November 7, 2005
The meeting was called to order by Chairman John A. Eberly. Mr. Willis Brown led the Pledge of Allegiance.
Motion by Eugene McCune, Jr. seconded by Patrick Cavanagh to approve the minutes of the Public Hearing of the Board of Trustees of October 17, 2005 known as ZC2005-02. VOTE: McCune, yes; Cavanagh, yes; Eberly, yes. The motion passed.
Motion by Patrick Cavanagh seconded by Eugene McCune, Jr. to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of the Board of Trustees of October 17, 2005 with two typos corrected. VOTE: McCune, yes; Cavanagh, yes; Eberly, yes. The motion passed.
REPORTS:
Frank Kitko, Jr., Zoning Inspector, presented the following report for the month of October, 2005:
Commercial Sign
1
Commercial Sub-lease/Use Change
1
Denial
1
Residential Accessory Building over 160 Square Feet
3
Residential Fences
2
Residential Signs Temporary Building Construction
5
Residential Signs Subdivisions
1
Single Family Dwelling
3
Variance/Conditional Use
2
TOTAL FOR MONTH
19
Mr. Kitko is asking builders to “button up” their building sites for the winter. It will get wetter and muddier from now on. Auburn Township is hosting a Geauga County Zoning Inspectors meeting tomorrow evening. Randy James will talk about agricultural issues, i.e., manure, etc. and health department issues. When asked about action at the Corners, Mr. Kitko responded that Steve Ciciretto was in to discuss his project and Frank suggested to him that he make an informal presentation to the Zoning Commission board. Frank reported that the Kosar Investment group has purchased just under 40 acres of property at the southeastern corner of Ravenna Road and Interstate 422.
David K. Wilmot, Road Superintendent, presented the following report:
ROADS: The road department has finished crack sealing for the year. Cold patch was used first along with the crack seal in some of the larger cracks. They will now concentrate on cold patch and berm work along with some ditching.
Road inspections for Edinboro Lane, Gottschalk Industrial Park Phase 1 Subdivision, and Maple Valley Phase 2 were held with the county engineers and David in attendance.
Moreland Phase 1 off Stafford and Phase 2 of Sterling Glen have been paved. LaDue Trails is due for paving this Wednesday. Some of these signs have been put up.
An estimate from Wheeler landscaping for the hydro seeding of the back slopes on Taylor May Road has been received.
EQUIPMENT: The trucks, tractors, snowplows and spreaders are all ready to go. Al made an inventory of hydraulic lines for all the equipment for emergency use along with air and oil filters for all the equipment. Auto Lab is doing some much needed work on the grader. The wiring has been a nightmare and the brakes needed work. Many of the hydraulic lines are old with dry rot and frayed areas needing replacement.
CEMETERIES: Topsoil, seeding and straw have been added where needed. Howard has been updating the maps, putting up the snowplow markers along the driveways, and locating and uncovering markers. There are several headstones that have sunk and need eventual work along with a lot of clean up. The drives seem to be holding up well. We should look into chip seal of the drives in the Maple Shade Cemetery next year. It would be easier to maintain.
BUILDINGS: The roof over the lunch room at the road department is in need of repair. The roofing materials are missing in many spots and need replaced before the wood rots. The roof on the Administration Building also needs repair. The faucet in the bathroom at the old Town Hall will be replaced this week. The parking lot at Adam Hall was repaired. Al Schindler and Dave attended the NIMS meeting which was a presidential response to emergency situations that may occur. This is related to FEMA and will eventually be mandated for all townships and other highway departments for participation. The meeting was very informative and interesting.
Dan McClelland, Geauga County Sheriff, sent a report of calls in Auburn Township that were addressed by the sheriff’s office for the month of September, 2005.
Gene McCune reported that he received a phone call from American Diversified about the Taylor May Road reseeding and the retainer we are holding pending grass growing. He was told that the job is 100% guaranteed and American Diversified would like the opportunity to have the road reseeded rather than us having Wheeler do it and subtracting that amount from the retainer.
Patrick J. Cavanagh met with Eileen Roth of Art Source and with Tim Olland to discuss art for Adam Hall. Ms. Roth suggested about 30 pictures would be the right amount and she will send a proposal to us. Anyone wanting to volunteer to help in this project would be appreciated. Mr. Olland suggested that a flyer could be produced at the same time and that the work could be put on a disc and be available for future projects or prints.
