Grafton Township Trustees Meeting Minutes
March 14th, 2017
The regularly scheduled meeting was called to order at 7:00 P.M. with the Pledge of Allegiance. All Trustees and the Fiscal Officer were present.
Trustee Kasinec made a motion to accept the minutes of the February 14th meeting, second by Trustee Haight. John yes, Jean yes and Carl yes. Motion carried. 20170314-01
Trustee Haight made a motion to pay the bills in the amount of $27,507.48 second by Trustee Kasinec. Jean yes, John yes and Carl yes. Motion carried. 20170314-02
Deputy Bungard was in attendance and gave a report on the township. We had the usual domestics and nonviolent calls. Deputy Bungard inquired about the Jailhouse Tavern stage that is being built; he would like to get in front of the potential noise problem. Tom Steigerwald stated he has talked to them and the stage is just a deck right now and did not need a permit. We just want to make sure they are aware of the township’s noise ordinance. Amy informed everyone the signed noise resolution is posted on the website for Grafton Township.
Committee Reports:
Zoning – Tom Steigerwald reported there were 2 permits issued last month one house and one accessory building.
Violations: There were three notices for nuisance materials and/or disabled/inoperable vehicles; they were Dean Gest at 34957 State Route 303, Douglas Wilkinson at 18550 State Route 83 and Herbert Ingram at 18414 State Route 83.
Tom handed out the updated paperwork on Edna Anderson’s property along with a new copy of 505.86. Legal notices were also published. Tom and Carl inspected Earl Pullen’s property – the property will be in compliance by June 1st at which time the property will be re-inspected. Tom inspected the G.W. Starkey’s property at 15020 State Route 83; he is not operating a business there. Mr. Starkey does have a few nuisance materials to clean up; 2 vehicles not in compliance – one will be moving out shortly after legal matters with insurance company. Tom will re-inspect in June. The Mezurek’s property at 35474 Law Road in reference to agricultural use, presently there were goats occupied in the accessory building. Ken and Diana were instructed what to do if they want to run a non-agricultural business in the building. As directed by Tom Mangan, legal counsel, no personal email information was included on pictures that the Mezurek’s requested copies of. Tom and Fred Giese (Chairman of the Board of Zoning Appeal) will inspect the property at 18900 State Route 83 next week concerning a conditional use permit. It doesn’t seem they are following the terms of the conditional use permit. The zoning hours for the month of March are Monday and Tuesday 8am to 11am. Tom requests an executive session for personnel reasons. Trustee Wesemeyer inquired about the fence in the front of GW Starkey property, Tom stated when the weather breaks it will come down when the front gets landscaped.
Road Department – Bob reported the three lawn mowers were listed on gov.deals. Currently there is a bid on one of the mowers (the Z-turn). Bob inquired if the other two mowers do not receive bids how much do we want to lower the starting bid. Trustee Kasinec recommended $500. Amy will re-list the two mowers and drop the price $500. Bob received two bids for the roof repair on the one room school house. The first bid was from Smith Quality Roofing for $75 and the other bid was from First Choice Roofing for $350. Smith Roofing would charge an extra $125 to paint the ridge roll green which would match the rest of the roof. Bob gave copies to John. Trustee Wesemeyer makes a motion to accept the bid from Smith Quality Roofing, second by Trustee Haight. Carl yes, Jean yes and John yes. Motion carried. 20170314-03
Fuel tanks were discussed. If we go with Landmark it would cost us $20 a month for tank rental, they would also take our tanks. Town and Country would cost $115 for a 520 gallon tank and the 300 gallon would be $95 and they would not take our old tanks. Landmark fuel is based on the daily rate and there would also be a trip/fuel charge. Bob would recommend going with Landmark. Trustee Wesemeyer makes a motion to go with Landmark contingent there is no up-front cost associated with renting their tanks and having them take the old ones, second by Trustee Haight. Carl yes, Jean yes and John yes. Motion carried. 20170314-04
The storage building is down; it will take some time to clean up since they are utilizing the township’s 8 yard dumpster. Bob Gullet was in attendance and would like to purchase the old sheet metal. He made an offer of $100. Trustee Wesemeyer makes a motion to sell the sheet metal to Bob Gullet for $100, second by Trustee Kasinec. Carl yes, John yes and Jean yes. Motion carried. 20170314-05
Bob and John went out and looked at Neff Road from Mennell Road to the curve. They marked out the area that needs repaired. Bob called Terry from Melway to have them come out and look at the roads; Bob will probably meet with them next week if the weather permits. Bob also is going to have them look at motor paving the subdivisions of Haystacks and Country Woods. Amy handed out copies of the estimate from the County for the chip seal program, our cost is about $18,264 which would do Law Road (from Chamberlain to the County line), Dellwood and Crocker Road (Eaton Township would split the repair cost). Jean asked to make sure someone inspects to make sure they sweep after the chip seal. Bob called the Oberlin ODOT office to inquire about rumors he heard about a round about being put in at Route 83 and Route 303 intersection. ODOT did state they were doing studies but right now there is no funding and right now it is a dead issue. Bob asked if next time they can be notified so when residents call they can know what is going on.
