About 1,200 Clermont County employees provide a variety of services to those who live, work and play in the county.

National County Government Month offers the opportunity to highlight some of the county’s workers, as well as share statistics that provide a look at the difference they make.

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Clermont County received $250,000 plus the assistance of state-procured planners to help apply for projects such as cabins or a lodge at East Fork State Park, hike/bike trail improvements and expansion, and a living history museum for Appalachia.

At the request of the Ohio Department of Development, the Ohio Controlling Board approved $981,975 to Clermont, Brown, Adams and Scioto counties. Clermont, Brown and Adams counties will receive $250,000 each and Scioto will get $231,975, with another $18,025 coming from a grant to mayors.

Clermont County Community + Economic Development, through the Clermont County Port Authority, helped the four-county partnership win the competitive grant available through the Appalachian Community Grant Program. The Technical Assistance Grant was the third-largest awarded out of 22.

Read more here

Account statements, utility bills and other sensitive paperwork in your household trash or recycling can be a gold mine for swindlers and identity thieves.

One way to prevent your sensitive personal information from becoming compromised is to shred any paper documents before they fall into the wrong hands.

There are several secure shredding options available, from structured public shredding events to a simple desk-side paper shredder. In addition, several office supply and shipping stores, like the UPS Store, offer shredding services for less than $1 per pound.

Furniture Fair, Shred-It, Crime Stoppers, and Walgreens have teamed up to offer a document shredding and prescription disposal event on Saturday, April 15, from 8 a.m. to noon at several Furniture Fair locations, including the Eastgate store at 4363 Eastgate Square Drive.

The following week, on Saturday, April 22, McNicholas High School is hosting a document shredding and electronics recycling event from 9 a.m. to noon.

Read more here

Clermont County’s Land Bank is off to a strong start, with the demolition of six vacant or blighted structures across the county.

Work has begun on another eight structures, with contracts executed for another 10. All work is planned for completion by May 23. 

To see an interactive map of the projects, click here

Last year, the newly created Land Bank was awarded $500,000 from the Ohio Department of Development. The Land Bank has worked with local jurisdictions to identify vacant properties that are eligible for demolition.

The Clermont County Land Bank, officially named the Clermont County Land Reutilization Corp., is a critical tool to assist with underperforming properties. Vacant and blighted structures decrease property values and lead to a host of other problems which drain local fire and police resources.

Members of the board are County Treasurer Jeannie Zurmehly (chair), Commissioner David Painter (vice chair), Commissioner Bonnie Batchler, Jeff Baumgarth (representing townships) and Michael Doss (representing municipalities).

With extra SNAP (food stamp) benefits ending this month, you may need some assistance figuring out how to stay healthy on a limited budget.

The Clermont County Department of Job and Family Services and OSU Extension - Clermont County Family and Consumer Sciences have joined forces to offer community nutrition classes on the last Monday of the month at 10 a.m.

After class, participants can visit the MyChoice Food Pantry at Job and Family Services.

For more information, contact Becky Fiscus at fiscus.22@osu.edu.

In 2022, Clermont County became an even greater place

to live, work and raise a family!

Purina’s $550 million pet food factory in Williamsburg Township took shape right before

our eyes. Hamilton Safe consolidated manufacturing capabilities in a $17-million facility on Round Bottom Road. And numerous other businesses expanded or relocated here.

We invested nearly $10 million that was allocated toward water and sewer improvements. Our new Land Bank obtained a $500,000 grant to demolish abandoned buildings and restore property to useful purposes. We joined with other Appalachian counties to seek funds for projects ranging from bike trails to museums.

With the help of the County Engineer, we invested $8.7M in road paving and repair, including $4 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. ODOT made major progress on State Route 32, our east-west transportation artery.

The county rose to a challenge in 2022. On July 6, tornadoes damaged dozens of buildings and hundreds of trees in an area that stretched from Goshen and Miami townships into Wayne Township. Our Emergency Management Agency expertly coordinated the response, as area law enforcement joined crews from Duke Energy, the Engineer’s Offce and townships along with countless volunteers in the amazing effort.

Clermont County can be proud of its many accomplishments, whether it’s responding to

a natural disaster or taking steps to ensure our county becomes an even greater place to live, work and raise a family. The future looks bright for Clermont County.

