Murray Ridge levy

Issue: No. 13

What: 1.6875 mills for Murray Ridge Center Services

How long: Five years

Purpose: To continue to provide critical lifelong support for Lorain County citizens with developmental disabilities.

Annual cost to the owner of a home worth $150,000: $50.96

 

911 levy

Issue: No. 14

What: 0.35 mills for Lorain County 911

How long: 5 years

Purpose: To generate the funding necessary to provide 911 services, including wireless 911, for the citizens for

Annual cost to the owner of a $150,000 home: $16.08

 

Two Lorain County programs — Murray Ridge Center and Lorain County 911 — are seeking levy renewals this year.

The Murray Ridge Center provides educational, vocational and residential services for developmentally disabled individuals in Lorain County.

The levy funds 23 percent of the program’s operating costs, according to Superintendent Amber Fisher. More than 600 of the most severely emotionally and mentally disabled students from schools around the county are sent to Murray Ridge for educational instruction, and more than 1,000 adults use some form the services, Fisher said.

“ Murray Ridge Center has a 40-year history of providing services for the county and of being a frugal steward of public funds,” Fisher said.

She said that if the levy fails, the program would have to make drastic cuts to services across the board.

For the Lorain County 911 system, a renewal of the levy would allow it to continue to be a 24-hour contact point for all emergency services for the county. In addition to basic operating costs such as staff and equipment, some of the money will go towards wireless 911.

Sixty-five percent of the more than 200,000 calls that come in to 911 each year are made from cell phones, a spokesperson said. The levy would provide funding to ensure that Lorain County 911 can roughly locate the source of the call — using GPS — and determine who owns the phone that initiated the call.

Lorain County 911 is responsible for dispatching ambulances and helicopters as they are needed to respond to time-sensitive emergencies.

 

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