Business View Civil and Municipal | May 2021

97 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL MAY 2021 Fremont OHIO T he City of Fremont sits along the west bank of Ohio’s scenic Sandusky River which spills into the Sandusky Bay and Lake Erie. Picturesque, tree-lined streets frame the quaint, historic city that touts a close-knit community of 16,000 people. With a strategic location at the intersection of three main highways – the Ohio Turnpike and State Route 20 going east to west and Interstate 75 going north to south – Fremont’s Mayor Daniel R. Sanchez calls the city “the hub of the U.S.” However, this small town has massive plans for growth in its future. “We’re very proud about our historic community that we have here,” says Sanchez, “but we also are doing a good job to really feel the heartbeat of the community to attract young professionals back.” As it gears up for a comeback, the city has bragging rights to several past and recent claims to fame in its portfolio – not the least of which, Fremont was named 2019 Best Ohio Hometown by Ohio Magazine. The 19th U.S. President Rutherford B. Hayes and the first defensive NFL Heisman Trophy winner Charles Woodson called the city home. They share the Sandusky County seat with one of the largest populations of bald eagles in the country and the second largest bald eagle population in the state. The majestic feathered species attracts thousands of birdwatchers to the south side of the Sandusky River every year. The avian population continues to boom with Sandusky County tallying 50 bald eagle nests out of the 707 counted in last year’s Ohio state census. Surrounded by