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Fire levies on the ballot

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Springfield Township firefighter Kyle Yeager controls a ladder pedestal during training at the Springfield Township Fire Station 51 in Holland. Springfield Township Fire & Rescue is asking residents to vote on Issue 17. (TFP Photo/Lori King)

Area fire departments seek funding through levies

In these polarized political times, marked by bitter presidential and congressional rivalries, issues on the local front can be all but drowned out.

And when it comes to local issues, there are plenty. Among the most pronounced are fire levy requests.

Voters in 10 Lucas and Wood county communities are asked to support either a renewal or additional funding for their respective departments.

In Wood County, Freedom, Montgomery and Troy townships, along with the Village of Wayne and City of Rossford, are seeking renewal of existing levies for personnel, equipment, fire and ambulance protection services.

Renewal levies will not cost a homeowner any additional money on their property tax duplicate.

Of the remaining five seeking funding, three are in Lucas County: Springfield Township, Harding Township, Sylvania/Sylvania Township, and two in Wood­–Lake and Plain townships.

From left: Lt. Marc Welsh, HERO program leader Jodi Livecchi and Springfield Township fire chief Jonathon Ziehr accept a donation to the Springfield Township HERO program during the Springfield Township trustees meeting on Oct. 15. The HERO program, ran jointly with Sylvania Township, provides equipment, such as bathroom bars or exterior ramps that help aging residents remain in their homes. (TFP Photo/Jane Welch)

Springfield Township fire chief Jonathon Ziehr said the department is asking voters to support a five-year, 2.5-mill renewal with an increase of 3.5 mills.

Combined, the six mills would cost the owner of a $100,000 home $190 annually, an increase of $10.21 per month. Ziehr said the increase is needed to maintain the current level of service and keep pace with inflation.

“Since 2020, fire truck costs have increased 15 to 20 percent annually, and defibrillators have increased 33 percent over that time,” he stated.

Medications and other supplies also have risen. Coupled with that are personnel costs for recruitment and retention, a challenge for all departments, he noted.

Should the levy pass, the funds will be used on upgrades to three fire stations, additional personnel and EMS capital equipment purchases.

Ziehr said the levy’s failure could mean elimination of the drone program, Safety Town, specialized training and HERO .

HERO is done in conjunction with Sylvania Township and provides tools for older residents to be able to remain in their homes through modifications to exterior entries or interior rooms. In addition, 30 employees would be eliminated and staffing would only take place at two stations.

Harding Township’s levy is related to Springfield, in that the latter contracts with the former for first responder services.

A sign for Issue 17 is planted outside of Station 52 on Chrissy Rd. in Holland, Ohio. Issue 17 is the levy for Springfield Township Fire & Rescue. (TFP Photo/Lori King)

To continue that service, Harding is asking voter approval of an additional 1 mill, costing the owner of a $100,000 home $35 annually.

Sylvania utilizes Sylvania Township for fire services, and voters in both jurisdictions are being asked to approve a 2.5-mill continuing levy, which will cost $88 for each $100,000 of valuation.

Sylvania fire chief Christopher Nye explained that higher costs are just one component of the levy.

“We try to be good stewards of taxpayers money,” he said, working to maintain equipment for an extended time frame.

“We have applied for and been awarded multiple grants from various entities. These grants offset the cost of items, such as self-contained breathing apparatus and department portable radios,” Nye added.

But of greater concern to the chief is the ability to recruit and retain staff.  “Quite frankly, since COVID-19, it’s been a challenge. It’s a free-agent market.”

Passage of the levy would allow the department to add six to nine personnel in the coming years. Nye emphasized the need for additional personnel, pointing out there have been times when calls overlap, which depletes resources. It leaves no one available to cover should another call come, resulting in a mutual aid call.

Nye crunched the data recently and found that the department has had up to three hours over a 24-hour period when no one was available at their station due to overlapping calls.