Mr. Cavanagh again received a call for a request for a streetlight at Messenger Road and Route 44. Mr. Cavanagh said the timing for this is not good now and to revisit it later.
Mr. Cavanagh had the broken window at Adam Hall fixed and the Occupancy Permit was therefore, issued. The several panes of fogged glass in the large front window will be fixed at a later date.
John Eberly met with Bob Ford, an Auburn resident who takes care of the ball fields for Bainbridge. They discussed the Cathan farm and what the best use will be. Mr. Ford said the biggest need for Kenston Schools is for smaller fields for baseball, volleyball, etc. They also discussed proper drainage for playing fields.
Mr. Eberly discussed the contract with the Chagrin River Land Conservancy for the Cathan farm and Auburn and it was decided to go with the contract as it was written. Auburn’s changes in the acreage were not met with much enthusiasm. Mr. Eberly said that two very good sources to work with for the planning of the Cathan farm are CRLC and Bob Ford. The farm is about 70 acres and the active parcel will be about 30 acres.
Susan Plavcan, Clerk, presented warrants for signatures. She presented each trustee with a copy of the current financials.
Employee review time is near. The trustees set Monday, December 12, 2005 as the evening to review employees and to interview zoning board members beginning at 6:30 p.m. and interviewing in 15 minute increments.
Ms. Plavcan presented a new Recycling Contract for the period 2006-2008 with the Geauga Trumbull Solid Waste Management District.
Motion by Eugene McCune, Jr. seconded by Patrick Cavanagh to continue our recycling program for the township with the Geauga Trumbull Solid Waste Management District for the years 2006-2008 by signing the contract as presented. VOTE: McCune, yes; Cavanagh, yes; Eberly, yes. The motion passed.
Ms. Plavcan received notification of a Christmas Tree Collection and Recycling Grant. The trustees discussed it.
Motion by John A. Eberly seconded by Patrick Cavanagh to apply for the Christmas Tree Collection and Recycling Grant through the Geauga Trumbull Solid Waste Management District. VOTE: McCune, yes; Cavanagh, yes; Eberly, yes. The motion passed.
Ms. Plavcan presented a proposal by Gillmore Security for Adam Hall to the trustees. They decided to discuss the proposal in January, 2006.
Also deferred to January was a discussion of 2006 Township Road Projects.
The annual inspection form for roads, bridges, culverts, etc. was received from the county engineer’s office and will be given to Dave to fill out.
Adam Hall was used last weekend for a funeral reception that was a very last minute thing and it worked out very well. It was discussed again that the water at Adam Hall requires a softener and or filters. Mr. Cavanagh will look into this matter.
The clerk spoke to Steve LaTourette’s office about the ZIP code situation in Auburn and received information that Mr. LaTourette’s Administrator had just met with the Post Office officials. Mr. Dino DiSanto will come to a meeting to discuss the situation with the trustees.
The final bill for Adam Hall work by Tenant Construction that needs trustee approval for payment by the Community Development department was discussed. Some work has not been completed yet and the trustees again discussed the work re-done by Szoka Excavating to repair a swale and work done by Bainbridge Excavating to repair a broken pipe as a result of work done by Tenant. The trustees also will ask Dave to buy the handicapped parking signs to complete the Tenant construction work. The trustees will ask the Community Development department to issue payment to the township for the handicapped parking signs and the work by Szoka Excavating and Bainbridge Excavating and then have them send the balance to Tenant Construction.
The trustees and employees attended meetings held by the county to explain the new 2006 health insurance policy. The contract they approved is good for two years and is with Medical Mutual. The price is up a little from last year. The trustees discussed options.
Motion by John A. Eberly seconded by Patrick Cavanagh to continue medical coverage for 2006 through the Board of Commissioners of Geauga County for the elected officials and fulltime employees of the township. VOTE: McCune, yes; Cavanagh, yes; Eberly, yes. The motion passed.
The trustees briefly reviewed a final plat of Fireside Estates Subdivision received from the Geauga County Planning Commission.
Mr. Eberly extended thanks to Mr. Jack Trethewey for the letter he wrote and sent to the newspapers in support of the road levy. His support is much appreciated.
Mr. McCune wished all candidates the best of luck in the upcoming election.
Motion by Eugene T. McCune, Jr. to adjourn the meeting, seconded by John A. Eberly. VOTE: McCune, yes; Cavanagh, yes; Eberly, yes. The motion passed. The meeting was adjourned.