January 9, 2006   

 

The meeting was called to order at 7:30 p.m. by Chairman John A. Eberly. All Trustees were present.  Geauga County Commissioner, Bill Young, led the Pledge of Allegiance.

 

John Eberly announced the sudden and tragic death of Sandy Trethewey, wife of Jack. The Board extends their deepest sympathy to Jack on this heartbreaking loss. 

 

            Mr. Eberly welcomed Geauga County Commissioner, Bill Young, to our meeting.

 

            Motion by Mike Troyan seconded by Patrick Cavanagh to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of the Board of Trustees of January 3, 2006.  VOTE:  Troyan, yes; Cavanagh, yes; Eberly, yes.  The motion passed.

 

REPORTS:

            Mr. Frank Kitko, Zoning Inspector, presented the following report for December, 2005:

 

Commercial New	1
Denial	1
Residential  Addition	2
Residential Remodel	1
Single Family Dwelling	3
Variance/Conditional Use	2
TOTAL FOR MONTH	10

 

            A year end summary for the years 2002 – 2005 reflect a total of single family dwellings at 57 for 2005, 67 for 2004, 57 for 2003 and 58 for 2002. The total permits issued for the same years are 247, 253, 250 and 223. The figures have remained relatively constant.

            Mr. Kitko reported a lot of “touring” by the zoning department checking for erosion control offenses. They have sent numerous letters to builders. It is quiet overall now. Mr. Steve Ciciretto plans to begin construction at his property at The Corners this spring. Nothing has been heard from the Kosar group. Frank expects to have a new fee schedule prepared for examination for PBD’s by February 1^st.  With a PBD, the township can control ingress, egress, lot coverage, parking, etc.

 

            Mr. David K. Wilmot, Road Superintendent, presented the following report for the Road Department:

ROADS:  Approximately 350 tons of road salt has been used to date at a price of about $43 per ton. He has scheduled cinder pick up for the second week of April with Reilly Sweeping. Reilly needs about 1500 gallons of water in a tank for their work. Dave will check with the fire department to see if they can help with this.

            Dave wants to thank Chris McCabe from the Auburn volunteer Fire Department for getting him the following information: CUE is a non-profit association that allows for collective purchasing of volume salt by public, non-profit entities. There is a $200 annual fee to participate. The cost of salt would then be $31 per ton. We are waiting for paperwork and could apply in March of this year.

            Dave has investigated options other than Waste Management for large item pick up and roadside pick up days. They no longer take items with Freon nor give credit for scrap metal. He is looking into Kruse Waste removal and Wall Street Recycling as possible options.

            The road department has updated a lot of our road signs with reflective posts. They will also do berm work and cold patching as the weather permits.

            Dave met with Elmer Hershberger, Troy Township trustee, about the ditching, widening, and tree removal on Shaw Road anticipating Issue 2 funding. Troy has asked the county to mark the road right of way in preparation and they plan on ditching their part of the road this coming year. We should also ditch our part. That would be a two week project and we would inspect and replace any drive pipes that need work. This work would be scheduled for the first two weeks of July, 2006.

            There are a number of trees that should be removed throughout the township that are either dead and/or leaning over the roads, posing a safety threat. Dave has noted some of the worst and will get estimates for removal.

 

EQUIPMENT:  Truck 15 needs a new bed before next winter at a cost of about $3000. Another loader is needed, preferably with a 3 yard loader. Our current loader is a 1 yard.  Truck 13 is only used when necessary and should be replaced after 2 or 3 more years of use. There is an auction in Wooster and the trustees said Dave should prepare some specs on what we need. The rest of the equipment is in good shape with regular maintenance. A new loader would require a place to park it and the trustees discussed the possibility of putting in another temporary building like the salt building with an asphalt pad, etc.

