December 2004

NEWTON TOWNSHIP MINUTES – 12-09-04

            Newton Township Trustees met in regular session on Thursday December 9, 2004 at 7:00 PM at the Newton Township Fire Department.  Those in attendance were:  Herman Tipton Jr., township resident, Larry Geiger of the fire department, James C. Geyer, Charles R. Elson and Derek J. Dozer, township trustees and Bernadine E. Swingle, clerk.

            Meeting was called to order at 7:00 PM by Mr. Geyer, chairperson.

       The agenda for the meeting was approved.

            Minutes of last meeting were approved by all trustees.

            Mr. Tipton was called for the first order of business.  Tipton voiced concerns regarding drainage problems to his property as well as his next door neighbor, Mr. Peterson both of which are located in Avondale. Paul from Muskingum Soil and Water has been contacted to check this out as soon as possible.  Also, possibly the County Commissioners could be contacted to assist in financing these repairs needed. 

 7:20 PM, meeting went into executive session to discuss Personnel Issues.

             7:30 PM executive session ended.  It was noted that a Road Maintenance employee submitted his resignation as of December 07, 2004 to be effective December 20, 2004.  A special meeting will be held Thursday, December 16, 2004 at 7:00 PM for interviewing of any / all applications received by that date.

 TRUSTEES REPORTS:

            Dozer reported that a block grant has been approved for paving of streets in Avondale.  He also noted that Holbert Lane is extremely rough; needs to be graded and stoned.  He has requested this be done several times, but to date it has not been completed.

           Elson has nothing to report.

            Geyer has nothing to report; did note to Dozer that Butler Road in Avondale definitely needs to be repaired with the block grant indicated above.

            OLD BUSINESS:

            Newsletter articles are ready to go to print, possibly by the end of December.

            Bids are still being accepted on the old fire department building / leasing or rental of same will be considered. It was noted by Geyer that 2 truck bays are currently housing township equipment.  It would be possible to rent or two more bays.  There has been some interest shown for usage of the building by township residents.

            B-Jamm has once again requested payment for the last monitoring of door to door survey conducted in White Cottage in relation to water usage for drinking in the township garage area.  All three trustees agreed to same.

 NEW BUSINESS:

            Meeting dates for the first four months of 2005 were determined as follows; January 13, February 10, March 10, and April 14, 2005.  All meetings will be held at 7:00 PM at the new fire department building in the township meeting room.

            Trustees requested the clerk to contact the County Auditor to proceed with necessary negotiations to try to retrieve some of the expenses incurred in clearing the building on Limestone Valley Road.

            Geyer noted there is street light out at the entrance of the Maysville Bus Garage and needs to be reported to AEP.

            Trustees noted that the salt bin at the township garage has been upgraded and four loads of road salt will be ordered soon.

 FIRE DEPARTMENT BUSINESS:  

            Larry Geiger, assistant fire chief reported that the diesel fuel tank is currently out of service.

            The pick – up truck is currently having a snow plow installed and should be completed by Friday, December 10. 

CLERK’S REPORT:

           Liquor permits are due for renewal; there was no discussion / disagreement of same.

            A thank – you note has been received from Cub Scout Pak 132 for allowing them to use the fire department grounds for their fall wiener roast.

            A thank you has also been received from County Engineer, Loren Camp for the plaque he received from the County Township Association at the annual fall banquet.

            Price increase notices have been received from Shelly Materials and Englefield Oil Co. for the upcoming year.  Copies of same were presented to each trustee for their records.

            Results from the Levy renewal for the fire department have been received from the County Election Board.  Results revealed 1375 votes for the levy, 956 votes against same.

            Auditor of State has informed the township that due to state budget cuts, they will not be conducting the required township audit the upcoming year.  A meeting was held in Cambridge, OH to allow clerks to request up to five private CPA firms for estimates to conduct this audit.   

            Auditor of State / UAN has announced that by the end of the year 2004, all townships, villages and libraries using their services will be automatically billed $50.00 per month for hardware upkeep, this is in addition to the quarterly fees charged which are calculated according to the annual budget amount.

  All bills presented were deemed to be valid expenditures and were to be paid accordingly. 

            The next meeting will be December 16, 2004 at 7:00 PM for interviewing of any / all applicants for the township road employee position that is open. 

            The next regular meeting will be held December 30, 2004 at 7:00 PM to close the books for the year 2004.

NEWTON TOWNSHIP MINUTES – 12-30-04 

            Newton Township Trustees met in regular session on Thursday, December 30, 2004 at 7:00 PM at the Newton Township Fire Department meeting room.  Those in attendance were:

Larry Geiger and Craig Knox of the fire department, James C. Geyer, Derek J. Dozer and Charles R. Elson, Township Trustees and Bernadine E. Swingle, clerk. 

            Meeting was called to order at 7:00 PM by chairperson, James C. Geyer.  

            Agenda was approved as presented.  

            Geiger / Knox reporting for the fire department:  a new computer has been ordered for the EMS room.  Nothing further to report at this time. 

            Geyer reported that a partial lease / rental agreement for use of the old fire building at 5555 Limestone Valley Road.  For 1 year beginning 01-01-2005 Geyer also noted that the township newsletter is currently at the printers and will be distributed in the very near future.           

            Elson, nothing to report at this time. 

            Dozer, nothing to report at this time. 

            7:45 PM; trustees went into Executive session.          

            Books were accepted by all three trustees to be in order for the closing of year 2004.  

            Reorganization for the new year of 2005 included the selection of Derek J. Dozer as chairperson for the board. 

Bills presented were deemed to be valid expenditures and were to be paid as presented. 

            Next regular meeting will be held Thursday, January 13, 2005 at 7:00 PM at the meeting room at the fire department. 

            9:20 PM meeting adjourned.

Newton Township has made every effort to ensure all the information listed on this website is accurate and up to date.  This information can and may change without notice.  Meeting overviews are meant to serve as short informational updates on township business.  We can not be responsible for any inaccurate or omitted information.