Mentor Recreation Dept. programs remain hot, according to the latest weekly Mentor city manager memo to City Council. Attendance — and therefore revenues — from day camps and pools are way up, and there are plans in place to keep traffic moving after the annual fireworks display.

Parks and Recreation Department
• Day camps are off to a fantastic start. To date, we have 1,913 kids registered in Recreation Division camps (not including Wildwood, Golf or Arena) with revenue of $175,752, making it the biggest year for camp attendance and income ever.

• Pool revenue and attendance is up. As of June 15, revenue is up $36,402 over our five-year average. Pool attendance is up 4,841 compared to the five-year average.

• The weather looks good for the annual 4th of July Fireworks display. This spectacular display starts at 9:50 p.m. and can be viewed anywhere on the Civic Center Campus and Mentor High School grounds. Don’t forget the Rock & Rev at Western Reserve Harley Davidson this year the parking lot will feature activities for young and old as well as a Dunk Tank with proceeds form the dunk tank going to the Parks & Recreation Department.

• The Mentor Senior Center along with ASA (The Association of Specialists in Aging) hosted a Health Fair on Wednesday, June 27. We had 34 vendors and a couple hundred people came through the doors.

• Tuesday night’s “Try-it Tuesday” was a success again this week, with 48 people trying the kayaks and the standup paddle boards. Recreation Superintendent Paul Hegreness was giving paddle board lessons to all that came down to try the sport. Paul’s patience helped many of the first-time users to have success by being able to stand and paddle without too many falls in the lagoon.

• Tuesday night a small leak was found in the 12 inch PCV return line at Civic Center Pool. The pool was closed at 5 p.m. to repair the leak. All the Wednesday night lessons were moved to Garfield Pool for the evening. The pool was repaired and re-opened on Thursday in time for the HOT weather.

Manager Comments
• On June 26 at 11:20 a.m., police and fire were called to 7950 Mentor Ave. for a child who reportedly fell nearly 20 feet from a third-floor bedroom window. The child was treated and transported to Hillcrest Hospital in stable condition and did not sustain any life-threatening injuries. The fire department also transported family members to the hospital as they were without immediate transportation. Police are still investigating the circumstances.

• The Police Department is finalizing operational plans for the Fourth of July fireworks. This year we will be closing both the eastbound and westbound exit ramps from SR 2 to Center St. at the end of the fireworks. We believe this will help traffic clear out more expediently. ODOT was consulted and approved the change, and Route 2 contractor Shelly Construction will assist by providing message boards and barrels. The fire department is also preparing for the fireworks display and is working with the presenter’s technicians and the Mentor Schools to insure a safe show during this dry period. The school has agreed to wet down the display area due to the lack of rain during the past few weeks.

• We were notified by the Regional Income Tax Agency (RITA) that the City of Mentor will be receiving $495,060 as its share of refunded retainer fees. Our total net cost of collections to the agency after the refund equals 1.50%. The refund is about $122,000 higher than last year’s refund.

• Council President Marn, Vice President Kirchner, Tony Zampedro, Kathie Pohl, and I attended the ribbon cutting ceremony at Eye Lighting Friday to celebrate their new line of lighting products. After a ceremony that included all Eye Lighting employees, we toured the new areas, and ate lunch among the employees. The management staff was very complimentary toward the assistance they received from the city and grateful for our Economic Development Grant.

Fire Department
• On June 25 at 10:56 a.m., the fire department was called to Heisley Road near Diamond Center for a vehicle that leaked diesel fuel. The fire department assisted in the clean-up and hazard abatement.

• On June 26 at 11:54 p.m., the fire department responded to 6515 Hopkins for a trash compactor fire at Steris. Crews extinguished the fire and ventilated the facility. There was no fire extension into the building and no reported injuries.

• On June 27 at 10:15 a.m., the fire department responded to Nick’s Gyros at 8764 Mentor Ave. for a grease fire under a griddle. The owner was able to quickly extinguish the fire and the fire department ensured that there was no extension to the building. The restaurant was able to remain open and there were no reported injuries.

• On June 27 at 8:52 p.m., paramedics attempted to resuscitate an unresponsive male who may have fell victim to a drug overdose. This was the second drug-related call of the week.

• Again this week the fire department responded to several mulch fires. There were 15 reported mulch fires this past week.

