Mason plots future of fun, families, offices

[The Interpreter]

...What was once a sleepy town of 5,000 when Kings Island opened for business in 1972 is now one of Ohio's fastest growing communities. The city's population of nearly 30,000 is expected to grow another 12 percent over the next five to 10 years. More important, its residents are among the region's most affluent, with a median household income of $85,697 and median home value of $213,887 in 2008. Seventy-three percent of city residents have white collar jobs....

http://news.cincinnati.com/article/2009041...190309/1076/BIZ

A rare editorial comment by Terpy. How much of any of the stuff in this article would be true for Mason absent Kings Island? And the town is considering an admissions tax? Sigh.

[BoddaH1994]

The city of Mason has been an organizational joke since it first incorporated just a few years ago. Kings Island ain't going anywhere so due to Mason's fiscal irresponsibility KI will likely have to pay the price.

[KIfan1980]

I hate to disagree with you Terpy (especially since even as a Mason resident, I support your view of an admission tax as a really bad idea), but I don't buy your premise that not much of this would be true without KI. You only need to look at I-75 just across town to see a similar dynamic without the impact of a KI. 20 years ago, there was no Union Center Blvd and Tylersville was a country Road. Now these two intersections along with Cin-Day are the heart of the fast growing West Chester/Liberty Township community. This is the same type of activity seen at Fields Ertel and now pushing up toward Western Row and 741 with Mason/Deerfield Township - it's the suburban sprawl of Cincinnati.

Also in response to Bodda - Mason was incorporated in 1970 (it annexed KI a few years ago) and while it has gov't problems like any community and I believe it has made some bad choices, I think calling it a joke is a little extreme.

[BoddaH1994]

Mason was part of Deerfield Township until February of 1997.

[CoastersRZ]

I`d like to shed a little light on this subject.

Mason was incorporated as a city in 1970. However, it was a part of Deerfield Township as well until 1997 as Ryan stated. In February of that year, Mason withdrew from the township. It was also that year that the park was annexed from Deerfield Township to Mason. A court battle ensued that ended up with KI being partially in Mason and Deerfield Township. That agreement sent some tax money to Deerfield Township. In September of 1999, Mason officially annexed the park, ending the parks ties with Deerfield Township.

So in a sense, both of you were in fact correct!

For more information, check out this Cincinnati Enquirer article from September 15th, 1999: http://www.enquirer.com/editions/1999/09/1...xes_all_of.html

That article does not include a graphic that the printed Enquirer contained. In that graphic it mentioned land that was owned by Great American north of Kings Island that was once home to the College Football Hall of Fame, which opened in 1978. That was developed by Taft Broadcasting as part of the overall destination development that they were building at Kings Island and coupled with the tennis, golf center, campground, and Kings Island Inn to offer a complete destination. With the purchase of Kings Entertainment Co. by Carl Lindner and Great American, they became the owners of most of these periphery entertainment options that were not part of Kings Island, which was later sold to Paramount in July of 1992.

[KI-ORIG-EMP]

As a long term Kings Mills resident, I remembered Mason when it it was a sleepy villiage and it has gotten way too big for its britches. It has seized land from the township hand over hand. It only sees $$$$ signs from the likes of P&G and now Kings Island. I used to live at Sterling Lakes and it was an in Deerfield Township and was completly surrounded by Mason. There was no money to be had and did not annex for that reason, in my opinion. That is the very same reason why they did not annex the land just east of the interstate bridge and the sleepy hamlet of Kings Mills. Look how they have spent money for the divided roads leading into Mason with the fancy street light fixtures? They spent lots of tax dollars on a skate boarding park just off of Mason/Morrow Rd. Now that they did all of this and with the economic down turn, they are looking towards Kings Island as a way to generate more tax dollars with this admission tax. Speaking of Kings Island, I think all they saw in Kings Island in the first place when they annex it was the income tax revenue from the employees. Mason knew they would have to pay the upkeep of Kings Island Drive along with providing water and sewer support. But wait, why did Mason spend $10 millions to buy the golf course? And now they come to KI to raise the needed tax revenue.

I say cut costs and stop the wasted spending of things not needed to run the city.

[Zorba]

I say cut costs and stop the wasted spending of things not needed to run the city.

That can be said about the majority of the cities around here. Mason is probably among the worst.