See the 2022 Annual Report

Denny Moell (left), co-chair of the Clermont County Addiction and Recovery Partnership, welcomed new co-chair Capt. Greg Moran at the group’s monthly meeting on March 9.

Brianna Wolken, Clermont County Public Health injury prevention coordinator, presented the 2022 Overdose Fatality Review. Clermont County recorded 50 overdose deaths last year, the lowest number since the review started in 2014.

Just under a third of the fatalities were in the 25-32 age range, the highest percentage in that age group since the review started.

Have you ever considered purchasing a composting bin? Food scraps and yard waste make up more than 30 percent of what an average household throws away. Instead of disposing of these items in a landfill, they can be easily composted into an excellent soil amendment for your garden. Compost contains a variety of nutrients and minerals needed for healthy plant growth.

Composting at home is easy, and it can save you money!

Composting can help you avoid the cost and hassle of buying soil amendments like peat moss and bagged manure. Composted material makes digging easier and holds moisture and fertilizers where plants can use them. Most importantly, composted material helps keep your plants healthy, so you spend less time worrying about the garden and more time enjoying it.

The Adams-Clermont Solid Waste District has partnered with the Clermont Soil and Water Conservation District again this year to offer new Earth Machine compost bins (80-gallon size) for only $60, which is nearly half off of the retail price. These rodent-resistant compost bins feature a sliding door at the bottom for removing compost, as well as a locking lid on top.  

Compost bin orders must be placed through the Clermont Soil and Water Conservation District's annual plant sale order page at store.clermontswcd.org and orders will only be accepted while supplies last. Compost bins can be picked up and paid for on Thursday, May 4, from noon to 6:30 pm, and on Friday, May 5, from noon to 4:30 pm. 

Visit the Adams-Clermont Solid Waste District’s website at www.OEQ.net or email cmiller@clermontcountyohio.gov for additional information. 

Expanded hours! Starting April 1, Clermont County Animal Shelter will be open noon-7 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays, noon-4 p.m. Wednesdays and Fridays, and 10:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Saturdays, 11:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Sundays to better serve the public!

The Board of County Commissioners on March 8 accepted the resignation of Clermont County Community + Economic Development Director Michael McNamara, effective March 17.

On March 2, the Butler County Republican Central Committee selected McNamara as Butler County Treasurer for the remainder of the current term. 

McNamara worked in Butler County government before coming to Clermont County in 2020. He was chief deputy in the Butler County Treasurer’s Office for five years (2010-2015) and also served in the State Treasurer’s Office,

“Clermont County is an incredible county,” McNamara said. “There is so much opportunity here – and I will miss it here. I appreciate the support our whole team has received from the County Commissioners, from (Assistant County Administrator) Greg (Bickford), from (County Administrator) Tom (Eigel).”

Commissioners Bonnie Batchler, David Painter and Claire Corcoran thanked McNamara for his service.

“You were obviously a very valued employee here – and we know that Butler County will be well served in the Treasurer’s Office,” Commissioner Painter said. 

Those interested in applying for the Clermont County Community Development + Economic Development Director’s opening may apply here.

Permit Central has hired four new building inspectors, enabling better service to Clermont County residents.

"We have a well-rounded team that has varied background experience such as building, mechanical, electrical and fire protection systems," said Bruce Crase, Chief Building Officer. " We are now able to process permits quicker and provide more timely inspections.

"Our division has grown and we are able to focus on in-house training, study for testing and obtaining the required certifications from the State of Ohio Board of Building Standards."

Learn more about Permit Central: https://permit.clermontcountyohio.gov/

Inspection team: (Sitting, left to right) Shawn Harmon, Bruce Crase, Alex Wakefield, Jason Brinker

(Standing) Jimmy Hoskins, Aaron Prescott, Ken Brown, Ken Losekamp, JC Young

The Municipal Court Adult Probation Department ended 2022 with many accomplishments while continuing to work to reduce recidivism, lessen the jail population and improve community safety by providing rehabilitative programs and enhanced supervision of misdemeanor offenders.

