The Hilliard Beacon Podcast

Educator and longtime Hilliard resident Kathy Parker-Jones joined the Hilliard Beacon for a sharp conversation in the waning days of campaign season (Thursday October 16th) , outlining her bid for City Council as an extension of a career spent working on solutions and building consensus. A 30-year teacher and now district administrator in Dublin Schools, she said the leap into politics came from w...

Our guest is Hilliard resident, electrician and substation safety specialist Doug Williams. Together, we convened to discuss and examine Amazon’s decision to power its Scioto Darby data center using what could become the largest fuel cell installation in the United States. Williams, an AEP employee speaking strictly in a personal capacity , offered rare technical insight into how such a system fun...

In their return visit to The Hilliard Beacon, sitting council members and current candidates Tina Cottone and Andy Teater discussed the evolving landscape of Hilliard’s growth. We touched on Amazon’s proposed on-site fuel cell power generation, the city’s developing community plan and the upcoming search for a new city manager. Both emphasized a pragmatic, service-oriented approach to leadership:...

Incumbent Councilmember Les Carrier joined hosts Jordan, Tim, and reporter Kevin Corvo for Hilliard Beacon Audio Companion #130 (during a happier moment when Cleveland was still in the playoffs - back on October 2nd) to discuss his decision to seek a fourth term on Hilliard City Council and reflect on his tenure. Carrier cited several accomplishments that have marked his political terms in Hilliar...

For our ongoing election series, the Hilliard Beacon team sat down with Republican Norwich Township trustee candidate Mike McMeans , a lifelong Hilliard resident whose family roots stretch back to the late 1970s. McMeans spoke about his professional journey from state government to financial planning , and his decision to seek elected office as a way of “giving back” to the community that raised h...

Republican candidate Jim Martin joined the Hilliard Beacon audio companion to discuss his run for Hilliard City Council, marking his first election campaign for local office. Martin described how his interest in city governance began with a neighborhood zoning dispute over a vacant church property . While the proposal ultimately passed, Martin said it was the flaws in the decision-making process t...

For the first time in recent memory, the Hilliard City Schools Board of Education race is uncontested. Candidates Kara Crowley (incumbent board president), Tony Moog, and Sarah Byler joined the Beacon to reflect on what that means, and where the district is headed. All three emphasized the heavy commitment that board service requires. Time, resilience, and the ability to absorb criticism while kee...

NOTE: One of our hosts, Tim Hoffman, has known Wendy Johnson for about 25 years through Tim’s wife Casey - Wendy’s sister. We’ll let you decide whether that makes his questions tougher or easier, but either way, we figured you should know, lol. On this episode, the Beacon team sat down with Dublin City Council candidate Wendy Johnson, who is running for the open Ward 2 seat. Johnson, a longtime Ba...

In our latest election conversation, The Hilliard Beacon sat down with Bevan Schneck, longtime Planning & Zoning Commission member and one of three Republican candidates for Hilliard City Council in November. Schneck shared his journey from small-town beginnings in Pandora, Ohio, to six years shaping Hilliard’s growth on the commission. With a professional background at the Ohio Municipal League a...

The Beacon continues its election-season series with Democratic candidates Brian Rothenberg and Kelli Hykes , both seeking seats as Norwich Township Trustees. Campaign Trails and Backgrounds Rothenberg , with decades in political communications and labor advocacy including work with the Ohio Senate, Cleveland Mayor White, Progress Ohio, and the United Auto Workers hopes to frame the trustee role a...

In this week’s Audio Companion, the extended Beacon crew (Hi, Brad!) sat down with developer Andy Warnock for a conversation on the past, present, and future of Hilliard. From his roots in Delaware, Ohio, to twenty years of projects throughout Hilliard and beyond, Warnock spoke candidly about growth, balance, and the lessons of lasting relationships through his business in the Westwood Collective...

This week all three Beacon batters sit down with Columbus Clippers General Manager Tyler Parsons to talk about baseball’s past, present, and future in Central Ohio. Kevin sets the stage with a quick history of Columbus baseball, tracing the journey from Cooper Stadium and the Redbirds to today’s Huntington Park and the Clippers’ 12(ish) championships. From there, Parsons shares his own baseball ro...

This week’s episode of the Hilliard Beacon Audio Companion runs in two distinct halves. In our first bit, Jordan, Tim, and Kevin gather around the mics to talk through recent events in Hilliard. We start with Tim’s firsthand account of a serious train accident that shut down parts of Northwest Parkway and Leap Road for hours. Thankfully, no fatalities were reported, though the truck driver was hos...

