Village News

Click the link below to view frequently asked questions about the “Stay Home” edict in Ohio!

To the Residents of the Village of Lagrange, March 19, 2020:

As we continue to work through all the directives and guidelines set down by the state and local authorities, we will try to keep you updated as much as possible. Things are changing so fast that as soon as I write a letter to all of you some things have already been updated.

Public Health Services has sent to us new guidelines for all police officers, these have been implemented and we will keep up with whatever is changed. We continue to have more officers on duty to help everyone through these times and I would like to commend all of these officers for stepping up to the plate and taking extra shifts to keep us all safe. I want you all to know they are here for all of us but understand even in our small Village they are sometimes stressed with calls and I would ask everyone to keep calls for emergencies only.

I am asking also that if anyone knows of people in the Village who need help with groceries, prescriptions or any underlying issues please call the Village or even myself and we will get them the help they need. This is what small communities are all about and we need your help to accomplish this.

I am also closing the Village offices at this time to keep contact with our employees at a minimum to protect them as well. We have a drop box in front of the Village hall where water bills can be paid and if you don’t have the correct change, we will apply the difference to the next month as a debit or credit to your account. All meetings at this time and Mayors Court have been cancelled until further notice. We are working with the state right now to determine how this will be handled. We also will be alternating the office help to keep their contact with each other at a minimum. The Village Administrator and I will fill in as well to help answer phone calls as needed.
We have also been asked to keep contact between sewer plant employees to a minimum so that we have people to operate the plant. We cannot afford to have all of them sick at once. We are setting them up on different shifts and on call time so they all continue to work but not together. This will be done with all other Village employees to accomplish the same thing. We are trying to follow the “no social contact” as much as possible.

I would like to conclude by asking everyone to support our local businesses as much as possible, they are offering “take out” in most restaurants and bars. I was at the IGA and the hardware and saw employees scrambling to restock shelves to provide what you need for purchase, some even saying they might offer delivery to help. These are the same people we all go to for sponsorships of our golf outings, baseball teams, football teams, programs, etc… They come through for us and we need to come through for them.
Thanking you for your patience in advance.

Mayor Kim Strauss
Village of Lagrange 440-355-5309

MARCH 15^th, 2020

To the Residents of the Village of Lagrange,

 We are continuing to speak with surrounding communities to develop strategies to properly address the coronavirus. We are also enacting policies in the Village to keep contact at a minimum and at the same time continue to provide services as needed.

We have set a policy to stop any disconnections of water service because we know that proper handwashing and sanitation is critical to the spread of this virus. This cannot happen without access to water. Although we encourage all residents to continue timely payments of their utilities, we will work with residents to bring their bill into compliance in a timely manner.

We have stepped up police coverage at the times of the day that have the most activity and we will continue to keep our Village safe.

Simple inspections at this time where we have to enter the home will be put on hold for the time being to minimize contact as much as possible. This is to protect you as residents as well as the employees of the Village.

We will continue to keep everyone updated as things develop but I would encourage everyone to keep contact at a minimum if at all possible, especially the elderly and people with underlying conditions. Some businesses have already put things in place to keep the spread of this virus in check as much as possible and I am sure there will be more to follow.

We will continue to follow state and local guide lines as they are set down by the local authorities.

Thanking you in advance for your cooperation,

Mayor Kim Strauss

Village of LaGrange

More information available at https://www.cdc.gov/

The New Year brings in two new members of the LaGrange Planning Commission. Councilperson, Barry Price has replaced longtime Commission member, Councilperson Rick Honer as Village Council’s representative on the Commission.

Mr. Chuck Sturgill of Appomattox Court was also sworn in to Planning Commission before last night’s meeting. Mr. Churgill is a long-time resident of LaGrange and is the General Manager of Elyria Ford. Mr. Sturgill is a resident of Union Station. Having Union Station represented on the Commission is vital. The Durham Ridge development already has representation on Planning Commission President, Mr. Chris Gates. Mr. Gates is a Project Manager for the Cleveland Clinic.

Welcome to all of our new members!

Proposed LaGrange apartments raise concern among residents

Dylan Reynolds
The Chronicle-Telegram

Jan 03, 2020 6:00 AM

The development would include 48 two-bedroom, one-story units, as well as a leasing office and four stormwater management basins, said Chris Howard, vice president of Bramhall Engineering & Surveying, the company handling design work. Developer Jason Scott said the apartments’ name is still in the works, but he’s looking at a Civil War theme.

