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Sullivan Township Trustees Attendance: Douglas Campbell, Chairman The meeting was called to order at 7:35PM by Chairman Douglas Campbell followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Douglas Campbell made corrections to the January 3 organizational minutes which were noted and initialed by the trustees. Mark Hickey moved to approve the corrected minutes with a second by Duane Jenkins. Roll call all yes. Mark Hickey moved to approve the January 7 minutes with a second by Douglas Campbell. Roll call all yes. Douglas Campbell stated that he would not sign minutes from January 22 as it was not a legal meeting. Mark Hickey stated that the meeting had been called to order and he would sign the minutes as it was a record of what happened. Douglas Campbell asked if the organizational meeting had been placed in the paper. The fiscal officer stated that it had been run in the paper on Thursday and that it is not required but is a courtesy. Douglas Campbell stated that the bill at Harrison had been paid by Jerry Bauer and that the purchases at Ohio Fuel Stop had not been approved. The fiscal officer stated that she would void the two payments. The fiscal officer stated that she had not received time sheets for the road department and could not make up paychecks. Douglas Campbell stated that he had them to turn in at the meeting. The fiscal officer stated that she needs them prior to the meeting so that the paychecks match the hours worked. She stated that she had brought blank checks and could write them by hand. Douglas Campbell moved to pay bills excluding the Harrison and Ohio Fuel Stop checks. Duane Jenkins seconded with roll call all yes. Douglas Campbell stated he would like to address the purchases at Ohio Fuel Stop. He stated that he had been told that a fire truck had not been fueled at the station. He was advised that the squad purchase was an emergency as no one had a key to the new garage door and the fuel gauge was not working. The fire truck 2713 was fueled when it was put into service for repairs to 2711 as had been discussed at the fire meeting. Mark Hickey stated that he had spoke with the state auditors office and they had suggested a written fuel policy for the fire department. Duane Jenkins read from fire department minutes that stated a tax exempt account had been set up at Ohio Fuel Stop. Douglas Campbell asked who had signed a tax exempt certificate and the fiscal officer stated that she had signed one for the purchase that had been made. Mr. Campbell stated that she had signed it without the boards approval. The fiscal officer stated that she signs tax exempt certificates for any vendor of the township when requested. Douglas Campbell and Duane Jenkins stated that Mark Hickey had made a decision outside of a public meeting and was in violation of ethics policy. Mr. Campbell moved to send a letter to the Prosecutors Office, the Attorney General, State Auditors Office, and the Ethics Board to advise them of this action. Mark Hickey seconded with roll call all yes. Fiscal Officer Report Fiscal Officer Susan Denbow had the following announcements: Fiscal Officer Denbow stated that the end of year financial statement had been sent to the State Auditor and the notice had been placed in the paper. She gave a copy to Mr. Spieker that he had requested and had additional copies for anyone that would like one. Douglas Campbell asked if permanent appropriations needed to be approved by February 1 and was advised that they are done after the county auditor sends the amended certificate of resources. Duane Jenkins stated that they will need to get copies of the tax exempt certificate at Ohio Fuel Stop and November-December 2007 minutes. Douglas Campbell turned in a copy of a letter from the county commissioners designating solid waste facilities to receive solid waste generated by the district. Douglas Campbell asked if the second key to the PO box had been located and was told it had not. Mark Schwab stated that he never had a key to the box on the ring of keys given to him. Douglas Campbell moved to have the box relocked with a second by Duane Jenkins. Roll call all yes. Zoning Inspector Report Janice Steele was not in attendance but had turned in a written report. Douglas Campbell stated that the zoning map in the records room was reviewed at the zoning board meeting and was the map that they had worked on. The fiscal officer had located the original minutes of the public hearing on the zoning map in the records room and had turned in a copy to the assistant prosecutor. She stated that he had told her that the trustees need to find additional documentation such as the minutes of the zoning board, notices placed in the paper, letters sent to residents about changes, etc. Douglas Campbell stated he would like to hold a public hearing on February 4 at 7:00 to authenticate the zoning map with the regular business meeting to follow. A notice of such would be placed in the paper. Duane Jenkins stated that he would talk to Paul O’Reilly to get the verbiage needed for the map. Duane Jenkins made a motion to request the verbiage with a second by Douglas Campbell. Roll call all yes. Duane Jenkins made a motion to spend up to $200 for a court stenographer at the public hearing. Douglas Campbell seconded with roll call all yes. Douglas Campbell made a motion to hold a public hearing to recertify the zoning map on February 4, 2008 at 7:00PM with the regular business meeting to follow with a second by Duane Jenkins. Mark Hickey expressed concerns that there would not be enough time for letters to be sent and arrangements made by residents to attend the hearing. Roll call Campbell and Jenkins yes, Hickey no. Douglas Campbell made a motion for Peggy Skinner, zoning board secretary, to post the notice in the paper and send letters to those who attended the original meeting. Duane Jenkins seconded with roll call all yes. Mark Hickey moved to reimburse Peggy for postage up to $15 with a second by Douglas Campbell. Roll call all yes. Road Supervisor Report Douglas Campbell stated that he had ridden the township roads with Gary and Paul on Saturday January 12 to