Dear Wood County Resident:
 

Thank you for the honor of serving as your Commissioner, I am grateful for the opportunity to continue service to the citizens of Wood County and thank you for your vote in the past election.  By record numbers people continue to want to live, work, obtain an education and raise a family in Wood County.

Yet there is no question our state and national economy has had an impact on Wood County, displacing workers and forcing cutbacks in family budgets and in the budgets of county offices.   However, we continue to work hard to diversify our tax base to bring new and diverse jobs to our county that are not tied to any particular segment of the economy.   In 2009 I had a chance to meet with the Governor to discuss Ohio's economy and what Wood County is doing so well to provide leadership in keeping our Wood County economy moving forward.

Our agreement to bring Bass Pro to Rossford is one of the greatest retail accomplishments in the history of Northwest Ohio. Bass Pro meant jobs for our construction trades and retail jobs for our citizens. Our efforts to bring diverse retail shopping opportunities to our citizens means a broader tax base to pay for important government services and our citizens do not have to travel as far for purchases saving money on gas. Our sales tax rate is lower in Wood County than almost all of our neighboring counties so citizens can save money on taxable purchases (televisions, refrigerators, clothing etc...) all while helping our economy by shopping locally. 

Additionally, CSX is currently constructing its $175 million dollar intermodal facility near North Baltimore, breaking ground in 2009 with the promise of nearly 200 jobs following completion of construction.  First Solar wraps up its $135 million dollar expansion in 2010 with over 100 new jobs coming to its facility as well - complimenting our electric generating wind turbines and furthering our position as the renewable green energy leaders of northwest Ohio.  The Wood County Hospital unveiled their 42 million dollar expansion this year - a project that put many in the construction/trades to work at an important time in our economy.  There will also be permanent long term jobs with the addition of doctors and healthcare professionals to their staff.  Most importantly, citizens can benefit our local economy by choosing the Wood County Hospital for the vast expansion of additional services they provide.  These are examples of diverse job creation efforts from one end of the county to the other.

Last year we kicked off our Vacation Local campaign by promoting our new Travel and Tourism web site www.woodcountytourism.com

If you have not taken your family to Snook's Dream Car Museum, Fort Meigs, The Wood County Historical Museum...just to name a few - please consider the many family attractions and sites in Wood County that will provide quality vacation experiences with little cost and travel expense during these tight budget times.

One of the most important jobs I have is to listen to our citizens.  With that I want to provide you with my home telephone number and toll free office telephone number so that you can reach me if you have any questions, comments or suggestions of things I can be doing to additionally help Wood County continue through these difficult economic times (419)353-3805 or 1-866-860-4140.

I am proud to serve this great county.  And as I have always pledged, I will continue to make open, honest and accessible government available to all our citizens.

Tim W. Brown,

Wood County Commissioner

Paid for by: Citizens for Brown, John F. Kevern, Treasurer, 26370 West River Road, Perrysburg, OH 43551