Hiram Twp. – The March 1st meeting of the Hiram Township Trustees was opened by Mr. Brewer with the reading of the minutes from the February 15th meeting.
Highlights from the gathering include the announcement that the new fire truck has been picked up and “is ready to go.” Firemen are being trained on driving the truck both during the day and at night, so residents will be seeing it on the road more for that purpose.
Questions from the audience touched on the possibility of firemen being trained in traffic direction procedures during emergencies, specifically citing a recent house fire which required obstruction of the roadway for a bit of time. The response was that the sheriff’s department was in charge of traffic direction, but that the firemen will jump in if there is a shortage of help. As a helpful note in making it safer for our first-responders to do their jobs, drivers should always pay attention to their surroundings at all times, but need to be extra vigilant and aware when emergency vehicles are around. Other issues brought up included dropped 911 calls from cell phones and difficulties in transferring to the proper departments. Ms. Schulda will have the issue addressed on the agenda at an upcoming commissioners’ meeting.
In old business were updates on recycling and trash; questions about the potential 2% tax to be paid by the township to the village; the consideration of instituting bonds on those who wish to participate in fracking, to replace roads affected in Portage County when such as action is performed; and exploring the idea of getting a portable scale to start enforcing weight limits already in place for trucks on local roads.
In new business, the road crew is planning to chip-and-seal some roads; they will be looking into gathering bids for the project.
A motion was passed to adjourn into executive session for the purpose of discussing litigation and personnel legal matters with an attorney. Updates will follow as available. The next meeting will be March 15th at 7pm, Township Hall.
