NURS 4844 Community Nursing Windshield Survey
Topic Observations
History- What can you gain by
looking (e.g. old neighborhoods;
new subdivisions)? Ask people
willing to talk: how long have
you lived here? Has the area
changed? As you talk, ask if
there’s an old timer who knows
the history of the area (key
informant)
Data
● Well-maintained ● Opera House- home to the
houses with beautiful Bazetta-Cortland Historical Society
landscape ● purchase of land in 1804 and 1805
● Historic feel in Bazetta Township
● New facilities and ● Original name of Cortland was
healthcare facilities Baconsburg lumber mill that was
● There are “built up” run by a small dam built in 1809
portions of the area ● 1868 first railroad called
and other areas have Baconsburg stop d/t the Bacon
a historic downtown families that lived in village
look and feel ● The railroad brought more money
● We drove by and and commerce
observed the outside ● Orrin Gates who formerly lived in
of the Opera House, Cortland, New York and became the
which definitely minister of disciple church founded
spoke volumes about in 1818 as baptist and became a
the history in this disciple in 1832
community. ● At this time there were 614 people
in town with three churches, two
newspapers, stores, mills, industries
and a variety of businesses, two
livery stables, a smithy, and two
hotels for the accommodation of
traveling salesmen, railroad
workers, and coach travelers.
● After a four-year period, the
petitioners accomplished their goal
on May 7, 1873. Minster Gates, who
by this time had acquired some
influence in the community,
managed to give the name of his
former home in New York State to
the newly incorporated village which
 now became officially known as
Cortland
● Became well-established
community in 1874 when the village
hall was made
● Cheese factory was made in 1875
● Lot for the school was picked and
made in 1877 (some of the building
remains but has been updated)
● Volunteer fire department made in
1885
● First fire station in 1885; new one
built in 1946 with additions in 1964
and 1986
● Water system was completed in
1939
● 1930- Plans were drawn up to dam
the Mosquito Creek under the
Federal Flood Control Act, to
alleviate floods on the Mahoning,
Beaver, and Ohio rivers, and also
supply water for the city of Warren.
Congress had voted to spend
$4,385,000 on the project.
● 1961- Lakeview schools built
● 1956- Bazetta and Cortland
consolidated their schools to form
the Lakeview Local School District.
● Elaine: “Lived here 28 years. I know
that it was called Baconsburg
initially (only because I have
enjoyed many breakfasts from the
restaurant). It is home to a man
made reservoir… Mosquito
Reservoir. The area was primarily
swampland hence the name!”

Demographics- What sorts of ● Caucasians ● Density: 1,640 people per square

people do you see? Young? Old? ● Average, mile
Homeless? Alone? Families? What middle-aged persons ● Total population: 7,105 as of 2020
races do you see? ● 50.82% are Female
● 49.18% are Male
 ● Families with ● 25.6% are 65+ years
school-aged and ● 19.3% are under 18 years old
adolescent children ● 5.1% are under 5 years old
● Well-groomed and ● Caucasian: 92.86%
maintained people ● African American: 3.09%
● Native Hawaiian: 2.33%
● 2+ races: 1.72%
● Median age is 45 (mostly young and
middle adults)
● Poverty rate: 7.3%
● 3,133 households
● Average household size is 2
● Average family size is 3
● 55.3% are married
● 29% live alone
● 74.1% owner-occupied housing rate
● Elaine: “I sense predominately
educated, upper middle class in my
area”

Ethnicity- Do you note indications
of different ethnic groups? (E.g.
restaurants, festivals?) What do
you note about the groups?
● Mainly caucasian
● Restaurants owned
by white families
● Citizens do not show
much their culture
from the street’s POV
● 99.3% are U.S. citizens
● 4% are foreign-born citizens
● 0.4% are Hispanic or Latino
● Irish- 12.5%
● English- 11.6%
● Italian- 9.5%
● Other (includes hispanic and
African-American - 6.9%
● 495 residents are veterans
● Elaine: “No culture festivals,
but the Cortland community
street fair is put on by the
Lions club”
 Values and beliefs- are there
churches, mosques, temples?
Does it appear homogeneous? Are
the lawns well cared for? Flowers?
Gardens? Signs of heritage?
Physical environment- How does
the community look? What do you
know about the air quality, flora,
fauna, housing, zoning, space,
green areas, animals, people,
natural beauty, water? Is the air
quality monitored? Develop a map
of the area.
● We passed 3
churches
● Methodist, Baptist,
Penocostal
● Population kept their
yards and houses
maintained; no junky
houses
● Buildings and
businesses maintain
nice landscaping
-Cortland seemed to be a
very small town
-Well-maintained town
-Looks safe
-Good air quality
-Houses- spaced out
-On the outskirts of cortland
(Mecca, Bazetta), there are
farms with many animals
-Alot of landscaping in front
of churches, homes and
businesses; no dead trees
-Seen older gentleman
walking his dog on a leash
● There are 14 churches- methodist,
baptist, penocostal, Catholic,
Lutheran
● Cortland Christan church
● Cortland Trinity Baptist Church
● Cortland United Methodist Church
● Prince of Peace Lutheran Church
● 45.3% of the people in Cortland are
religious:
● 1.7% are Baptist
● 0.2% are Episcopalian
○ - 19.9% are Catholic
○ - 1.7% are Lutheran
○ - 5.4% are Methodist
○ - 2.8% are Pentecostal
○ - 1.6% are Presbyterian
○ - 0.8% are Church of Jesus
Christ
○ - 11.1% are another
Christian faith
○ - 0.1% are Judaism
○ - 0.0% are an eastern faith
○ - 0.1% affilitates with Islam
-Cortland 4.33 sq. miles
-Monitored air quality at the airport in
Vienna
-Planning, Zoning, and Building
Commission have meetings the 2nd
Monday each month at 7pm
-Sewage runs into Mosquito Lake
Elaine: “Cortland is in close proximity
shopping, hospitals and recreational areas.
I like the fact that most areas are low traffic
allowing for bicycling or neighborhood
walks. I especially enjoy spending time at
Mosquito with trails, boating and picnicking”
 -Mosquito Lake -
contaminated with E. Coli

