Community Profile

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Village of Rockford

LOCATION:

Intersection of US Route 33 and
State Route 118
Latitude: N 40.69
Longitude: W 84.65
Elevation: 813 above sea level

STATUTORY GOVERNMENT:

Council/Administrator
Meetings: lst and 3rd Tuesday of each Month at 7:30 p.m. in Village Hall

County Planning Ordinance: Yes Village Zoning Ordinance: Yes

NEARBY METROPOLITAN CITIES:

Lima – 49 Minutes
Ft. Wayne, IN – 62 Minutes
Dayton – 83 Minutes
Toledo – 109 Minutes
Columbus – 134 Minutes
Chicago, IL – 234 Minutes

ELECTED OFFICIALS:

Ron Searight, Mayor
Marcas Heitkamp
Mark Heitkamp
Chris Heitkamp
Luke Stephenson
Mary Beougher
Shane Young

NEAREST CITIES:

Celina, OH – 16 Minutes
Van Wert, OH – 23 Minutes
St. Marys, OH – 22 Minutes
Decatur, IN – 23 Minutes

CLIMATE:

Average Annual Temperature: 51.5
Average Annual Snowfall: 27.3 in Average Annual Precipitation: 39.6 in

ORGANIZATIONS:

Lions Club • 21st Century Club •
Eagles • American Legion •
Rockford Recreation Assoc.

DEMOGRAPHICS:

2020 Census: 1,051
Homeowners: 75.9%
Literacy: 99%

MISCELLANEOUS:

Public Library: Rockford Carnegie Library
Churches: 3 Protestant, 1 Catholic Museums: Shanes Crossing Historical Society
Chamber of Commerce: Rockford Chamber of Commerce 75 members Economic Development Resources: Rockford Area Development Corp Mercer Co. Comm. Development Community Foundation: Leota Braun Charitable Foundation
Fire Insurance Class: Village: 6

Community Services

RECREATION:

Parks – 2
Basketball Courts – 2
Pickleball – 4

Nearest Public Lake: Grand Lake St. Marys: 16 Minutes Fishing, Swimming, Boating, Water Skiing, Scuba Diving, and Camping

BANQUET FACILITIES:

Rockford Community
Building – 400 seats
Shane Hall – 80 seats
Hang Over Brews – 80 seats
Rockford Library – 24 seats

MEDICAL FACILITIES:

Hospitals
Mercer Health – 19 Minutes
Grand Lake Health – 21 Minutes
Ohio Health – 23 Minutes
Adams Memorial – 23 Minutes, Decatur, IN

Nursing Homes/Assisted Living
Divine Nursing and Rehab at Shane Hill
Tranquility of Rockford

Medical Offices
Doctor Office – 1
Emergency Ambulance Svs. – 1

COLLEGES:

Wright State University
Lake Campus – 16 Minutes
Vantage
Career Center – 24 Minutes

WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
& AREA MEDIA:

The Photo Star
The Daily Standard
The Times Bulletin
WCSM, WKKI, WRKD

BANKS:

2

CABLE TELEVISION:

Time Warner • Spectrum

Education

PUBLIC SCHOOLS:

The district offers public preschool
classes, which serve 100 students.



OTHER SCHOOL EMPLOYEES:

Administrators – 10
Classified Staff – 53

Total Operating Fund – $6,000,000

K-12 Pupil/Teacher Ratio – 14:1
Cost Per Pupil  – $11,816

Parkway Local School District:

A Thriving Rural Community
Nestled in the heart of Ohio, the Parkway School District spans 160 square miles of picturesque countryside. This vibrant rural area is home to three primary villages: Rockford, Mendon, and Willshire, each contributing to the district’s unique charm and character.

Education: Investing in our Future
The Parkway Local School District stands as a testament to the community’s commitment to education:
• In 2005 a $36 Million Ohio Schools Facilities Commission (OSFC) project consolidated all district facilities into a single, state-of-theart Pre-K-12 building in Rockford.


• This modern campus boasts a 600-
seat auditorium, a competition gymnasium, and expanded agricultural and industrial arts facilities.

Recent enhancements include addition of a greenhouse to bolster the agricultural program in 2023, and groundbreaking on a 13,667 sq.ft. athletic complex in 2024, featuring:

• High school football locker rooms
• Indoor batting cages
• Golf simulator
• 3-lane, 100-yard indoor track
• Indoor pole vault facilities
• Athletic training room
• Public Restrooms
• 3,000 sq. ft. multipurpose area for various sports practices

Taxes

Tax rates are expressed in dollars and
cents for each thousand dollars of valuation.

