MASSIE TOWNSHIP BOARD OF TRUSTEES
December 1, 2015
The Massie Township Board of Trustees met for Regular Session at the Massie Township Government Center, 10 N. Harveysburg Road, Harveysburg, Ohio 45032. The meeting was called to order at 6:30 pm by President Darrell McKinney. Present were: Vice-President Mark Dawson, Trustee Dave Crisenbery, and Mary Wilkie, Fiscal Officer.
McKinney led the Pledge of Allegiance.
McKinney stated that he was glad to see everyone tonight. If they are there because of receiving a letter, the letter was not from the Trustees, nor the content. He got several complaints about the letter being in mailboxes which is a felony. He asked if anyone in the meeting wanted to claim writing the letter. No one claimed writing the letter.
Crisenbery made a motion, seconded by Dawson to approve the Board of Trustees Regular Meeting of November 4, 2015 with the correction of Dawson’s vote for the Special Meeting minutes. Vote: McKinney-Yea, Dawson-Yea, Crisenbery-Yea. Motion passed.
Visitors/Public:
Mayor Verga invited the community to the Christmas dinner at the Village gym on December 11 from 6PM – 8PM.
Steve Combs of 5340 Harveysburg Rd said that the water run-off from the neighboring subdivision is still a problem. It floods his property and limits his access to the back part of his property. Mayor Verga said he will call the Warren County Soil and Water Department. They are supposed to check it once a month.
Road Department- Todd Fairchild reported:
Todd talked to Warren County Engineer, Neil Tunison regarding some chip and seal on the roads that is already looking bad.
Aaron Jones has delivered two loads of salt.
Fire Department-Chief Scott Hines:
There no runs of interest last month, just a couple of squad runs.
We had a good turnout again for the Annual Chili Cook-Off. The winners were happy with the Kroger gift card awards.
The Chief requested $8000.00 for the annual honorariums. Crisenbery made a motion, seconded by Dawson to approve $8000.00 for the honorariums.
The Chief introduced Randy Daniels to the Trustees. He is a 15-year veteran from Mason. He retired from service when Mason and Deerfield Township split. He now resides in Waynesville. He let his certifications expire so he is going to start the process for certification in January. He is an engineer and can train members on the pumper as well. He has gone through the application process including the background check. McKinney made a motion, seconded by Crisenbery to approve Randy Daniels as a member of the Massie Township Volunteer Fire Department. Vote: McKinney-Yea, Dawson-Yea, Crisenbery-Yea. Motion passed.
We will be going to Lebanon for mutual aid this Saturday, December 5th for the Lebanon Horse Carriage Parade.
The Department will be covering for Wayne Township on December 12th during their Christmas party. The will be covering for us during our Christmas party also.
The Chief requested $800.00 for the annual Christmas dinner. This is about $50 more than last year. He also requested monies for gifts for the members. The Trustees stated that the gifts last year were out-of-pocket for audit compliance. Crisenbery made a motion, seconded by McKinney to approve $800.00 for the dinner. Vote: McKinney-Yea, Dawson-Yea, Crisenbery-Yea. Motion passed.
The Fire Department Christmas party is scheduled for December 19th at 7PM. There will also be a White Elephant gift exchange with a limit of $20.00.
The Chief requested $831.63 for winter job shirts. The Association has already given Wilkie $831.63 to pay for half of the cost of the shirts. Dawson requested to see the design/logo on the shirts before approving the purchase.
The Chief inquired about the lights being fixed in the meeting room. McKinney reported that the electrician will be here this Friday to fix the lights and the other areas that need addressed.
The Chief requested to purchase 10 minitor VI pagers. He provided two quotes. Dawson requested a quote from P&W for the 10 minitors since the quote was only for 5 minitors.
The Chief thanked the Fire Department members that spent Sunday cleaning the kitchen. He would also like to change out the sink and look for kitchen cabinets. Crisenbery referred him to the Montgomery County material recovery facility in Dayton that will donate the sink and cabinets to the Department.
The Chief will be having his cancerous kidney removed. He will be taking off three weeks beginning December 8th. The Officer staff will be in charge during this time.
The flyers that the Trustees wanted to pass out have been on the desk for two months. Mary and the Trustees wanted to add something to the flyer.
The Chief said that if the Trustees have questions about personnel they need to ask him directly. Ted felt uneasy about the residence question of the Acting-Assistant Chief last meeting. Dawson stated that the Chief shared the resident issue in the previous meeting and the person taking the Chief’s spot during Trustee’s meetings can be asked any question.
