Minutes: October 26th, 2010

Catawba Island Township Board of Township Trustees

Meeting Minutes

October 26, 2010


The regular business meeting of the Catawba Island Township Board of Township Trustees was called to order by chairman Gary Mortus at 7:30 p.m. in the conference room.

In attendance were Gary Mortus, Matt Montowski, William Rofkar, Karen Shaw, Dan Barlow, John Gangway, Bob Rogers, Jack DeVore, Reggie Langford, and Quintin Smith.

The Pledge of Allegiance was recited by all.

The minutes were read from the October 12 meeting of the Board of Township Trustees. William Rofkar made a motion to approve the October 12 meeting minutes as presented, seconded by Matt Montowski. All voted aye.

William Rofkar made a motion to approve and pay the bills in the amount of $33,764.74 seconded by Matt Montowski. All voted aye.

The Trustees signed a Then and Now Purchase Order for Transmissions Unlimited in the amount of $3,104.61 for repairs to the leaf vac.


Correspondence

A letter was read from the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation regarding base rate reductions.

Notification was received from The E Group, a Division of First Energy Solutions Corp., in regard to the State of Ohio Natural Gas Purchasing Program.

A letter was read from Cindy Brooks, WSOS Community Action Commission, Inc., in regard to a grant program being offered in our area for the removal of Ash Trees infested with the Emerald Ash Borer and providing a potential threat to structures and play areas.


Fire and Safety

Fire Chief John Gangway said when they took engine 222 to Midway to have the brakes looked at they ended up taking it apart and not being able to put it back together without making the necessary repairs. He said he called William Rofkar while the truck was up on the rack. A bill for approximately $700 resulted from the necessary repairs.

John Gangway said the same truck has a leaking rear main seal in the engine. He said he received an estimate from Bridgeway for $1,787 and the earliest they would be able to get the truck in for repairs would be the week of November 1. He said it is leaking a substantial amount of oil. William Rofkar said we should get the truck fixed right away. John Gangway said he would like to open up a charge account with Bridgeway to make future repairs. The Trustees agreed to opening an account with Bridgeway.

John Gangway asked William Rofkar if he had a chance to discuss the Mutual Aid Agreement. William Rofkar said he did read the agreement and didn’t see a problem with the agreement.


Maintenance

Dan Barlow said the salt shed roof was complete and he was happy with the results. He said they completed the repairs for less than half of what the estimates were to make the same repairs.

Dan Barlow said he spoke with Jim Dress of Danbury Township and they are going to go in together when ordering the Beet Juice for the roads this winter. He said by combining orders both Danbury and Catawba Island Townships will save 25 cents per gallon on the product. Dan Barlow said the company will bill the two townships separately but allow the two townships to combine the orders for the savings. He also said the two townships will alternate making the trip to Alliance, Ohio to pick up the totes of material.

Dan Barlow said he met with Todd from Barnes this week concerning the trees for mulch program. He said there seems to be an issue with who is responsible for planting the trees. Dan Barlow said his maintenance crew could plant the trees if it was going to be a hardship to Barnes. Gary Mortus said he will follow up with Barnes regarding this issue. A brief discussion took place regarding potential locations in the cemetery for planting the trees.

Dan Barlow stated they need tires for the backhoe. He said they have researched local dealers for the necessary tires and they would like to go with Severe Service on Route 6, just outside of Castalia. The Trustees agreed on Severe Service as the new vendor.

Dan Barlow said Catawba Island resident Don Williams donated a Tree Precision Milling Machine and a Delta Milwaukee Grinder to the township maintenance department with a combined estimated value of approximately $7,700. William Rofkar said he has seen the equipment and was impressed with such a valuable donation to the township. Dan Barlow said he found manuals for the machines on the internet and said he would like to purchase the books. The Trustees agreed the township should purchase the manuals.

Gary Mortus asked Dan Barlow if the final payment for administration building roof repair work could be released. Dan Barlow responded yes. Gary Mortus told Dan Barlow the trustees appreciated the work the maintenance department did putting the metal roof on the salt shed.

Police

Police Chief Bob Rogers said the new computer equipment was delivered last Friday and they are having trouble running an older system on the new computers. He said they are having one of the new computers loaded with Windows XP which is necessary to run the older program. Bob Rogers said even if the older program is not used it is necessary to maintain and access the old records. He said the new system is up and running but currently they do not have access to the old program utilized before the upgrade. He said they hope to have the old program operational by Wednesday, October 27.

Bob Rogers also talked about the road striping that was completed on Catawba Township roads on Tuesday, October 26. He said the police department received several complaints from individuals with paint on their vehicles. Bob Rogers said the paint contractor did not have any warning signs or cones out in the road to advise traffic of the wet paint. Gary Mortus said he had a conversation with the County Engineer’s office and if any further complaints are received to continue sending them directly to Oglesby out of Norwalk, the responsible contractor, so the issue stays between the complainant and the contractor.


Other Business

Reggie Langford asked if the township derived any income from the dumpster loaded with steel during clean up week and if so, what does the township do with the income. Dan Barlow stated the township gets a discount applied to the bill toward the cost of removing all the dumpsters for the week.

Bill Rofkar stated the EPA Compost Report was completed and sent in.

The Trustees agreed to advertise for a part time secretary for the township.

The Trustees agreed to advertise for a cleaning service or person to clean the administrative offices and see what kind of price quotes would be extended.

The Trustees agreed to retain Walter Wehenkel as Zoning Inspector indefinitely and not pursue further Zoning Inspector applications at this time. The Trustees agreed to review and retain the applications received for Zoning Inspector for possible future needs.

The Trustees agreed Bob Rogers should order a new chair to replace his office chair in disrepair.

Matt Montowski asked Dan Barlow to look into the water damaged tiles in the Zoning Office and in Bob Roger’s office and make any necessary repairs. Dan Barlow said he would replace the tiles as necessary.

Matt Montowski said the office carpets were cleaned and Stanley Steemer will be coming back again to work on a stain remaining just outside the conference room door. He said Stanley Steemer also gave him an estimate of $10 each to clean about 20 of the office chairs. The Trustees agreed to have the chairs cleaned.

The Trustees agreed the Eastern Stars, Woman of the Masons, could use the Community Hall at no charge to make pies. Proceeds go toward scholarships for seniors attending Danbury, Oak Harbor, and Port Clinton High Schools.

Karen Shaw said Tim Harbal from the Ohio Virtual Academy would like to use the conference room for one of his students to complete the Ohio Graduation Test. Tim Harbal and the student are Catawba Island residents and they would need use of the room for approximately two hours a day for five days. The Trustees agreed to let Tim Harbal and his student use the conference room for the necessary testing.

William Rofkar made a motion to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Matt Montowski. All voted aye.



Gary Mortus, Chairman

Karen Shaw, Fiscal Officer