The Dublin Link Vote Wasn't Close: 85% Agreed

Local News

If you read our events list regularly, you’ve probably seen Walk with a Doc at Coffman Park show up just about every Wednesday.

We’ve listed it so many times that I thought it was finally time to get to the bottom of what they do. And it turns out the Dublin group has been doing this for a really long time.

Dr. Eileen Bolton has been leading Walk with a Doc in Dublin every week since 2013. The idea is pretty simple: people meet at Coffman Park, hear a short discussion about a health topic from a doctor or other healthcare professional, and then spend the rest of the hour walking together. It’s free, open to all ages and abilities, and everyone goes at their own pace.

And Walk with a Doc actually started right here in Central Ohio.

Back in 2005, Columbus cardiologist Dr. David Sabgir was frustrated that telling his patients to exercise wasn’t necessarily getting them to exercise. So instead, he invited them to meet him at a local park for a walk. More than 100 people showed up.

That one walk eventually turned into an international nonprofit with more than 700 chapters around the world — including the one that’s been quietly meeting here in Dublin for more than a decade.

The Dublin group still meets every Wednesday at 9 AM at Coffman Park, rain, snow or shine.

You can learn more about Dublin’s Walk with a Doc here.

Local News

If you’ve taken kids to the Ballantrae spray park this summer, you may have noticed that not everything was working.

The waterfall and several of the spray features have been out of service because of aging equipment, and the City says there have also been ongoing water-leakage problems.

Now Dublin is getting ready to give the place a pretty substantial makeover.

Plans call for rebuilding the water-feature wall, replacing and upgrading the spray equipment, drainage and lighting, and putting in a new concrete deck. The City is also looking at things like new seating, landscaping, shade and artificial turf.

And this isn’t a small repair job. Dublin has $1.5 million set aside for the Ballantrae splash pad renovation in its capital improvement plan.

Before that work gets underway, residents will get a chance to see what’s being proposed. The City is holding an open house Thursday, Sept. 10, from 6 to 7:30 PM at the Golf Club of Dublin, where people can look at the plans, ask questions and provide feedback.

Construction is expected to begin after this year’s spray park season, so the Ballantrae spray park could look quite a bit different the next time families are cooling off there.

You can learn more about the project and Thursday’s meeting  ⁠here.

Local News

Yesterday, after seeing what seemed like a never-ending debate over the Dublin Link in our Facebook comments, I joked that we’d settle the question once and for all by asking Dublin Daily readers whether the $22.6 million bridge was worth it.

Well, I guess we did.

Just before 6 PM yesterday, 335 of you had voted, and the result wasn’t remotely close.

286 people — more than 85% — said yes, the Dublin Link was worth it.

Just 24 people said no, while another 25 said they weren’t sure.

I’ll admit, that surprised me. Based on some of the comments we’ve seen on our Facebook posts, I expected this to be somewhat closer. Instead, for every person who said the bridge wasn’t worth the money, nearly 12 people said it was.

Now, this is obviously not a scientific survey of Dublin. It’s a poll of Dublin Daily readers who chose to vote. But with more than 300 responses and an 85%–7% split, it’s certainly a lot less divided than the Facebook comments would have you believe.

So perhaps we really did settle it once and for all. 😉