Resolution declaring Portsmouth a Sanctuary for the LGBTQ+ Community to be Introduced at April 28 Council Meeting

A resolution declaring Portsmouth a “sanctuary city” for members of the LGBTQ+ community will be discussed during the City Manager’s conference agenda at tonight’s council meeting.

The resolution states that recent legislation passed in Ohio targeting members of the community makes a proclamation necessary. If passed, it could potentially mean the city refrains from enforcing what advocates describe as discriminatory laws.

There has been pushback against the resolution online, and some members of council have signaled they will not support it. Fifth Ward Councilmember Joey Sandlin, who publicly opposes the resolution, shared a lengthy anonymous letter, saying it reflects his position. The letter raises concerns over potential withholding of state funds from the city for adopting policy positions at odds with recent state regulations aimed at the transgender community.

Humans Rights Campaign Municipal Equality Index scores several Ohio Cities high for LGBTQ+ protections, including Columbus, Cleveland and Cincinnati, all of which have perfect scores of 100. Nearly all of Ohio’s major metropolitan areas received high marks for passing ordinances or adopting policies that combat discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. To date, no cities have had state funds withheld.

The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. in Shawnee State University’s Kricker Innovation Center, located on Chillicothe St.

Scioto County Board of Commissioners Meeting

At their April 17 meeting, the Scioto County Commission addressed a wide range of topics, including economic development and restricting vehicle weights on county roads.

During the Commissioner’s comment and statement period, Commissioner Bryan Davis voiced concerns about the state of economic development in the county, describing it as nonexistent for two months.

“I know that SOPA (Southern Ohio Port Authority) has been reorganized,” Davis said. “But my concern is we do not have a ship or a captain.”

Davis said the commission has a responsibility to ensure economic development is progressing in the county, and needed to move fast.

“I feel like we need to develop that plan,” Davis said. “I would like to hear the opinion of my co-commissioners about what that would look like.”

Davis warned of national-level indicators of economic retraction, punctuated by Pixelle Specialty Solutions’ announcement the Chillicothe paper mill will be closing.

“That will affect Scioto County,” Davis said.

Commissioner Scottie Powell said he believed a plan moving forward must involve the broader community, especially in the aftermath of former economic development chief’s Robert P. Horton’s indictment. Horton was later removed as head of SOPA and fired as director of the county’s economic development office.

“It would be arrogant to think we’re not in a trust deficit currently within the community,” Powell said. “What I would propose is a summit to reimagine what economic development looks like in Scioto County, ” Powell said, signaling he wants to involve important organizations in the county like Shawnee State University, the Scioto County Career Technical Center and Community Action.

“How do you pull in all these entities?”

Powell envisions a system that can weather political instability and has broad oversight through multiple stakeholders.

“Our focus should be creating a system that can withstand the whims of politics,” said Powell. “We need to be setting up a system that can survive twenty or thirty years from now, regardless of who’s sitting in these seats.”

Fuert Hill Road Slippage

Scioto County Engineer Darren LeBrun provided an update on the Fuert Hill Road slippage that occurred April 6 following days of heavy rainfall.

“This is a very important road,” Commissioner Scottie Powell said, introducing LeBrun. “Huge slippage during the last storm event.”

LeBrun estimated repairs would cost $3 million dollars, of which $2.5 million would come from emergency Ohio Public Works Commission (OPW) funds. His office is working on finding additional funds to cover the remaining $500,000.

“That’ll be available the first of July, which is the beginning of the state’s fiscal year,” LeBrun said, adding his office will complete planning before that date so it can quickly solicit bids to repair the 1000 foot slip. “I think it will be a two to three-month project.”

Commissioner Bryan Davis said this underscores the importance of supporting Ohio Issue 2, which will appear on the May 6 election ballot and allocate $2.5 billion over the next 10 years to fund public infrastructure projects under the State Capital Improvement Program (SCIP).

