plus 4, Fulton County pays dearly for jobs effort - Toledo Blade

Fulton County pays dearly for jobs effort - Toledo Blade
2009's Best-Selling Cars - ABC News
Number of Breathalyzers installed in DUI offenders' car grows - Kankakee Daily Journal
When Christmas Goes Wrong - Regina Leader-Post
Man struck while assisting a vehicle stuck in snow - kjrh.com

Fulton County pays dearly for jobs effort - Toledo Blade

Posted: 26 Dec 2009 08:53 AM PST

LYONS, Ohio - The vision in Fulton County was to turn water into jobs and tax receipts.

The way to do that was a 12-inch pipeline to run nearly three miles from the village of Lyons to the Teleflex automotive component plant, a white-metal-sided building encircled by corn and soybean fields along State Rt. 120 in Royalton Township.

Teleflex, which at the time in the late 1990s already had about 100 employees, said it needed the waterline for its planned $5.9 million expansion project that would create an additional 40 jobs. And the company warned that if it didn't get the line, it would close the plant.

Fulton County commissioners agreed to construct the waterline, an undertaking of about $730,000 to be financed in part by grant funds and by borrowing from the state. They also gave the business a 10-year tax abatement.

All the pieces were in place - for awhile: The water started flowing, the plant was expand-ed, and by 2003, the jobs were created.

But in the end, the Teleflex deal wound up shorter-lived and costlier for Fulton County than first imagined. The county was left with a vacant building and few prospective tenants, a pricey yet underutilized waterline, and the embarrassment of having lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants for low and moderate-income households because of a little-known penalty levied by the state for mishandling paperwork.

"It was unfortunate," said Fulton County Commissioner Paul Barnaby. "But you can't pin down a business and say, 'You have to stay here for ever and ever.'"

The fatal dose of bad news hit in the summer of 2007, when Teleflex's new owner, DriveSol Worldwide Inc., a unit of a Florida-based private-equity firm specializing in deeply distressed companies, reported plans to shutter the plant and lay off all 169 workers.

DriveSol underwent voluntary liquidation last year, citing "market conditions," and currently owes the county nearly $125,000 in back taxes, including arrearage from a penalty provision in the tax-abatement agreement.

The closure also scuttled the county's plan to recoup its share of construction costs for the waterline from future Teleflex and DriveSol tax revenues. So the county plans to dip into its general fund next month to make the second of two unrecouped loan repayments to the state, soon to total nearly $47,000, according to Fulton County Administrator Vond Hall.

A costly situation

Even before DriveSol closed its doors, an earlier and arguably messier setback for Fulton County occurred in 2004 after an Ohio Department of Development worker noticed a misstep in the county's paperwork for the waterline grant.

The cost of that mistake, initially levied at $384,443 in cash but later amended to $457,000 in grant money sanctions, rose by an additional $200,000 as a five-county regional planning organization - the Maumee Valley Planning Organization - took some responsibility for the error and started paying the county reparations from its own accounts with fees received from Williams, Defiance, Henry, Paulding, and Fulton counties.

Ultimately, the waterline cost Fulton and surrounding counties $657,000 more than it should have.

"We felt the state lost the paperwork and we were taking the blame," said Thomas Kime, a member of the planning organization's board and a Defiance County commissioner.

However, the Department of Development insists it didn't receive the paperwork until it was too late. The state faulted Maumee Valley Planning Organization and penalized Fulton County, which hired the planning organization to administer the grant.

"Ultimately the county is responsible because they're the grantee," said William Graves, director of the state agency's community development division. "We ended up getting more than the actual grant amount [in penalties], but we did want to send a message that we really need to follow these requirements."

Finally, and with little fanfare, the planning organization in August made its last scheduled payment to Fulton County for the error - 1 1/2 years after the auto parts plant shut down.

All the while, the general public remained largely unaware that the state had penalized Fulton County and that the five-county organization was transferring money as restitution.

