February 2009
Newton Township Trustees met in regular session on Thursday, February 12, 2009. Meeting was called to order at 7:03 pm by chairperson James R. Smith. Those in attendance as follows: Craig Knox, Allen Deaver of the fire department; Terry Elson and Larry Taylor road employees; Derek J. Dozer, Charles R. Elson, and James R. Smith, township trustees; Bernadine E. Swingle, township fiscal officer.
Agenda was approved as presented.
Minutes were approved as presented.
Public Participation was not called for as there were no persons present with questions.
Fire Department Business was next on the agenda; Chief Allen Deaver reporting;
The church which is meeting in the building on a regular basis will be moving to a new location on March 1, 2009.
Getting a replacement levy on the May ballot was discussed at some length. Fiscal Officer was asked to follow up with necessary paper work to get this accomplished. Prosecuting Attorney Mr. “Bud” Chess has been contacted to supply necessary resolutions / papers to be completed in a timely manner. The 1st resolution was available for approval and was deemed necessary by all three trustees. A special meeting will be held at 7:00 pm on Wednesday, February 18, 2009 at 7:00 pm for finalizing necessary signatures on resolution #2.
Next item on the fire department agenda was a township stimulus package / fund raisers.
The possibility of serving breakfast at the department open to the public for a monetary donation was one of the ideas.
Maybe presenting a “Movie” night at the department with hot dogs, popcorn and soft drinks made available at a nominal fee.
Note was made that considerable damage has occurred to the spouting due to ice accumulation on the roof and in the gutters. Fiscal officer noted that two estimates are most probably needed before the insurance will become involved.
Upgrading to the gym is in progress by all walls being painted. Three have been completed and the remaining one is in progress.
EMS stats for the month of January were made available for the records and for the trustees.
Also, new credit cards for purchasing fuel at the Duke station were made available to t he fire department personnel. Those receiving cards were; Josh Bryan, Chaz Cosgrave, D. Allen Deaver, Larry Geiger, Jake Lutz, and Jeremy Yarger.
Road Report was next on the agenda; Larry Taylor road supervisor reporting.
One Scott Hudson of American Pavement has been in contact re; some road work that has not been completed by his company. Taylor inquired as to exactly which roads were in question as to completion. These roads included Rebecca, Sunset and Avalon Drive. Smith agreed to meet with Hudson and Taylor at a designated time agreeable with all parties to remedy the situation.
The Muskingum County Engineers’ office has once again been contacted to begin surveying the Thompson Run Road area.
Smith indicated there is an excessive amount of water on the road in the area of Yost road. The ditches need to be checked / opened up.
Dozer noted that Crock, Harlan, and Huggins roads all need attention – specifically during snow / icy situations. Do not hesitate to use cinders as long as they are available.
Taylor noted the gauges on the acetylene torches are not working properly. Cost to repair them is nearly as costly as replacing them new at the cost of approximately $150.00. All three trustees agreed to the purchase of new gauges.
Elson, trustee, had nothing to address at this time.
Taylor questioned the need of fire extinguishers being available in all vehicles. All three trustees agreed this was necessary and allowed Taylor to begin getting this accomplished.
Fiscal Officer asked the township employees to be a bit more specific on duties completed on their daily worksheets. Also, could Taylor please check on which companies have hauled salt water brine to the township garage and report it back to me.
Dozer addressed the road employees as the dire necessity of keeping any / all township equipment in top condition safety wise. Question as to is there anything they (employees) needed to report to the board for safety reasons. Taylor noted the John Deere backhoe needed brakes and it is his intent to repair that in the near future. The horn on the pick up is not working and back up beepers are amiss on most of the road equipment. Taylor was advised to get these situations remedied as soon as possible and that “Safety” at all times is of utmost importance.
The fiscal officer explained to the employees that no over time wages can be paid the week of a paid holiday until a total of 40 hours of work has been achieved. Question; when does the actual work week begin? Sunday night / Monday morning at 12 am / midnight is designated as the beginning of a new week.
Trustee Reports:
Dozer reported he will be re-submitting Ironspot and E. Fultonham as possibly being eligible for 2009 county block grants for re-paving needed streets.
Dozer also reported he has sent a notice to Don Madder designating the township board is not opposed to sewer expansion within the township.
Smith reported all his issues have been addressed above.
Elson had nothing further to report.
Old Business:
Job applications for possible part time hire were addressed. This issue was tabled until next meeting.
New Business:
None reported.
Fiscal Officer reporting:
A resolution designating the closure of approximately 200 yards of Dilts Church Lane which has been non-maintained was presented for trustee approval. This also indicated the landowner will be responsible to establish a cul – de – sak at his expense. The resolution will then be sent on the county commissioner’s office for further action.
It was noted the battery protector on the office computer has fried and a new one is on order. This action was approved by all three trustees.
Temporary appropriations were presented for inspection and board approval. With a few changes, the appropriations were approved as presented.
It was determined by all present that necessary funding is not available to continue to maintain chip / seal roads as has been done in the past.
Copies of the following notices were provided to all three trustees:
Notice from Maysville Water District re; coloring / odor to local water supplies.
January Grassroots Clippings
Notice from MCEO re; change of date of the annual meeting with the county engineer.
Notice /resolution has been received from the county commissioners re; the closing of vacating a portion of Spring Street in E. Fultonham as to time and dates of viewing the same.
A notice has been received from Time Warner cable re; current networks being carried by their company.
The annual Zanesville Muskingum County Health Department meeting will be held on Wednesday, March 4, 2009 at 6:30pm at Pleasant Grove U M Church.
All bills presented were deemed to be valid expenditures and were to be paid as presented.
The next regular meeting will be held March 5, 2009 at 7:00 pm at the township meeting room.
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.