GOLF MANOR (4/28/2025) – Report from Mayor Stefan Densmore

I swore in Nick Hochscheid as a part time officer in the Golf Manor Police Department on April 15th. Officer Hochscheid is a fourth-generation police officer, and we had a Pinning Ceremony here in which his family and friends attended. His father pinned the Golf Manor PD badge on him, which was an honor to witness. I updated the oath of office I administer to our new officers for the occasion. I did this to bring more of a sense of ceremony and gravity to the occasion of which it deserves. Chief Campbell reviewed the changes made, which will be used moving forward with our new officers.

I’ve been invited to deliver a proclamation for Education Day at the local Rabbinical Yeshivas Lubavitch of Cincinnati, here in Golf Manor the past 3 years, and did so again on April 11th. It is always an honor to be asked to participate in this event, to have the opportunity to speak to the young people at the boarding school there and answer all their questions about government and politics here in the village. I want to specifically thank Rabbit Avtzon, as well as all the students, for the warm and affectionate welcome I always receive there.

As many of you are aware Carolynne Johnson, who worked as assistant clerk for the village since 2018, retired on March 28th. I proclaimed that day as Carolynne Johnson Day in a proclamation I read to her and the staff in attendance at her retirement lunch here. I want to again thank her for her years of extraordinary service to the village, and all the staff that turned out to celebrate her.

Ridge Acres has New Board Members! At the end of last month, the Ridge Acres condo association was able to have a quorum and elect new board members. 5 of the 6 board members are residents of Golf Manor which thankfully addresses some of the concerns I’ve raised in the past. The new board reports a new focus on needed repairs to the condominiums. I want to thank all the residents of Ridge Acres who have been fighting for these changes to the board, and Wayne Speer for championing this cause. The new members are: Wayne Speer -President; Brandie Carpenter – resident; Sherry St Elin – resident; Daryl Swan – resident; Tammy Winkler, and Jimmy Mccrae. I met with Wayne last year (before he was elected to the board) and expressed my concerns about “zombie condo associations” and all the concerns the Ridge Acres residents have been trying to get addressed for more than a decade. He stepped up and made sure that the residents’ concerns were being heard by the association and really spear-headed the election of new membership. He had planned on being here tonight but had a schedule conflict with his family, so we’ll try for another date, as I’d like to introduce him to the council, publicly thank him for his new role as President of the association, and have him share his contact information with council members.

Our village administrator’s anniversary date was earlier this month, and I will be completing my portion of his review later in the week. The measurable objectives that Melody and I created were initially reviewed by the Executive Committee, who requested some changes in the measurables and some additional special projects be added. The follow-up meeting on this was scheduled but missed I believe due to a quorum issue last year, and fell off the Executive Committee’s agenda. They recently got back on the agenda, and can be reviewed at a date selected by the committee, prior to their part of the evaluation of Mr. Hirth.

The Annual Soapbox Derby in Golf Manor will be held Sunday May 18th on Bremont Avenue. It is the 14th annual Soapbox Derby. A link to registration forms for kids to participate are available on the village website. Registration is available through May 11th. The races start at 8:30 AM for 7- to 13-year-olds, and noon for 9- to 18-year-olds. All the kids who register for the event MUST schedule an appointment prior to the race to have their cars inspected. There are cars available to freely use, but kids doing so must still schedule an appointment to be “fitted” to the car they choose, prior to race day. Fitting can take up to an hour long and occurs in the weeks leading up to the race. Each participant must also have at least a 2-person pit crew, with strength enough to lift their car. This is needed at the beginning and end of each participant’s race. It is a really fun event with lots of Golf Manor kids and families participating. Thank you to Doug Newberry, Stan Kokotajlo, Kevin Armstrong, Frank Howard, Mary Yeager, Paul Sheffer, Dave Myers, and Brett McMerney (who are the board of directors of the Cincinnati Soapbox Derby) for making this popular annual event in the village possible.

The administration and I met with our engineer and walked the proposed Volunteer Park walking path. We discussed potential issues and remedies to completing the path and the estimated cost. The engineer told me we should be able to complete the path by the fall, and that he will have a firm estimate and drawings prepared within the next 3-4 weeks for further review. This will be turned over to finance with a recommendation from the administration on what course to take.

I had a meeting with Dan Ferguson of Alloy Development about Business Development Opportunities in the village. Alloy Development is a nonprofit company that contracts with Hamilton County to help businesses access resources for development. The meeting included a review of the top income tax generators in the village, list of which companies have received development grants from the county over the past decade, what types of grants exist, resources available to our small businesses and strategies to propagate that information. I would like Dan to start working with Zach, who I’ve selected to chair my economic development committee, and will be scheduling a meeting for them in the coming weeks.

This Mayor’s report is respectfully submitted to the residents of Golf Manor. Thank you for the honor of being your Mayor. To our staff and elected officials, thank you for your service to the community.