Norwood wreck leaves 6 injured

        NORWOOD — A four-vehicle crash involving a Norwood ambulance responding to an emergency call sent six people to area hospitals Tuesday afternoon.

        The names and conditions of the injured — three adults and three children — were not released.

        Two firefighters in the ambulance were uninjured, and the ambulance was not carrying a patient, Norwood Police Lt. Tom Williams said.

        The crash occurred at Montgomery Road and Sherman Avenue. The ambulance was traveling south on Montgomery Road at about 12:50 p.m. when it collided with a car eastbound on Sherman, Lt. Williams said.

        The impact pushed the car into two other vehicles. One car was destroyed, and the three other vehicles received minor to moderate damage.

        The busy intersection was closed for several hours.

Fitness center boss faces jail time

       LEBANON — The manager of a suburban fitness center faces up to one year in prison and a mandatory six-month driving suspension when he is sentenced July 29 for selling anabolic steroids from the club.

        Craig Sper, 39, of Delhi Township, was one of two managers arrested at the Mason club after a brief undercover investigation last fall by the Warren County Drug Task Force.

        He pleaded no contest to one count of drug trafficking in a hearing Friday in Warren County Common Pleas Court.

        Former assistant manager Kristopher Dill, who was indicted on a felony charge of attempted drug trafficking, struck a deal with prosecutors in April. The agreement called for the charge to be reduced to a misdemeanor if he cooperated in the investigation of Mr. Sper.

        Mr. Dill, 23, of Oregonia, pleaded no contest to misdemeanor drug trafficking and was sentenced to probation for one year and fined $500.

        Authorities said he offered to sell the steroids — Winstrol and Deca-Durabolin — in late October to two undercover drug agents who posed as Body Masters patrons.

Fairfield approves purchase of plaza

       FAIRFIELD — City Council has approved the $2.8 million purchase of the Kroger plaza at Wessel Drive and Pleasant Avenue, across from the municipal building.

        City officials eventually plan to raze the 86,000-square-foot plaza, called Fairfield Mall, but when that will happen wasn't clear Tuesday. They want to level the old shopping center to ensure undesirable development does not rise there, where revitalization efforts have been under way.

        At least some of the plaza's tenants are planning to move nearby into the city's Village Green area. A new, 77,000-square-foot Kroger building is expected to open there this fall.

        The new Kroger will be the second-largest store out of 100 in the company's Cincinnati division, which covers Cincinnati, Dayton and Northern Kentucky.
       

White Pillars zoning to be debated

       LOVELAND — After some debate Monday, planning commissioners opted to revisit the topic of the historic, 85-acre White Pillars property next week.

        City Council members have said they want to sell the property to two developers. But, before the deal is final, planning commissioners must amend the zoning code.

        The developers want to build 85 single-family houses valued at $450,000 each, 70 town houses worth $225,000 each and a 16-acre commercial development. But the land is zoned for residential purposes.

        The zoning text must be changed to accommodate the commercial property. The commission will discuss the matter Monday at a 7:30 p.m. session at City Hall, 120 W. Loveland Ave.
       

Boards of health team up for funds

        The Cincinnati Health Department plans to team up with several nearby health departments to apply for a share of $11.5 million that Ohio lawmakers have set aside for bioterrorism preparedness.

        The money would be used to increase the ability of public health officials to report infectious diseases, track cases of public health concern and coordinate services statewide, says Cincinnati Health Commissioner Malcolm Adcock.

        In Greater Cincinnati, most counties have a single health department of varying size and sophistication.

        Within Hamilton County, there is a county health department plus several others, including Cincinnati (the region's largest), Norwood, Sharonville, Springdale, Reading, St. Bernard and Indian Hill.

        The grant application must be filed by the end of July. A regional preparedness plan will be presented to the Cincinnati Board of Health in July or August, Dr. Adcock said.

Suspicious packages force evacuation

       DAYTON, Ohio — A headquarters building at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base was evacuated for about an hour Tuesday morning after two suspicious packages were found in the mailroom, base officials said.

        The occupants of Air Force Materiel Command headquarters, where about 1,500 people work, were evacuated after 9 a.m. and returned at about 10:30 a.m.

        Base spokeswoman Andrea Attaway-Young said the packages contained books.

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