User:Metatinara/Pickerington

Pickerington is a city situated in Fairfield and Franklin counties in the central region of the U.S. state of Ohio. It is a suburb of Columbus. The population was 9,792 at the 2000 census. As land annexation and development in and around Columbus continues, the City of Pickerington (like many area suburbs) have generally followed suit. The 2007 population estimate for Pickerington was 14,526.

History
The modern name of the town comes from the name of the town's founder, Abraham Pickering. However, the original name of the town was Jacksonville.

Founding and original name
Before 1795, the area was primarily settled by the Wyandot tribe of indigenous peoples. With the signing of the Treaty of Greenville on August 3, the Native Americans withdrew to the banks of Lake Erie, on the western side of the "Greenville Treaty Line".

In 1800, Fairfield county was organized as a section of the Northwest Territory. Violet Township was incorporated in 1808. The namesake of the township, the violet, derived to the modern town nickname, "Violet Capital of Ohio". Still, the area that composes modern day Pickerington remained unsettled. In 1811, James Looker of Rockingham county, Virginia, purchased land in Violet township. One of his daughters, Ann, married Abraham Pickering.

In order to establish a town, Pickering purchased land from Looker. After employing surveyors to lay out the town, Pickering reserved lots for a cemetery, an educational facility, and a Methodist church. A trading post and several log houses were erected, but the town had no name for several years. In 1815, word arrived to the town of the victory of General Andrew Jackson at the Battle of New Orleans, the final battle of the War of 1812. In honor of the victory, Pickering and the townsfolk decided to name the town Jacksonville. The name was registered with the Fairfield County courthouse on September 15, 1815. It wasn't until 1827 that the people of the town petitioned the Ohio General Assembly to change the name of the town to Pickerington, in honor of the town founder.

Growth in the 20th century
The growth of the town during the 19th century was slow. Pickerington remained an agricultural community until the 1960s, when people started to settle in the area. Since then, the population of the town has skyrocketed. The city certified Pickerington as a city in 1991, after having an official population of over 5,000. As of 2006, the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission estimates the population at 13,573. The city has experienced continued growth and, as such, is completing major renovations to routes around the city.

Carnegie Library
In 1916, the village received a grant of $10,000 from the Carnegie Corporation to build a library. It was to be maintained by both the village of Pickerington and Violet Township. The design followed architectural guidelines provided by the corporation and looks almost identical to other libraries built with the Carnegie public library endowment. It served for over 77 years as the Pickerington Public Library, until a new facility was built in 1993. Afterward, the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and became the headquarters of the Pickerington Historical Society. The building is currently dually maintained by the Pickerington Parks and Recreation Department and the Pickerington Historical Society.

Fortner Mounds
Pickerington is home to two adjacent burial mounds from the Adena civilization. Named the Fortner Mounds I and II, they were registered in the National Register of Historical Places in 1974. While originally intended to have a funerary function, the mounds now are owned as private property and provide landscape for the property owners.

Covered bridges
There are two historic covered bridges located in the Pickerington area. Located in Sycamore Creek Park, the 79-foot Zeller-Smith covered bridge was built in 1906. It was moved in 1986 from its original location, and it now provides access from the main recreation area of the park to the park's arboretum. The second covered bridge, the Hizey Covered Bridge, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This bridge, measuring 81 feet, is located off of Tollgate Road, a half-mile down a private drive. It was relocated from its original location in 1986 and restored in 1989.

Transportation
Before the Interstate Highway System, transportation was provided by the railroad that runs through Olde Pickerington. The original depot is still standing, but is now the office of a State Farm insurance agent, after being purchased on June 25, 1999.

Pickerington is surrounded by highways, with U.S. Route 70 to the north and U.S. Route 33 to the south. Both provide easy access to Columbus and are major traffic ways for the area. Route 33 provides fast access to Lancaster, the county seat for Fairfield county. In 2004, a bypass around Lancaster was built and the historic road is now known as the Lancaster business route. With the rapid growth of the city, traffic has become congested during peak driving hours. The Diley Road project, construction funded largely by federal grants, aims to ease the flow of traffic by widening a 3.5-mile stretch of Diley Road to five lane highway. The project is has an approximate completion date of late 2009.

Law and government
Pickerington uses the strong-mayor version of the mayor-council government, which constitutes an elected executive mayor position, an elected city council, and an appointed city manager position.

Mayor
The current mayor, Mitch O'Brien, was elected in November, 2007. O'Brien served as a city council member in 2004-2005. He ran against current city council member Heidi Riggs and won the popular vote, earning 56% of the total vote.

City council
The Pickerington city council is a seven-member body that is elected by rolling election. There are four standing committees in the council: the finance committee, rules committee, safety committee, and service committee.

Current council members with elected or re-elected year and position:
 * Jeff Fix (2005), Vice President of Council, rules committee chair
 * Cristie Hammond (2005), President of Council, finance committee chair
 * Michael Sabatino (2005)
 * Tricia Sanders (2007)
 * Brian Sauer (2007)
 * Keith Smith (2005), President Pro Tempore of Council, safety committee chair
 * Brian Wisniewski (2007), service committee chair

Administration
There are several positions appointed between the mayor and city council to aid in the day-to-day management of the city.