The planning agency

The Maumee Valley Planning Organization is a regional agency headquartered in Defiance that operates in the background of its local government clients. It represents government in five counties - Fulton, Williams, Henry, Defiance, and Paulding - with goals of fostering development, coordinating planning, and solving common problems.

It currently has a $775,000 yearly budget, the majority of its revenues deriving from service fees for administering counties' and cities' grant programs and revolving loan funds. The organization is governed by a 62-member policy board and 15-member executive council that meets quarterly. Board members are mostly elected officials from villages, townships, cities, and counties.

Dennis Miller has been the organization's executive director for close to 25 years and has worked for the agency since the late 1970s. He serves at the pleasure of the board, and board members largely look to him for guidance.

"I'm not that familiar with the day-to-day operations," said Harry Wiebe, chairman of the executive council and the village administrator of Paulding. "We depend on the director to … kind of shepherd us through."

Paperwork woes

The paperwork glitch in the Teleflex project concerned a document called "Request for Release of Funds." The Community Development Block Grant, a federal program, required that the state receive and process the funds-release request from the county before construction began.

In an interview, Mr. Miller claimed that his staff sent in the paperwork before the construction work started in late April, 2000. But the state says it didn't receive the necessary paperwork for another month and didn't issue the go-ahead until June.

Mr. Miller insists to this day that his staff sent in the paperwork on time. But he concedes that they didn't confirm whether the document arrived in Columbus. To prevent such mishaps from occurring again, the office now uses certified mail, he said.

"The particular staff people I had at the time didn't check to see that that final release came back, and that's our fault for not making sure that we received that piece of paper before we proceeded," Mr. Miller said. "We manage millions of dollars worth of grants and that's the only time we've ever had a problem."

Paying up

State development officials didn't notice the error until closing out the grant in 2004. The state at first penalized Fulton County by ordering it to pay back the approximately $385,000 waterline grant. But after hearing the pleadings of Mr. Hall, the county's administrator, state officials agreed to a compromise in which the county would instead forgo future grant funding.

The penalties:

•A cut of $272,000 in Community Development Block Grant program dollars for 2005 and 2006 fiscal years. The grant money is commonly used for county projects such as sewer upgrades, town hall renovations, sidewalk repair, and road resurfacing.

•Giving $50,000 of county income from its block grant revolving loan fund to a future state economic development project. The revolving loan fund is to assist county businesses.

•A $125,000 reduction in housing rehabilitation program funds (CHIP) aimed at low and moderate-income households. The county shifted unused dollars from a similar housing program to make up the shortfall, officials said.

•A requirement that the Maumee Valley Planning Organization remit $10,000 to the state as an administrative fee.

After the penalties came down, Mr. Miller offered to Mr. Hall that the planning agency give the county $200,000 to help make up for the penalties. The county and planning organization signed a "memorandum of understanding" in September, 2005, agreeing to the reparations.

"Our agency felt that we should stand behind Fulton County and help them resolve the problem," Mr. Miller said. Fulton County "did nothing wrong, and my board didn't want to see them punished."

Mr. Barnaby, a Fulton county commissioner and planning agency board member, said he knew of no hard feelings toward the planning organization's management over the mistake.

"They took responsibility. What more could you ask from a group?" he said.

The agency's reparations trickled in in payments of mostly $8,333 over more than four years. The money came from the agency's cash reserves, which are regularly used to front money for projects while awaiting state reimbursement.

Mr. Miller said the reparation payments "strained our budget a little bit," but allowed Fulton County's government to still fund some projects.

Indeed, the county reported contributing $100,000 in 2005 toward both a sewer and street project in Lyons and a sanitary sewer project in the Elmira-Burlington area. In 2006, the final year of the state penalty, records show the county gave $100,000 toward both the Lyons project and a community center in Chesterfield Township.

"Our full intent was to make sure that the communities of Fulton County did not suffer," Mr. Miller said.

Mr. Hall said that despite the sanctions, the county "did not miss a beat" in helping fund projects. County government dipped into its general fund for the work and was later repaid by the planning agency, he said.