Health and social services- ● Quick Med ● PsyCare (accepts Medicare and
Evidence of acute or chronic ● Primary Cares Medicaid), Blue Star Wellness-
conditions? Shelters? Healers? Are ● Ohio Living- Lake Mental Healthservices
their clinics, hospitals, practitioner Vista AL and NH ● Mercy Health- Cortland Primary
offices, public services, emergency ● Chiropractor Care
centers, nursing homes, social ● Multiple dentist ● Quickmed Urgent Care
service facilities, mental health offices ● Integrative Medical Center of Ohio
services? Are there resources ● orthodontists (chiropractor)
outside the community that are ● Agricultural building ● Action Physical Therapy and Peak
accessible to them? ● Nearest ER is St. Performance Physical Therapy
Joe’s, Trumbull ● Ohio Living Lake Vista (senior
Memorial Hospital, or independence)
Mercy Health ● Orthodontics- Fairlawn and Cortland
Howland Medical Orthodontics Specialists, Cortland
Center Dental Technology Center, The
Center for Progressive Dentistry
● S.C.O.P.E senior center
● Western Reserve Veterinary
Hospital
● K-9 training
● US Consolidated Farm Services
Agency
● Cortland Healthcare Center
● Closest homeless shelter is in
Warren, called Warren Family
Mission (nonprofit rescue mission)
 Industry/economy- is it a thriving
community or does it feel ”seedy”?
Are there industries, stores, places
for employment? Where do people
shop? Are there signs that food
stamps are used/accepted? What
is the unemployment rate?
Transportation and safety- How do
people get around? What types of
private and public transportation is
available? Do you see buses,
bicycles, taxis? Are there
sidewalk/bike trails? Is getting
around in the community
possible for people with
disabilities? What types of
protective services are there fire,
police, and sanitation, what crimes
are committed? Do people feel
safe?
● No food stamp signs ● Cortland’s unemployment rate is
visible in windows 6.4%
● Businesses seem to ● In civilian labor force, total,
be doing well; not run population age 16 years+,
down 2015-2019 - 57.9%
● Sparkle, Family ● In civilian labor force, female,
Dollar, Dollar Tree population age 16+, 2015-2019 -
and Dollar General 47.2%
● RiteAid, Walgreens ● Total accommodation and food
services sales, 2012 ($1,000) -
7,522
● Total health care and social
assistance receipts/revenues, 2012
($1,000) - 25,828
● Total retail sales, 2012 ($1,000) -
238,081
● Total retail sales per capita, 2012 -
$33,814
● Elaine: “I have seen some growth
and development in terms of
housing developments, pizza
establishments, and dollar stores.”
●We observed an ● Property crimes are more common
older gentleman than violent crimes
riding his bike ● Transportation dept on 2nd St.
● Did not see taxi ● Personal vehicle- main form of
● Bike riding, cars, transportation
walking to get to ● Sunburst Environmental Services
places ○ Garbage collection
● No bus station or services (weekly
sign (WRTA) collection)
● Sidewalks in good ● Sanitary Sewer System- wastewater
condition; even and collection system
not destroyed ● City wastewater drains into
● Bike trails Mosquito Lake
● Walking trails in Lake ○ Wastewater is treated by
Vista trumbull county sanitary
● Life jackets available engineer at mosquito creek
for rent wastewater treatment plant
● Drinking water from several wells
● Fire and police ● Storm water runoff flows to
station mosquito lake or creek
● EMS ● Fire responds to about 1700
emergencies each year, about 90%
of them are medical related
○ Three ALS squads and 1
ALS support unit
○ 20 part time and 9 full time
firefighters
● 10 full time and 2 part time police
officers
○ 2 resource officers in
Lakeview Schools
● Means travel time to work (minutes),
workers age 16 years +, 2015-2019
- 27.3
● No air monitor data
● Elaine: “I feel this is a very safe
place to live and it has maintained a
small town atmosphere. When we
first moved here I almost felt like I
had moved to Mayberry… close knit
community where they rolled up the
sidewalks at 9 pm!”
● Elaine: “I’m uncertain about
transportation for handicapped, but I
know that there is a bookmobile for
those who cannot get out to the
library.”
● Elaine: “Yes there’s transportation in
the area such as taxis, people ride
their bikes and walk places.”
Government and leadership- Are
there signs of political activity?
What party affiliation
predominates? What is the
governing jurisdiction of the
community (elected mayor, city
council with single-member
districts)? Are people involved in
decision-making?
● Local restaurant has ● Mayor Deidre Petrosky since
a section of seating 1/1/2020
with Donald Trump ○ term is until December 31
● Political signs in 2023
yards for voicing ● Finance Director, Patti Gibson
opinions (local, state ● Income tax rate is 3.5%
and federal levels) ● City Counsel: John Picuri, Dick/
Richard McClain, Jim Bradley, Scott
Rowley, Don Moore, Kevin Piros,
Kathy Fleischer
● Law Director: Patrick K. Wilson
● Clerk of Counsil: Rhonda Horn
● Oct. 3, 2022 Political agenda (PDF
doc)
● Cortland is somewhat conservative
● From website:
○ Council shall be composed
of seven (7) members. All
Council members shall be
elected at large to serve for
a term of four (4) years.
Elected Councilmen serving
Cortland at the inception of
this Charter shall continue in
office for the duration of their
current term. The seventh
Councilman shall be
appointed in accordance
with Section 3.15,
Vacancies, for the term
expiring December 31, 1983.
thereafter, the office shall be
filled by election for four (4)
year terms.
● City Council Meetings are
conducted at City Hall on the 1st
and 3rd Mondays of the month at
7:00pm
 Communication- are there
“common areas” where people
gather? What newspapers do
you see? Do people talk about
TV radio they watch or listen to?
● Multiple newspapers Elaine: “No common areas other than the
available at Top park. The newspaper is the Cortland News
Notch Diner and local and is delivered monthly via mail.
gas stations (includes Governmental info is primarily through social
ads for local media or in the newsletter from the mayor put
business, events and out every Friday via internet website”
other activities in the
community)
● Senior magazine
which includes health
tips and resources for
community centers

