EASTER BUNNY PICTURES AND EASTER EGG HUNT The Avon/Avon Lake Relay for Life is proud to sponsor pictures with the Easter bunny and an Easter egg hunt.  All proceeds to benefit the American Cancer Society's Avon/Avon Lake Relay for Life Bring the kids for pictures, eggs, and other goodies. Relay for Life teams will have fundraisers and information about Relay for Life will be available. Date: SUNDAY, APRIL 5, 2009 Where:  AVON LAKE HIGH SCHOOL   AUXILLARY GYM  Pictures beginning at 2:00 p.m. Easter Egg hunt begins at 3:00 p.m. Pictures will also be available after the egg hunt. Is the most important family member your pet? Bring your pet up at 4:15 p.m. for pictures with the Easter Bunny. For questions or more information please contact Dell-Ann Lewis at 440-610-1696 04/04/2009

      With the increasing number of people in need of emergency services the Avon lake City Council has allowed Community Resource Services to use it’s donations for food, household gas and utilities to people in need in Avon Lake. The most recent article printed by the Avon Lake Press indicated that the City of Avon Lake has also donated $6000 to the cause. The money was pulled from the pool that is used for city celebrations and the sort in this case part of the 4th of July fireworks money was used. In the agreement, house holds that are 175% of the poverty line and meet the requirements as before can receive up to $250 for emergency assistance for utilities, food and gas. Those who need food and gas for driving to and from work will receive a spending card to use. The card guarantees... 03/02/2009

Working on a listing project today I ran up stats as usual and found some information that may be valuable to people currently looking to sell their lakefront home.  Listing prices in Sheffield Lake through Bay Village for Lake front has been at $219.00 per square foot for about .75 acre lot with lake access.  Homes on the lake at sale have been holding value at about 91-94% decrease from original price.  Home sold at about $199.00 a square foot on that those same average lot and lake access.  Now mind you these are many different style and age of homes in this group.  If you have a newer home you can expect your list price to sale price difference to be smaller.  Other things to consider are amenities you have in the home compared to the average in the area, lot size and location, bre... 02/25/2009

  If you have been driving down Lake Road recently you may have noticed some SOLD signs. Lake front property sales are picking up in the last 2 months in Avon Lake and other lake road communities of Bay Village and Rocky River.  The pick up can be credited to decrease in home prices paired with positive mortgage packages available.  There are some great values out there.  Will they last? That one I can not answer but we can easily anticipate one of two things.  The seller can take their home off the market as a result of no offers over extensive period of time. Or second a market event can suddenly surge the market that home already discounted home sells before you can blink.  Those are extremes.  Sure there was a market plunge today.  But the President's stimulus package is very exciti... 02/20/2009

   Lorain- Plans for a commuter rail line from Vermilion to Cleveland on existing freight tracks chugged forward Thursday after a citizens' group agreed to join forces with Lorain County officials to raise money for a feasibility study. The task force needs to raise $34,000, which will be added to $34,000 already raised by the former Northern Ohio Commuter Rail Coalition. The $68,000 will provide the local match required for a $343,000 federal grant obtained years ago by U.S. Rep. Betty Sutton, a Democrat from Copley Township, Blair said. A commuter rail line through Lorain, Sheffield Lake, Avon Lake, Bay Village, Westlake, Rocky River and Lakewood and ending at Tower City or the Amtrak station in Cleveland has been discussed and studied since 2000. It has failed to gain wide support, e... 02/19/2009

  The new Avon Lake pool is looking very promising. A new design for the Bleser Park Aquatic Center was presented by Council at the February 2, 2009 Collective Committee Meeting.  The biggest addition to the project is the lazy river which, because the whole family can use it, should draw more people to the Center.  The lazy river can also be therapeutic for our senior citizens.  Bleser Park will be the first community pool in Lorain County to have a lazy river.    Below are some additional facts about the pool:    Will non-residents be permitted to use the new Avon Lake pool? Non-residents will not be permitted to purchase pool passes.  They will, however, be permitted to visit the pool with a resident guest upon the purchase of daily admission.  For example, if you have family visitin... 02/14/2009