However, Fulton County still lost out on more than $250,000 of additional grant money because of the sanctions. It's unclear what specific projects, if any, suffered.

The planning organization made its final payment to the county this past August.

The company

The paperwork drama percolating at the planning agency and Fulton County's offices had little bearing on Teleflex, with its waterline, work force, and tax agreements well in place.

Workers there made electronic throttle controls, including accelerator pedals for trucks and sport utility vehicles. The big customers were Ford, Chrysler, and GM.

In 2005, private-equity firm Sun Capital Partners of Boca Raton, Fla., purchased the automotive pedal division of Teleflex Inc., which operated the Fulton County plant. Sun Capital says it specializes in acquiring underperforming small and midsized companies, turning them around, and then selling them for a profit.

Other companies in the firm's portfolio include restaurant chain Boston Market Corp., Bruegger's Enterprises, known for its bagels, and electrical and mechanical contractor The Fairfield Co.

The former Teleflex also got a new name: DriveSol Worldwide Inc. There were some management changes at the Fulton County plant, although day-to-day work continued much as it did under Teleflex, recalled Crystal Miller, 49, who worked in accounting.

Still, the new owners did seem to penny-pinch and micromanage, often pushing for lower terms from the plant's vendors.

"We had to send checks to Florida for them to review and sign. They kept a very tight rein," she said.

Mrs. Miller, whose husband, Dan Miller, is mayor of Delta, said working conditions were good in the plant. There were a number of parent-child combos on the payroll, including Mrs. Miller and her son, Morgan Tedrick, who worked on the manufacturing line.

The human toll

Many in the plant were surprised by DriveSol's 2007 closing announcement. Some production work moved to a larger DriveSol plant in Kendallville, Ind. Other work went to Mexico, where Mrs. Miller's son traveled to train his replacement before he was let go in January, 2008.

Mrs. Miller left DriveSol at the time of the closing announcement and has since found a new job in accounting. Not everyone was as fortunate. Her son is among the former employees still looking for full-time work. Fulton County's unemployment rate was 13 percent in November, the most recent figure available.

"To the people who worked at the plant, [DriveSol's severance package] sounded like a lot of money," she said, "but what they don't realize is that when you stay till the very end to get the severance package, if there were any jobs, they're gone."

DriveSol Worldwide initiated an out-of-court liquidation in mid-2008. Its Fulton county property is listed by Binswanger commercial realty for $525,000.

Mr. Hall, the county administrator, said he still hopes to recoup some of the nearly $125,000 in unpaid taxes.

"It is my understanding the county is put first in line to what is likely a long line of people that is owed money from the company," he said in an e-mail.

The waterline

Still in the ground is the county's Teleflex waterline, once a talisman for hopes of economic growth. Yet payments on the waterline have outlived the purpose for which it was installed.

A cement business and 14 residential customers have since tapped into the line, which runs to Lyons but receives city of Wauseon water. One customer is Allison Eppink, whose family farm sits across the highway from the now-empty auto parts plant, and whose ex-husband lost his job when it shut down.

"It's city water - it's really good," she said.

Contact JC Reindl at:
jreindl@theblade.com
or 419-724-6065.

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2009's Best-Selling Cars - ABC News

Posted: 26 Dec 2009 06:02 AM PST

It's been a roller-coaster year for the auto industry, one that most--but not all--car makers would like to forget.

A severe recession. A credit crisis. Government bailouts. Unprecedented bankruptcies. Storied brands killed. Dealerships dumped. Cash for Clunkers. Moderating gas prices. Scary recalls by trusted brands. Innovative marketing by up-and-comers.

It all added up to wild fluctuations in auto sales and unusual shifts in market share. Final sales tallies for 2009 won't be reported till Jan. 5, but the year's trends are clear. U.S. car and light truck sales are expected to total approximately 10.4 million units, the lowest since 1970. For most of the last decade, the industry sold around 16 million new vehicles per year.