He commended area fire departments for their prompt response on those occasions. “We all work well together,” he said.

The chief worries that failure of the levy would only worsen the problem and affect response times. “That’s a big concern for us.”

Across the Maumee River in Wood County, officials echoed their Lucas County counterparts.

Plain Township is seeking a five-year, 2-mill replacement levy, which will generate additional funds for fire services.

Township trustee Jim Rossow said the township contracts for fire/EMS services with four of its neighbors – Bowling Green and Middleton, Washington and Weston townships.

“The bottom line is we know when our contracts are up. We know everyone will want more money,” Rossow said.

The trustees chose a replacement levy at the same millage to cover the projected additional costs, including expenses, overhead and state mandates. He noted that township residents will be paying the equivalent of what those jurisdictions’ residents pay for the service.

“We need that [levy] to keep up with the level of service we get. We have four good fire departments,” Rossow said. “We will be happy if it passes.”

Also on the ballot for additional funding is Lake Township, seeking renewal of 1 mill with an additional 1.5 mills.

Lake Township fire chief David Henninger said if approved the funds will be used strictly for hiring paramedics.

According to the township’s website, the levy “is vital to continue to operate the fire department,” and the chief pointed out that his department, like others throughout the state, are in need of and competing for paramedics.

“This will give us four full-time paramedics. Ours now are all part time,” he added.

If passed, it will cost the owner of a $100,000 home $53 annually or $4.42 per month.

The chief is optimistic it will pass. Reaction by the community, he said, “seems to be positive. These young people want and deserve full time with benefits.”

Daily Dose | The Humorists

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Editorial cartoon by Don Lee for the Toledo Free Press.

Daily Dose | The Humorists

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Homophone cartoon by Steven J Athanas for the Toledo Free Press.

The color of sumac

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Fall makes beauty known in our neck of the woods

SWANTON – Fall is making its mark, encouraged by shorter days and a few doses of colder weather.

The yellows, golds and reds of the hardwoods are coming on, but the best color is still along the edges where sumac, sassafras, wild grapes, Virginia creeper, poison ivy, and a variety of ferns continue to glow.

This recent image features the brilliant reds of a stand of sumac invading a tall grass prairie in Oak Openings Preserve. Nearby, an entire upland forest floor is dotted with thousands of colorful young sassafras. The sassafras understory segues into a different understory in a wet forest dominated by the golds, yellows and bronzes of ferns.

The idea of peak fall color implies that there’s a single best time to get outdoors. But peak color in the prairie is different from peak color in the oak-dominated forest, which is different from a maple and tuliptree forest, which is not the same timing as peak color in bottomland forest, and so on.

Fall color has been with us for several weeks and will continue to evolve and cycle, each species in its own time, into November.

Savor it. Many parts of the world aren’t blessed with fall color like ours.

Daily Dose | The Humorists

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Cartoon by Jerry King for the Toledo Free Press.

Nostalgia at Vintage Fest

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Huncho Zarnahan, from left, Matt Thomas and Voshon Cousin sell vintage clothing at A Martian's Closet.

Toledoans shop for vintage treasures, bargains

TOLEDO – Hundreds gathered to thrift vintage clothing, home goods, vinyl records, toys, collectibles and other nostalgic wares during the Ohio Vintage Fest on Oct. 12.

The event, held at the Glass City Center, was originally exclusive to Columbus when it started in December 2021, but has since expanded, finding venues throughout Ohio, including Toledo.

Ohio Vintage Fest organizer Sam Brann watches people shop at about 50 vendor booths.

Sam Brann, organizer of Ohio Vintage Fest, who does the marketing, management and behind-the-scenes planning for the event, noted the fest was brought to Toledo because it is a big city with a growing vintage scene.

“The main thing is I believe that products aren’t made as well as they were 20, 30, 40 years ago,” he said. “Compared to how they’re being made today, in sweatshops and using child labor, a lot of the stuff being sold at these types of events is holding up better than modern clothing.”

