RESEARCH
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Click these links to see topics related to the village square project.
November 16, 2011: Dale Bufler introduced the idea of recreating the military service sign that stood in the town square during WWII and he presented a photograph of what the structure looked like. Discussion ensued.
December 14, 2011: Ron Wiley reported a conversation that he had with John Devore, of Devore's Land and Water Gardens, about improving the appearance of the four corners of public land in the middle of Darrtown (the intersection of Main Street and Oxford Street). Discussion ensued; including the idea of planting trees along Main Street to replace those that the state highway department removed several years ago.
April 11, 2012: Ron Wiley presented a preliminary sketch of beautification in the two west quadrants of the village square. The landscaping sketch was prepared, at no cost to the committee, by John DeVore. The sketch included trees, shrubs, walking path, story boards, picnic and recreation areas, and it defined parking for Hitching Post customers. Discussion ensued; Ron agreed to present this plan to the Township Trustees at their May 1st meeting. If the Trustees approve the plan, they will be asked to inform all contiguous property owners and Ron will contact other area landscape businesses to determine their interest in participating in the development.
August 23, 2013: Ron Wiley led a discussion regarding the new Veterans' Memorial to be placed in the northwest quadrant of Darrtown village square. During the discussion, we reviewed the sketches that Dale presented at our last meeting. Dale Bufler then introduced a new idea. He suggested that we design the new memorial to resemble or "mirror" the Walter Alston memorial that stands in the southwest quadrant. Discussion ensued. Each member expressed her/his preference. Following the discussion, Fred Lindley noted that committee members seemed to agree on the following points:
1. Design the monument to simulate the Alston memorial.
2. Design the new monument to include the plaque that now appears in the old memorial on the east side of Main Street (we must investigate if the Talawanda Garden Club still exists, as it sponsored the original monument. If it does, we need to consult with the club members regarding the movement of the existing monument.)
3. Investigate the cost of having the new monument constructed of black granite.
4. Place the new monument in the center of the northwest patio, with front side facing east - toward Main Street.
5. Design the monument to include Dale's ideas regarding verse and the arrangement of symbols to commemorate all branches of military service, etc.
6. Place all military pavers (those purchased and engraved in memory of veterans) near/adjacent to the monument.
Fred then introduced a motion that the committee adopt the foregoing points as a plan for action. Paul Gillespie seconded the motion. Ron Wiley called for a vote, which unanimously passed.
August 6, 2013: Dale Bufler shared some drawings of possible veterans' memorial. Joe Pater and Jack Daniels plan to use copies of the drawings, when they seek funds from the potential donors.
April 28, 2014: Jack Daniels introduced the idea of moving the parking spaces that are currently planned for the northwest quadrant of the village square (along the west side of Main Street) from the northwest quadrant to the southwest quadrant (along the south side of Oxford Street). The committee recognized several advantages in this thought (one being an improved line of sight when drivers back their vehicles from the current parking lot onto Route 177) and recommended to Paul Gillespie that he pursue this idea with the other two Township Trustees.
Memorial Park approved by township trustees
As referenced in the notes from the April 11, 2012 Steering Committee meeting (above}, Ron Wiley, accompanied by Joe Pater and Sandy Jolivette, presented the veterans' memorial idea to the Township Trustees at their May meeting. Subsequently, the Bicentennial Steering Committee received the approval of the Milford Township Trustees to designate the two quadrants (half-lots) on the west side of Main Street (State Route 177) as the Milford Township Memorial Park.
In conjunction with the Milford Township Trustees, the Steering Committee decided that the village square project would have three points of emphasis: landscaping, veterans' memorial, and engraved pavers.
LANDSCAPING: Funds would be sought to improve the appearance of the park, through a landscaping project.
VETERANS' MEMORIAL: Funds would be sought to install a new veterans' monument that would honor the men and women from Darrtown and Milford Township who served our country in the military.
ENGRAVED PAVERS: Funds would be sought to install engraved pavers in the village square walkways and patios to honor the memory of individuals, families, events, businesses, and organizations from Darrtown and Milford Township.
The committee also decided that the northwest quadrant would serve as the military section
and the southwest quadrant would serve all others.
Below is some info about how the committee gained the approval of the Milford Township trustees...
See below for background information about how the idea to upgrade the village square originated and evolved.
Click the following link to access the minutes of the Committee meetings that tell how the committee decided to create the the Veterans' Monument in the Darrtown village square: Monument Chronology
RIGHT:
On September 10, 2016, prior to the opening of the annual reunion, a brief ceremony was conducted in the Darrtown village square to unveil that Milford Township Memorial Park monument.
The monument was made possible by a generous donation from life-long Milford Township resident Richard L. "Dickie" Bunger.
LEFT:
Richard Bunger is seen standing at the right.
Township Trustee Paul Gillespie appears at the left. Paul offered comments during the ceremony to express the community's appreciation for Mr. Bunger's financial support of the Memorial Park project.
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...just as Conrad Darr specified in his original plat of the village and in his narrative that he filed with the courts of Butler County, Ohio, on April 4, 1814.
...that were generated by the Darrtown Bicentennial Steering Committee, in preparation for the 200-year celebration on July 5th and 6th, 2014.
BACKGROUND ON VILLAGE SQUARE IMPROVEMENT PLANS