  People are always asking about current facts on the city.  This is what I have pulled down from local factual collections on the internet. Avon Lake, Ohio, in Lorain county, is 8 miles NE of Lorain, Ohio (center to center) and 17 miles W of Cleveland, Ohio. The city is part of the Cleveland - Lorain - Elyria metropolitan statistical area (MSA). About 18,145 people live in Avon Lake. Avon Lake History Avon Lake was initially part of Cuyahoga County and was first settled in the year 1812. In 1822 it became part of Lorain County and in 1915 was separated from the Township of Avon (now a city) to form the Township of Avon Lake. Avon Lake was granted the status of a city in the year 1960. Railroad tracks act as the point of division between the cities of Avon and Avon Lake. Things To Do In... 02/04/2009

  Sure you can be disappointed. Yep I was cheering the Cardinals.  Yes I wanted the Steelers to loose.  Come on, I am in Browns country. But boy that one was fun to watch no matter what side you were cheering for.                                                                                                                                But here is some more news to cheer about, sales in Avon Lake are up 15% over this time last year.  That's great for what is considered to be a slow time of year.  Homes are in demand in this area and why not?  Schooling is among the best in Northeast Ohio, the city has new retail development with JC Penney's, Kohl's and Target just around the corner in the Avon area, there is a semi pro baseball team coming to town in a few months, the city is getting... 02/01/2009

I have been reviewing the current stats and when you look at the current market combined with the current interest rates, Why would you not buy now in Avon Lake.  Sales had an increase of 15.1% compared to this time last year.  Inventory was only slightly higher at just 1% which again by comparison shows the strength of sales growth and demand for homes in the area.  Average days on the market is at 57 days compared to 84 days the previous year and we are in the slow period of market year.  Think about it just 57 days and your Avon Lake home can be sold! If you have been on the wall thinking about putting your Avon Lake home up for sale come down and call me today!  Give me a call today and I will give you a full scoop on the current market, what current selling trends there are, and e... 02/01/2009

Having 4 young kids of my own you can only imagine how busy my weekends tend to get.  Well this one was incredible with 2 basketball games (that I assist coaching), a wrestling tournament for the Avon Lake little Shoreman, Indoor soccer game (that was a travel game) and finally a Night at the Races local church benefit (adult time finally).  Anyway through that entire weekend I have to say what a great town of people we have here in Avon Lake. Everyone tends to know everyone. There in no bad mouthing a parent or someones kid.  There are always joking, some fun planning, some catching up and trading up stories and the like that just makes you want to be there for the next local event.  I was talking to a local police officer at the Night at the Races benefit and I could not get over how... 01/25/2009

Avon Lake schools have another proud note.  They were honored for the second year in a row as one of the country's best schools, according to U.S. News and World Report. U.S. News ranks schools nationally each year based on how they do on state test scores, college preparedness and other factors. Schools are given gold, silver, bronze or honorable mention awards based on how students achieve. Just 100 schools nationwide - including four in Ohio - received the gold this year. Avon Lake High again won the silver award. What does this say for Avon Lake schools? Well allot.  This points out the level of solid education there is in this area to the point it has national attention.  When people worry in areas as to whether they need private schooling out of the local area that is a concern. ... 01/22/2009

       In looking at the current statistics in the area. Avon Lake market continues to show increased sales and a decrease in home inventory.  What this means is an increase in demand for homes in the area. This makes marketing today's home in the area increased probability that it will sell and soon.  Current inventory is at 11.4 months, that is down from 25.8 9 months ago.  Consider this we have not hit Spring yet. That 11 month inventory could possibly cut in halfover the next 2-3 months at this pace. Houses in Avon Lake are selling at average of 57 days  according to current reports from the multiple listing service of Northeast Ohio (MLS). If you are looking to sell your home contact me for further information on how I can market your home in these current trends.   Stan Stepak Rea... 01/19/2009

  As may not already know, residents of Avon Lake, Avon, North Ridgeville, Rural Lorain County Water Authority, Media County and the City of Medina are asked to ease up on their water use as much as possible. A lot of ice has formed on the water intakes at The Avon Lake Water Treatment Plant, and it's making it impossible to keep up with the normal demand. Residents in the area may experience low water pressure during this time. Officials are asking customers to conserve water and use only what is necessary until the problem is fixed. A reverse 911 was placed to all residents in the area enrolled in reverse 911 notification to conserve water. 01/17/2009