The Honorable Judge Jason E. Nagel, Administrative Judge and Tracie Sellars, Chief Probation Officer, accepted the 2022 Clifford Skeen Award for Excellence in Community Supervision for outstanding non-residential jail alternative supervision in the State of Ohio. The nomination highlighted the department’s Intensive Supervision Probation program and the success the department maintains while supervising the Court's high-risk offenders.   

In 2022, the OVI Court Specialized Docket program, with Honorable Judge Jesse B. Kramig presiding, held its 36th and 37th program graduations. Judge Kramig recognized the 17 graduates who entered the program with a combined total of 65 OVI convictions. Their participation in the program diverted 2,193 jail bed days, which equates to an estimated $155,106 in savings to the county.

The department utilizes electronic monitoring bracelet technologies, reporting bond and CASC as extra levels of community supervision and jail alternatives. This year, 74 offenders were ordered to serve 3,700 days on EM house arrest in lieu of jail. The utilization of reporting bond has steadily been increasing over the past 5 years; an increase of 29% from 2018 to 2022. This year, offenders served a total of 26,952 days supervised on reporting bond, saving valuable jail space. The CASC continues to provide an alternative to incarceration. 140 participants successfully completed the program serving 6,121 days in CASC. Clermont County has the only CASC program of its kind in the State of Ohio. 

The Municipal Court Community Service Department is heavily relied upon by the court as a sanction of community control or an alternative to incarceration. In 2022, 11,850 hours were successfully completed. Offenders complete hours at government and non-profit agencies or on the department’s work crew program. This year our crews exceeded the numbers from years past, covering 843.9 miles of roadway, collecting 4,570 bags of trash for an approximate combined total of 91,336 pounds of litter collected. The crews also maintain the various community recycling centers throughout the county, perform work at many of our local parks, the Clermont Soil and Water Conservation District and the Thomas A. Wildey School, among others. In July 2022, the work crews provided reinforcement with storm debris cleanup after a tornado struck the Goshen area. Our crew’s assistance was much needed due to the magnitude of damage from this storm.

Photo: Chief Probation Officer Tracie Sellars, Intensive Probation Officer Amanda Beiler, Judge Jesse B. Kramig, Judge Anita M. Bechmann, Judge Jason E. Nagel, Deputy Director Jaime Lutson and Intensive Probation Officer Kori Hickman

The Board of County Commissioners on March 1 awarded a bid not to exceed $460,290 to Ford Development Corp. of Cincinnati for the State Route 132 Water Service Connection Project in Stonelick Township and the Village of Owensville.

The project will address a stretch along State Route 132 near the Clermont County Fairgrounds that has experienced water main breaks. Eight-inch pipes installed in 1969 will be replaced with a more reliable 16-inch water main.

Work is to be completed before July 10. 

Clermont County Children’s Protective Services received a generous donation of travel bags from Cincinnati-Eastside Rotary Club. 

The travel bags were donated and packed by club members as a service project this week. The bags will be given to Clermont County CPS staff who will use them with children involved with Clermont County CPS.

The bags have tablets and toys children can use as a healthy distraction. Thank you to the club members for their time and efforts into this service project!

National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is April 22. But you don’t have to wait until then to toss your unused medications. Most police stations in Clermont County have a permanent drug drop box you can use at any time. To find the drop box nearest you, visit https://ccphohio.org/drugsafety/

Are you planning a trip overseas? Clermont County Public Health offers vaccines for international travel, including typhoid and yellow fever. Depending on your destination, you may need your vaccines updated. For more information, visit www.ccphohio.org/travel.

The annual Spring Litter Clean Up will be held at multiple locations throughout Clermont County on Saturday, April 22.

Event organizers, including the Clermont Soil and Water Conservation District and The Adams-Clermont Solid Waste District, are currently recruiting volunteers to help clear trash and unsightly debris at several parks, waterways and other shared open spaces across the county. Families, individuals, scout groups, and other organizations are encouraged to participate.

All volunteers will be provided with materials for their clean-up activities, including protective gloves, trash bags and litter grabbers. Individuals that request litter cleanup materials will be sent details for supply pick-up in their communities.

Please visit the Spring Litter Clean Up website for more information or to register: www.springlittercleanup.com

For questions or additional information please contact Connie Miller at (513) 732-7075 ext. 2 or cmiller@clermontcountyohio.gov. 

