Highland County farmers have until July 15 to report their 2010 planted acreage to the Farm Service Agency (FSA) according to Jim Patton, director of the local FSA office.

The final pre-festival bell sale for the 2010 Festival of the Bells will be from 9 a.m.-noon Saturday, June 26 at Classic Real Estate on Main Street in Hillsboro, according to Festival Committee President Michael Bradford.

The Hillsboro City Council Finance Committee meeting, Peter Pence, chairman, will meet at 5 p.m. Tuesday, June 22 at 204 North East Street, to discuss the city's 2010-11 budget.

Stacia Burke, an art teacher at Hillsboro Elementary School, is pictured with a framed and matted pencil drawing and a framed oil painting, both of which will be auctioned off at 8:15 p.m. Saturday, July 3 during the 2010 Festival of the Bells in uptown Hillsboro.

The Ohio Department of Transportation's 2010 construction season is in full swing, and operations for a slip repair project on state Route 221 in Brown will get under way this month.

Known as "retire-rehires" there are more and more public-school superintendents across Ohio enjoying the double-dipping practice of collecting both a pension and a paycheck.

According to reports from Ohio’s contractors, nearly 7,000 men and women were put to work with stimulus-backed paychecks, adding up to nearly $8.5 million dollars in earnings. From June through September, ODOT anticipates an additional $40 million in paychecks will be earned by laborers and workers on stimulus-funded transportation construction projects across the state, ODOT said.

Today, we hope fathers everywhere will have an enjoyable day with family. For those who are unable to see their family today, especially for those serving in the United States Armed Forces, we hope you do receive a card, a telephone call or an e-mail message of appreciation

A culvert replacement project on state Route 247 in Highland County has been completed, and the route is now open to traffic.

With Commissioner Shane Wilkin not in attendance due to an illness, Commissioners Tom Horst and Gary Heaton agreed at their Wednesday board meeting to rebid the exterior renovation work proposed for the Highland County Courthouse. The remodeling, which will not be paid from the general fund, will include exterior painting and repairs to the dome and other areas of the historic courthouse.

Former Highland County resident David K. Bliss is currently awaiting sentencing in U.S. District Court in Cincinnati on charges of aggravated identity theft, conspiracy to commit bank fraud and influencing or injuring an officer, juror or witness stemming from two separate grand jury indictments.