Times change, definitions change

I work for the Lima News. The main office is in Lima, but they also have an office in Ottawa where I oversee the Putnam Voice and help supply information for the Putnam County edition of The Lima News.

Does this mean I work for a “local Putnam County business?” Personally, I feel that I do.

I bring this up because The Leipsic Messenger recently criticized the Putnam County Election Board of going “outside the county” to spend taxpayer dollars by placing legal advertising in The Lima News. Such claims are off-base and misleading.

This newspaper is the leading provider of information in the county, therefore, it is the best place to share such legal notices with residents.

The Putnam County Voice delivers information to more nearly 7,000 households in every corner of Putnam County. It is packaged each Wednesday with The Putnam County edition of The Lima News, which has a higher circulation in Putnam County than the combined circulation of the Findlay Courier, Defiance Crescent-News and Toledo Blade. Our circulation numbers are audited by the Audit Bureau of Circulators, an independent auditing firm of newspapers.

To publish legal notices (information about state election issues, local foreclosures, etc …), a newspaper by law has to meet certain criteria. The Lma News is a paper of general circulation in Putnam County. It also meets the criteria for having a paid circulation and a post office number.

I also don’t buy the argument about taxpayer money going out of the county.

I live and work in Putnam County. The taxpayer dollars went to a company that pays my wages. This is true of many companies, including some other newspapers in the county. The tax dollars go to a corporation outside the county, but issue paychecks to people working and living in Putnam County.

The Lima News employs many Putnam County residents who work in Lima. These are people who pay property, sales, and school income tax in Putnam County.

Years ago, your “local” store was a mom and pop grocery, often owned by a local couple who lived in town. Your “local” restaurant was a local cook who had a small diner, often with checkered floors, tables, and a long counter where the “regulars” enjoyed talking to the waitresses and waiters.

As years passed, the “local” store or restaurant in you town may have, through necessity, became part of a chain. The local hardware, still locally owned, may be part of a chain to enable them to buy items in bulk and provide better prices.

Even many of your local banks, through mergers, have become part of national institutions.

So the definition of “local” has become blurred. Is it only local if the owner lives in the community?

Is it only local if it has no other locations outside the community or county? Is it only local if the management lives in the community? Can it be considered local if it has a store in the community, but its main corporate office is in another location?

I truly believe that the definition of local business, through necessity and competition, has taken on a new meaning.

Many “local” businesses have taken on a new more corporate-diversified look. It has not been an easy adjustment, especially for smaller businesses who still like to remain as local as possible.

My definition of a “local” company is how involved they may be in a community. Just locating and doing business in a community doesn’t necessary make you a good “local neighborhood business.” In Putnam County I see a many types of good local businesses.

I see independent business owners who spend many volunteer hours with local service clubs and activities. The same though is also true of the “local” companies including fast-food chains, banks, and superstores that strive to be good “local” neighbors with donations and activities.

As a representative of your “local” paper, I also try to be involved as much as possible through service groups, volunteer activities, and board memberships. All of these activities, by the way, are Putnam County activities.

I guess I would prefer not to have the company where I work referred to as an “outsider.”

Taxpayers have a right to want their tax dollars support local businesses that employ people who in turn will support the county. They also have a right to expect their tax dollars to be spent wisely in a free market were price and quality come in to play.