Toledo at 419-936-2020.
- If water levels approach appliances, unplug electricity and cut the power to the furnace to minimize damage.
- Avoid driving through flooded streets.
- Check on neighbors who may need assistance.
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Toledo Symphony’s
first concert of the 2018-19 season, Friends of Music will be 7 p.m., Sept. 9 at the Toledo Club.
Program:
Ravel - Introduction and Allegro
Bloch - Prayer for Cello and Piano
Mozart -
"Kegelstatt"
Trio
Brahms - String Sextet No. 2
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Sacred Grounds Initiative
Toledo’s Division of Environmental Services assisted with a Sacred Grounds planting at
Warren Senior Resource Center
this week helping the congregation achieve the benefits of “greening” their grounds. Benefits include improving water quality by managing storm water runoff, improving air quality by planting more trees, and reducing air pollution on the grounds.
A dedication of a new Sacred Grounds Rain Garden at
Monroe Street United Methodist Church
at 3613 Monroe Street will take place on
Sunday, Sept. 9
following the planting of the final section of the garden.
Volunteers are needed for the
People’s MB Church Fall Community Day
on
Saturday, Sept. 15 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
at the Prayer Park at Heston and Indiana, part of the Sacred Grounds Project.
Sacred Grounds is an advanced wildlife habitat certification process for congregations, houses of worship, and faith communities, providing an opportunity to link faith and caring for the environment.
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Lucas County Coastal Residents Invited to Attend Flood Map Information Open House
Federal Emergency Management Agency representatives will host a flood map information open house for Lucas County residents, 5-7 p.m., Sept. 20 at the Train Station Grand Lobby, 300 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.
The open house will provide coastal residents with an opportunity to review a recently completed preliminary flood insurance study and its accompanying preliminary flood insurance rate maps. More info
here
.
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15th International Human Trafficking and Social Justice Conference
Over the past 15 years, the International Human Trafficking & Social Justice Conference has welcomed thousands of attendees from 34 states and 25 countries to The University of Toledo to learn, connect, and collaborate about human trafficking and social justice issues.
Join us Sept. 20-21 to hear from more than 100 different presenters including researchers, advocates, direct service providers, healthcare professionals, law enforcement, and individuals with lived experience. Register and learn more about the conference at
www.traffickingconference.com.
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Clean Your Streams is Sept. 22
For those who want to take an active part in helping our watershed, on Saturday, Sept. 22, people will be working together to clean up the banks of Swan Creek, Ottawa River, the Maumee River, and other local streams. Everyone is welcome, but registration is REQUIRED by Sept. 14 by calling 419-874-0727
this link
.
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By The Numbers
(
year-to-date
)
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54,086
potholes filled
297
water main breaks repaired
993,071
feet of sanitary sewers cleaned
5.86 million
pounds of debris removed with street sweepers
1,792
trees trimmed
1,594
illegal signs removed
6,280
vehicles towed
37,658
fire run
4,367
EMS runs
7,164
building inspections completed
2,865
contractor licenses issued
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Calvin Lawshe, a retired city of Toledo official and University of Toledo professor and administrator, who first won public notice as a star high school athlete, died Wednesday at St. Luke's Hospital.
Calvin was
a dedicated city employee during different administrations and worked hard to improve our community on multiple fronts.
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Toledo In The News
Should Toledo surrender Riverside Drive for Marina District projects?
Taxpayers built Riverside Drive along the Marina District site about a decade ago. The hope was it would attract development. After several attempts, a plan by the Cass company and Metroparks have been drawn up. But for Metroparks, Riverside Drive is in the way, leaving Toledo with a dilemma.
Allstate ranks Toledo in top 100 for best drivers nationwide
Allstate released a new report crediting Toledo with the 66th best drivers in the United States. The report ranked 200 American cities based on the likelihood to make insurance claims. Six of Ohio's major cities made the list of best drivers as well.
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