PROPERTY TAX RATE: Mercer County – 10.96 %
Tri-County Health – 1.00 %
Rockford Library – 1.00 %
Township General Fund – 1.00%
Fire Protection – 2.20 %
Parkway Schools – 35.57%
JVSD – 4.30%
Rockford Village – 4.60 %
Total Rate: 60.63 %


EFFECTIVE RATE FOR REAL ESTATE:
Residential – $48.5423
Business – $57.6064

This rate is applicable to Tangible Personal Property used in business. Taxable value of TPP is 25% of Ohio depreciated value.

Taxable value for real property is 35% of market value.

The Village of Rockford is a State
of Ohio certified Enterprise Zone. This allows for the negotiation of tax abatements based upon job creation.


LOCAL TAXES:
Village Income Tax – 1%
School Income Tax – 1%

Utilities

ELECTRIC POWER SUPPLIER: AES
Net Capacity Available: 20 MVA
Supplied Voltage: 3ph 12000V

Principal Energy Sourced:
Coal – 88%
Other – 12%

NATURAL GAS SUPPLIER:
Enbridge TELEPHONE: Century Link
INTERNET: Wabash Communications & Spectrum: Fiber Optic Speeds up to 2 Gig/2Gig Available 

WATER:Village of Rockford
Source: Wells
WTP Capacity: 400 Gal/Min
Static Pressure: 54/58 PSI

SEWER:Village of Rockford
Type: Aerated Faculative Lagoon
Capacity: .700 MGB
Present Load: .180 MGD

Transportation

RAILROAD:
RJ Corman Railroad & Distribution
8056 Albers Road | Celina, OH – 16 Minutes

HIGHWAYS:
I-75 – 31 Minutes
I-69 – 40 Minutes
US Rt 30 – 22 Minutes
US Rt 33 –  Through Rockford
St Rt 118 – Through Rockford

ODOT Traffic Survey Report shows
6,100 vehicles per day

MOTOR FREIGHT CARRIERS SERVING COMMUNITY: 8

 

SMALL PACKAGE SERVICES: United Parcel Service
Federal Express
Emery Worldwide
DHL
Amazon
Walmart Delivery

AIR SERVICE:
International:

Dayton International Airport –  75 Minutes
Ft. Wayne International Airport –  47 Minutes

Local:
Mercer County Lakefield – 22 Minutes
Van Wert County – 18 Minutes
Neil Armstrong/
New Knoxville –  30 Minutes

Industry & Labor

ESTIMATED LABOR FORCE:
Mercer County
Total Labor Force: 24,100
Employment: 23,200
Total Unemployment: 3.8%

Mercer/Van Wert Counties
Total Labor Force: 39,700
Employment: 38,100
Total Unemployment: 4.0%

 



LOCAL EMPLOYERS:

The Fremont Company – 118 Employees
TuWay American Group – 65 Employees
Parkway Local Schools – 205 Employees

SMALL BUSINESSES:
The Village of Rockford has over 40 small businesses which employ between one to twenty plus full and part time individuals who contribute greatly to the economy of Rockford.

Rockford
Revitalization Program

Rockford is eager to assist in helping
promote your investment in our community. Investments enhance the quality of life in our community and the surrounding area.

• Excellent Rated School System
• Parks & Recreation
• Sense of Security
• Affordable

INCENTIVES
• Community Reinvestment Area
• Enterprise Zone

Village Assistance

COMMUNITY REINVESTMENT AREA:
A percentage of tax exemption on the increase in assessed valuation resulting from the improvements to residential, commercial, and industrial real estate properties.

Residential – 50% for 5 years for construction or remodeling upon which the cost is at least $2,500

Existing Commercial or industrial facilities – negotiated on a case by case basis.

New commercial or industrial facility – negotiated on a case by case basis in advance of construction.

ENTERPRISE ZONE:
The program authorizes the village to negotiate tax abatement agreements with nonretail businesses proposing to undertake opportunities within the Village.

Negotiated tax abatements may provide up to 75% abatement of taxes which would be assessed against the value added by the particular business’s investment.

The business must create or retain at least 3 jobs.

The minimum investment required is $100,000.

Jobs created must pay a minimum of national minimum wage.