He added that several items on sale were made in the U.S, and since modern clothing is based on vintage items, the event was a chance for people to buy original instead of a remake.

Brann believes that one of the biggest appeals for buying vintage is affordability. With exceptions, the majority of the items were under $30. There are some booths with items that cost less than $5.

Haylee Falzone was one of the shoppers browsing the booths of about 50 vendors. She ended up purchasing a necklace, earrings and a ring with an opal stone from VBroadway Finds.

“Anything vintage just gives me a warm, cozy feeling,” she exclaimed, expressing that people tend to gravitate toward vintage for its nostalgic factor. “I’m also Christmas shopping.”

Falzone said she would attend Vintage Fest again if it returned to Toledo in the future, and Brann thinks that’ll happen.

“If I’m talking to somebody that’s around my age in their 20s, it’s a great place for you to get a whole new wardrobe, and you don’t have to break the bank to go do it,” he said. “If I’m talking to somebody that’s in their 30s, 40s and 50s, you’ll be able to relive the decades you grew up in because it’s all stuff from when that person was growing up.”

The next Ohio Vintage Fest will be held in Cincinnati on Oct. 26.

Daily Dose | The Humorists

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Homophone cartoon by Steven J Athanas for the Toledo Free Press.

Toledo’s Top Talent winners

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Sabina Rodriguez congratulates Toledo’s Top Talent winners Luis Gomez, Mariah McCarter and Oscar Tovar. The awards ceremony was held at Taylor Hyundai of Perrysburg on Oct. 10. (TFP Photo/Autumn Vasquez)

Top 3 winners of talent competition awarded at ceremony

The top three winners of a local talent competition, Toledo’s Top Talent, took home prizes totaling more than $3,500 for their hard work and dedication this season. 

The final round of the competition was held on Sept. 22 at the Peristyle Theater at The Toledo Museum of Art and featured five remaining finalists who battled it out for the top three winning spots. 

A ceremony was held at Taylor Hyundai of Perrysburg on Oct. 10 to award the first, second and third place winners: Oscar Tovar, Luis Gamez and Mariah McCarter. They won $2,000 and a recording contract, $1,000 and $500, respectively. The ceremony featured food from Antojitos Laredo Tacos, sweet treats from Telera’s Bakery/Panaderia, giveaways and individualized awards presented to each winner. 

The winners of Toledo’s Top Talent: Mariah McCarter, 10; Luis Gomez, 20; and first place winner Oscar Tovar, 18. (TFP Photo/Autumn Vasquez)

“Toledo’s Top Talent is just one way we can showcase some of these kids and the talent that really is in Northwest Ohio,” said Steve Taylor Jr., dealer at Taylor Automotive Family. 

Toledo’s Top Talent is an annual 12-week talent competition open to performers ages 8-24 in the greater Toledo area. Now in its second year, the competition partners with the City of Toledo, Taylor Automotive Family, The House of Chaos and Mas Y Mas Guidance and Supportive Services to fund the competition and its prizes. 

Tovar, 18, is the first-place winner. He is an electrical engineering student at The University of Toledo and a second-year competitor in Toledo’s Top Talent. In the first season of the competition, Tovar placed 2nd place overall and he said his experiences last year helped him improve his confidence as a performer. It also prepared him for the rigor of this year’s competition. 

“Last year I imagined myself as a singer,” he said. “But this year, I was like no, I am a singer, and I need to perform like one.”

Tovar won $2,000 and a recording contract with San Antonio-based music producer Gilbert Velasquez. Tovar and Velasquez have begun collaborating on the details of the contract and they will be recording, mixing, mastering and producing an original single or cover that is set to be released early next year. 

“To me [the first place prize] means hard work and effort. I think I can finally see that when you put in the work you get what you deserve and that means a lot to me,” Tovar said after the ceremony. 