Clermont Soil & Water Conservation District is seeking feedback from Clermont County residents as part of its strategic planning process.

The district is interested in hearing your feedback regarding services offered in the past as well as what programs you would like to see offered in the future. They have developed a brief five-question survey and will be collecting community responses through the end of July.

To thank you for your time and thoughtful responses, the district is offering four $75 gift cards to the following local businesses: Bite Restaurant, Little Miami Brewing, Roads Rivers & Trails, and Scene 75. They will be randomly drawing from the pool of respondents in August.

If you have any questions, please contact Connie Miller at cmiller@clermontcountyohio.gov or 513-732-7075 ext. 2

Clermont Soil & Water Conservation District's 2022 Annual Report is available at

https://www.clermontswcd.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/23/2023/03/annualreport2022.pdf

Clermont Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) will offer a free pond clinic to pond owners and managers at 5:30 p.m. April 4 at the Cincinnati Nature Center-Rowe Woods,4949 Tealtown Road, Milford. An optional pond walk will be offered 4-5 p.m., prior to the event, weather permitting. 

There is no cost, but registration is required to gain free admission to the Cincinnati Nature Center. To register for the free clinic or for more information, go to www.clermontswcd.org or contact Clermont SWCD at (513) 732-7075. 

Randy Morgan from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources will discuss muskrat prevention and control. Breakout sessions will include Ponds 101 with Jake Hahn, SWCD staff, Pond Health and Aeration with Jones Fish Hatchery, Pond Weed Control also with Jones Fish Hatchery and a naturalist talk with Cincinnati Nature Center staff.

“Our event is one of the largest in the area and we want to continue to grow this program to best inform our pond managers," said Jake Hahn with Clermont Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD). There are over 5,000 ponds in Clermont County alone being used for many different purposes. “We hope our event can be a place for pond owners to interact with other owners in the area to solve management problems with the guidance of our expert speakers,” Hahn said.

Since ponds are not a common natural landscape feature in our area, they need additional maintenance and care to function properly and meet the landowners’ expectations. Clermont SWCD’s goal is to help construct and maintain a safe, functional, and attractive pond. Clermont County Farm Bureau is sponsoring the event.

The Clermont County Public Library now has Memory Kits for guests to check out. These kits provide mental and emotional stimulation for individuals who suffer from memory loss.

Each kit comes in a backpack and has items with a common theme to help generate memories and get conversations started. Kits contain:

• A themed video that can provide comfort and bring joy.

• Activity cards can be used alone or as a companion to the video. The cards have photos and activities that can prompt conversation.

• A Fidget Widget that can calm an individual by engaging their hands with repetitive movements.

• A Busy Bottle has items to identify, reminiscing prompts, trivia, and other activities that stimulate conversation and memory.

Share these kits with your loved one who is suffering from memory loss. You may hear a new story that will be a treasured memory for the whole family for years to come.

A complete list of the kits and their themes can be found in the library’s catalog.

From County Prosecutor Mark Tekulve

In 2022, my office completed its transition to Matrix Prosecutor, a digital case management system that allows my office to more efficiently manage critical cases using the most advanced case monitoring technology. As part of this transition, our partners in law enforcement, the Sheriff’s Office, as well as the township and village police departments now enter their case information directly into the Matrix Prosecutor system. 

One challenge with this transition is a number of our local law enforcement agencies currently use a record management system provided by the Attorney General’s office known as OHLEG SWIFT RMS that does not directly interface with Matrix Prosecutor. As a result, many officers must “double enter” case information into the Swift and Matrix systems. After speaking with the police chiefs from Goshen Township, City of Loveland, City of Milford, Pierce Township, Village of Batavia, Village of Bethel, Village of New Richmond, Village of Owensville, and the Village of Williamsburg about this double entry conundrum, I reached out to Attorney General Yost, whose team jumped into action and worked with Matrix to figure out a solution.

Last week I received notice from the Attorney General that he received funding to integrate the OHLEG SWIFT RMS and Matrix systems before the end of 2023. This improvement will lead to greater efficiency for local law enforcement and ultimately improve public safety. 

