Nick Boutis, executive director of the Glen Helen Ecology Institute requested the annexation in a Sept. 29 memo addressed to the village council. He pointed to vandalism as one of multiple crimes being committed on the land.
“Disturbances such as public nudity, public drinking, drug use, and intoxication are also common, and not only cause discomfort to law-abiding citizens and visitors to the preserve, these behaviors challenge our ability to maintain safe schoolground conditions for the children we serve through the Outdoor Education Center,” Boutis wrote. “Littering is common, especially among those who come to party in the Glen at nighttime, and who then leave glass – often broken – on trails and around rock ledges. Visitors poach plants, some of which are Ohio protected species. More serious crimes, such as sale of narcotics, are less common, but happen from time to time.”
The Glen Helen Ecology Institute at Antioch College manages the land and coordinates the educational programs for The Glen, according to the nature preserve’s website.
Some of the crimes being committed are outside of the village, so there are little if any repercussions, Boutis said during a recent village council meeting. Division of the land has resulted in village police being responsible for responding to a small number of calls for service from The Glen compared to the Greene County Sheriff’s Office which is responsible for responding to the majority of calls from the nature preserve.
“We’re looking for the village to help us with the third leg of the tripod and be able to expand the jurisdictional reach of the village into not all of The Glen but the north part of the Glen,” Boutis said.
The annexation is one of multiple measures The Glen has considered to increase security and protect the area. In July, the organization hired a full-time ranger. A month later, the Antioch College Office of Public Safety implemented procedures where it will provide periodic patrols when the ranger is not working.
Boutis described the location of The Glen as a “legal limbo” with 73 acres in the village, 950 acres in Miami Township, and a small portion in Cedarville Township.
“It would clear up some of these jurisdictional issues, and it would really make it a lot easier,” said Yellow Springs Village Manager Patti Bates.
Police calls for service are not expected to increase if the proposed annexation were approved, according to Yellow Springs Village Police Chief David Hale.
“The sheriff’s office response time is often so slow that we are responding anyway,” Hale said. “If anything, we will have jurisdictional power to take enforcement action.”
Yellow Springs Village Solicitor Chris Conard suggested staff initiate the process by developing a draft annexation agreement.
“The Glen’s interests are protected,” he said. “The villagers will have an opportunity to weight in as they see fit before we really undertake any of the core of the work we need to do.”
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