NB residents approve additional levy for fire protection

BOWLING GREEN — North Baltimore residents narrowly approved an additional 1.15-mills levy for fire protection. According to unofficial results from the Wood County Board of Elections, the 1.15-mill, five-year levy was approved with 429 votes in favor and 404 opposed. The levy will provide for the provision and maintenance of fire apparatus or other fire equipment. The rate of the levy is 1.15-mills or $0.115 cents for every $100 of value. The levy will commence in 2022 but will first be due in 2025. An earlier statement from village mayor, Janet Goldner, said a resident with a house worth $100,000 would pay approximately $40.25 per year. Goldner said the levy on the ballot is a "no new taxes" levy. "It is continuing the previous levy at the same rate for fire equipment and vehicles only," Goldner said in the statement prior to the election. "(The levy) will help pay for the ladder truck as well as a new equipment truck and other equipment that will be needed in the next five years," she said. Two other area villages in Wood County saw split results on their levy renewal requests Tuesday. Voters who live in Bradner renewed a 2-mill levy for parks and recreation, with 164 votes in favor and 114 opposed. In West Millgrove, a 5-mill levy renewal for current expenses was rejected with 8 votes in favor and 32 opposed. Two area townships, Jackson and Bloom, saw their levy requests approved. Jackson Township's renewal of a 3-mill, five-year levy for general construction, reconstruction, resurfacing and repair of roads received 182 votes in favor and 80 votes opposed. Bloom Township voters approved replacing an old .6 mill levy with a new .6 mill levy to provide ambulance services with 534 in favor and 229 opposed. Wood County voters also cast votes for the 75th Ohio House District representative. Incumbent Republican Haraz N. Ghanbari received 24,678 votes, while Democratic candidate Jan K. Materni received 16,756 votes. Both are from Perrysburg.