McKinney opened the floor for open discussion regarding the Fire Department and possible proposed levy. Sharon Fisher of Huddleson Road shared concern about a 1 mil new levy. The farmer’s CAUV taxes are doubling again next year. Crisenbery reiterated that the farmer’s taxes have quad-droupled in the last four years. Elizabeth Combs of Harveysburg Road stated that when the new subdivision being developed next to her house is finished, there will be 224 new houses. The Community will need additional taxes and a 1 mil levy is very important because of the need for emergency services. The community will also need a professional police department. Steve Combs of Harveysburg Road added that the new completed subdivision will add 450 more students to the school district which will add more tax burden on all of us. He stated he moved out here 30 years ago and did not want a subdivision next to him. Cindy Gibson of 3500 Harveysburg Road inquired about the revenue of a 1 mil levy. McKinney responded that it was approximately $34,000 and would provide coverage for an on-call program. Gibson over the course of the meeting shared that she was a member of the Clinton-Massie School Board in the past and from her experience the best way the school survived was when the schools were combined to make a joint district. Is there any support for a joint district from other areas? She stated that the Trustees need to look outside their own realm and look at a tax base joining forces with our neighbors as an option. She stated the Trustees need to guard their 1 mil renewal this fall and a new 1 mil might be a mistake that could jeopardize the 1 mil renewal. If the Trustees decide to proceed with a new levy, a very detailed letter needs to be mailed to every household explaining the needs and uses on the new levy monies. The Chief stated that Chester Township is on a different radio system and Wayne Township is not interested. It was stated that Clinton-Warren Joint Fire District uses Clinton County radio system so that problem can be solved.
Leroy Sanders of 143 South Street shared concern about the differential training levels of different departments. The Trustees stated that there would be a complete restructuring of the Department. Elizabeth Combs shared concern about the impact of the Ohio Renaissance Festival (ORF) and what type of taxes they pay to help the Community. Mayor Verga shared that the ORF pays taxes based on recreational tax base, they pay the Village an increasing amount each year by $1000 that this year is around $40,000, and they also pay vendor fees. Judy Howler of State Route 73 shared concern monies from a 1 mil levy would not help the problem of getting people to cover the Department. Wilkie was asked about balances in the General Fund and the Fire District Fund.
After much discussion and interaction with the public in attendance the Trustees are going to explore the three options for the future of the Department: millage; joint fire district; or contract. The Trustees will meet with neighboring Departments and decide the best course for the Massie Township Volunteer Fire Department .
Zoning:
There were no reports for tonight’s meeting.
TRUSTEES-Old Business:
McKinney read and the Trustees reviewed the updated Fire Department flyer requesting new volunteers. Crisenbery made a motion, seconded by McKinney to approve the flyer. The Trustees and the Chief will sign the flyer and mail it to Township residents. Kevin Martin asked if the Harveysburg Police could be trained to drive the vehicles when the need arose while they were on duty. The biggest issue is that the police officer cannot be armed while in the Fire Department vehicle so he would need a lock box for his gun. The issue was further discussed.
Charles Camp stated that since we get reimbursed from State grants (therefore cannot sign a contract) for training up to three EMT’s, any additional trained personnel could be required to sign a 2 year contract.
Nathan Funk of Clark Ave stated he would like to get the training to drive the vehicles as well as several people he knows.
TRUSTEES-New Business:
There was no new business for tonight’s meeting.
Correspondence and Announcements:
Notice of a Public Hearing from the Warren County Regional Planning Commission; vendors.
Fiscal Officer Reports:
Crisenbery made a motion, seconded by Dawson to approve the warrants. Vote: McKinney-Yea, Dawson-Yea, Crisenbery-Yea. Motion passed.
Crisenbery made a motion, seconded by McKinney to approve the financial report. Vote: McKinney-Yea, Dawson-Yea, Crisenbery-Yea. Motion passed.
The Trustees will meet December 30th at 6:30 for End-of-Year and Beginning of Year Financial Business.
As there was no other business to come before the Trustees at this time, a motion was made by Crisenbery to adjourn the meeting at 8:31 PM. Dawson seconded the motion. Vote: McKinney-Yea, Dawson-Yea, Crisenbery-Yea. Motion passed.
ATTEST: ______Mary A. Wilkie, Clerk
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Mary Wilkie, Fiscal Officer
TRUSTEES:
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