Mayor Steve Henderson shared changes to Wapakoneta including Legacy ParkPlatz located downtown.
Precious Grundy | The Lima News
WAPAKONETA — Elected officials Steve Henderson and John Bergman, alongside Wapakoneta schools Superintendent Aaron Rex delivered the State of the City. On Thursday afternoon, each entity shared recent improvements and how the city hopes to move forward. The mayor of Wapakoneta, Henderson, focused on the quality of life, economic development and infrastructure.
Henderson discussed changes to the city of Wapakoneta, including the newest addition to the downtown area. In June 2022, the city unveiled the Wapakoneta Legacy ParkPlatz. The structure recognizes the legacy of Neil Armstrong, native of Wapakoneta and the first man on the moon.
Henderson also discussed the expansion of local businesses, including FlexArm.
Commissioner Bergman talked about ARPA funding. Auglaize County received around $8.8 million in funding from the American Rescue Plan Act according to the U.S. Department of Treasury website. Bergman shared how the dollars were allocated throughout the county.
“We have delegated about $50,000 to each township,” said Bergman. “Most of them chose to put it towards pacing programs and those types of things.”
Rex closed the meeting with changes made to the schools. Rex said a staff member wanted to help their school improve its safety.
“This staff member took the time to do the research,” said Rex. “She presented her idea for the school safety plan and honestly it was a great idea. We then helped her to implement this plan. In the end, it has made Wapakoneta schools even better when it comes to the safety of our children.”
Rex said the school board also wondered ‘how the schools could be better?’. The organization decided to take safety a step further.
“This pushed us to partner with the city and the county to put a school resource officer in each of our school buildings,” said Rex. “We believe that nothing is more important than the safety of our children and staff members. Questions like this and the constant desire to improve make our system what we believe [is] one of the best in the state of Ohio.”
Rex said each project was made possible by members of the community.
Reach Precious Grundy 567-242-0351.
