|
trust City Council. Everyone has eyes to see, and that takes a while, but it's going to get turned
<br />around. But I was looking for something that was charming, something close to 480. We don't
<br />have a bus to downtown Cleveland anymore, that was a bummer, maybe we can get that back.
<br />And putting townhomes in a mature residential area does not make sense. Any residential area
<br />to squeeze townhomes in does not make sense, and hey, by the way, we have seven acres for
<br />sale on the west side of Lorain, the west side of Lorain Road. Maybe we could look at that. I'm
<br />sure I'm going to think of many more things to say to you guys, but I just want you to just be
<br />very thoughtful and just consider our comments. I'm sure we're going to have much more to
<br />share with you guys later as we go forward in this process, so thank you.
<br />Council President Brossard:
<br />Thank you.
<br />Ms. Priscilla Sprano-Wiles:
<br />Good evening. I'm Priscilla Sprano-Wiles, 25746 Butternut Ridge Road. Apologies for reading,
<br />but I don't think I could be as clear if I spoke extemporaneously. The Stearns family traveled
<br />from Vermont to their newly purchased land in the Northwest Territory in what is now North
<br />Olmsted, Ohio. The land was sold to them from Charles Olmsted, Aaron Olmsted's son. Several
<br />of the Stearns family traveled back to Vermont, but David decided to stay. He is considered the
<br />first permanent settler of our fair city. For the sake of perspective, this was the same year the
<br />Duke of Wellington defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo. It was 1815. Currently, no
<br />fewer than 132 homes occupy Butternut Ridge Road. Today, there are only 15 left from the
<br />19th century. Think the completion of the Erie Canal, the Alamo, the Gold Rush, the Civil War,
<br />the purchase of Alaska, the westward expansion, the Gilded Age, the dedication of the Statue
<br />of Liberty, and Custer's last stand at the Battle of Little Bighorn. The people who built and lived
<br />in these particular homes on Butternut Ridge Road experienced these events. At the dawn of
<br />the 20th century, McKinley was assassinated and Theodore Roosevelt became the president. As
<br />the first half of the century rolled by, the Panama Canal opened, Charles Lindbergh had his first
<br />solo transatlantic flight, the U.S. entered World War I, the 19th Amendment was ratified, the
<br />Star-Spangled Banner was adopted as the country's national anthem, the stock market crashed,
<br />and the Great Depression ensued. During this time, homes were built on Butternut Ridge Road,
<br />51 of them still stand, built between 1900 and the onset of World War Il. Like all over our great
<br />country, North Olmsted experienced a post -World War II building boom. No fewer than 56
<br />homes were built on Butternut Ridge Road, using up just about every bit of available land for
<br />housing. The U.S. engaged in the Korean and Vietnam Wars and the arms race, Brown versus
<br />the Board of Education at Topeka ended segregation in our schools, and Jonah Salk developed
<br />the polio vaccine. Peanut's comic strip was published for the first time, and people sat in their
<br />living rooms right on Butternut Ridge Road and on a black -and -white television set watched
<br />Neil Armstrong take the first step on the moon. With over 300 streets in the City of North
<br />Olmsted, this one street, just one, Butternut Ridge Road, is intrinsically bound to our nation's
<br />history. Homes that stand today from 1825 through 1975, represent 200 of the United States of
<br />America's 249 years in the making. We, those of us here tonight, and those whom we
<br />represent, are the volitional custodians of this street and the homes that line it. We take our
<br />1:1-05-25 Council Meeting Minutes - Fags 1.0
<br />
|