Windham Twp. – Windham Township Trustees welcomed Todd Peetz from Portage County Regional Planning at their most recent meeting. Peetz presented a plan to try to obtain a USDA Grant to bring broad band to the region. Lack of good reliable internet service is a problem for people trying to run businesses in the area, as the internet connections are sketchy at best. What he had presented was interesting and hopeful for the residents who can’t get good reliable internet service. After sharing the plan, he stated that all he was looking for was a commitment of two people from each entity to serve on the committee to help make broad band available.
The next guest to speak was resident Lynnea St. John. She was there on behalf of a former long-time resident related to the Belden family about obtaining a marker for their memorial tree planted almost 50 years ago. Trustees loved the idea and told her; she would need to work with Mr. Bill Isler Sr. on it. Mr. Isler is the person who handles the plaques for the memorial trees. May 2021 will mark 50 years since the tree was planted and she was hopeful the plaque would be in place by then.
The trustees approved the minutes and expenditures before moving on to roads.
In roads, road supervisor Brian Miller reported they have had to address a few issues. One was telephone cables in the way of a ditching project. They have contacted the phone company and their engineer will need to address the issue before the township can move forward with the project. They also had an issue on Gotham Road that they addressed. Miller reported that he finally got in touch with Asplundh, the tree removal company.They are the company that the electric company uses to trim or remove trees that affect the power lines. Miller directed them to the tree issues on Colton Road, and Gotham Road.
Miller presented the quote for crack sealing Frazier Road and Shanks-Downs Road from Hard Labor. After some discussion, the trustees decided to use them for the project. Miller said they’d have to do roadside mowing one more time this season.
In cemetery news, the board accepted the $1100 bid for installing a concrete catch basin, and grate at the cemetery. This didn’t include asphalt. They will contact Hard Labor and see if they want to do it and fix a problem on Bryant Road at the same time. Trustee Rich Gano asked Miller if he could rototill the cemetery section he’s been working on, so he can drag it, seed it and get the plots laid out. Miller said, he could do that. Gano said, all that was left to do was order pins and set the pins. Trustee Danny Burns suggested they each learn how to set the pins so, that in case Rich becomes unavailable, they can be set. Lastly in cemetery news, the township workers will be removing all items that violate cemetery rules starting September 1st. The rules are posted at the cemetery and on the township website. www.windhamtownship.org
In zoning, Joe Pinti reported no permits were written in the month of August. He then reported that the letters he sent out about zoning violations were received and he hasn’t heard from any of them. Trustees gave him permission to contact the prosecutor about a property that is a repeat zoning code violator. Two other property issues on Bryant Road were addressed. Another one on Bryant Road was turned over to the prosecutor. A discussion was held about solar panels. It was determined that if they are attached to the house, they need a county permit, if it’s a separate dwelling or stands alone it needs to be done at the township level.
A property owner on Bryant Road wants to divide his 57 acres up into parcels for a family compound type living. Pinti said they would need to develop a land plan and present it to Regional Planning. They also addressed high grass properties.
The township set the clean-up days as October 2nd & 3rd or until the dumpsters are full. They will not accept any tires and will be checking ID’s. The clean-up days are for the village and township residents only. The dumpsters will be located the same as last year.
A discussion was held on the broad band internet services. They decided to continue to work with the possibility of regional planning obtaining an USDA grant and will still continue to pursue other options as well.
Trustee Burn said, he has received complaints about stray and feral cats. Burns will see what can be done by contacting APL and other rescue places. A discussion was also was held on how many sick hours is one allowed to have. Is there a limit to how many they can carry over? Burns will check what the Ohio Revised Code (ORC) says and Timmons will check the handbook. There being no further business the meeting was adjourned.