The losers, of course, were General Motors and Chrysler, both of which ended up partially owned by U.S. taxpayers after quick trips through bankruptcy court. Through November, GM lost 2.3 points of share in the U.S. (to 19.8%) and Chrysler lost 2 points (to 9%), compared with the first 11 months of 2008. Also losing market share were and Suzuki Motor.

Even stumbled in 2009. Though its share held steady at 16.8%, Toyota's reputation for quality suffered a major blow late in the year when it recalled 4.3 million cars and trucks to repair faulty accelerator pedals.

The market's instability allowed for some unique opportunities for automakers that were well-positioned, however, noted Michelle Krebs, senior analyst at Edmunds.com, a research Web site. Among them: Subaru, Subaru, Hyundai Motor ( HYMLF.PK - news - people ) and Volkswagen ( VLKAF.PK - news - people ).

Ford Motor picked up a point of share to 15.9% as its domestic rivals struggled and its new lineup of cars and crossovers gained momentum. Subaru's share rose to 2.1% from 1.4% a year earlier, on the strength of its redesigned Forester crossover. Hyundai went from 5.2% to 7.3% thanks to its innovative Hyundai Assurance marketing program and value-oriented lineup. Volkswagen's share rose to 2.1%, from 1.7% on demand for the redesigned, fuel-efficient diesel Volkswagen Jetta TDI.

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Number of Breathalyzers installed in DUI offenders' car grows - Kankakee Daily Journal

Posted: 26 Dec 2009 07:35 AM PST

ROCKFORD -- A year into a state DUI law, 6,100 first-time offenders have installed Breathalyzer devices on their vehicles so they may continue to drive.

Police and state officials applaud the Breath Alcohol Ignition Interlock Device program, which kicked off Jan. 1 and aims to keep intoxicated drivers off the road and prevent recidivism.

"We will never know how many lives we will save by having these drivers not being able to get behind the wheel and drive intoxicated," said Susan McKinney, BAIID program director and former state executive of Mothers Against Drunk Drivers.

"If we put them in for first offenders, maybe they won't become second-time offenders," she said.

The device requires a driver to blow into it before the car can be started. The legal breath- or blood-alcohol content limit in Illinois is 0.08. The device is set to prevent the ignition from starting at 0.05. It also performs periodic testing while an individual is driving, preventing someone else from blowing into the machine to get the vehicle started.

Rockford police Lt. Dane Person supports the law.

"It is an excellent idea," he said. "It provides control over individuals who have had the propensity to drive impaired."

Rockford had 767 DUI arrests in 2008 and 735 through Dec. 17.

Mike Sonneson, co-owner of Cars & Stereos Inc. in Rockford, has one of six places in Winnebago County that installs Breathalyzers.

He said he has seen a 20 percent increase in installations this year, most for first-time offenders.

"We've seen an increase since the first-time driver's law went into effect," said Terry Jackson, general manager at Pacesetter Truck and Auto Accessories in Bourbonnais. "We've done a few more."

Staff at the shop, located at 563 Larry Power Road, install about two or three a month now, he said, although he doesn't have figures for how many they installed monthly before the law took effect almost a year ago.

"We see a lot of younger females now," Jackson said. "When they first came out, it was older males."

In the past, first-time offenders were required to obtain a judicial driving permit, which restricted the time and places a driver could go after a DUI conviction.

Attorney Albert Altamore, who said about 50 percent of his clients are DUI cases, would have liked to have seen a modification of the judicial driving permit rather than have first-time offenders install Breathalyzers.

Altamore said the cost of getting a BAIID is the biggest problem for his clients. If they cannot afford to install one, they may not be able to get to their job or do other necessary tasks. That then increases the number of people driving illegally, which could lead to felony charges.

The cost can be in the hundreds to install and then monitor the device during the length of the driver's suspension, Sonneson said. "It starts adding up, and, financially, it just beats you to a living pulp."

Most of the devices Pacesetter staff install are added because of court orders requiring them, Jackson said. The devices cost about $3,000 to $4,000 to purchase, and he said staff at the shop charge $80 to install them and $40 for removals. The devices also may be rented.

