Recent discussions on social media have sparked misinformation regarding the status of the GarrettsvilleStrong fund. The GarrettsvilleStrong fund was established by the Garrettsville Area Chamber of Commerce to raise funds which will be utilized to facilitate the rebuilding of the block in downtown Garrettsville affected by the fire March 22, 2014. This block spans Main Street between Center and High Streets and includes several parcels owned by different entities:
Threaded Barrel (Brick Building): Owns parcel 19-001-00-00-164-000, which is 7.56% of the total ground-level square footage of the area affected.
Garrettsville Area Chamber (Buckeye Block): Owns parcel 19-001-00-00-170-000, which comprises 46.94% of the total ground-level square footage of the area affected.
Steele Family: Owns parcels 19-001-00-00-163-000, 19-001-00-00-162-000, and 19-001-00-00-161-000, totals 22.02% of the total ground-level square footage of the area affected.
Carlson (formerly Weingart Property): Owns parcel 19-001-00-00-160-000, which represents 23.48% of the total ground-level square footage of the area affected.
In total $96,066.00 was raised in the GarrettsvilleStrong from donations, and interest. The fund initially allocated $50,000 for rebuilding efforts, which were distributed as follows:
Carlson (Brick Building): Allocated $3,780.00, and spent $3,778.58 for window replacements and awning on the building now owned by Threaded Barrel. Leaving a carryover balance of $1.42.
Garrettsville Area Chamber (Buckeye Block): Allocated $23,470.00, and spent $15,194.38 on Phase I of the Buckeye Block Amphitheater which included trees, ironwork, masonry, and consulting services from Patty Group. They have a carryover balance of $8,275.62.
Steele: Allocated $11,010.00. To date they have not applied for disbursement of construction funds.
Carlson (Weingart Property): Allocated $11,740.00. To date they have not applied for disbursement of construction funds.
Of the $50,000 allocated in the initial division, $18,972.96 was disbursed.
A secondary allocation was made for funds exceeding the initial $50,000, this amount total $46,066.00. These funds are split between the property owners using the percentages listed at the top of the article, however at this time no property owner has applied for their share yet.
The current total allocation balances by property owner are as follows:
Threaded Barrel (Brick Building): $3,484.01
Garrettsville Area Chamber (Buckeye Block):$29,899.00
Steele: $21,153.73
Carlson (Weingart Property): $22,556.30
So to clarify, the GarrettsvilleStrong funds raised for rebuilding the properties affected by the 2014 fire have been sitting in the bank waiting for the property owners since 2014.
Click here to learn what money from the GarrettsvilleStrong fund can be used for.