check them. He advised that there were culverts on Twp Rd#581 and Twp Rd#150 that were in need of repair or replacement. He stated that the road crew would be ditching 2-3 days per week as weather permits and the remaining days they would be working on the roads making repairs. They will be preparing roads for chip and seal by the end of May. Mark Hickey asked about the time spent on plow stands. Paul Lower explained that they had to fabricate new stands for the plow blades. Paul Lower turned in their applications to attend a LTAP class for Maintenance and Repair of Low Volume Roads on May 15 at a cost of $65/each. Duane Jenkins made a motion for them to attend and to reimburse mileage with a second by Douglas Campbell. Roll call all yes. Paul made a request to purchase 50 ton of #411s to make repairs on Twp Rd#462. Mark Hickey stated that he thought they should purchase additional stone to make repairs on the roads. Douglas Campbell moved to purchase 50 ton of #411s with a second by Duane Jenkins. Roll call all yes. Paul requested to purchase up to 50 ton of road grit as needed. Mark Hickey moved to make the purchase with a second by Douglas Campbell. Roll call all yes. Fire and EMS Report No chiefs report. EMS Lieutenant Robert Palm stated that the cost to replace the foam pump on 2711 would be $16000. Duane Jenkins stated that he had been told that the foam system could still be used by drafting without the pump. He was told that the truck is operational as is but that neither of the pumper trucks would pass a state recertification. The last certification on 2711 was done last fall and is recertified yearly. Duane Jenkins stated that Chief Les Handley had told him that he was awaiting a quote to have a CAFS system put into the truck. The truck will be used as is until the quote is received and a decision is made. Robert Palm stated that Douglas Campbell had asked if 2711 had been fueled at the gas station and had been told that it had not. Robert Palm presented a quote for a new squad that the department had checked into at a cost of $122,905.48 prior to a fleet discount. He advised that department members and assistant chief Jerry Bauer had demoed the squad and that all were in favor of the purchase. Douglas Campbell asked Steve Denbow if he had run his lights and siren outside of the township. Steve replied that he had turned them on at the county gravel yard south of the Five Points intersection. Mr. Campbell asked Mike Trull if he had run his lights and siren outside of the township. Mike stated that he had also turned them on at the gravel yard. It was stated that the fire department had approved an addition to the SOGs that allowed this. Duane Jenkins stated that it has always been at the township line and that no new SOG changes had been brought to the trustees. Mike Trull stated that the trustees had told the fire department that they were responsible for their SOGs. Douglas Campbell stated that he had received complaints of reckless driving and running lights thru Homerville and that one complainant was willing to testify. Duane Jenkins stated that he had received a complaint of a member running lights and siren from Ashland. Mr. Campbell stated that he had observed Steve Denbow driving recklessly on two occasions. Steve stated that it had occurred more than a year ago and he had been disciplined by the department. Mark Schwab stated that when he was chief, members could use their lights at the dangerous intersections coming into town and within the township. Douglas Campbell made a motion that lights and sirens only be used inside the township and at the intersections approaching the township (Five Points and New London Eastern). Duane Jenkins seconded the motion with an amendment that it is only inside the township. Mark Hickey stated that the intersections were dangerous and that Mr. Jenkins was splitting hairs. Douglas Campbell amended his motion that lights and sirens only be used inside the township. Duane Jenkins seconded with roll call Campbell and Jenkins yes, Hickey abstained. Douglas Campbell stated that Gary Hollingsworth had contacted him about returning to the fire department. Duane Jenkins made a motion to put Gary back on the department. It was questioned if a vote had been taken at the time of Gary’s verbal resignation and if he had to reapply to the department as other members are required to do. Douglas Campbell stated that, for the safety of the residents, he was making a motion to reinstate Gary as a FF and EMT with a second by Duane Jenkins. Roll call Campbell and Jenkins yes, Hickey no. Duane Jenkins read a letter received from Cindy Benner stating that she had been terminated from the fire department illegally and requested to be reinstated. Mr. Jenkins stated that the termination had been done during an executive session and without cause. Mark Hickey stated that he disagreed that it was without cause but did state that he had signed the paper in an executive session. Mr. Hickey stated that he was a new trustee and had made a mistake by signing the paper in the executive session instead of after returning to the regular business meeting. Duane Jenkins made a motion to notify Ms. Benner that she would be reinstated onto the fire department and to send a letter of apology which was seconded by Douglas Campbell. Roll call Campbell and Jenkins yes, Hickey no. Trustee Reports Douglas Campbell stated that he had looked at the OTARMA questionnaire paperwork. He stated that the township could save money by doing drug testing on anyone driving township vehicles. The fiscal officer stated that anyone with a CDL was already part of a testing program. Questions were raised concerning firefighters driving the fire trucks. It was determined that this needs to checked into further and a policy written for it. Douglas Campbell will follow up on this. Douglas Campbell stated that he had received a letter from the American Red Cross about the township providing an emergency shelter when needed. It was determined that the township will continue to provide an emergency shelter and the contact people will be the fire chief and the trustee chairman. Mark Hickey volunteered to fill out the contact