Police Department
• The Police Department has been working this week along with the Engineering Department in closely monitoring any traffic issues related to the Bellflower Road resurfacing project which started on Monday.  here have been no significant traffic issues to this point.

• The Police Department recently recognized Special Police Officer Greg Thurier for his 25 years of service to the citizens of Mentor. Since his retirement from the Cleveland Clinic he has been assisting the Court Officer,  attending both the Planning and Zoning meetings as well as patrolling the Nature Preserve and Marina on the Department’s ATV.

Engineering and Building Department
• SR 2 Widening: Work on Center Street is anticipated to switch from the western half of the roadway to the eastern half the week of July 2. At that time, northbound traffic will be limited to two lanes, one of which will be a shared left turn and through lane at SR 2. It is anticipated that the work in the northbound direction will last approximately six weeks. Upon completion of the widening at Center Street, widening work will occur on Heisley Road. Widening work continues on mainline SR 2. At this time, it is anticipated that the contractor will finish a majority of the scheduled work this construction season.

• 2012 Road Repair Program: The asphalt portion of the repair program is nearly complete. Old Johnnycake is the only remaining street in the asphalt portion of the road program. The concrete contractor has resumed work in the Pinegate subdivision. Upon completion of the work in Pinegate, the contractor will move operations to southern Mentor. Both contracts should be complete by the Sept. 28 completion date.

• Bellflower Road Repair and Resurfacing Project: The eastbound traffic detour was put into effect on June 25. The contractor began milling operations at SR306 in the eastbound lane. Temporary mailboxes were installed by the post office at Lake Catholic and on Pine Tree Drive. Garbage pick up should be as usual. Residents should take their containers to the curb for pick up. The contractor will relocate the containers as needed to facilitate Waste Management being able to access them.  The scheduled completion date for the project is Aug. 25, 2012.

• Stoneybrook/Garfield Rd. Storm Sewer Improvements: The contractor has completed the rock channel protection along the stream for Stoneybrook Ln. The footers for the culvert under Stoneybrook Ln. are currently being constructed. The box culverts for Stoneybrook Lane are expected to be delivered to the job site this week. 

Economic and Community Development
• Population estimates released June 28 indicate the City of Mentor’s population declined by 0.07% or 33 persons, the population of Lake County declined as well (156 persons or 0.1%)

• One piece of information “picked-up” at the ICSC conference is the use of the statistic “retail sales per capita,” which is simply the total retail sales in the community divided by the population.  This computation favors a small community with a large amount of retail. Mentor ranks 27th in the State and 7th in the Greater Cleveland area.

• The U.S. Small Business Administration approved MEACO’s SBA 504 loan for Cleveland Plumbing Supply Company. This project includes the purchase and renovation of 7272 Mentor Ave. (former Clark Dodge site) with an estimated cost of $1,024,500.

• Tom Thielman met with Emily Tucker, Global Trade Development Manager for the Ohio Department of Development, regarding the reorganization of Ohio’s export/import services as well as a discussion of Mentor’s export/import initiative.

• MEACO’s Board of Director’s met June 29. Three new members were elected to the Board: Christine Blake, CEO, Cardinal Community Economic and Community Development Credit Union, Thomas Young, Vice President, Citizens Bank and Mark Fosnaught, Vice President, Key Bank.

• MEACO is working with a local restaurant start-up to evaluate if they would qualify for financing through the Mentor Small Business Loan program. Maximum loan is $25,000.

Public Works Department
• The Public Works activity highlights this week were:  Mansion Blvd. - complete repairs to curb inlet basin; Newhouse Ct. – complete repairs to curb in-let basin; Crack Seal SR 84 – westbound lanes is complete; Middlesex Drainage Improvement Project is complete; Horvitz Channel – mowing banks of ditch line; 7582 Thistlewood – complete asphalt road repair; Park Maintenance, mowing and lining of baseball fields; Preparations for Independence Day – 600 sand bags, fencing and signage; Traffic cabinet preventative maintenance is complete; and North and South side of Bellflower Road – storm sewer cleaning and inspections ongoing.

Finance Department
• This week the Finance department filed its “unaudited” financial statements for calendar year 2011 with the state. The on-site audit will be completed in July.

-- Betsy Scott, BScott@News-Herald.com, @ReporterBetsy