Ohio University and the city of Athens are the two largest entities in Athens County, but official decision makers at the two
institutions rarely interact with each other.
OU administrators maintain informal contact with city officials to handle day-to-day business and act as liaisons between the trustees and city. The trustees rarely, if ever, communicate directly with the city.
Trustees say the current situation is more than adequate and more interaction would be more trouble than it is worth. City officials disagree, though, saying they wish the situation could
be improved.
C. Daniel DeLawder has never had any contact with any Athens city officials in the capacity of an OU Trustee, he said.
He defended the lack of communication saying the trustees are not micromanagers. Personally speaking
we deal on a macro basis working for a broad overall sense of community.
But councilwoman Nancy Bain, D-3rd Ward, said she did not think the relationship benefits the city.
When you have two entities without much interaction only at a certain level
the weaker of the two ends up paying the price
she said. The city is the weaker.
Lynchpin
When Larry Schey, owner of Larry Schey Chevrolet, 750 E. State St., became a trustee, he followed in a long line of local trustees at OU.
As a local business owner as well as community leader - he serves on the Athens Chamber of Commerce's Board of Directors - Schey has a unique connection to both Athens and the university. Because OU can so profoundly affect Athens, he said, considerations must not be taken lightly.
While we realize Athens does not exist for the university
nor does the university do whatever the city wants
he said, The university depends on an attractive local environment. But if we didn't have the university here
most of us wouldn't be here. Nothing would be here - there'd be no local economy
we'd be a very small rural community with not much industry and a little bit of agriculture.
Increased action?
One hometown trustee can go only so far to bring local perspective to the board.
Are administrative relations with the city enough to keep the board informed? The trustees said yes, and some city officials said no.
While all the trustees interviewed said there could be something gained from increased interaction, overall, they were happy with the current setup saying increased interaction also could be detrimental.
OU has expanded without much consideration to Athens, Bain said. Because OU has decreased housing since the 1970s and increased enrollment, she said, a strain has been placed on Athens' housing market.
The previous provost (Sharon Brehm) solved university finance problems with more growth
she said. More growth means more tuition and more subsidy. What about the fact that when you admit 400 more students
they have to live in 133 new apartments?