list and return it. Douglas Campbell stated that he had been handed an application for two new members to the fire department, Janet and Cliff Roberts. Janet is interested in becoming an EMT and Cliff, a firefighter. It was stated that the applications had not been to the fire department yet but due to an EMT class starting on Monday, they would like approval. Douglas Campbell made a motion to pay for the EMT class for Janet if she could still get in. It was seconded by Duane Jenkins with roll call all yes. Douglas Campbell stated that the posting of the fire chief position did not get placed in the Elyria Chronicle Telegram due to the requirement of prepaying for the ad. He would like to run the ad again to get applications from this area. Mr. Campbell made a motion to run the ad 3 weeks in the Chronicle Telegram and an additional 2 weeks in the Times Gazette and Medina Gazette with a deadline of February 18. Duane Jenkins seconded with roll call all yes. Douglas Campbell was given permission to place the ad in the Chronicle Telegram and to pay for it. The fiscal officer will rerun the ad in the Times Gazette and Medina Gazette. Mark Hickey presented copies of an invoice he had received from Black River Schools for the recording fees on the property transfer. He had copies of the school board minutes that stated the purchase price was $1 but it was unclear who was responsible for the recording fees. It was suggested to try and locate the trustee minutes from February-March 1995 to see if it had been addressed. After some discussion, Mark Hickey made a motion to pay the recording fees of $131.50. There was no second. A search for the minutes will be made. Mark Hickey stated that he had spoke with the state auditor’s office about fuel for the fire department and they had suggested a written fuel policy. After reading a policy that he had written, Mr. Hickey made a resolution to adopt it. There was no second. Douglas Campbell stated that he agreed that the township should have a written fuel policy. Mr. Campbell made a motion that the fire department was to fuel all trucks from the township tanks with a second by Duane Jenkins. Roll call Campbell and Jenkins yes, Hickey no. Mark Hickey stated that the county commissioners had selected representatives to the County Planning Board. Mr. Hickey stated that he had applied and been selected to serve a 3 year term. Duane Jenkins advised that they were in the process of getting quotes for a furnace in the records room. Duane Jenkins advised that he had checked into cost of a video recorder at Wal-Mart and would bring it to the next meeting. Douglas Campbell stated that he had set up tax exempt purchasing at the Oberlin Wal-Mart. Douglas Campbell stated that he had checked into a copy machine for the township community room. It could be kept in the table room with a locked door so that all committees and boards could use it for township business. Douglas Campbell stated that he would like to see a new committee in the township that would check into grants, land to purchase, parks, etc. This would be a research committee only and would not be able to make decisions. Mark Hickey stated that there was a committee that had formed to check into these things for a possible sewer system. Mr. Campbell stated that he had spoken with Chris Mosher who was interested in getting it started. He will write up a mission statement and bring it to the next meeting. Fiscal Officer Denbow asked about the filing cabinet in the table room that belongs to the Lions Club. Mark Hickey stated that he would contact Kay Wright to see what should be done with it. Fiscal Officer Denbow asked Gary Hollingsworth if he would contact Town & Country about the switch to on road diesel. Gary stated that he had already notified them and they were waiting for him to empty the tank. Open to the Floor Bud Yantz stated that the zoning board would need access to the table room so that they could get to their records. He was advised that the board would be given a key. Mark Schwab asked that if the road crew would be ditching 2-3 days and patching roads on the other days, when they would have time to do lawn mowing and ditch mowing. He was advised that these things will be addressed. Ron Blessing asked if the junk problems were a dead issue. He was advised that they would be addressed after the zoning issues were handled. Roy Philliips stated that it seemed like things brought up by the residents such as speed limits had been tabled and not addressed. Carol Stasick stated that the research committee was a good idea. She stated that the Ladies Auxiliary had stuff in the table room and would like access to the tables for their fundraiser dinners. She advised that that the road was higher than the end of her driveway making it difficult to get out. Gary Hollingsworth will check into this and fix it. Richard Johnson stated that he had received complaints about Twp Rd#391 near Richard Farkas. There is a 6 inch dropoff along the edge of the road making it dangerous when meeting another vehicle. He stated that the berms need to be lower than the road surface so that the water can drain off. He stated that the trustees had talked about getting dumpsters in the fall for a clean up and thought it was a good idea. Donna Riley stated that putting the organizational meeting in the paper was a good way to notify residents. She was advised that it had been placed in the paper. Donna would like permission to get a township phone line into her house. She was advised that she does not need permission as it is required. She was advised that she should contact the phone company to have it installed at the end of March. Donna stated that the road crew had replaced a mailbox for Sarah Miller that had been damaged and she appreciated it. Peggy Skinner stated that due to printing copies for the zoning board, her printer had died. The fiscal officer stated that she had a township one at her home and it could be picked up anytime. Duane Jenkins moved to adjourn at 11:20PM with a second by Mark Hickey. Roll call all yes. Trustee__________________________ Trustee_____________________________
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