Do you have old VHS tapes that you would like to be put on a DVD? Do you have old home movies on VHS tapes that you would like transfered onto DVDs to take up less room? For a standard VHS to DVD transfer that includes interactive menus, the cost will be $7.99 plus shipping and handling which will be reasonable (approximately 2-3 dollars). If you would like multiple VHS tapes transferred onto one or more DVD sets, or you home movies transferred onto DVDs, Movie editing, the cost will be $10 per half hour of film. If you live near the Avon Lake, Ohio area no shipping will be necessary. Would you like more information?   Call Ken at 440-781-1401 or e-mail KenTheRealtor@GMail.com   I accept secure PayPal payments so that you can pay without releasing any personal financial information, suc... 01/17/2009

Avon Lake's Westwinds development continues to have good opportunities for both buyers and sellers.  I completed a market study on the homes in the area and looking this month in the Westwinds I have observed that there is a great balance of floor plans for sale that are quiet interesting to buyers in the area.  Average square feet in homes available are at 3611 with 4 bedrooms and 3 full baths being the norm in the area.  List price per square feet has been in the range of $113 per square foot. Prices are ranging from $339,000 - $495,000 and the average is at $401,944.  Time on the market in the area has been in the range of 82 days average (pretty good for the market we are in).  If you are taking a Sunday drive this weekend in the area stop in the Westwinds and take look what there ... 01/03/2009

A few years back I celebrated boxing day with some Canadian friends and I curious what the holiday was about it.  Here is what Wikipedia says: Boxing Day is a public holiday in the United Kingdom, Australia , Canada, New Zealand and countries in the Commonwealth of Nations with a mainly Christian population. It is based on the tradition of giving gifts to the less fortunate members of society. Contemporary Boxing Day in many countries is now a "shopping holiday" associated with after-Christmas sales. This day is historically England's name for St. Stephen's Day - St. Stephen was the first Christian martyr, being stoned to death in Jerusalem around A.D. 34-35 - 26 December, which is a public holiday in most countries in Europe and many countries around the world with predominantly Christ... 12/25/2008

Tips for Staging the Living Room Arrange the room in a conversational way, if it's not arranged like that already. A living room design and layout should be conducive to group conversation and family interaction. Experiment with different arrangements until you get it right. Let the living room breathe. If it's hard to walk through because of furniture size and/or arrangement, remove some items and place them in storage. Purge the living room of family photos and other items that say "you don't live here" to potential buyers. Design and stage the living room so that other people can see themselves in it. If your living room furniture consists of a cheap table with wobbly legs and your couch from college days, replace them with some nice rental pieces. If the furniture is worn or staine... 12/25/2008

Avon Lake City Schools ~ 2008 Stellar District Award Winner! Avon Lake City Schools is pleased to announce that it has been selected as a 2008 Stellar District Award Winner from the Office for Safety, Health and Nutrition of the Ohio Department of Education! Avon Lake City Schools is being recognized as a Stellar Award recipient based on efforts and achievement in the following areas: 1. The type of meal service provided for students, such as school breakfast or lunch; 2. The nutritional quality of meals served, including purchasing and preparation practices that reflect the National Dietary Guidelines; 3. The extent to which a la carte and vending items contain healthy choices; 4. Food service staff's access to continuing education and training opportunities; 5. Success in providing a ... 12/13/2008

Here is the list of upcoming event this December.  IF you missed the holiday lighting hey that's OK.. It was way to cold that day. • Try a sleigh ride in a festively lit wagon drawn by Belgian horses through the Avon Lake Reservation. Top off the experience with hot chocolate and cookies at the library. Sleigh rides are Dec. 29 and Dec. 30 at 5, 6 and 7 p.m. • Experience the arts through Avon Lake Public Library's monthly gallery exhibits and special collections display. During December you can enjoy beautiful photography from the Erie Shores Photography Club and unique jewelry by artist Lori Kozey Paximadis. Also on display is Adam Kuhle's antique toy collection from the 1960s and 1980s.                                                           • Check out the selection of books at th... 12/13/2008

The City of Avon Lake is reported to go green in March. Read the report below as the City will test a recycle program that will help reduce the increased demand for landfill space and help push the go Green planet concept.  http://www.morningjournal.com/articles/2008/12/02/news/mj305729.txt   12/03/2008