By: James Pruitt
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
Pioneer residents can show their support for veterans by displaying a green light on their homes every Friday night.
The Village Council agreed to purchase 50 light bulbs and hand them out to anyone who wants one to support the initiative. Mayor Ed Kidston brought the idea to the council after hearing about it through the Pioneer Chamber of Commerce.
According to the website, greenlightavet.com, the goal is to have Americans change one light on their porch, in their home or at their office and keep it “glowing every days as a symbol of appreciation support for our veterans.” People are encouraged to take a photo of their green light and post it online with the hashtag #greenlightavet.
“The Chamber has reached out to industry,” Kidston said. “We would love to get the whole town involved.”
The lights cost $2.06 each, so if the village got one for every resident it would be a total donation of about $1,500.
After discussing purchasing bulbs in installments of 100, it was decided to go with lots of 50. For more information, contact the village offices.
Police and fire reports
The village police handled 113 calls for service in March, more than half (63) were officer initiated.
Officers had the most calls (27) on Wednesdays, with Thursdays (19) and Mondays (16) among the leaders.
Chief Livengood said he is getting his officers ready for the upcoming festivals and said the department would be participating in the mock crashes at the Williams County Fairgrounds.
There were 17 incident reports with seven citations issued. Thirteen misdemeanors were reported.
The fire department had 30 runs from March 14 to April 11, most were medical assists, Chief Denny Fackler said.
Members of the department voted to use money from an auction to pay off the bill for the phone system, Fackler said.
The village sold one of two vehicles it had put for auction. A pickup received 16 bids and went for $6,700.
Only bid for $4,000 was made on a fire truck and it did not meet the minimum bid of $7,500. Al —- said.
Village officials will look at a proposal for a new fire station next month.
Purchase of the lot for the new site has nearly been completed and fill dirt will be brought in to raise it up. The village has applied for a grant to help with the cost and while it is practical to have the design prepared in advance, no action will be taken until the amount of the grant is determined, Mayor Ed Kidston said.
Signal timing may change
Eckley asked if the village had any way of adjusting the time the traffic signal at U.S. 20 and State Route 15 could stay green for U.S. 20 traffic. He said if a semi-trailer is at the intersection on U.S. 20 when the light turns green, it is red before a second car behind the semi can get through.
Street Department Manager —- said he could check the light to make some adjustments and remain within state parameters.
Carp Street update
Mayor Ed Kidston updated the council on the Carp Street project.
“Nothing has happened yet,” Kidston said. “We are about 90 percent done with all the engineering drawings and specifications. I filled out this month’s report and said no activity.”
The village should be ready to bid the project by the end of May or the first part of June, Kidston said. The village has been awarded a grant for $1 million to pay for it.
James Pruitt may be reached at
publisher@thevillagereporter.com