In the month of September, the Vermilion Township Board of Trustees met on Wednesday, September 6, and Wednesday, September 20, for their regular meetings. The following are from the unapproved minutes of those meetings.
The Vermilion Township Board of Trustees met on Wednesday, September 6, for a regular monthly meeting.
Building and zoning update: Building official and zoning administrator Robert Kurtz reported for August the Zoning Department issued 10 zoning permits ($1,978.50) and 1 address sign ($15.00) with a total fee collection of $1,993.50; the building department issued 27 permits with a total fee collection of $8,863.00 and total valuation of work being done at $1,500,008.00.
Mr. Kurtz reported that the parking lot has been completed and the road crew will be back filling with dirt and planting grass around the edges. The new Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant signs have also been put up.
Mr. Kurtz informed the Board, the United States Census Bureau is instituting LUCA which is the local update of census addresses operation to get ready for the 2020 census. They need all jurisdictions to verify that their list of all addresses is correct. Mr. Kurtz stated the county will be heading the consolidated census bureau list for all Erie County political jurisdictions, but that he has contacted Mr. Tim King, Senior Planner Erie Regional Planning Commission and will be working in conjunction with him to verify the accuracy of the township’s address list.
Vermilion Township Fire Department update: According to Chief Frank Triana, between Wednesday, August 16 and Thursday, August 31, they responded to 19 EMS assists and one residential alarm. Between Friday, September 1 and Tuesday, September 19, they responded to 26 EMS assists, three motor vehicle accidents, one report of down wires, one structure fire, one garage fire, and one general alarm.
The department would like to thank all those who participated in the Open House. Triana stated there were great weather, great turn-out and some pretty good food, as well. Overall, it was a successful day, highlighting the fire department and what they do. The Erie County Sheriff deputies, North Central EMS, the City of Vermilion’s K-9 and Sgt. Holmes and Metro Life Flight were all in attendance to welcome the community.
Paperwork for Engine 822 has been received and there were no issues with the engine, pump or auxiliary equipment. Engine 822 was in the shop at Severe Tire this past week. The truck was pulling hard to the left when the brakes were applied. Severe did some adjustments and the truck is in good shape.
The Ford Expedition, Fire Command Vehicle 800 arrived on station Tuesday, September 5. Triana stated this will be a great asset to the department in managing incidents well into the future.
Northern Ohio Rural Water update: Mr. Larry Deem, Norther Ohio Rural Water Representative, was in attendance to report that insurance premiums went down from $2.00 to $1.00. Their board reviewed the past activity over the last year and it was presented that they had sent more than $250,000.00 in customer insurance premiums and approximately $35,000.00 were paid in claims. Their board decided to look for more economical rates for their rate payers and agreed to accept an offer from the insurance company for approximately half the premium. Customers who pay for the insurance will notice their insurance premiums have been cut in half.
Possible grants: Chief Triana is looking into the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation Safety Grant. They have four areas in which fire departments can apply for grant funds such as diesel exhaust system, extractors or washing machines, protective hoods with barrier protection in them, and washable gloves. The department meets the eligibility criteria and can apply for up to $15,000.00 without a match. The Chief would like to follow-up by getting a cost to install a diesel exhaust system and apply to the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation Safety Grant for the maximum amount of $15,000.00 for said system. The Chief will investigate further. Trustee Trinter added there is a webinar scheduled for safety grants that might be helpful to participate in.
Erie County Solid Waste Management update: On Wednesday, September 6, Kurtz stated a letter was received from the Erie County Solid Waste Management District notifying the township that they had to include an update to the 2015 Solid Waste Management Plan, which was approved the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) earlier this year, and they are requesting this amendment be approved or disapproved within sixty (60) days. The update includes: to increase the amount given to Community Grants Program from $1,000.00 annually to at least $2,500.00 annually; to promote and develop policies that favor recycled-content products by supporting private and public purchasing of recycled-content products with grants; to provide funding for the Erie County Sheriff deputy’s wages and fringes that operates the community service litter collection trailer not covered by grant funds and to provide funds to the Erie County Sheriff for investigating and enforcing litter and related solid waste laws. The combined funding for both items should not exceed $200,000 yearly. On Wednesday, September 20, the trustees passed a motion approving the Erie County Solid Waste Management District proposed amendments to the approved Erie County Solid Waste Management Plan. The amendments consist of Increasing Community Grants, Promoting and Developing Market Development Tactics and Supplementing Allowable Costs as provided by Ohio Revised Code.
Road department update: On Wednesday, September 20, road foreman Steve Young discussed placing plow wheels for sale on govdeals.com. He also suggested placing decorative stone in front of township building rather than planting grass to eliminate mowing. It was agreed stone would work as long as run-off was considered in preparing surface (411 stone with river rock on top).
Trustee Trinter asked the Road Crew what was being used in regard to spraying around poles. Mr. Lalonde stated he would check their log to be sure, but felt it was a mixture of round-up pro with 2-4-d small concentration to get rid of resistant weeds. Trustee Trinter suggested using Hyvar which lasts a little longer since round-up is losing a little of its potency. Mr. Lalonde explained that they have to be careful since they have to use spray that is resistant to plants such as corn and beans. They will be price checking for better deals on spray.
Propane contract: the trustees approved the one year 2017-2018 contract to purchase propane through the FerrellSecure Lock Plan Program at a fixed price of 1.759 per gallon for the contracted minimum 200 gallons during the term of the agreement.
vermilionphotojournalonline.com 