Resident continues fight over street name

A resident may pay for the change.
By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
BOARDMAN -- Township resident Judith Kuti spent months lobbying to have her street name reverted to its original spelling, now she wants township data files to reflect that change.
Jennette Drive, for several years, was misspelled on street signs and all official documents. The misspelling included an A in the name -- Jeannette.
Kuti has been living on the street for more than 33 years and says she remembers how the change took place. She recalls seeing a street sign missing from one corner sometime in the late '70s. When the sign was replaced, it had the new spelling. Over the years, as the signs on the street were replaced, the newer spelling was used.
Now, thanks to the efforts of Kuti, the signs have all been replaced -- minus the A. Even new maps officially refer to the street as Jennette, but Kuti said that is not quite good enough.
Police Chief Jeffrey Patterson said both names are in the township database with Jeannette as the main spelling and a cross reference to the Jennette spelling. He said both names will come up if entered into the computer and safety forces should have no problem identifying and finding the street.
Wants it to be removed
Kuti said the computer system should be updated with the misspelling completely removed.
"I have worked so hard on this over the last 18 months to get this street back to its original name. I have gone through so much that to me, yes, it matters," she said. "It's not finished yet, to me it's not finished yet."
At a recent meeting, trustees told Kuti the township would not be willing to spend the $2,000 it will take to change the system if the names were not posing a problem for police and fire services. Kuti told trustees that she is willing to put up the funds to make the change possible.
Kuti is expected to meet with Patterson sometime this week to discuss the possible donation.
Patterson said Kuti may get her wish so long as she is willing to fork over the cost of updating the system.
"If she comes in and wants to offer a check for $2,000, I will accept her check and recommend at the next trustees meeting that we hire the vendor to do it," he said.
jgoodwin@vindy.com