List of some appointed officials in alphabetical order:
 * Director, Finance: Linda Fersch
 * Director, Income Tax Office: Jan Eichner
 * Director, Parks and Recreation: Steve Carr
 * Interim City Manager: Tim Hansley
 * Planning and Zoning: Lance Schultz

Geography
Pickerington is located at 39.89222°N, -82.76389°W (39.892168, -82.763837).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 7.4 square miles (19.2 km²). None of the area is covered with water.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 9,792 people, 3,468 households, and 2,687 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,317.4 people per square mile (508.8/km²). There were 3,573 housing units at an average density of 480.7/sq mi (185.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 93.18% White, 3.72% African American, 0.08% Native American, 1.38% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.41% from other races, and 1.19% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.35% of the population.

There were 3,468 households out of which 48.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.3% were married couples living together, 8.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.5% were non-families. 18.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.82 and the average family size was 3.25.

In the city the population was spread out with 32.7% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 35.6% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 5.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 97.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $63,664, and the median income for a family was $71,161. Males had a median income of $51,155 versus $31,850 for females. The per capita income for the city was $25,839. About 2.6% of families and 3.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.6% of those under age 18 and 1.8% of those age 65 or over.

Recreation
The Parks and Recreation Department offers a variety of events for the recreation of Pickerington residents and visitors. Various classes can be taken that cover a wide range of hobbies and activities, such as photography, safety, dance, and music. There are two sports programs, the Pickerington Youth Athletic Association and the Adult Sports League, with several sports offered, including baseball, football, lacrosse, soccer, and volleyball. There are two parks that belong to the department: Victory Park and Sycamore Creek Park. Both are located on Columbus Street, just south of Olde Town Pickerington.

On March 14, 2008, the department purchased the Swim Club, a local swimming pool, with non-tax revenue. There is no residency requirement to belong to the pool and there is no price increase for non-residents. The pool is the home of the Tigersharks swim team.

Another park, Pickington Ponds, exists near Pickerington but is not within the municipality.

Education
The Pickerington Local School District is a two-branch school district enrolling 9,714 students as of the 2005-2006 school year. Enrollment has been expanding at an average of 425 students over the past five years. The Pickerington Local School district is the 19th largest school district in Ohio. In the 2004-2005 school year, the district was rated effective, after six years with an excellent rating. From the district's founding until 2003, the district had one mascot, the tiger. In 2003, the district branched with the opening of Pickerington High School North, which has the panther as a mascot. With the opening of Pickerington High School North, the original Pickerington High School was renamed Pickerington High School Central.

Currently the district has eleven schools. Schools are listed alphabetically and with attendant grade levels.
 * Diley Middle School (5-6)
 * Fairfield Elementary (K-4)
 * Harmon Middle School (5-6)
 * Heritage Elementary School (K-4)
 * Lakeview Junior High School (7-8)
 * Pickerington Elementary (K-4)
 * Pickerington High School Central (9-12)
 * Pickerington High School North (9-12)
 * Ridgeview Junior High School (7-8)
 * Tussing Elementary (K-4)
 * Violet Elementary (K-4)

The district has a policy of equity between schools. Almost every course or service that is offered at Pickerington High School Central is also offered at Pickerington High School North, and the equity extends down to the junior high, middle, and elementary schools.

Various awards have been given to the district and to individual teachers. In 2006, the district was rated as one of the top school districts in the United States by Expansion Management magazine.

There is also a part of a branch of Ohio University in Pickerington. The Pickerington Center is affiliated with Ohio University Lancaster in Lancaster, Ohio. High school students may elect to take university-level courses in substitution for high school courses. These are taken through Ohio University Lancaster or the Pickerington Center. University-level courses taught in the high school setting are also available through the Advanced Placement Program. The option of vocational school is offered as well, through the Eastland-Fairfield Career and Technical Schools, a branch of the Educational Service Center of Franklin County.

Notable natives

 * Earl Moore, pitcher for the Cleveland Indians who pitched the American League's first no-hitter in 1901.
 * Arthur Raymond Robinson, U.S. Senator from Indiana, presidential candidate in 1932, and rumored member of the Ku Klux Klan.
 * Jenny Morris, a member of the now-disbanded pop group innosense.
 * Dan and Tom Ryan, professional Halo 2 players, and the 2005 Halo 2 world champion team "Team 3D" . Both are currently members of Team Final Boss.
 * Paul McHardy, on-air personality for an evening talk radio program with Bonneville International Communications in Salt Lake City, Utah.
 * Lindsay Hollister, character actor who has appeared on Scrubs, Desperate Housewives, and Big Love.
 * Basil Sands, thriller writer and voice actor.
 * Kristin Huffman, Miss Ohio 1989 and 4th Runner-up & Talent Award Winner at Miss America.
 * Greg Cole, Mister Ohio 2001.