 

BUILDINGS: Dave requests a training lesson by someone for Adam Hall maintenance – how the heat, plumbing, lighting, etc. work. He has purchased a snow blower for cleaning the walks and ice melt for the asphalt and sidewalks there.

            Roof repairs at the Administration building and road department should be done this year. The trustees said he should contact Blue Pines Construction for proposals.

 

CEMETERY: There was one funeral last month. We should look at chip and seal of the driveways at Maple Shade Cemetery. The estimate a few years ago was $8200.

 

            Michael S. Troyan noted there was another accident at Taylor May Road and Munn Road. That is a high accident area and he questioned what we can do to improve the intersection.  The trustees asked Dave to discuss the problem with the county.

 

            Patrick J. Cavanagh reported that the water softener from Kinetico for Adam Hall has been installed.

 

            John A. Eberly noted that JohnsonConstruction will continue to monitor Adam Hall to be certain that the icicle problem was repaired.  Fortunately, there was no damage done from the ice.

 

            Susan Plavcan, Fiscal Officer, presented warrants and purchase orders for signatures.  Also, the Board of Elections contacted the office and was given a tour of Adam Hall. They would like to use Adam Hall as a voting location. With the uncertain future of the Arctic Freeze ice arena, they need to relocate. The trustees discussed it and they would be very willing to have Adam Hall used as a voting location.

 

            Motion by John Eberly seconded by Mike Troyan to accept the recommendation of the Board of Elections to use Adam Hall as a voting location to accommodate four precincts. VOTE:  Troyan, yes; Cavanagh, yes; Eberly, yes. The motion passed.

 

            The township was contacted by NOPEC to vote our proxy from the November general meeting. The trustees discussed it.

 

            Motion by John Eberly seconded by P.J. Cavanagh to appoint and designate Bill Young as the assembly representative to NOPEC for Auburn Township to be the proxy to represent, vote for and act on behalf of Auburn Township.  VOTE:  Troyan, yes; Cavanagh, yes; Eberly, yes. The motion passed.

 

OLD BUSINESS:

            We are waiting to hear from Dino DiSanto of Representative Steven LaTourette’s office about the ZIP code matter and the meeting he will set up.

 

            The trustees discussed Adam Hall and Gillmore Security. They would like a Gillmore representative to attend a meeting to discuss reasonable security measures some time during February.

 

            The trustees discussed the Cebridge Connection contracts and decided there is no urgency to execute them. They will check with other local entities to see what kind of contracts, if any, they operate under.        The trustees discussed Joy Burkholder’s pay rate. She provides seasonal support to the road department as her college schedule permits.  Everyone is pleased with her efforts.

 

            Motion by John Eberly seconded by Mike Troyan to adjust Joy Burkholder’s salary 3%. She will be paid $8.75 per hour effective immediately. VOTE:  Troyan, yes; Cavanagh, yes; Eberly, yes. The motion passed.

 

            The Town Hall rental rate was discussed and the trustees decided to charge a slight charge per function for KCE’s use of the facility and to help offset the utility bills. This will not impact those groups who do not charge to use the facility like scouting groups, Garden Club, home owner associations.

 

            Motion by John Eberly seconded by Patrick Cavanagh to charge $10 per function to Kenston Community Education for the classes they hold at the Town Hall.  VOTE:  Troyan, yes; Cavanagh, yes; Eberly, yes. The motion passed.

 

            The trustees recommend invoicing and collecting once a year rather than trying to exchange money on a per class or other basis.

 

            The trustees discussed the secretarial position briefly and noted they will have to start interviewing as soon as possible.

 

            The trustees reviewed plans for Orwell Natural Gas to install Taylor May Road distribution lines and they have no objection to the plans. The plans were also reviewed by the road department. They asked the fiscal officer to check for a current bond.

 

            Motion by John Eberly seconded by Mike Troyan to adjourn the meeting. VOTE: Troyan, yes; Cavanagh, yes; Eberly, yes. The motion passed. The meeting was adjourned.