Thursday, July 06, 2000
Plaza named for civic giant
Middletown honors former commissioner
By Reid Forgrave
The Cincinnati Enquirer
MIDDLETOWN — Bill Donham devoted 38 years of his life to public service here, and he's getting a plaza in return.
City Centre Plaza, which sits amid several buildings in downtown Middletown, will be renamed Bill Donham Plaza today at a ceremony at the plaza, which extends from the city building south to Manchester Avenue. The event begins at 7:25 p.m.
Mr. Donham was a Middletown city commissioner and a Butler County commissioner, and also served in the Ohio House of Representatives for 12 years. He died in 1998 at age 79.
His record 22 years as a Middletown commissioner was split between two generations, from 1954-'69 and from 1986-'92, when he stepped down for health reasons. Mr. Donham worked for Armco Steel (now AK Steel) before retiring in 1974.
Mr. Donham, a Republican, never lost in 20 election campaigns. Former city Commissioner Paul Nenni, who is speaking at today's ceremony, remembered that if he ever needed to find Mr. Donham on a Friday afternoon, he could go to Liberty Restaurant, where Mr. Donham would inevitably be talking politics.
“It didn't matter who you were, he listened to our concerns,” Mr. Nenni said.
An Army Jazz Ambassadors' concert will follow today's ceremony at the newly dedicated Bill Donham Plaza. The concert will begin around 7:45 p.m., and attendees are asked to bring a folding chair.
City Manager Ron Olson said he doesn't expect just Mr. Donham's family and close friends to come to the ceremony.
“I'm sure there will be plenty of people out to honor him and see the band,” he said.
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