Attorney General Yost and his office are an invaluable partner to me and all of Clermont County’s law enforcement agencies. We work with investigators from the Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation to investigate officer involved shootings and complex criminal investigations. The OHLEG SWIFT RMS system is provided at no cost to local law enforcement agencies, saving Clermont County townships and villages hundreds of thousands of dollars each year. 

I cannot say enough about the local police chiefs and law enforcement officers who I have the privilege of working with every day. We are able to celebrate this success because they brought their concerns to my attention. I invite all of my Clermont County law enforcement partners to reach out to me and my office with your challenges, concerns, and your ideas on how we can improve processes and provide better service to the people of Clermont County. Finally, I want to thank the people of Clermont County for giving me the opportunity to be their voice for justice.

Together we are making Clermont County an even better place to live, work, and raise our families.

The Equine 4-H Club and longtime 4-H volunteer Jerry Krebs were recognized at Ohio 4-H Conference in mid-March.

The Equine 4-H Club was one of three clubs statewide to receive the Ohio 4-H Community Service Award. Its work organizing hot meals, showers and nonperishable food distribution to families affected by the 2022 Goshen tornadoes did not go unnoticed.

Krebs was awarded the Meritorious Service Award. This award recognizes adult 4-H volunteers for long-term meritorious service. Jerry’s 54 years of hard work and dedication to the Clermont County 4-H Program made him the perfect honoree.

The Ohio 4-H Conference is the largest gathering of 4-H volunteers in the United States. More than a thousand 4-H volunteers and teens from across Ohio’s 88 counties participate each year. This year’s attendees had the opportunity to receive training in more than 120 different areas of interest, such as career exploration, risk management, leadership, animal sciences, health and wellness, culinary arts and more.

These individuals dedicated their time, energy and passions to Making the Best Better. We are proud to have them as part of Clermont County 4-H!

The Clermont County Park District is kicking off the Nature Crafts and Conservation for Land-Owners series with Paper Making on Sunday, April 23 at 1 p.m. at Clingman Park and Native Planting on Wednesday, April 12 at 6:30 p.m. at Hartman Cabin. They also will continue popular series including Nature Play Days, Homeschool Discovery Days, and Critter Feeding.

Check the events calendar for details and more fun: https://www.clermontparks.org/programs-and-events/event-calendar/.

Additionally, the Chilo Lock 34 River Museum will be opening for the season! Starting Thursday, April 20, hours will be 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Stop by to get a glimpse into living on the river then hike in the Crooked Run Nature Preserve. Naturalist-led Spring Bird Walks start in April to view the multitude of spring migrants that stop there. 

Interested in volunteering with park programs, conservation, or at the history museum? Joina Volunteer Orientation at Hartman Cabin on Saturday, April 15, 9-11:30 a.m. Registration required.

On March 15, the Clermont County Park District Board passed a resolution that completely surprised former Director Chris Clingman, when the board voted to officially name the 132-acre property at 2156 U.S. 50 "Clingman Park."

With all of the exciting things slated to happen at one of the District’s newest parks, staff and board members had been trying to think of a new name that would honor the past while moving us into the future.

Current Executive Director Josh Torbeck suggested the idea of naming the park after Clingman, noting, “I can’t think of a better way to honor the person who built the foundation of this park district and nurtured the organization into what it is today, the dedication is well deserved.”

He brought the idea to the Park Board, which unanimously agreed with the decision, and unveiled the name to Clingman at the March board meeting.

“I appreciate the honor, and recognize that all of the accomplishments I’ve had at the park district over the years have been due to support from the Board of Park Commissioners, partner agencies, my colleagues and other individuals working together to better Clermont County,” Clingman said.

Clingman started at the park district in 1999 and has secured over $15 million dollars in grant funding and donations, helped to grow the park from 180 acres to over 1,000, collaborated to create a 6-mile bike trail on a limited budget, passed a successful levy campaign that provides funding to help the parks to grow and to serve the community, and much more. He still continues to work as a Project and Grants Advisor, passionately advocating for the parks, natural spaces and the communities that the Park District serves.

Please join Clermont Parks on Thursday, April 13, at a ceremony officially dedicating Clingman Park. The ceremony will start at 11 a.m. and will be held at Clingman Park, 2156 U.S. 50, Batavia 45103.