Fire Department – Bob reported Mike Palmer is back to active duty after being off for a few months; Bob does have a release form from his doctor. There is no need for a return to work physical since we have the release from the doctor. Bob gave an update on the status of the tanker repair. The solution to fix the tanker is to do it in house. Bob can order the frame rails from Freightliner for around $4,000, we would need to hire a crane and operator and a welder. The total cost should not exceed $8,000. Bob has enough people in the department to lend tools and hands to do the repair. The crane and operator (Dean Eyring) will cost at least $880. Jeff Jackson (welder) would cost $2,380. Trustee Haight makes a motion to spend up to $10,000 on the tanker repairs (purchasing frame rails, crane/operator, welder and misc. supplies), second by Trustee Wesemeyer. Jean yes, Carl yes and John yes. Motion carried. 20170314-06
Phil Teska who was approved to join the department, some personal stuff came up and at this time cannot meet the training requirements. He would like the chance to join the department down the road.
Bob has been working with Alex Morohan on his Eagle Scout project. Alex was in attendance and gave a presentation on his project. His project is to install address signs to Grafton Township resident’s that do not have them. He had handouts for the trustees and audience members detailing the project and cost. Alex did a survey of the township mailboxes; there are 104 with no visible addresses. Amy emailed Jerry Innes, Lorain County Prosecutor, for clarification on if the township can donate to the project. Per Jerry’s email from April 20th, 2016 “If the Board determines that the Eagle Scout organization serves a community purpose it may provide funding to the organization”. Trustee Haight made a motion to donate $1,000 to the Eagle Scouts and allow the project of installing green reflective address signs to occur in the township, second by Trustee Wesemeyer. Jean yes, Carl yes and John yes. Motion carried. 20170314-07
Albert Weigel has won the opportunity to direct a $2,500 dollar donation from theAmerica’s Farmers Grow Communitiesprogram, sponsored by the Monsanto Fund, to the Grafton Township Fire Department. Bob thanked Albert for the donation and will take a photo for the paper when the donation arrived. The department will use the funds to pay for schooling for two emergency medical technicians. Discussion was had on installing a power gate on the fence by the tire trailer. Bob received three quotes; Potter Overhead Door for $3,480 which includes the installation, slide gate operator and shipping the cost of adding a sensor would add another $331, the transmitters are $30 apiece and we would need 25 and also needed is a wireless commercial keypad for non-employee entrance (trash/fuel providers) for $180, the total from Potter Door is $4,741. Barcol Door quote is $4,245 (material/labor) and the transmitters are $38.25 apiece, $595 for sensor, wireless keypad is $495 for a total of 6,291.25. Elyria Fence is $6,810 which includes 8 transmitters; we would need to add an additional 17. Trustee Wesemeyer makes a motion to go with Potter Overhead for the purchase of the automatic gate at a cost not to exceed $5,000, second by Trustee Kasinec. Carl yes, John yes and Jean yes. Motion carried. 20170314-08
Discussion was had on OUPS. We are no longer receiving notifications from the County Engineer, do we really need to be receiving the OUPS tickets. After discussion was had Trustee Kasinec makes a motion not to receive the OUPS tickets, second by Trustee Wesemeyer. John yes, Carl yes and Jean yes. Motion carried. 20170314-09
Cemetery – Tim was out of town, Bob gave his report for him. There was a request for a footer to be poured when the weather allows it. Decorations will be removed in the next week or so. Tim gave $700 for Amy for the sale of two lots; the trustees signed the deeds tonight.
