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Village with distillery past works to expand services
SHERRY KARABIN
Legal News Reporter
Published: February 28, 2013
It was the location of the last operating distillery in Mahoning County, and while the village of New Middletown has not forgotten its unique past, today the middle-class, bedroom community is known for its low crime rate and small-town amenities.
“New Middletown is a great place to raise a family,” said Mayor Harry Kale, who took office in 2008, after serving on the village council for two years. “We offer personalized services,” said Kale. “We have a great park and a great school system.”
Bordered by Springfield Township, the village was laid out in 1829 by Samuel Moore, who opened the first tavern in connection with the founding.
In the early days, the village was home to a number of small industries, including the Wire, Welsh & Company Whiskey Distillery that produced Golden Rye Whiskey until it was forced to close due to Prohibition.
Today the Golden Rye Grille on Main Street sits on part of the original property. The restaurant shows off the historic whiskey inside its display cases, and there is also a mural that depicts other parts of the area’s past.
“The village was once a stagecoach stop on the way from Youngstown to Cleveland and Pittsburgh,” said New Middletown Police Chief, Vincent D’Egidio, who has lived in the area since 1966.
“It used to be mostly farming but the municipality has evolved into a modern village with all the conveniences of a large city only smaller. Now the only farming you will find is on the outskirts of town.”
In 1920 the population of New Middletown was about 168; today there are over 1,600 residents and between 20 to 25 businesses, the bulk of which are family owned.
The newest to open is a large renovated Dollar General, which moved its operations from New Middletown Plaza to Main Street.
“They bought about four acres of property and put up a structure that is triple the size of the old one,” said D’Egidio.
Other recently opened businesses include ATV World, the Groggy Monday coffee shop, Steel Dawgs Sports Grille, Team BSS Training & Fitness, and Circle Rehab.
“We also have a few top notch restaurants on Main Street like Potosino’s, which serves Mexican, and DeChellis Italian Cafe,” D’Egidio said. “People come to New Middletown from out of town to eat at these restaurants.”
“New Middletown Plaza has also been renovated,” said Kale. “The library used to be housed in the Village Hall as a reading room library but it moved to a building on 170 and it was enlarged to a full service library.”
The village is primarily funded by county and state money along with property taxes.
Residents pay a 1 percent income tax, which goes to support the Springfield Local School District, where children in the village are educated.
“We are self sustaining,” said Kale. “We do not have any general operating tax levy. We have always been frugal with our expenditures so we have not needed to put a levy on the ballot.”
Kale said the village made it through the downturn without cutting services or laying anyone off.
“We always maintained a surplus,” said Kale. “We have been able to add a full-time police officer in fact. Our equipment is all up to date, our police cruisers are new, and our newest fire engine is only seven years old, which supports the mission of our all volunteer fire department.”
“We are a small community so we did not get a lot of money from the government to begin with,” said Fiscal Officer Carl Flitcraft. “As a result, we did not lose that much so we were not hurt that badly.”
The village leases its water system to Aqua Ohio, which also generates revenue, and Comcast pays a franchise fee for its cable system.
“The police and fire departments receive property tax money,” said D’Egidio.
The village did have a few foreclosures and has applied for Moving Ohio Forward demolition money but the mayor said it is unlikely they will demolish the properties.
“One of the properties was recently sold,” said Kale. “Our houses do not stay on the market for more than a month because it a nice quiet community and people want to live here.”
The village is primarily single-family homes but there are two condominium complexes.
Welker Park is located directly behind the Municipal Building, and features a children’s playground, tennis, basketball, and volleyball courts, a bike and skateboarding park and picnics tables. The pavilion is often rented out and used to host everything from baptisms to weddings.
New Middletown is part of the Mill Creek MetroParks system, which provides numerous recreational opportunities. In addition residents can also go boating in Lake Milton State Park, which is about 25 miles away.
“We focus a lot on quality of life issues in the village, clean streets and well-kept properties,” said D’Egidio. “The police also try to give personalized services to residents.”
Every August, the police department hosts a National Night Out celebration, which draws thousands.
In the future, the mayor said he wants to expand police services even further.
“The department became a 24/7 operation under my administration which is something I’m very proud of,” said Kale. “My plan is to continue to boost safety services.
“I would also like to see the village expand. I am looking into annexation to make this possible.”
“New Middletown, Ohio may be one of Mahoning County’s best kept secrets”, said D’Egidio.