Nelson Twp. – Nelson Township Trustees opened the first meeting of the year with Jim Turos, Tom Matota and Joe Leonard in attendance along with Fiscal Officer J. David Finney. Prior to this meeting the trustees set an organizational meeting for 2012 and appointed Jim Turos chairman of the board and Tom Matota as the vice chairman of the board.
Chairman Jim Turos opened the meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. The minutes from the special meeting were approved with corrections. The fiscal officer presented the bills and wages totaling $6399.74, grant application for Pierce Road and a letter from Portage County Solid Waste Management looking for support for their grant for tire recycling.
The board approved the bills and wages and agreed to support the grant for tire recycling. Finney presented the application to the trustees for Pierce Road project grant. Prior to voting on it, trustee Matota made another suggestion. Matota said they could save money by just replacing the culvert instead of doing all the canal work with the waterway and it would also be finished much quicker than the county’s recommendation. Matota was concerned that the county’s plan would lower the depth of the culvert to a point that would make maintaining the culvert impossible for the township and would allow the silt to build up again and be a recurring problem. He was also concerned about the amount the project will cost. After a long period of discussion Leonard and Turos were not interested in deviating from the county’s plan for the project so they all agreed to file the application for the grant. Matota will help Finney with the specs and get the application filed.
Leonard reported that the fundraiser dinner for the food bank generated $1100 for the food bank. Leonard wanted to thank the Boy Scout Troop 4065 for helping with the dinner. They will probably hold 3-4 dinners a year for the food bank. Leonard also reported that U.S. Liquids is pulling out and the place should be vacated soon as the owner Mark Fuerst has been given an eviction notice. The trustees are still waiting on the results from the EPA on what is in the one tank at the plant that was supposed to be empty but wasn’t when the zoning inspector was at the facility late last year. The trustees and zoning inspector will re-inspect the property Friday, January 6, 2012 to see what U.S. Liquids has left behind.
Leonard updated everyone on the Pierce Road situation. The application for the grant needs to be filed; even though the grant has been approved, the township needs to formally apply for it. The township will need to obtain a permit from the Army Corps of Engineers before bidding out the job. A rough estimate for work to commence is either late March or early April.
Leonard then asked the road supervisor about whether they kept log books for maintenance and fuel consumption of the trucks. Supervisor Chuck Vanek stated “Log books are kept for maintenance but not for fuel consumption,” Leonard suggested that they keep books for both. Vanek agreed to start a log book for the fuel consumption.
Matota suggested that the road crew attend both township meetings each month and give a proposed agenda of work they plan on completing between meetings. He also stated that he had received complaints from the Amish community about the road texture in the winter. The Amish claim the roads become brittle and the horses slide off the frozen roads; they were not referring to the snow and ice, they were referring to the cold temperatures and the texture of the chip n-seal roads. Matota suggested that the township purchase sand to use so horses can get traction on the road. The board agreed to try the sand on the roads.
Vanek reported that he would like to repair the holes in the side of the truck bed but needed approval in order to purchase materials. After some discussion the trustees said he could but he needed to try several suppliers to get the best price on materials.
In zoning, Anna Mae Vanderhoven reported that they will have their day in court over the parking issue on State Route 282, she also asked when an accessory building is destroyed by fire if she could waive the fee for the building permit. Trustees agreed to waive the fee.
The board reneged on the appointment Joe Leonard to the EMS board and appointed Tom Matota to the board. Residents questioned the move and Matota said they should never have appointed anyone to any position in 2011 until the new trustee was in place in 2012. The appointment was done in 2011and Matota didn’t join the board until January 2012.
The trustees answered numerous questions about zoning issues, especially referring to the U.S. Liquids situation. Residents are angry over the situation and want the trustees to do something to ensure it doesn’t happen again. The trustees said they couldn’t; the only recourse they have is through their zoning code which is how they have been handling the situation. The residents were not happy with the answer.
The trustees meet on the first and third Wednesday of each month at 7:30 pm at the community house. More township information can be found at www.nelsontownshipohio.org