He added that he is looking forward to using his experiences to become a mentor for the younger competitors in future seasons of Toledo’s Top Talent.

James Leasure, of Taylor Automotive Family, stands with grand-prize winner Oscar Tovar. (TFP Photo/Autumn Vasquez)

Gamez, 20, took home the second place prize of $1,000 after placing fifth overall last year. Gamez said he accessed his performances last season, and worked to improve himself as a person and as a musician this year. He worked on things such as his versatility and his stage presence, but his biggest challenge of all was his battle with sciatic nerve pain in his back, which hindered his ability to perform at his best. 

“I couldn’t walk; I couldn’t run; I couldn’t perform the way I wanted to perform,” he said. “It wasn’t until I started to practice music that it gave me the energy to go work out. And once I got my back pain in order, my creativity exploded.”

Gamez challenged himself by performing different styles of music for each round of the competition this year, including cumbia, rock, opera and abuelito, a variation of mariachi. He said he plans on maintaining a diverse style in his upcoming multi-genre album that is set to drop in April 2025. 

Gamez said winning the second place prize means a lot to him because he will be using his prize money to fly to Mexico and visit the ashes of his late mother.

“When my mom passed away, her ashes were taken to Mexico with my grandma to have her next to my grandpa,” he said. “It would be amazing to fly there and get to see her.”

Gamez plans on taking this special trip at the end of this year or early next year to honor her.

His upcoming album, as well as his other songs, Siete Dias and Carne Asada Cypher, can be streamed on all platforms, including YouTube and Spotify.

Toledo’s Top Talent will be making a change next season, as it is being introduced into Toledo Public Schools in 2025. The competition will remain open to the public, but event organizer Sabina Rodriguez said it is likely that Toledo’s Top Talent team will have to cap the number of contestants moving forward.

“We’ve been trying to get into TPS since the first year we started,” she said. “We’re going to be all throughout the city because we’re going to be in all TPS schools and pulling from all different areas.”

Interested competitors are encouraged to apply for Season 3 on the Mas Y Mas Guidance and Supportive Services website at the beginning of the upcoming year.

Auditions will be held in-person and virtually throughout the month of April, and the 2025 season will run from the beginning of May until the first week of September.

Daily Dose | The Humorists

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Cartoon by Jerry King for the Toledo Free Press.

Music & chills by candlelight

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The Listeso String Quartet, shown here performing in Toledo on Aug. 3, will perform Halloween-themed songs on Oct. 19 and 26. (TFP Photo/David Yonke)

String quartet to perform Halloween-themed tunes

TOLEDO – The Toledo Summit in Downtown Toledo is going to get pretty creepy.

As the season of ghosts and spooks hits full stride, the venue will host Halloween-themed Candlelight Concerts on Oct. 19 and 27.

The Listeso String Quartet, comprised of two local violinists, a violist and a cellist, is scheduled to perform seasonal favorites that conjure up sinister images, such as Beetlejuice, Michael Myers, the Exorcist, Ghostbusters, Norman Bates and the “altogether ooky” Addams Family.

Listeners hold a toast at a Candlelight Concerts show in Tampa, Florida. Candlelight Concerts will feature Halloween-themed music in Toledo on Oct. 19 and 27. (Courtesy Photo by Fever)

The promotion company Fever has been presenting Candlelight Concerts around the globe since 2019, starting in Madrid, and has sold millions of tickets in more than 150 cities and 20 nations. The company began hosting concerts in Toledo in 2023.

“Since our launch in Toledo, we’ve been warmly received by the local audience, and we look forward to continuing to enrich the city’s cultural scene with new programs, like Halloween-themed or our Holiday Special featuring The Nutcracker and more,” said Amanda Boucault, communications coordinator for Candlelight Concerts, in an email Q&A.

The Toledo shows thus far have featured classical musicians giving different spins on familiar songs by artists, such as the Beatles, Coldplay, Adele, Queen, and Imagine Dragons, all surrounded by the soft glow of thousands of electronic candles flickering on and near the stage.

