MANSFIELD — The father of Ohio’s land reutilization efforts came to Mansfield on Thursday evening to wish the Richland County Land Bank a happy 10th birthday.
Former Cuyahoga County Treasurer Jim Rokakis, who started the state’s first Land Bank in 2008, praised the local organization, which began in 2012.
“I’m here because I am proud of the work you have done. I cannot stress enough to you how important it is to have a good staff and people devoted it,” Rokakis said during a celebratory event at the Buckeye Imagination Museum.
“In this county, you were fortunate both with the county treasurer and (county) commissioners who were devoted to the cause,” he said. “And also in a city like Mansfield that has committed its own resources to blight remediation.”
“I gotta tell you…you made this happen and I want to thank you for having me here today,” said Rokakis, who said there are now 64 county Land Banks around the state.
Richland County Treasurer Bart Hamilton, chair of the Land Bank board, said the Land Bank has helped make a difference in the community, especially in environmental clean-up efforts like the former Swan Cleaners and the effort now underway on the former Westinghouse site.
“This community made stuff. We built things here and we built things here from the 1800s to today. The things we’re building here today, we use a lot of chemicals, but we do them in the right way,” he said.
“Back in the old days, people didn’t do it the right way and they didn’t really understand that they needed to do things differently. So there’s a lot of things for us to clean up.
“We’ve partnered with the Ohio EPA. We like the EPA and they’re good people to have on your side, especially when you’re working on something like Swan Cleaners.
“We’re gonna see how important that relationship is as we work forward into Westinghouse. And some of the other projects we’re gonna do … but that’s gonna be the future,” Hamilton said.
Mansfield Mayor Tim Theaker, a Land Bank board member who helped found the organization, said the organization’s roots trace back to the city’s community development office, led by Donnie Mitchell and current Land Bank Manager Amy Hamrick.
“I remember Bart, Donnie Mitchell and I went up to Cleveland to look at a model Land Bank, which Jim ran and operated and (he) was able to show us all around.
“At that point in time, we made a decision that Richland County needs to have a Land Bank because of the opportunities (it) would offer,” Theaker said.
“So we came back to Mansfield, we met, we had several people, a couple of county commissioners were involved and we started putting together the applications.
“And we were accepted. Richland County was the 18th out of 88 counties to have a Land Bank. That’s pretty good. But it all comes back to Jim Rokakis. Without his vision, Land Banks wouldn’t even have existed.
“When we did get the Land Bank approved, Amy Hamrick came over from the city of Mansfield and started working for the Land Bank. And that is one of the best assets that we have ever had,” Theaker said.
Hamilton also praised the work of Hamrick, who was presented flowers during the evening.
“One of the people that really makes this place work is Amy Hamrick. You know, we’ve got a lot of people that have vision on our board and Amy has vision.
“But vision means nothing if you can’t accomplish things and Amy gets things accomplished. Some of the crazy stuff we come up with, it’s amazing she can get it accomplished, but she does. And she’s really done a great job for us over the years,” Hamilton said.
Richland County Commissioner Tony Vero, a Land Bank board member, said the organization was the only vehicle that could accomplish projects such as Westinghouse, as well as numerous demolitions of dilapidated houses and other structures.
“It really is the only organization in this county equipped with the knowledge, the wherewithal, the makeup, some of it’s statutory, but really it is the only organization equipped to handle a project of the Westinghouse scope,” Vero said.
“There really isn’t anywhere in this county that the Land Bank hasn’t been involved in. We’re talking about demolitions, redevelopment, remediations from residential homes to gas stations, to dry cleaners and a hotel all the way in Plymouth,” he said.