Town Hall –
EMS – Penny reported we have received $2,471.60 in EMS billings for the month of January. For February there were 14 residential calls which resulted in 10 ALS, 2 no treat no transport and 1 DOA. There were also 4 motor vehicle accidents which resulted in 1 ALS, 3 no treat no transport (or no patient found) and 1 required extrication and Lifeflight. Mutual aid was received once from Eaton Township for an EMS call. Mutual aid was given to Litchfield Township for a lift assist. The pharmacy license is up for renewal which cost $150 for the year. 2 members have started EMT class at LifeCare. The Lifecare Trauma Field Day that was hosted by us was a success. Some equipment was purchased with grant money has been coming in. The vacuum splints and the EZ-IO for the second squad were received. Penny is still looking for the new “go” bags.
New Business:
Fiscal Officer Amy Richards – Amy reported the Health Department was out on March 1st, to inspect the septic system; copies were handed out to the trustees. The inspection report showed it was unsatisfactory. Bob will give them a call since a few years ago we were told to put the cover on the distribution box, the inspector probably didn’t know what plate in the driveway was. The township appropriations need to be made permanent by April 1st. Amy made the recommendation to keep the temporary appropriations the same at $1,142,636.14 and just make them permanent. Trustee Wesemeyer made a motion for the permanent appropriations to be $1,142,636.14, second by Trustee Haight. Carl yes, Jean yes and John yes. Motion carried. 20160314-10
In November we need to place the renewal fire levy on the ballot. It has to be renewed every five years. Trustee Haight made a motion to have the Lorain County Auditor calculate the tax revenue for the 5 year 2 mil renewal levy, second by Trustee Wesemeyer. Jean yes, Carl yes and John yes. Motion carried. 20170314-11
Amy stated the switch over from Firstmerit to Huntington has taken place, there have been a few issues. She asked if anyone did not receive their direct deposit for payroll to please let her know ASAP. She is meeting with a representative from Huntington on Thursday the 16th as well as the other fiscal officers from Lorain County. Amy will start looking at other options for the township banking needs. The CD the township had at Huntington matured and we earned around $2,800, the CD was rolled into another year CD. Amy stated the website is updated with the 2016 meeting minutes as well as the noise ordinance. Grafton Township is one of four townships in Lorain County that is eligible for a $50,000 grant for installing or upgrading safety signs. There is a required pre-grant meeting on March 31st in Columbus from 10am to 12pm. Amy and Bob will attend the meeting. Amy stated she received paperwork on the Community Development Block Grant, if the township is interested in applying the meeting is March 28th at 9am in meeting room A. The grant application is due April 14th.
Trustee Reports:
Trustee John Kasinec – John reported he evaluated Neff Road from Mennell Road west to the curve with Bob and Chad. John marked areas for temporary repair. John made new drawings for the pavilion. He finished the specifications for the bid, he gave copies to Carl and Bob to make comments on the new drawings before it is sent out to bid. Country Woods was discussed on how to keep the road from falling apart. One suggestion was crack sealing, one quote was $8,000. Another suggestion was getting someone in there to fix the cracks, such has a pothole person. John would like this to be fixed before the motor pave. Discussion was had on what to do. John stated work needs to be done before motor pave. No decision was made; Bob will meet with Terry from Melway and go over the roads, told John and Carl he will let them know when so if they want to be there they can.
Trustee Jean Haight – Jean asked if there is a priority list for the road department; additions to the building or pavilion first. Carl stated he is still working on the plans/specs for the building, so it is still a few months before it is even put out for bid. The pavilion will probably be first, John thinks we can get the pricing by the next meeting. At the last meeting Jean informed everyone the hot stove is going to be painting the concession stand. Jean would like to have the concession stand revamped; such has taking the overhang off before it gets painted. Bob will work on the concession stand before painting occurs. Jean received a call from a resident on Neff Road wanting to know what the flags were in her yard, when Jean looked on the commissioner’s agenda and saw that RLCWA is installing 2,700 of feet of 4” PVC pipe for a water line and wanted to know we were not informed. Carl stated he was informed of the installation and thought no one wanted to know about Rural Water. Carl stated it is a loop enclosure. Bob asked if there was any discussion on increasing the water flow since there are more customers on Neff Road now. Carl stated he does not see it increasing in size. Bob stated it would be nice to get some fire hydrants on Neff Road and would like to know when they are installing lines for water to see if a hydrant could be added. Trustee Haight made a motion to prohibit cultivators, processors and retail dispensaries of t marijuana pursuant to section 3796.29 of the Revised Code, second by Trustee Wesemeyer. Jean yes, Carl yes and John yes. Motion carried. 20170314-12