Each month, we feature on our a different Ohio city as part of our #GOPCThread Series, #OHCommunitySpotlight. This month, we highlight the ‘city that’s a spirit’ - Sidney, Ohio.
Last month, we featured Hamilton as our #OhCommunitySpotlight. Moving further along the Great Miami River, our next community spotlight features @CityofSidneyOH, the heart & county seat of Shelby Co., named after Sir Philip Sidney–poet & member of British Parliament. #GOPCThread
Above: The Second Empire-style Shelby County Courthouse in Downtown Sidney. Right: City namesake Sir Philip Sidney
The area around Sidney was once the richly forested hunting grounds of the Shawnee and Miami Indian nations. The fertile area was developed for agricultural use over time.
.@CityofSidneyOH was originally just a 70-acre parcel of land donated by Charles Starrett along the west side of the Great Miami River to establish the county seat of Shelby County. Today, it’s over 12 sq miles and is home to 20,589 people.
The scenic Great Miami River offers plenty of fishing and boating opportunities for local anglers. Did you know that the Great Miami River is #1 in the entire state for catching Smallmouth Bass?
The Great Miami River is also designated by the United States Department of @Interior as a National Water Trail. This distinction has been given to only 21 other trails in the entire country!
@CityofSidneyOH is definitely an outdoorsy place with its amazing parks and recreation system. The council has always prioritized benefits of greenspaces, ever since their first comprehensive plan, which dictated there should be a park within a half-mile of every residence.
Thanks to this thoughtful planning, there’s now a system of 14 neighborhood parks, three complexes for baseball, softball and soccer, a municipal swimming pool, and the 180-acre Tawawa Park and Lake, now featuring Rainbow Trout introduced by @OhioDNR!
Lake Loramie State Park is one of the best spots for birding in Shelby County. It’s nearly time for the south to north migration making it a great time to see all sorts of birds, including our nation’s majestic Bald Eagles
@CityofSidneyOH has always had a strong sense of pride and passion for history. Its historic downtown features the People’s Savings and Loan building, famously designed by Louis Sullivan.
Court Square is the entire city-block which houses the Shelby County Courthouse. The Courthouse was recently named as one of the Great American Public Places by the National Trust for Historic Preservation @SavingPlaces
Many of the city’s schools also preserve Sidney’s poetic legacy, and are named after other famous writers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and John Greenleaf Whittier.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
John Greenleaf Whittier
Agriculture has always been a leading industry in the Sidney area. The ag base has commodity grain, livestock, and dairy activities.
Manufacturing is also a critical component of the regional economy. @Honda's Anna engine plant, located 7 miles north of Sidney, employs 3,200. Amos Press of Sidney publishes Coin World, Linn’s Stamp News, and other nationally distributed hobby publications.
Work is underway to develop nearly 1M sq. ft. in production space to produce separator film for coated lithium-ion batteries, a key component in batteries for electric cars, in Sidney, creating a total of 1,500 jobs
Sidney’s beloved Auto-Vue drive-in theater has been showing first-run movies since 1956. Open annually from May thru September, the venue has provided multiple generations of Sidney residents with celluloid (and now digital) escapes.
If you want to continue the sock-hop vibes for the night check out The Spot, an iconic art deco-style diner loved by locals for its thick malt milkshakes and fresh-ground hamburgers. If you want a quick treat, this diner certainly ain’t no dive
Sidney Alive, a downtown revitalization group, works to strengthen the core of the city’s downtown by fostering economic development, historic preservation, and community events that engage the public.
The group worked to develop the city’s downtown revitalization plan and has been recognized as the 2023 Best Downtown Placemaking by @HeritageOhio.
Events sponsored annually by Sidney Alive include an Easter egg hunt, Kids Around the Square, the Winter Wonderland Parade, the Chocolate Walk, horse and carriage rides, mystery dinners, and more
In 2020, City Council enacted an ordinance establishing a Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area (DORA). This initiative allows visitors to sample a variety of local brews and spirits from the city's bars and restaurants while taking advantage of the many outdoor dining patios.
This new focus has resulted in a Downtown Enhancement Project, a public/private project being overseen by the city, Sidney Alive, the Sidney-Shelby Chamber of Commerce, the Shelby County Community Foundation, & the Shelby County Board of Commissioners
We hope you had fun on this little virtual-tour of @CityofSidneyOH. Stay tuned to see what beautiful community @GreaterOhio will spotlight next! #GOPCThread
