The Brownhelm Township Board of Trustees met for a regular meeting on Tuesday, January 2. The following are from the minutes of that meeting.
Zoning board: The trustees received a letter from John Murphey resigning from the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) that went into effect December 29, 2017. In new business, a motion was presented and approved to appoint Shawn Cline to fill the unexpired term, which ends January 31, 2022. From the ZBA, Jeff Hoopes reported that he will be the chairperson, Ron Zeleha will be the vice chairperson, and Debra Mastellone will be the secretary. From the Zoning Commission, Ed Clary reported that Jim Balas with be the president, Dennis Stock will be the vice president, and Ed Clary will be the secretary.
Zoning updates: Zoning inspector John Schmalz submitted three permits for barns. A zoning violation letter was sent to the Diaz residence on Middle Ridge Rd about a barn that was to be removed last May. A zoning violation letter was sent to the Denney residence on Claus Rd about running a business on residential property. A letter was also sent to the Denney residence about the number of complaints received on their property and the number of visits from the zoning inspector. A motion was presented and approved to give Lorain County Auto LLC, 30 days to respond to issues with signage and a used car lot.
Labor department update: Labor superintendent Scott Schmalz reported that the new pickup truck has been received. Schmalz asked about the sale of the old pickup; this will be addressed later. He also had costs for internet service between CenturyLink and Spectrum, and the new garage door openers have been installed. Trustee Nieding thanked Scott and his crew for the great job with snow removal.
SWAC projects: SWAC grants have been submitted for Baumhart/Whittlesey drainage and for the Gore Orphanage hill slippage.
For the Mapleview Ditch SWAC project, the residents submitted a petition to Lorain County, but the county pulled the petition due to an error in their advertising for a public viewing. The petition needs to be resubmitted for the project to move forward. A motion was made and approved withdrawing support of the effort to clean out the Mapleview Ditch and to ask the residents to resubmit their petition. Resident, Tom Rini noted that he has new pictures from the Nov 13 & 14, 2017 rains to submit with the petition.
Grants: Brownhelm Township has been awarded an OPWC grant for reconstructing Jerusalem from Sunnyside east to Claus Rd. The $175,000 project will be paid with $74,375 as a grant from OPWC, $74,375 as a loan from OPWC, and $26,250 contribution from the City of Vermilion.
Brownhelm also received the $500 MORE grant from OTARMA which was used for the upgrade in outdoor lighting.
Township minutes: From a question raised at the December 4, 2017 meeting, Marsha Funk, Fiscal Officer, responded to a resident questioning the content and timing of the meeting minutes. This issue was addressed with the Ohio Township Association executives; whom Funk was meeting with at an OTARMA Board meeting. They emphasized that minutes should not detail public comment; merely state that there was public comment. Minutes are to detail the actions of the Trustees. Minutes need to be ready for approval at the next meeting. Funk further explained that she will post the minutes on the website and forwarding them to the Vermilion PhotoJournal once they are approved.
Zero9 Solutions: Assistant Lorain County Prosecutor, Jerry Innes, reviewed the issues about the Zero9 Solutions gun range application, i.e. applicant/owner names, drawings, and noise issues. Innes and zoning inspector John Schmalz met with the Zero9 Solutions owners and attorney earlier in January 2018. They indicated that they have plans for extending the walls of the shooting ranges. Residents again reiterated their displeasure with these issues and stated that no one from Zero9 Solutions has contacted them about their concerns. Following an executive session with Innes, Leimbach reported that the Trustees have asked legal counsel to extend an invitation of Zero9 Solutions to come to an executive session at the trustees’ next meeting on February 5, 2018.
Motions: Northeim made a motion to order carpet and vinyl tile for the Township Meeting Hall from Dewey Carpet at a cost not to exceed $7,000, which was voted on and approved. The trustees also voted on and approved a motion to approve the contract with the City of Vermilion for ambulance service for 2018 at a cost of $5,448.28. Nieding made a motion to accept the OTARMA contract for 2018 at a cost of $14,655, which was accepted. Finally, Northeim made a motion to advertise for bids for the 2006 Ford F350. The bids will be opened at the February 5, 2018 meeting at 7pm and the Trustees reserve the right to reject any and all bids and to waive any informalities or irregularities. Nieding seconded the motion.
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