Play field offered

MADEIRA - The city could be getting some relief from a crunch on athletic fields.

St. Paul United Methodist Church has offered use of 2 acres behind the church at Miami Avenue and Galbraith Road, City Manager Tom Moeller said.

"It does have some potential," he said. "We're going to have an engineer look at it to see how easily it could be laid out into a couple of soccer fields."

City officials in the land-locked community will decide whether field expansion should be a priority in next year's recreation budget.

Road delays possible

LOVELAND - A water line upgrade on a portion of Hannah Avenue may cause some traffic headaches for drivers starting July 6.

The road may be reduced to a single lane at times between Seyffer Drive and Oak Street, city officials said. Construction is expected to last two to four weeks.

Cruisers equipped

MADEIRA - Two police cruisers will be equipped with automatic defibrillators through the generosity of a city resident.

Kathy Flottemesch, who lost her husband, Robert, to a heart attack, donated more than $4,000 to buy the units.

With the equipment, officers who are first on the scene of an emergency can possibly save a life, Chief Frank Maupin said.

"Two beat cars out there every shift will have them in the front seat with them," he said.

The police department's goal is to outfit all five cruisers with the equipment and to eventually have defibrillators at each city park and the municipal building, Maupin said.

The city looked into buying defibrillators about three years ago, but found them too bulky and expensive, at about double the cost of today's units, he said.

Museum fund-raiser

LOVELAND - Wine tasting, appetizers and an exhibit of paintings by Cincinnati Art Academy students are the attractions July 16 in a fund raiser for the Greater Loveland Historical Society's JoAnn Richardson History House.

The event begins at 7 p.m. at the museum, 201 Riverside Drive. Cost is $25 per person or $40 per couple. Admission without wine tasting is $15. Reservations are required, 683-5692.

Habig's closes

WESTWOOD - After 71 years, Habig's restaurant in Westwood has closed. The sign on the door of the Harrison Avenue institution says it's closed for vacation, but the restaurant will not reopen. The owners are putting the business and the building up for sale.

"Our clientele is dying off and our neighborhood has changed," said Chris Habig, who owned the restaurant with his brothers Duane, Jay and Mark.

The restaurant was founded by the brothers' grandparents, Henry Habig Sr. and his wife, Sophie. Then their father, Henry Jr., took over, with each of his sons joining him as teenagers. Duane and Chris ran the front of the house, while Jay and Mark worked in the kitchen, turning out German-accented home cooking for several generations of West Siders. Probably the most famous dish on the menu was Concord grape pie, made according to Sophie Habig's recipe.

"We've tried everything," said Habig. "Karaoke, piano bar, coupons, whatever. But we were just digging a hole deeper. Families used to come here to eat together, but once someone's mother or father died, the rest of the family quit coming. People don't want home cooking now. But there were a lot of wonderful people in here over the years. We'll miss them all."

Habig's next-door neighbor for more than 60 years, the Window Garden, closed in 2000.