"It's a financial burden on them," Jackson said.

Despite the lack of statistics on the success of the program, McKinney said she has gotten positive feedback -- some even from people who have used it.

"We did have an offender not too long ago who completed his probation," McKinney said, "and he was going to leave the BAIID in his car because he said it helps keep him responsible."

There is an interest among some parents, too.

"We've fielded phone calls from people looking to put them on their kids' cars," he said.

But when the devices are court-ordered, there also may be a backlash on parents. Jackson said his crew installed an interlock device on a woman's car Wednesday because her son drives that car.

"She can't even drive her own car now without it," he said.

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When Christmas Goes Wrong - Regina Leader-Post

Posted: 26 Dec 2009 07:49 AM PST

"Just keep your radios on and be ready to roll," he says.

Domestics, suicides, assaults and accidents don't take a break for the holidays, something these officers know only too well.

It's their job to protect the city. The officers are there to keep Regina's citizens safe, sometimes from strangers, but most often from friends, from family members, from the ones they love. Sometimes from the harm they would do to themselves.

A stop at home is a welcome glimpse of the holidays the way people imagine and want them to be. Warm houses with abundant tables of food. Giggling children, cozy in pajamas, flush with excitement, with the magic of the day.

But the visit cannot last long.

Dinner is a potluck buffet set up in the canteen at the police station, a much-appreciated spread. By 10 p.m., virtually everything else in the city is closed. The coffee shops and restaurants that can normally be counted on for a night-shift meal are empty and dark.

And then it's back out on the street, where it's cold and getting colder.

There's a call about an unwanted person in a house.

"He pushed me," the woman says when the officers walk in. "I just want him out of my house."

Her boyfriend is drunk, swaying in the doorway, eyes glassy and unfocused.

"Don't look at me," she tells him from across the room.

"Baby, shut up," he replies.

He needs to get out of the house before things escalate, so the officers decide to take him to his mother's house, a couple of blocks away. He can stay there for the night.

"Thank you," the woman calls cheerily as they leave with her boyfriend. "Merry Christmas."

In the police car, he smiles broadly, his front tooth missing.

"Whoa, I smell like onions," he says.

"She's making cabbage rolls and stuff."

The officers walk him to the door of his mother's house, to make sure he gets inside. Before they leave, he shakes their hands.

12:30. It's Christmas morning. A complaint comes in about the church bells ringing at Knox Met. The caller says 30 minutes of ringing bells is too long. It's keeping her awake.

- - -

A man is in the backseat of the police car, blowing into a roadside breathalyzer.

"It's Christmas. Can I please see my son?" he asks in a drunken drawl. His son is four, looks just like him, he says, but without a goatee.

"Please tell me I'm not the unlucky guy who goes to jail on Christmas Eve," he says.

He gets a 24-hour licence suspension. His passengers have called someone to come and get them, and a truck pulls up within a couple of minutes.

Before he walks away, the man hugs one of the officers.

"Thanks for pulling me over," he says, and walks across the lot to rejoin his friends.

The officer laughs as he gets back into the cruiser.

"He hugged me," he says, surprised.

There is a rash of calls about people threatening to kill themselves. A 25-year-old man has taken a bottle of Tylenol, another tried to hang himself with a thick braid of television cords. By 3:15 a.m., four of the five people being held inside cells at the police station are listed as suicidal.

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Man struck while assisting a vehicle stuck in snow - kjrh.com

Posted: 26 Dec 2009 07:13 AM PST

A vehicle stuck in the snow on US-169 led to an auto-pedestrian accident that sent one man to the hospital.

Officials say around 3:00 p.m. Friday afternoon and a 22-year-old man in a Chevy truck stopped to pull a green Ford Explorer out of in snow on US-169 near 46th St. N.

Another truck traveling on US-169 lost control and struck the man.

The 22-year-old suffered minor lacerations to the head. He was transported an area hospital by EMSA and was in serious condition at last word.

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