“This is a prime example,” Davis said, explaining the SCIP program has benefitted Scioto County in the past and was not a new program. “It’s not a new tax increase, it’s always been there and it’s for the things we’ve been talking about today.”

50% Axle Weight Reduction Lyon and Luther Road in Madison Township

Heavy commercial traffic on Lyon and Luther roads north of Minford prompted the commission to pass an “axle weight” reduction ordinance. The issue, according to LeBrun and Powell, is because of Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) construction on OH-335. LeBrun said roughly 5000 vehicles use the highway daily, and Lyon and Luther roads have become unofficial detours.

“ODOT does have a posted route of the bypass, state route 32, and of course state route 139,” LeBrun said. “Most local traffic is not going to take that.”

LeBrun explained commercial trucking uses GPS navigation, which often designates the two roads as the fastest route.

Powell said the Lyon and Luther roads were recently paved at a cost of $127,064 , and expressed concern regarding the heavy usage.

“This could potentially damage all the work and funds that went into those roads,” Powell said.

“The commercial traffic these roads are seeing, they just can’t handle it,” said LeBrun, explaining the Sheriff’s department or State Highway Patrol can ticket any load that exceeds the weight restriction.

The restriction went into effect April 19 for the two county roads. The limits mean a vehicle can only carry half of its designated axle weight. An example would be a truck designated to carry 20,000 pounds could only carry 10,000 pounds when driving on these roads.

Protests Continue to be Organized in Portsmouth

On April 18, a group of approximately 20 people gathered downtown at the corner of Chillicothe and 2nd Street for a demonstration against Republican Candidate for governor Vivek Ramaswamy.

Ramaswamy, 39, was speaking across the street at the “Lincoln Day Banquet,” an annual dinner hosted by the local Republican Party.

“His policies are bad,” said a protestor who asked to only be identified as Garrett due to concerns about retaliation. “It’s going to be very bad for people who want healthcare, or are using public healthcare.”

On the campaign trail and during his time as co-chair of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Ramaswamy has expressed support for work requirements for individuals receiving Medicaid benefits. During his campaign launch earlier this year, Ramaswamy said he would “end the war on work” with these policies.

During a speech delivered at the banquet, Ramaswamy said he wants to move teachers in Ohio to a merit-based pay system that rewards high-performers.

“I think our public school teachers, the best ones, deserve to be paid a lot more,” Ramaswamy said. “But it’s got to be tied to performance.”

Ramaswamy said that the incentives system should ensure teachers “carry their weight” to address what he described as an educational crisis in America.

“We’re not getting the very best anymore.”

The National Center on Performance Incentives (NCPI) at Vanderbilt University published a study in 2012 known as the Project on Incentives in Teaching (POINT), which examined the effects of performance-based pay on student achievement. Partnering with the RAND Corporation, a multidisciplinary team found incentives alone did not result in higher achievement.

Later studies have been mixed, but there is some indication that if properly implemented with other initiatives like professional development teacher incentives can improve student outcomes.

Richard Stobbs, a former Sheriff in Belmont county and veteran, came to Portsmouth to attend the banquet. He said that while he likes many of Ramaswamay’s ideas, the biotech billionaire and his colleague Elon Musk have pursued their policies to reduce government spending and waste haphazardly. Stobbs was concerned about the potential impact the cuts and firings would have on veteran’s services.

“We need [veteran’s administration] services,” Stobbs said. “We’re good with them cutting out the fraud.”

Stobbs said that while he is a Donald Tump supporter, he questioned people being fired just because they work for the federal government.

“You shouldn’t just lose your job because they got a quota.”

On April 19 roughly 120 people gathered at Tracy Park for another protest as part of a National Day of Action. This marks the second national protest that Portsmouth locals participated within the past month.

Taylor Hamm, who attended both protests, said she came out to support the less fortunate.

“I want to be a voice for the voiceless,” Hamm said. “We are not paid to be here.”

Hamm said she thinks the Trump administration is targeting minorities, the LGBTQ+ community and axing programs that help the poor.