To the families of Teays Valley and residents of Pickaway County,
I am asking for your support and your voice.
What we are building through the Protect Pickaway Alliance is not about just one village, one
township, or one school district. This is not just about Teays Valley. This is about every corner
of Pickaway County — from Logan Elm to Westfall to Circleville City Schools — and every
resident who is tired of seeing developers reap the benefits while the rest of us pay the price.
This alliance is our opportunity to stand together and speak with one voice against unchecked
development, unfair tax deals, and decisions being made without hearing from the people who
live here.
Let me be clear. I am not against development. Growth is going to happen. But what I am against
is developers getting tax breaks, making millions in profit, and walking away while the rest of us
are left to deal with the cost. That cost falls on our schools, our fire departments, our roads, and
our local governments. It falls on you, the taxpayer, in the form of higher property taxes and
overcrowded schools.
Right now, there is no unified plan, and there is no shared responsibility. That needs to change.
The Protect Pickaway Alliance offers every township, village, and city council across Pickaway
County a seat at the table. We are creating a platform where local governments can work
together, coordinate zoning decisions, protect our rural land, and demand more from developers
than just rooftops and tax burdens. Every school district in this county stands to benefit from
smarter, more balanced growth, not just Teays Valley.
But I cannot build this alone. I need you, the residents, to help push this forward. If you believe
growth should come with conditions and community benefit, I am asking you to do a few things.
Talk to your local elected officials.
Ask your township trustees, village councils, and city councils why they are not part of this
alliance.
Encourage them to step up and sign on.
They work for you. Your voice matters more than you think. Pick up the phone. Send an email.
Go to a council or township meeting and ask the question directly. Why are we not at the table?
Why are we not working together with other communities to protect our future?
The more local governments we bring together under the Protect Pickaway Alliance, the stronger
we will be when we face pressure from big developers and outside interests. We can no longer
afford to operate in silos. We all share the same infrastructure, the same challenges, and the same
long-term consequences if we don’t get this right.
If developers want to build here, they need to give something back. They need to contribute to
our schools. They need to invest in fire protection, roads, utilities, and other public services.
They need to build with us, not just on top of us, and they need to do it responsibly.
We have an opportunity to shape what our future looks like, not just in one area, but across this
entire county. But we need unity, not silence. The door is open. The seat at the table is waiting.
Now we need our townships, villages, city councils, and school districts to step up and take it.
Your pressure, your voice, and your action can make that happen.
Let’s work together as one county and one community to make sure future growth works for us,
not just around us.
Mayor Aaron Thomas
Village of South Bloomfield
