Journalism that matters: Eagle-Gazette stories that had an impact in 2023
The journalists of the Lancaster Eagle-Gazette have written hundreds of stories in 2023, and many of those have impacted the lives of the residents of Fairfield County.
From informing the community on future planning in the form of the county's use plan to how your taxpayers' dollars are being spent to local business openings and closings, the stories we write are targeted to be the news that means the most to you.
Future plans
One of the major stories that came out of last year was the county's 2023 Economic Development Plan and Update to the 2018 Comprehensive Land Use Plan. Where to place housing, industry, retail and more is the purpose of the plan. While officials have said local villages and townships can use the plan however they see fit and that nothing is forced on them, the plan met with pushback,
We covered the story including one of the public meetings where a meeting room and overflow area were packed with residents wanting to comment - many of them against the plan.
The pushback was so great, that the county commissioners decided not to go forward with a vote on the plan and instead have delayed that decision until this year. The Eagle-Gazette will continue to report on this issue as the county continues its pitch to residents.
Lancaster Parks & Recreation was also one of the departments locally looking to the future. We reported on the results from the Think Big! Community Survey. The survey asked citizens how well the city park system is meeting their needs and what they both want and need from the system in the future. Approximately 63 percent of the respondents said they wanted a splash pad or additional water feature. While 42 percent said they wanted additional hiking or biking trails. Another 26 percent said they wanted additional programming for children under 12.
As the parks and rec department uses the survey to create its future, we will be there to report on it.
Your money
How various government entities spend taxpayer money -- or in some cases leverage that money with private donations -- impacts our lives.
Here are just a few examples of some projects we reported on:
Fairfield County Park District bought 40 acres of land at Two Glaciers Park in Madison Township mostly with the help of a donation. The district bought the land for about $181,600 from Carl Luck and plans to add trails to the parcel in the next few years. Of that price, $160,000 came from a donation from the Bill and Joyce Hague Foundation. Two Glaciers Park consists of two non-contiguous properties. If park visitors want to visit both the Johnson and Hannaway covered bridges, they must drive from one to the other. Park district media coordinator Kimber Caito said the new property will allow the development of trails to make it possible to access both on foot and connect the two parts.
Many times our dollars are used for road projects and we had a major one this year with the creation of the two roundabouts near Delmont Road. The project included the reconfiguration of the intersection of U.S. 22/Ohio 159 along with the intersection of U.S. 22/Delmont Road. This $3.4 million project began in 2022 and throughout 2023, we kept readers informed on the status of the project and of the various closures it caused.
The state also awarded Fairfield County $719,500 -- part of a statewide program to fund the demolition of 17 blighted and vacant commercial and residential properties.
Eastland-Fairfield Career & Technical Schools will receive $4 million in grant money as a part of the Career Tech Construction grant program. The grant is funded by the state budget and broken into two different grant programs, the Career Tech Equipment ($100 million) and Career Tech Construction ($200 million) grant programs.
Business news
One of the biggest news for a local business last year was Cirba Solutions breaking ground on an approximate $250 million expansion project at its battery recycling plant in the East Side Industrial Park. The 150,000-square-foot expansion is expected to house recycling operations to power 200,000 electric vehicle batteries per year and provide for an additional 120 jobs. Of the $250 million, the U.S. Department of Energy is contributing $82 million from the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure bill.
While Cirba was a big project, the Eagle-Gazette has had multiple stories almost every month of new small business openings. We informed you of when they were opening, their hours, who the owners were, and what products or food they sell.
But it is not always good news. Late last year, Post Holdings, Inc., announced it is closing its cereal manufacturing plant here by the end of September 2024. There are approximately 200 employees. Local 718, the union representing workers at the Post Consumer Brands plant, is trying to keep the plant open.
Looking ahead
In 2024, we will continue to bring you the news that matters. And we will continue to evolve to ensure that.
Already this year, we have brought back an old feature -- Fairfield County restaurant inspections which is always popular with our readers.
Maybe you have a story idea, or maybe you have seen something around town that you might have a question about -- well let us see if we can find the answers for you. Feel free to contact us with your ideas or questions at laneg@nncogannett.com
And if you want to reach out to me directly, you can contact me at tshipley@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Lancaster Eagle-Gazette: How Eagle-Gazette journalism impacted your lives in 2023
