February 2008
NEWTON TOWNSHIP MINUTES 02-14-2007
Newton Township Trustees met in regular session on Thursday February 14, 2008 @ 7:00 pm in the township meeting room at the Newton Township Fire Department. Those in attendance were; Erin Wood and Adam Dickerson of the Muskingum County Health Department, Troy Balderson, State Representative candidate, Larry Geiger of the fire department, Derek J. Dozer, Charles R.. Elson and James R. Smith, township trustees and Bernadine E. Swingle, township fiscal officer.
Meeting was called to order at 7:04pm by chairperson, James R. Smith.
Agenda was approved as presented with the addition of allowing Mr. Balderson time in the meeting.
Minutes were approved as presented.
First order of business went to Troy Balderson, candidate for State Representative of the 94th District. Balderson stated his agenda for the upcoming election and asked for support for his candidacy.
The Muskingum County Health Department was next on the agenda. They have a renewal levy on the ballot for the upcoming election and were requesting support of same. Dickerson noted that 01-01-07 a new type of sewage system agenda was initiated for county residents, however on 07-01-07 this law was rescinded and currently is functioning on the standing laws of 1977.
Larry Geiger for the fire department reported that all of the OSHA improvements listed under the inspection a few months ago have been completed and the list was returned to the board.
Larry Taylor, township road superintendent was next to give his report;
They have kept busy by cleaning out ditches and culverts to provide adequate drainage.
The recently installed chip / seal surfaces are breaking up real bad in many locations.
The Maysville Water Department has requested that they be called in the future for
necessary road repairs needed due to water line maintenance. They have
requested this vs. issuing bills for repairs made by the township.
Taylor has secured 2 separate “WELCOME” to Newton Township signs for approval by
the board. It was agreed to go with the sign prepared by “Sign – Pro”. The year
the township was established will be added to the existing sign presented. The
order for 10 signs will be placed by the fiscal officer with the request of adding
the establishment date. Cost of the signs will be approximately $116.00 each.
Per suggestion of trustee Dozer, the signs will be mounted with two green posts,
to be completed by township employees.
The International dump truck needs two new front driving tires. Taylor suggested
recapping both old tires to be placed on the rear of the Ford dump truck. This
was approved by all three trustees.
The purchase of a new arm mower and tractor was once again initiated for discussion.
Taylor strongly recommends not putting a new mower on the current / existing
tractor. Motion was made by Dozer to purchase the John Deere 6215 with Alamo boom mower,. Second by Elson. Smith agreed to same. The fiscal
officer will seek financing of same, Total price for both not to exceed $59,900.00
All of the improvements requested by OSHA at the township garage have been completed and the list has been submitted to the proper authorities.
Trustee Reports:
Dozer reporting; One Elton Cryer of Dun – Transportation has been in contact to alert the trustees of Thompsons allowing the storage of pipe for a new gas line on their property at the
intersection of Foxfire Rd. and State Route 22. Upon inspection of same by both
Elson and Dozer, it was noted to the company that the edges of the wood pallets
along Foxfire MUST be painted to avoid the possibility of someone driving into them
and causing damage to a vehicle.
Dozer noted he has been in contact with an AEP representative by the name of Stanley
and the tree on Axline Ave. in East Fultonham is soon to be removed by the
electric company.
An alley off Old Town Road has been requested to be opened / graded. This was
done as of today.
Dozer noted he will be going door to door the weekend of February 16 – 17 to secure
signatures for inclusion of the request for county Block Grant money.
Elson reporting; a ditch along private property on Stine Road has been completely covered by
land owner and is causing major problems with ice forming on the roadway.
He is requesting the employees attempt to get the ditch re – opened.
Smith reporting; he will secure information and get to the fiscal officer of a resident on Payne
Road that needs to have a culvert installed immediately and requests a letter of intent
be sent to this individual as well as the township culvert / driveway policy.
Thompson Run Road was once again discussed to be repaired as necessary as soon as
possible. Trustees will be meeting with Doug Davis, Muskingum County
Engineer to determine exactly the allowed width of the road. Following this
the trustees will be calling a meeting with the McConnells’ and any other
interested residents of the area to clarify exactly what the intent of the township
will be.
Old Business: nothing to report.
New Business: nothing to report.
Fiscal Officer Reports:
Copies of the following items were given to each of the trustees;
Grassroots news letter
Jarrett payments for the past year
AEP increase in billing (PUCO)
Craig Knox / EMS January reports
Notice from the Muskingum County Engineer re; new resident locations / addresses and the need of the township to keep them informed.
W-4s were presented to everyone on the township payroll to update records for 2008.
A resolution was presented for approval to obtain a new Amended Certificate to include $8500.00 grant money received into the EMS fund. Approved and signed by all trustees.
Contact has been made with the Muskingum County Engineers’ office re. the inclusion of Old Glory Road and Freedom Lane on the township inventory. We have been assured these roads are included on the inventory.
Vehicle inventory is currently being updated within the system and will be available for inspection at the next regular meeting of the trustees.
Notice has been received from Frank – Gates re; our rating with OBWC and the possibility of working our township back into a group rating situation. Dozer has agreed to check into this as the necessary steps have been taken the last 3 -4 years to allow this to happen.
Notice has been received from the Industrial Commission of OBWC that a past employee has been approved for total disability.
Contact has once again been made to PERSO re. the accident of Terry Elson Jr. during some icy situations. We have been assured we will need to pay the $500.00 deductible on the other driver's insurance and their insurance will cover the rest.
A letter has been received from OTARMA listing all the library items available for future training of safety skills etc..
The Muskingum County Township Association Banquet will be held March 29, 2008 at Coburn United Methodist Church. Time to be announced at a later time.
The annual Local Governments’ Conference sponsored by the Ohio State Auditor office is scheduled for March 27 and 28, 2008. Fiscal Officer is requesting permission to attend. This was approved by all three trustees.
Notice has been received re; the upcoming election to be held March 6, 2008 and two precincts are to be located in the fire department building.
Newly / revised appropriations for the year 2008 were presented for review and approval of the board. Discussion and review of these documents followed, some minor changes have been made and the appropriations were approved by all three trustees.
All bills were deemed to be valid expenditures and were to be paid as presented.
The next regular meeting of the trustees has been changed to March 6, 2008 due to a conflict in schedules. Notice has been posted on the township web page and on the door of the fire department.
9:10pm, 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.