Education- Are there schools in ● Lakeview School
the area? How do they look? Are District (Elementary,
there library’s? Is there a local Middle, and High
board of education? School)
● Cortland Public
Library
● Lakeview is a very
well-kept
building/landscape.
● The school has a turf
football field and an
all-weather track.
● The school has a
large, well-paved
parking lot for
students and staff.
● “Our children attend one of three
outstanding school systems,
providing excellent educational
opportunities as well as an
entertaining array of sports, music,
drama, and other social activities”
● High school graduate or higher,
persons age 25 years+, 2015-2019
- 96.9%
● Lakeview High School had a
student population of 537 in the
2017-18 school year.
● Lakeview has a School Board of
Education consisting of 5 board
members.
● The Board of education hosts 15
board meetings per year.
● Elaine described that a mobile
library visits those who can get out
of their homes or make it to the
library.”
Recreation- Where do the children
play? What are the major forms of
recreation? Who participates and
where? What facilities for
recreation do you see?
The Residents- How do people feel
about the community? What do
they identify as strengths?
Problems? Who gives the answer
and why?
Your Perception- General
statements about the health of the
community. What are strengths and
weaknesses
- Families with small children
-Families that love the
outdoors
-Imagination Station
-Storybook Trail
-Baseball parks
-St. Rt. 305
-Recreation Area
-These places looked very
clean and safe for kids and
families to visit
travel to Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Youngstown
or Akron for cultural events, sporting events,
when I want excitement, I just hop in my car!”
● Overall, small
tight-knit community
● Lots of healthcare
resources
● Sidewalks in good
condition
● Looks safe enough to
raise a family
- Imagination Station Park and Playground
-Cortland Splash Pad -Storybook Trail in
Mosquito Lake Park -Mosquito
Lake State Park
-Baseball parks -Pearl Park
-Willow Park -Mecca Park
-St. Rt. 305 -Recreation Area
-Point and Rotary park
Elaine: “Strength-close knit community.
Weaknesses- limited activities, you need to
concerts and varied entertainment. Overall,
I’m satisfied living here! It’s peaceful …and
● I feel that this community’s strengths
are adequate health services across
the lifespan, Lakeview schools offer
a great education option for
children, and an overall safe
environment with low crime rates.
● I feel that some weaknesses include
a lack of diversity in
races/ethnicities, lack of appropriate
supervision for water safety at
Mosquito Lake, and unsafe water
conditions of the lake due to large
presence of E. Coli.
● Generally, I think that the community
is healthy, and they offer great
health servie options, especially for
the geriatric population.
Resources:
https://www.bestplaces.net/economy/city/ohio/cortland#:~:text=Cortland%20has%20an%20une
mployment%20rate%20of%206.4%25.

https://worldpopulationreview.com/us-cities/cortland-oh-population

https://cityofcortland.org/government/city-council/

https://cityofcortland.org/about/cortland-history/