In the sweltering heat of summer, the Beacon’s Audio Companion returns to full strength. Hosts Jordan, Kevin, and Tim (back from the Poconos) reconvene post-three hours and change of Clippers baseball that left 2/3rds of the crew absolutely fried. (7/24) * After some vacation recap, the crew reflect on the recent interview with johnn(y)ie co-author Johnny Dawson. Topics include: reinvention, the t...

In a resonant conversation, Marine veteran and local advisor Johnny Dawson opened up about the release of johnn(y)ie: a memoir of conquering the modern-day goliath , a collaborative memoir co-authored with former Ohio State wide receiver Johnnie Dixon. The title itself, stylized to highlight the shared name “Johnny/Johnnie,” signals a layered story of two men from vastly different worlds confronti...

Councilman Carrier is back at the table - Development, Representation, and What Comes Next for Hilliard On this week’s HBAC longtime councilmember Les Carrier returns to the podcast for an open and wide-ranging conversation with hosts Jordan, Kevin and Tim. This episode was recorded right as Hilliard was preparing for Independence Day festivities and just shifting into the next major political sea...

The summer interviews continue fast and furious! Listen to some of what’s happening in Hilliard right now! Hosts Kevin and Tim begin with a feature on Sam and Charlie Owsley, Hilliard siblings organizing “Food for the Fourth.” The brothers have launched a civic initiative to collect non-perishable food items from the crowd lining the route of Hilliard’s July 4th parade. Coordinating with city poli...

In this edition of the HBAC, Jordan, Tim and Kevin welcomed return guest Paul Lambert for an overdue look at the local political landscape following Hilliard’s recent Democratic primary. We talked the upcoming November election and the pending transition in city management. You can connect with more of Paul’s writing on his Facebook profile: Educate Hilliard Local Elections Signal Civic Awakening...

In our latest episode, we welcomed Tony Logan—local resident, farmer, agricultural attorney, and former Ohio head of USDA Rural Development—for a great chat on agrivoltaics, the integration of solar energy and agriculture. Logan shared how agrivoltaics offers a sustainable path forward, blending traditional farming with renewable energy in ways that can improve soil health, support pollinators, an...

Freshly retired (Coaching only) Hilliard Darby boys basketball head coach Chris Maul joined Jordan, Tim, and Kevin for the 113th installment of the Hilliard Beacon Audio Companion. Maul, a proud product of Hilliard schools, spoke candidly about his two-decade coaching career, the evolving culture of youth sports, and his classroom work teaching financial literacy and economics. A 1995 graduate of...

In this episode of the Hilliard Beacon Audio Companion, Executive Director Erin West helps us learn about the work, challenges, and steady commitment of the Hilliard Food Pantry. As someone who personally experienced poverty in her youth Erin has brought personal compassion and a professional grit dedicated to housing, youth development, and neighborhood wellness throughout her career. West’s lead...

In this edition of the HBAC , hosts Jordan, Kevin, and Tim welcomed Mark Tremayne for a big conversation about the future of public education, the current role of technology, and the specific programs shaping opportunity for local students. Years ago, Mark jumped ship from the corporate world of finance, marketing and banking for the classroom. First as a substitute earning his qualifications and...

Democratic Primary Candidate Interview Series – Final Episode Before May 6 - Look for our recap post with links to all previous interviews on Monday. In the final installment of our primary interview series, we sat down with Samer Bazerbashi , a Hilliard resident and early team member at local tech firm T-Cetra , who’s now seeking a seat on Hilliard City Council. Raised in Gahanna and educated at...

We continue our Democratic primary candidate series ahead of the May 6th vote by welcoming Nadia Rasul, a longtime Hilliard resident and first-time City Council candidate. From Youngstown to Hilliard: Born to immigrant parents in Youngstown, Ohio, and a proud graduate of Ohio State’s College of Pharmacy, Nadia and her husband moved to Hilliard in 1989, raising their four children through Hilliard...

In the latest installment of our Democratic Primary series, we welcomed first-time Hilliard City Council candidates Kathleen Parker Jones and Tony Moog to the podcast. Both candidates represent a slate alongside current council members Andy Teater and Tina Cottone, with the hope of offering an ongoing cohesive vision for Hilliard governance. Parker Jones , a 30-year Hilliard resident and longtime...