LAGRANGE — Extra chairs had to be brought in to seat the crowd of LaGrange residents who attended Thursday’s Planning Commission meeting to express their concerns about a proposed apartment development that would be built on U.S. Grant Street near North Center Street.

Thursday’s meeting only included an informal presentation of its plans, so Planning Commission did not vote on approval of the plans. The next step in the process is for Village Engineer Doug Nusser to look at the developer’s plan and determine its compliance with zoning codes.

But that is where the confusion begins for the village. The land the apartments would occupy is zoned as planned unit development (PUD), but village leaders and Planning Commission members were not certain on what uses of the land would be permitted by code.

Mayor Kim Strauss, who sits on the Planning Commission, said confusing and seemingly contradictory codes governing the PUD have the village looking to Village Solicitor Jon Clark for legal advice on how to proceed. Some residents questioned Strauss and the Planning Commission on whether the area is zoned for apartment development.

“It is very confusing at this point,” Strauss said. “We still don’t have an exact answer.”

Nusser said the village needs to figure out what the approved use is for the land, so he can determine if it may need to be changed for the development plans to forward. Some residents in attendance thought LaGrange does not need any apartments at all.

When Scott, the developer, told the crowd that there is a high demand for apartments wherever they are built, some in the crowd replied, “Not here, they’re not.”

Others raised concerns that the additional residents the development would bring could produce dangerous traffic in town, create trash collection and snow plowing problems or put a strain on Keystone Schools.

Strauss said he has been in communication with Keystone Superintendent Dan White, and the district is prepared for any new students the development would bring. As far as the idea of building apartments as opposed to some other kind of development, Strauss said the alternative might be a Family Dollar or similar store.

“Something is going to go there, whether it is commercial or this residential,” he said earlier Thursday. “I would rather see that developed into residential apartments than all of it go into commercial.”

Because the village cannot reject developments that are permitted by zoning codes, an agreeable solution with the developer will be the best way to please the concerned community members, Strauss said.

“They want us to just say, ‘No, don’t do anything,’ but we just can’t do that,” he said. “We have to work with the developer and that’s what we’re trying to do.”

North Star Builders previously submitted another design, but the village asked for revisions with fewer curb cuts on the street. Strauss said he finds the new designs to be laid out nicely, and his hope is that the eventual final plans would be “palatable for everyone.”

Contact Dylan Reynolds at (440) 329-7123 or dreynolds@chroniclet.com. Follow him on Twitter @DRey1357.

The Village is now accepting applications for the rental of three spaces in the Village Administration Building. The Gymnasium, The Lobby/Atrium and the Council Chambers can fit various size events. Please fill out the application below and return it to the Village Offices at 301 Liberty Street. Most events will require a damage insurance policy. However, that amount may be more based upon the type of event you are hosting. There will be additional information provided when you turn in this application. The first rental, the Keystone Class of 1969, 50th Class Reunion was very successful and we anticipate more rentals of various types at our location!

301 LIBERTY STREET
LAGRANGE, OHIO 44050

LOCATION: Welcome to LaGrange, Ohio (established in 1875), a growing, rural community located in LaGrange Township in southern

 Lorain County. Just 10 miles south of Elyria, and about 35 miles southwest of Cleveland, LaGrange has seen a growth spurt because of its proximity to Cleveland and Elyria and its location six miles south of the I-480 spur (U.S. Route 20). LaGrange is approximately 20 minutes from Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, and 35 minutes from downtown Cleveland. Interstate 71 is located 20 minutes south (via State Route 301) or east (via State Route 303).

EDUCATION: LaGrange is home to the Keystone Local Schools, Wildcats. The Keystone schools are located on a new campus on Opportunity Way. the High School (opened in 2006), the Middle School (opened in 2013), and the Elementary School (opened in the fall of 2015) and a new athletic facility are all contiguous. Visit their web page at www.keystonelocalschools.org. The “Friends of LaGrange Public Library” has worked diligently with the Elyria Public Library to open our library facility in the old “Vets Hall” building in Veterans Park. Local “Post Secondary” opportunities include Lorain County Community College which is 15 miles north of town, and Oberlin College, only 10 miles away. (more…)