Fever’s goal from the start has been to make classical music more accessible to audiences that don’t usually listen to the genre.

“We launched Candlelight Concerts in 2019 as we recognized the need to make classical music more accessible to a wider audience and reach beyond the core demographic of classical music enthusiasts,” Boucault said.

This innovative format represents a unique live musical experience through a varied offer of programs to meet all tastes, played by local musicians, in emblematic venues, with the space and performers illuminated by thousands of candles

Amanda Boucault

The musicians are hired by Fever’s in-house music curation team, which Boucault said is dedicated to selecting talented local musicians who align with their belief that classical music can reach a diverse audience and demonstrate this by performing compositions for all tastes.

The local musicians can vary from one show to the next, but all perform under the Listeso String Quartet moniker. (Musicians interested in performing Candlelight Concerts can apply online at candlelightexperience.com/artists/)

The Candlelight Concerts series initially featured works by top classical composers, such as Mozart, Vivaldi and Chopin, but over the years the repertoire has broadened to include virtually all musical genres.

A Candlelight Concert is seen here being performed at Central Hall Westminster, London. The shows are intended to introduce classical music to wider audiences around the world, including upcoming Halloween-themed concerts in Toledo on Oct. 19 and 27. (Courtesy Photo by Fever)

“Now, we have expanded our list of programs including a wide variety of themes and genres, such as tributes to contemporary artists, as well as shows dedicated to movie soundtracks and many more,” Boucault explained.

“The introduction of these ‘tribute’ programs more aligned to jazz, rock, hip-hop and pop artists, but performed by a string quartet or other classical instruments also enables us to connect with a broader audience that might have never considered a classical music concert before,” he added.

Fever develops the themes for its shows based on recommendations from its in-house music curation team and research that takes into account global metrics and feedback from the audience and musicians, Boucault said.

The tentative program for the Toledo Halloween-themed concerts will feature the Listeso String Quartet performing the following selections:

  • Thriller – Michael Jackson
  • Funeral March of a Marionette – Charles Gounod
  • String Quartet No. 8 in C Minor (Dresden Quartet), Op. 110: II. Allegro Molto – Dmitri Shostakovich
  • Tubular Bells (Theme from The Exorcist) – Mike Oldfield
  • Stranger Things (Theme) – S U R V I V E
  • Beetlejuice (Theme) – Danny Elfman
  • The Addams Family (Theme) – Vic Mizzy
  • Halloween (Theme) – John Carpenter
  • Psycho (Prelude) – Bernard Herrmann
  • Ghostbusters (Theme) – Ray Parker Jr.
  • Danse Macabre – Camille Saint-Saëns
  • Night on Bald Mountain – Modest Mussorgsky
  • Der Erlkönig – Franz Schubert
  • Medley from The Nightmare Before Christmas – Danny Elfman
  • In the Hall of the Mountain King – Edvard Grieg

The candlelight shows are condensed from the typical 90-minute concert to a 65-minute format, part of Fever’s plan to make the concerts more appealing to diverse audiences.

One question fans often ask is: Who flips the switches on all those battery-powered candles?

“We use thousands of candles to create the intimate atmosphere of each Candlelight Concert,” Boucault said. “Our team typically arrives early on the day of the concert to set up the stage, and later that night, they break everything down. At some locations, we have remote controls to turn off the lights, but most of the time, this is done manually a few hours before each performance.”

Candlelight: A Haunted Evening of Halloween Classics will be performed at The Summit Toledo, 23 N. Summit St., at 6:30 and 8:45 p.m. Oct. 19 and Oct. 27. Doors open 45 minutes prior to the start time and late entry is not permitted. Seating is assigned on a first-come, first-served basis in each zone. Tickets are $42.50, $53, and $59.50 available at feverup.com/en/toledo-oh.